Skip to content
Pastel art deco hotels with blue and yellow trim and café umbrellas behind a row of palm trees on Ocean Drive in South Beach, under a clear blue sky

Where to stay in Miami

Photo: Robbschultz69, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Places to stay in Miami

Add your dates above to compare prices for your stay.

About Miami

Miami splits in two: Miami Beach on its barrier islands, and the mainland city with Brickell, Coconut Grove and Coral Gables. Every area in this guide is within about 24 km of the airport by road, and parking rules change at each city line.

United States. Guide last checked .

Facts and rules

Last checked . Each fact links to its source.

Airport
Miami International (MIA), about 13 km by road from Downtown Miami and about 18 km from South Beach. The Rental Car Center is reached by the MIA Mover from the 3rd level. Source
Sales tax on a room
Florida's 6% sales tax applies to rentals of six months or less and is added to the rent, plus Miami-Dade's 1% surtax in 2026. Source
County and city room taxes
Miami-Dade adds 6% (3% convention development, 2% tourist development, 1% sports facilities). Miami Beach pays the 3% plus a 4% city resort tax instead, so the room pays 14% in all there and 13% in Miami. Surfside and Bal Harbour differ. Source
Vacation rental licence
Florida licenses a home or condo rented more than three times a year for under 30 consecutive days as a vacation rental. The 2026 statutes require the licence; no rule putting its number on listings was found. Source
Miami Beach rentals
Rentals under six months and one day are banned in single-family homes and many apartment buildings. Legal ones show the city's Business Tax Receipt and resort tax numbers in every listing. Source
City of Miami rentals
Short-term means up to 30 days. Single-family homes and duplexes in the T3 and T4-R zones are generally not eligible, and a legal operator holds a certificate of use and a state licence. Source
Parking in Miami Beach
On-street USD 4 an hour in South Beach (around the clock from Ocean Drive to Pennsylvania Avenue, 5th to 15th Street), USD 3 in most of Mid-Beach, USD 1 in North Beach; paid with ParkMobile or PayByPhone. Source
Towing in Miami Beach
Since 1 January 2026 a tow costs USD 274 plus a USD 150 administrative fee, and outside storage USD 45 after the first six hours. A renter needs the rental agreement and a letter from the rental company. Source
Entry
Citizens of the 42 Visa Waiver Program countries, among them the UK and 24 EU countries (not Bulgaria, Cyprus or Romania), can visit for up to 90 days with an ESTA. The stay cannot be extended. Source
ESTA
USD 40.27 per application (USD 10.27 if refused), valid for two years or until the passport expires. Source
Hurricane season
1 June to 30 November, with the peak around 10 September. Source
Emergency number
911 for ambulance, fire and police Source

Areas of Miami

A light blue and yellow lifeguard tower marked 14 ST on the white sand of South Beach, with a red flag flying, the turquoise sea behind and a few people on the beach
Photographed in 2018. Photo: bebatut, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

South Beach

The south end of Miami Beach, below Dade Boulevard, with the Art Deco district of hotels and apartments built between 1923 and 1943 and the pedestrian Lincoln Road. It suits a first visit built around the beach and the Art Deco streets, less so a quiet stay.

Miami airport
about 18 km
Downtown Miami
about 9 km
The beach
under 1 km

Car and parking

Street parking costs USD 4 an hour, around the clock in the Entertainment District between 5th and 15th Streets and from 9 a.m. to 3 a.m. elsewhere; city garages cap at USD 20 a day. Residential permit zones are for residents with Florida registrations, and a tow costs USD 274 plus USD 150.

The curved white Fontainebleau hotel and other hotel towers along the beach at Mid-Beach seen from the air, with a palm-lined road and a canal with boats on the right and a grey sky over the sea
Photo: InvadingInvader, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Mid-Beach

Collins Avenue from about 23rd to 44th Street, between the ocean and Indian Creek, where the Fontainebleau of 1954 stands among other oceanfront hotel towers. It suits a beach holiday a few kilometres from the South Beach crowds.

Miami airport
about 18 km
Downtown Miami
about 12 km
South Beach
about 4 km

Car and parking

Street parking costs USD 3 an hour from 9 a.m. to 3 a.m. between Collins Avenue and Indian Creek and USD 1 an hour west of it, and the 42nd Street garage charges USD 1 an hour up to USD 8 a day.

