Downtown Miami

We decided to spend the night before the cruise in Miami because all the plane arrival times at Miami International that were available were at 2 PM or later (the cruise ship departs at 4 PM). But since we had never been to Miami before it was a great opportunity to explore the city, and the hotel we booked on Hotwire was only $42. The interesting thing was that Hotwire wouldn't let you know what hotel exactly it was until you paid. The hotel turned out to be the Extended Stay America in the Brickell/Port of Miami area. Check out my review of the hotel.

To get to Miami We had to take a connecting flight at Houston Bush International Airport. The airport is vast, and we had to take a bus/tram ride just to get from one terminal to the other. We arrived at the Miami Internal in early afternoon. The arrival terminal seemed really old, with low ceilings, and there was even a waiting line for the women's restroom. It's definitely not something you'd expect in a modern airport. At the luggage carousel area our bags actually came out from a different carousel than had been announced, but we were happy to get them.

Miami Beach

Next came the decision on the mode of transport to the hotel. A SuperShuttle attendant quoted me $15 per person for the transfer. I asked if they gave a AAA discount and they said they never heard of it. We took a taxi instead and it turned out to be about the same price after tip. We wanted to go to South Beach right afterwards and the taxi driver was nice enough to wait for us to check-in in the Extended Stay America hotel first. BTW all the hi-rise office buildings and condos in Miami are just an amazing spectacle. The taxi driver thinks that there is going to be an oversupply of condos there and I think he is right.

Miami beach is a beautiful and clean beach. It was paradise just being able to lay in the sand and enjoy the sound of the waves and the clear blue sky. We were able to gather some shells for souvenirs too. The beach wasn't overly crowded, but perhaps it was because a lot of people were out shopping on this Black Friday.

Ocean Dr.

After a couple hours we decided to get back on Ocean Dr and get some dinner. The restaurant competition is intense on the street- seemingly every restaurant had somebody out in front trying to solicit your business. And most of the restaurants had a 50% off the entire menu promotion. It was difficult but we finally settled on a restaurant called Fox Cafe. We shared a big platter of seafood Jambalaya which was delicious and a halibut dish that wasn't as good. Afterwards we perused the streets nearby and then headed back to the hotel via taxi for some much needed sleep!