How To See Miami (And More) In A Weekend

Flying into Orlando, but don’t want to do the typical Disneyland & Universal Studios route? Then you’re in the right spot! This was our itinerary for a weekend in Miami, but we made the most of our drive to and from the airport too! I traveled with one of my girlfriends, we rented a car, and we jammed as much as we could into our 3(ish) days there.

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We decided to go with the Go Miami Card in order to get our money’s worth in Miami. We did the 2 day unlimited pass for $109 and ended up saving money by doing it like this. Travel Trick – The two days do not have to be consecutive so for example… don’t buy a 3 day pass if you’re only going to be visiting the places on the first and third day like us!

Breakdown Without The GoCard: $139.44 per person

• $21.45 – Everglades Airboats
• $22.00 – Vizcaya Museum
• $25.00 – Biscayne Bay Cruise
• $37.00 – Lion Country Safari
• $33.99 – Wonderworks

Day 1: Flight Arrives In Orlando

Sawgrass Recreational Park Everglades Airboat Adventures – This stop is on your way to the city, a little less than an hour from Miami. Taking an airboat around the Florida Everglades was one of the top things I wanted to do when I was there so of course we made it our first stop! It was a hot day but there were thunderstorms out in the distance. The clouds made for some intense scenery as we waited to find out if we would get to take one of their boats out.

They ended up putting all tours on hold because of the lightning, but told us they would resume again shortly. We waited in their air conditioned gift shop and sure enough they started back up in no time. The cool air as we skipped across the everglades was wonderful and after a short ride we found a spot to go alligator hunting. Our driver spotted one and as we crept up to him, he wasn’t startled by us at all. They’ve gotten used to boats in the area and will swim right up to the side! Talk about an unnerving feeling to be that close to such a large, powerful reptile. We also got a glimpse of turtles while we were out there!

After we headed back, we visited their exotic wildlife exhibits that housed iguanas, snakes, and of course more alligators. Make sure to bring a little extra cash here, as their gift shop and souvenirs out at the exhibits are unique and might make a great gift for someone. If you’re an adventurous eater, make a stop at their Gator Grill to try the grilled gator bites. I assumed I would find these all over once we got into the city, but that was not the case and I have to say I’m a little disappointed I didn’t get a chance to try these when I was there. Guess I’ll have to go back!

Vizcaya Museum and Gardens

Our next stop was a unique twist on visiting Miami. Vizcaya is a European-inspired estate and is a National Historic Landmark that has 34 decorated rooms filled with European art and inspired by Italy.

My travel partner wants to someday travel to Italy so she LOVED Vizcaya’s Italian vibe. There are rooms inspired by Venice, Milan, and other beautiful Italian cities.

Outside, the ten acres of gardens are a breath of fresh air compared to the bustle of the city. Explore the area filled with elaborately pruned hedges, beautiful fountains and sculptures.

Take a walk out toward the back of the property to enjoy the view out over the water. Vizcaya was designed to be noticed from the water, so the facade on the bay side is an eye-catcher as well! Everywhere you go on this property brings a different surprise, so don’t be surprised if you spend more time here than you had originally planned.

Biscayne Bay Sight Seeing Cruise

Our last stop for the day was a short cruise. The cruise takes you around Biscayne bay and the Venetian Islands. Make sure to grab a seat closer to the captain if you want to hear what he’s saying. We grabbed one toward the front of the boat for the views and couldn’t hear a thing. Not a big deal until you reach the vacation houses of the rich and famous on Star Island. The mansions have belong to stars such as Shaquille O’Neil and Rosie O’Donnell. If you’re lucky you could catch a glimpse of the famous in their back yard soaking up the Miami sun, or getting their boat ready to launch. The houses we drifted by were each so different and it was fun to see where the rich and famous vacationed!

 Day 2 – Snorkeling & South Beach

Snorkeling In The Keys

We didn’t have time to drive the entire 127 miles of the Overseas Highway, so we opted for a snorkeling tour in Key Largo, the closest Key. The drive from Miami to Key Largo during sunrise was something neither one of us will ever forget. Our excitement grew with every ray of sun that peeked over the horizon and painted the sky a brilliant pink, purple, and orange.

We launched out of John Pennenkamp Coral Reef State Park’s port and chose to do the longer 4.5 hour snorkeling tour. Make sure to eat beforehand or bring food with you for this tour as they do not serve anything on the boat. They took us out on a beautiful sunny day to the coral reef that is over 70 nautical square miles.

As we swam over the reef, there were vibrant fish and exotic looking creatures poking out from every crevice. We even got to see a few stingrays before they glided out of sight. The Elkhorn Coral was pretty spectacular too, and we managed to find lots of little creatures hiding in it as we explored.

We went snorkeling at three different sites around the reef, the last site being the home to the famous Christ of the Abyss statue. It is the third bronze casting of sculptor Guido Galletti’s “Il Cristo Degli Abissi,” found in the Mediterranean Sea, and is very popular for snorkelers and divers. It’s fairly close to the surface of the water so bring an underwater camera and dive down for a quick picture! Just be sure not to touch the statue, as it has fire coral growing on it, yikes!

