Vibe
Downtown Miami contains lots of historical gems next to brand-new skyscrapers and architectural icons, such as Zaha Hadid’s One Thousand Museum. During the day, you can spot many professionals here, while other folks browse the malls and jewelry shops.
Bayside Marketplace is a beautiful, large waterfront gem, always brimming with tourists and locals, who shop, enjoy outdoor dining options, and dance with the live band. At night, big crowds gather at the Kaseya Center for Miami Heat basketball games and big-name concerts. The team is a 3-time and a back-to-back NBA champion, and the fans abound.
Culture buffs head to the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Miami City Ballet and Florida Grand Opera, to the Pérez Art Museum Miami for contemporary art, or to the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science. The last two venues are brand new and enhance the surrounding areas – and even include a wonderful new park by the bay with killer city views.
Fave spots
A gorgeous pedestrian walkway along the Miami River and Biscayne Bay forms the Miami Riverwalk. It starts at Bayside Marketplace, ends at the Riverwalk Metromover Station, and provides amazing views of the Brickell Key Island skyline. Bayside Marketplace is a happy place any time of the day. Take a boat tour to enjoy Miami on the water, or go wild for all the shrimp dishes at the famous Bubba Gump.
The Capital Grille is a clubby fine-dining outpost for steaks and classic American fare. Don’t miss Novikov and Komodo for unique Asian fusion flavors and upscale crowds. Head to Il Gabbiano for the waterfront Italian fare and Zuma for high-end sushi.
Things to Know
This is one of the most walkable areas in Miami, so if you like the concrete jungle with quick access to the bay, you’ll love living here. Get around easily by Metromover, a free, elevated train, connecting downtown to Brickell. Also, pay extra attention to where you rent since some areas of Downtown still await their turn for renovation and cleaning up.
The city of Miami has been investing lots of money into infrastructure development, especially along the Miami River, so this is the time to live in this up-and-coming neighborhood.
