A week in Miami is not unlike watching an episode of, say, Access Hollywood -- with a little CNN thrown in for good measure. Miami: the city to which Britney Spears flees when things aren't going her way, where Tom Cruise took Katie Holmes to celebrate her never-ending 27th birthday, where the paparazzi camps out for days hoping to catch a glimpse of something or someone fabulous, where former President Bill Clinton kibitzes with modeling agency executives at St. Tropez-ish beach clubs, and where Janet Reno throws a politically driven dance party at a South Beach nightclub. And that's just a small sampling of the surreal, Fellini-esque world that exists way down here at the bottom of the map. Nothing in Miami is ever what it seems.
What used to be a relatively sleepy beach vacation destination has awakened from its humid slumber, upped its tempo, and finally earned its place in the Blackberries and iPhones of cutting-edge jet-setters worldwide -- but don't be fooled by the hipper-than-thou, celebrity-drenched playground that is South Beach. While the chic elite do indeed flock here, it is surprisingly accessible to the average Joe, Jane, or José. For every Phillippe Starck-designed, bank-account-busting boutique hotel on South Beach, there's a kitschy, candy-coated Art Deco one that's much less taxing on the pockets. For each Pan-Mediterranean-Asian haute cuisinerie, there's always the down-home, no-nonsense Cuban bodega offering hearty food at ridiculously cheap prices.
Beyond the glitzy, Us Weekly-meets-beach blanket bacchanalia, Miami has an endless number of sporting, cultural, and recreational activities to keep you entertained. Our sparkling beaches are beyond compare. Plus, there's excellent shopping; nightlife activities including ballet, theater, and opera; as well as the celebrity-saturated hotels, restaurants, bars, and clubs that helped make Miami so famous.