By the time we got to our third snorkeling site, my travel buddy and I were pretty tired from fighting the ocean and I was feeling a bit queasy. Maybe the 4.5 hour tour was a little long for us, but I still think it was worth it. We just hopped back on the boat and after I got re-hydrated, I felt a little better. We laid out in the Key Largo sun and enjoyed being miles out on the open water. Couldn’t have asked for a better morning… this was the life! 

Travel Tip – We ate at Jimmy Johnson’s Big Chill after our long day out at sea. It was in Key Largo, not too far from where we snorkeled. It has a sports bar and also a main dining area with huge windows overlooking the water. We got a table right next to the windows, so the views were amazing. We even went out back and put our toes in the water one last time for the day.

South Beach

One thing we couldn’t miss out on was South Beach. We didn’t have any interest in the nightlife this trip, but we wanted to experience the vibe of South Beach regardless. We headed down to Seafront Ocean Drive where we found tons of people partying, playing beach volleyball, and shopping at the endless Miami boutiques. We found a place to park our car and started walking. Let me tell you, the characters we saw showboating with their cars and loud music, hollering at people walking down the street, and sporting their *ahem* bold outfits were all part of this crazy scene you would definitely expect from South Beach. It was fun though! We hopped from shop to shop checking out the amazing bikinis, the trendy clothes, and of course the tourist shops with souvenirs – I got my husband a bikini booty magnet for the fridge! He enjoyed it of course! Haha. While we decided to opt out of grabbing a drink, there were many places catering to the party scene, including Clevelander’s pool and patio set up that looked like somewhere I would definitely want to rage as the night went on. We then headed across the street to the sandy beach, but not before stopping and watching the beach volleyball players put on an impressive show for us. The shore was lined with sunbathers and more beautiful people living their best life. We spent some time strolling the beach, then decided to head back to the hotel and enjoy a good night’s sleep before our last day of adventure in Miami.

Day 3 – Flight Leaves Out Of Orlando In The Late Afternoon

Wynwood Walls

Whether you’re into urban graffiti, or just looking for a free activity for your budget trip, you have to visit this outdoor gallery. It’s basically an outdoor museum of murals from artists all over the world. Every corner you turn reveals a new illustration up on the outer wall of a building, each one different from the next. I loved seeing the different artistic perspectives. I was drawn to some for their beauty, but I was also drawn to the abstract ones for their uniqueness. Some were funny, some were sad, some were moving, and some were political… and artists change them from time to time too. When we were there we sat at watched one artist creating a brand new masterpiece for awhile. It was amazing to see the artist’s mural in it’s beginning stages and the techniques he was using to paint it on such a large scale.

We spent about an hour getting lost driving around, stopping at murals we liked, and taking TONS of pictures. Make sure to support the artists by checking out the Wynwood Walls shops too! This was definitely a cool highlight to our trip that I’m glad we didn’t skip.

Lion Country Safari

If you had told me I was going to go on a Safari when I visited Florida, I would’ve told you that was crazy. Then on our Miami Go Card was the the Lion Country Safari and it just happened to be a short detour on our way to the airport. We had some time to kill and I ended up loving it! You get to drive your car through over 900 animals that are roaming free around you. They don’t allow you to open your windows but we were so close to a rhino that I could’ve reached out and touched it!

There were also animals from all over the world like water buffalo, wildebeests, ostriches, and Ankole cattle. Then we headed over to the giraffe exhibit where we got to get up close and personal and even feed them! There are lots of things to do here for kids too, like mini golf, the animal theater, or the boat ride on their Safari Queen. If it’s hot outside, check out the Safari Spash water sprayground! I never would’ve thought to do something like this in Florida but I actually had a great time here even as an adult. It’s the closest thing to an African safari without the long plane ride!

Wonder Works – Orlando

This stop is more geared for kids, but again, it was on the way to the airport and we had a few extra minutes to spare. Oh and have I mentioned I love getting the most out of my vacations?! My travel buddy and I flew into the parking garage, speed walked to the entrance, and got into the short line to enter. Their exhibits are all hands-on, mind-benders, or experiences such as the hurricane simulator that we got blown away in! They have a life size Lite-Brite, a giant piano you play by walking on it, a virtual sports room and so much more. As a part of the All-Access Pass you get with the Go Card you can also do the glow-in-the-dark ropes course or laser tag! If you’re feeling like hanging out for a bit, make reservations for their Magic Comedy Dinner Show where you’ll enjoy pizza, beer, wine, and a ton of audience participation. The both of us are kids at heart so we had fun here, but if you aren’t a fan of kids sprinting all around you, you may want to skip this stop.

We loved our little mini vacay from Orlando to Miami and all the stops in-between! Leave a comment below about some of your favorite parts of Miami!