Helen Mar Hotel
Buzz words . . . Miami Beach, a place everyone wants to be in the winter. It never snows, and the sun shines mostly all the time. Hush, don’t tell I said it, but Miami Beach is New York City South. Miami Beach isn’t even little New York—it’s big, with the arts, music, theatre, famous restaurants and some pretty interesting history. What else? Fantastic shopping, from the outlets to the elite. It’s all here, so is the traffic, the people and the tourists.
Miami Beach has been one of America’s pre-eminent beach resorts since the early 20th century. In 1979, Miami Beach’s Art Deco Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. 
The Art Deco District is the largest collection of Art Deco architecture in the world and comprises hundreds of hotels, apartments and other structures erected between 1923 and 1943. Mediterranean, Streamline Moderne and Art Deco are all represented in the District. The Historic District is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the East, Lenox Court on the West, 6th Street on the South and Dade Boulevard along the Collins Canal to the North.
Each December, the City of Miami Beach hosts Art Basel Miami Beach, one of the largest art shows in the United States. Art Basel Miami Beach, the sister event to the Art Basel event held each June in Basel, Switzerland, combines an international selection of top galleries with a program of special exhibitions, parties and crossover events featuring music, film, architecture and design. Exhibition sites are located in the city’s Art Deco District, and ancillary events are scattered throughout the greater Miami metropolitan area.
Frank Gehry’s New World Center
Miami Beach is home to the New World Symphony, established in 1987 under the artistic direction of Michael Tilson Thomas. In January 2011, the New World Symphony made a highly publicized move into the New World Center building designed by Canadian American Pritzker Prize-winning architect Frank Gehry. The new Gehry building offers Live Wallcasts™, which allow visitors to experience select events throughout the season at the half-acre, outdoor Miami Beach SoundScape through the use of visual and audio technology on a 7,000-square-foot projection wall.
I remember Miami Beach long ago in the 1960’s when it was a sweet small beach town. Since then, the town has grown up into a mega metropolis.
Have you experienced Miami Beach?
Another place I’d love to visit, but wouldn’t want to stay long, LOL. I’m much more of a country girl than a city goer. Thanks for sharing the highlights! I had no idea Miami had so much to offer.
Paula, so good to hear from you. It is quite a zoo down there around the beach. My daughter said, “get me outta here.” Fortunately, our Villa was in Miami, much quieter in the Doral area. It is just getting built up there. Everyone wants to escape the cold and the snow. Florida is really the only place on the USA mainland that you can escape to. And everyone does. It is so crowded. It was tough getting our reservations because the state of Florida was sold out. Even some of the more northern areas like Jacksonville and Daytona were busy. We had made our plans a year ago. Then when Linda accepted our invitation, we had to make some changes. It was tough. But we did it, and it was all good. Thanks for your comment.
Even though I lived in Florida for over 20 years, I only visited Miami Beach once. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to experience much of the sights because I was 7 months pregnant with my twin boys!
Being a New York native, I can agree wholeheartedly with your comparison, Gail. From what little I did experience, Miami Beach seems to offer most everything any New Yorker would want, minus the minus-zero temps!
Thanks for sharing on this COLD, wintery day.
Frances, thank you for your comments. It had all the sights and sounds of New York. Actually, I spent many years visiting my folks who lived there from 1955 to 2004. Long time Florida residents. So I took my kids when I visited. We had a cousin who owned one of those historic hotels. She had cabanas at a couple of the hotels as well. So we were drowned in luxury, the beach, shopping and sunshine. You can still have that and more. Fun!