North Beach

The northern end of Miami Beach, from 63rd Street to 87th Terrace, taking in the Isles of Normandy, Biscayne Point and La Gorce, with its own trolley loop. It suits a longer or cheaper-to-park stay by the sea, further from the Art Deco district.

Miami airport
about 22 km
Downtown Miami
about 17 km
South Beach
about 10 km

Car and parking

Street meters cost USD 1 an hour from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., the lowest rate on Miami Beach, paid by plate with ParkMobile or PayByPhone.

Downtown Miami towers and a low white arena along the palm-lined waterfront, seen across the blue water of Biscayne Bay under a blue sky with thin clouds
Photo: P. Hughes, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Brickell and Downtown

Miami's financial district of towers south of the Miami River, with Downtown and Bayfront Park across the river. It suits a city stay in a hotel tower or apartment building, with the free Metromover and Metrorail for trips without the car.

Miami airport
about 13 km
Bayfront Park
about 3 km
South Beach
about 10 km

Car and parking

City of Miami street parking is paid by plate through the Miami Parking Authority's ParkMobile and PayByPhone apps (via GetCar), at rates that could not be verified. The Metromover is free and Metrorail costs USD 2.25 a ride.

Aerial view of Coconut Grove, with towers among dense trees, sailboats moored in the bay and marinas along the shore, and the Miami skyline far in the distance
Photographed in 2019. Photo: Anthony Quintano from Mount Laurel, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Coconut Grove

The oldest continuously inhabited neighbourhood of Miami, on Biscayne Bay south of Brickell, with marinas on the bay; locals count it among Miami's greenest areas. It suits a quieter stay on the mainland, on the bay and with two Metrorail stations.

Miami airport
about 12 km
Downtown Miami
about 10 km
Coral Gables
about 5 km

Car and parking

City of Miami street parking is paid through the Miami Parking Authority apps (via GetCar). Metrorail stops at Coconut Grove and Douglas Road, and parking at a Metrorail station costs USD 4.50 a day.

A tall cream-coloured tower with a domed top rising behind palm trees at a street corner in Coral Gables, with shops and offices on either side
Photographed in 2021. Photo: Sharon Hahn Darlin, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Coral Gables

A separate city south-west of downtown Miami, planned with a Mediterranean theme and strict zoning, home to the University of Miami. It suits early flights, a calmer base and anyone who wants the closest area to the airport.

Miami airport
about 7 km
Downtown Miami
about 10 km

Car and parking

City garages charge USD 1 per 24 minutes up to USD 18 a day; street meters cost up to USD 3.50 an hour and city lots up to USD 4, enforced every day from 9 a.m. to midnight.

A cluster of palm trees on white sand beside a low seawall at Cape Florida on Key Biscayne, with the blue bay and small buildings on stilts in the distance
Photo: Wilfredor, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Key Biscayne

A village on its own island south-east of Brickell, next to Crandon Park's two-mile beach and Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park. The county says Crandon's offshore sandbar protects swimmers from a crashing surf. It suits a family beach stay away from Miami Beach.

Miami airport
about 24 km
Downtown Miami
about 16 km
Crandon Park beach
about 3 km

Car and parking

The tolled Rickenbacker Causeway is the only road onto the island, and the county publishes no toll amount. Crandon Park charges USD 7 plus tax to park from Monday to Thursday and USD 10 plus tax from Friday to Sunday.

Guides

Questions

Which part of Miami is best for a first visit?

South Beach, for the Art Deco district and the beach, about 18 km from the airport by road. Brickell and Downtown suit a city stay with the free Metromover, and Coral Gables is the closest area to the airport, about 7 km away.

What taxes are added to a hotel room in Miami?

In most of Miami-Dade County, 13%: Florida's 6% sales tax, the county's 1% surtax and 6% in county tourist taxes. In Miami Beach the total is 14%, because the city's 4% resort tax sits on top of a 3% county convention tax. They apply to stays of six months or less.

Are vacation rentals legal in Miami Beach?

Only in some places. Rentals shorter than six months and one day are banned in single-family homes and in many apartment buildings. A legal one shows the city's Business Tax Receipt number and resort tax number in its listing, and the city has an online lookup.

How much is parking in Miami Beach?

USD 4 an hour on the street in South Beach, USD 3 in Mid-Beach and USD 1 in North Beach, with city garages capped at USD 20 a day. A tow costs USD 274 plus a USD 150 administrative fee.