If we’re looking for classic South Florida vacation vibes, there’s no place we’d rather be than Ocean Drive in Miami Beach. This (in)famous road stretches through South Beach between 1st Street and 15th Street. From its white-sand beaches to all-nighters with cocktails in hand, we just love adding this world-famous street to our itinerary every time we visit Miami.
Our favorite thing to see on Ocean Drive? It’s colorful Art Deco architecture, of course! We always love strolling here to imagine ourselves in Miami circa the mid-19th century, popping into buildings we recognize from movies and TV shows like Scarface, Bad Boys, and Miami Vice. Today, these historic Art Deco buildings even hide some of our favorite cafes, restaurants, clubs, and resorts in South Beach.
Ready to experience Miami Beach’s most iconic street? Dig deep into Ocean Drive with this complete guide, including our recommendations for what to see & do, where to eat & drink, and where to stay!
What to see & do along Ocean Drive
Lummus Park
Wedged between Ocean Drive and the Atlantic Ocean, the iconic Lummus Park is one of our favorite hangout spots in Miami Beach. This famous urban park stretches from 5th Street in the south to 14th Place in the north and is the perfect place to start your adventure.
Feeling a burst of morning energy on your holiday? We’d recommend waking up before dawn to be in Lummus Park just in time to catch one of South Florida’s most epic sunrises.
After the sunrise, we always like to take a stroll on the urban oasis’s paths alongside locals up for an early morning jog or bike ride in perfect Miami weather. (Or, if you’re looking for an early-morning pump, we challenge you to show off the pipes with some pull-ups or muscle-ups at Muscle Beach at 9th Street!)
Lummus Park is also one of our favorite places to relax when we visit Miami Beach. If you want to launch a relaxing beach day, we’d recommend renting a beach chair and umbrella to chill on the shoreline. Work on your tan, cool down by swimming in the Atlantic Ocean, or challenge your family & friends to a game of beach volleyball.
If you time your visit to Miami just right, you can also catch one of the special events Lummus Park hosts throughout the year. After talking to locals, we’ve learned that Art Deco Weekend, Art Basel Miami Beach, and the South Beach Wine & Food Festival are annual local favorites.
(We’ll be sure to try to fit one of these on our next trip to Miami!)
Art Deco Historic District
Now onto our favorite activity in the area! Whenever we find ourselves in Miami, we love the chance to step back into the 1920s and 1930s with a jaunt through Miami Beach’s Art Deco Historic District.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979, the area sprawls between 5th Street and 23rd Street in South Beach. Many of the buildings we’re most enamored with are located on Ocean Drive, Collins Avenue, and Washington Avenue.
We love walking through the Art Deco Historic District to try and spot the over 800 historic Art Deco buildings that represent the finest examples of this unique and colorful architectural style in the United States.
In fact, on our first visit, we learned that Miami Beach has the largest collection of Art Deco architecture in the entire world! Unsurprisingly, these iconic streets have appeared in many Hollywood movies, including Bad Boys, The Birdcage, and Scarface.
We were able to learn all about the style in the Art Deco Museum & Welcome Center, run by the Miami Design Preservation League. We’d highly recommend hopping onto one of the daily two-hour walking tours of the Art Deco District. On the tour, we learned all about Miami Beach’s distinct Art Deco, Mediterranean Revival, and Miami Modern (MiMo) architectural styles—and how they got their start in the city.
Not into tours? You can also explore the style on your own along Ocean Drive. A few of our own favorites along the strip that caught our eye include the neon-studded Beacon South Beach Hotel, Mango’s Tropical Café, and Colony Hotel.
We also enjoyed combining a little Art Deco sightseeing and enjoying the nightlife with a couple of drinks at the more subdued Clevelander South Beach Hotel and Bar.
(To be honest, we’re a tad too old for the whole Miami clubbing scene, but this legendary bar is open early enough to sneak in some cocktails before the real party kicks up.)
Now, for the icing on the cake. If you want to see the Miami Beach Architectural District at its most opulent, we’d recommend checking out the Villa Casa Casuarina.
Once known as the Versace Mansion, the famed villa of fashion icon Gianni Versace is one of the most stunning buildings we saw in Miami Beach, and an iconic example of the palatial Italian Mediterranean Revival style.
We’ve seen this architectural style numerous times on our travels through Europe, but to see it in Miami Beach was something else. We’d say it’s worth a gander!
BouYah Watersports
No matter where we’re visiting, if we’re by the water, we look for ways to get on it. And for a little excitement on the water in South Beach, our top pick is to check out BouYah Watersports in Lummus Park to see what’s on the agenda!
With several locations around Miami Beach, this local outfitter gets our vote for its exciting water activities that’ll add a little zip to your Miami itinerary.
While it’s not our style, you can spike the adrenaline by renting a jet ski at BouYah Watersports to ride wild Atlantic waves. Or, for a more relaxed experience—and more to our own liking—you can paddle around the Miami Beach shoreline on a kayak or paddleboard.
South Pointe Park
Although it’s technically on Washington Avenue, South Pointe Park lies just steps from the southern fringes of Ocean Drive. We think it’s well worth the short walk to this cool park, located at the southern tip of Miami Beach. When we arrived here, we discovered a multitude of fun activities and attractions for visitors.
One of our favorite activities in Miami was to meander along the walking paths of South Pointe Park to gaze upon dramatic views of the beautiful shoreline of South Beach, Fisher Island, and Downtown Miami.
Although it’s not the type of activity we set out to do on vacation, you can try your luck fishing at South Pointe Pier, jutting 450 feet into the Atlantic coast. (Even if you’re just admiring the views, we’d say the pier is worth a visit.)
