Miami · USA

Overview

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Miami is different from any other city in America -- or any city in Latin America for that matter, even though it has a distinctly Latin flavor. Both logically and geologically, Miami shouldn't even be here. Resting on a paved swamp between the Everglades and the Atlantic Ocean, the city is subject to periodic flooding, hurricanes, and the onslaught of swallow-size mosquitoes.

Despite the downsides, however, Miami is a vibrant city. The Tequesta Indians called this area home long before Spain's gold-laden treasure ships sailed along the Gulf Stream a few miles offshore. Foreshadowing 20th-century corporations, the Tequesta traded with mainland neighbors to the north and island brethren to the south.

Today their descendants are the 150-plus U.S. and multinational companies whose Latin American headquarters are based in Greater Miami. For fans of international business and random statistics, Greater Miami has more than 40 foreign bank agencies, 11 Edge Act banks, 23 foreign trade offices, 31 binational chambers of commerce, and 53 foreign consulates.

The city has seen more than a decade of big changes. In the late 1980s Miami Beach was an oceanside geriatric ward. Today's South Beach residents have the kind of hip that doesn't break. The average age dropped from the mid-sixties in 1980 to a youthful early forties today. Toned young men outnumber svelte young women two to one. At night the revitalized Lincoln Road Mall is in full swing with cafés, galleries, and theaters, but it's also suffering vacancies due to rapidly rising rents, and has attracted retail chains including The Gap, Pottery Barn and Williams-Sonoma.

As you plan your trip, know that winter is the best time to visit, but if money is an issue, come in the off-season -- after Easter and before October. You'll find plenty to do, and room rates are considerably lower. Summer brings many European and Latin American vacationers, who find Miami congenial despite the heat, humidity, and intense afternoon thunderstorms.

Miami has its share of the same crimes that plague any other major city. However, the widely publicized crimes against tourists a decade ago led to the creation of effective visitor-safety programs and neighborhood police stations in high-crime areas. Patrol cars driven by TOP (Tourist Oriented Police) Cops cruise heavily visited areas. Identification that made rental cars conspicuous to would-be criminals has been removed, and multilingual pamphlets on avoiding crime are widely distributed.

The precautions have had a positive impact. In the last decade the number of tourist robberies has decreased by more than 80%. While it's still prudent to avoid crime-ridden areas, the incidents of lost tourists being robbed are so rare now that special direction signs -- with red-sunburst logos placed at ¼-mi intervals on major roads to guide tourists from the airport to major destinations such as Key Biscayne and Miami Beach -- have been taken down.

Fun here can easily drain your wallet, but look for less flashy ways to explore Miami, too. Skip the chichi restaurant and go for an ethnic eatery. Tour Lincoln Road Mall, downtown Coral Gables, or Coconut Grove on foot. Or take South Beach's colorful Electrowave shuttle, Florida's first electric transportation system, which really works for getting around traffic-clogged SoBe. Nearly 10 million tourists flock annually to Miami-Dade County and discover a multicultural metropolis that invites the world to celebrate its diversity.