If you need to cool down, dip your toes in the crystal-clear water at South Pointe Park Beach. We noticed a ton of amenities at South Pointe Park Beach—now, one of our favorite beaches in Miami—including restrooms, outdoor showers, and a splash pad.
All the South Beach sightseeing got your appetite roaring? Although we didn’t get a chance to try it, locals we met recommended savoring some mouth-watering steak and fresh seafood at Smith & Wollensky, cocktail in hand, as the sun dips below the city. (Sounds good to us!)
Marjory Stoneman Douglas Beach Park
We thought that was it for parks along Ocean Drive. Then we spotted this little gem! Located in South Beach’s affluent South of Fifth (SoFi) neighborhood, Marjory Stoneman Douglas Beach Park is a quiet, family-friendly alternative to bustling Lummus Park and South Pointe Park. Thanks to the park’s laid-back vibes, we’d recommend checking this out if you’re traveling with children in your group.
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Set the kids loose at the playground or grab a seat on a bench to read a book under the shade of palm trees. When you’re tired of lazing around Marjory Stoneman Douglas Beach Park, hit the waves on the beach. It’s one of the quietest stretches of sand around South Beach that we were able to dip our toes in.
Where to eat & drink
We don’t think there’s a better place to start digging into the South Beach culinary scene and food culture than Ocean Drive. The stretch is home to some of our favorite restaurants in Miami Beach. We’ve found a mash of nearly all our favorite cuisines along the strip, from delicious local fusion to international favorites.
Seafood fans can’t miss A Fish Called Avalon (700 Ocean Dr), a local favorite that’s decked out in the classic Art Deco style we’d come to love while visiting the city. Gobble down inspired seafood dishes like macadamia-crusted snapper and sesame-seared ahi tuna to the soundtrack of nightly live music.
We’d also vouch for chomping down the fresh Asian and international fusion appetizers at The Sandbar By Georgios (425 Ocean Dr) to beautiful ocean views with a tropical cocktail in hand.
Or drool over handcrafted “fresh-from-Japan” sushi at the cozy Azabu Miami Beach (161 Ocean Dr), located in the Marriott Stanton South Beach Hotel. (A fantastic place to stay as well, if you ask us!)
We can’t help but be reminded of Miami’s Latin and Cuban flair when stopping in for a meal at Havana 1957 Cuban Cuisine Ocean Drive (1410 Ocean Dr). Sure, we found this popular South Beach restaurant—modeled after a 1950s Havana restaurant & rum bar—a little touristy. But we can’t fault it for its delicious combo of Cuban food and an endless variety of mojitos, which were some of the finest we tried in the area.
Looking for the classic South Beach beach club vibe? While it’s not quite our scene, locals we met recommended dressing to the nines and slinking over to Nikki Beach Miami Beach (1 Ocean Dr). Open for almost a quarter century, this upscale beachside haunt in SoFi is a Miami Beach favorite. Enlighten the taste buds with its global menu, spun with fresh local ingredients, while sipping classic and signature cocktails.
Or, for a less-refined beach bar experience—and, truthfully, more to our own style!—skip over to Wet Willie’s (760 Ocean Dr). We can’t help but love the world-famous frozen daiquiris at the South Beach location of this renowned party bar chain. (With quirky names like Attitude Adjustment, Call-a-Cab, and Shock Treatment, how could we not love it?)
If you’re looking for more eating and drinking options, we’d also recommend taking a journey north of the main thoroughfare to Lincoln Road. Lined with restaurants, bars, and boutique shops, Lincoln Road is another one of our favorite destinations in Miami Beach for eating and shopping, and one of the city’s coolest areas for locals and travelers alike.
Where to stay
It’s the city’s most iconic street. So, it should be no surprise that Ocean Drive is one of our top choices for where to stay in Miami! The best hotels on Ocean Drive are some of the finest we’ve seen in Miami, ranging anywhere from budget-friendly guesthouses to 5-star luxury hotels and resorts.
The Local House
Stay on Ocean Drive in style by spending your nights at The Local House. We love the spacious, colorful rooms at this boutique-style hotel. It also offers guests a prime location along the main strip at a reasonable price for the area. We can’t think of a better way to end a day of sightseeing than by cooling off with a dip in the rooftop pool and an evening eating tapas at the on-site restaurant & lounge.
Marriott Vacation Club Pulse, South Beach
Need a homier vibe for your South Florida vacation? We’d recommend a stay at the Marriott Vacation Club Pulse. The studios & suites at this resort feature kitchenettes for the full self-catering experience. Our only gripe? There’s no pool at the property. But, then again, it’s just steps from the shores of South Beach.
Prime Hotel Miami
With its rooftop sun terrace and outdoor pool, the Prime Hotel Miami is one of our favorite hotel choices along beautiful Ocean Drive. We can hardly think of a better way to end the evening than by sipping a cocktail on the private balcony to lovely views of the SoFi neighborhood.
The Betsy Hotel, South Beach
Dating back to the 1940s, the legendary Betsy Hotel is our top-rated Ocean Drive hotel for luxury travelers. We love the sophisticated modern rooms and the hotel’s slate of luxurious amenities, including direct beach access, a rooftop pool, a library, and several on-site restaurants. It’s the perfect spot to enjoy relaxation along the coastline and soak up the natural beauty in this little slice of paradise.
The Villa Casa Casuarina
Craving the ultimate in Miami Beach luxury? We’d recommend splurging a night at The Villa Casa Casuarina. This boutique hotel occupies the former Versace Mansion. With its opulent Mediterranean Revival architectural style, this 19,000-square-foot villa is one of our favorite buildings in the area. Before you get too excited, we must warn you: There are only ten luxurious rooms here; be prepared to pay a hefty premium.
