From the beaches to the bars, life in the Magic City is pretty, well, magical, but it helps to know some shortcuts and tricks. Your first year after moving here is full of new experiences—learning to salsa and getting acclimatized to the humidity, for example. Once you've grasped the basics, it's time to become a master of Miami with these tips for saving cash, beating the heat and making the most of living in paradise.
1. Say no to the surge
Though we’ve been a little slow to catch on, transportation apps like Uber are changing the way Miamians get around. During peak times (think: thunderstorm), download SurgeProtector to sleuth out nearby areas where the ride-sharing service is not charging higher rates.
2. Make friends with a farmer
We all know farmers’ markets are great places to stock up on local produce without going broke at Fresh Market and Whole Foods. To help you make your shopping list, join the Urban Oasis Project Group on Facebook to get updates from the nonprofit’s passionate president Art Friedrich. Sign up for his weekly e-blast, including what’s-in-stock reports—if they’re short on lettuces, for example, substitute with red/green cabbage, curly and lacinato kale, or rainbow chard.
3. Discover the Haitian jitney
The Miami Mini Bus of Little Haiti has a fleet of modest (white and blue) vans that fly up and down NE 2nd Avenue. At less than $2 per person, they’re the cheapest way to get from the Little Haiti/Buena Vista/Design District area to downtown Miami and back. The bus passes by every 10 minutes or so—just wave to hop on. It’s especially useful during Ultra Music Festival when traffic and parking downtown is impossible; park close to the stop near Mandolin Aegean Bistro.
4. Catch up on emails en route
In addition to real-time tracking capabilities to find out when to expect your ride, Miami Beach’s free trolley services come equipped with Wi-Fi connectivity via the city’s smartphone app. In South Beach, you can go north along Alton Road, from Fifth Street to Lincoln Road, and then south on West Avenue. The route in North Beach stretches from 65th Street north to 88th Street (Surfside), and west to Normandy Isle. And stay tuned for news of a proposed Mid-Beach Trolley service. In Miami proper, the free trolley (a separate entity) also has a new app for its service through the health district and Marlins stadium area, Brickell and downtown, as well as Overtown.
5. Bounce around for bargain fitness classes
Work out on a budget at the chicest boutique studios from Boca Raton to South Miami with the recently launched ClassPass app. Choose from thousands of classes, including yoga, Pilates, dance, barre, strength training, martial arts and more. Members get unlimited access—as long as you don’t visit the same studio more than three times per month—for just $99.
6. Join a beach club
The sands of Miami Beach are public property, but the myriad hotels dotting the shoreline control much of the oceanfront real estate. Renting a lounge chair will cost you between $20 and $40 a day, depending on the hotel’s luxe factor. If you’re a regular beach bum, consider joining a club. Basic annual memberships at the rustic-chic Soho Beach House start at around $1,500 if you’re under 27 ($2,000 for the rest of us). On the bay side of South Beach, the Standard Hotel and Spa’s sublime bohemian retreat has rates ranging from $2,300 to $3,000.
7. Get a deal on the Water Taxi
Avoid traffic and turn a taxi ride into a mini cruise—board the Water Taxi Miami for one-way ($15), round-trip ($25), or on-and-off rides connecting downtown Miami with Miami Beach, Indian Creek, Fisher Island, Key Biscayne, and Coconut Grove. Want to zip from downtown Miami (Bayside Marketplace) to the Eden Roc and Fontainebleau in Miami Beach? Rides are 50 percent off for locals Monday through Thursday with a valid ID.
8. Become surf savvy
You don’t have to be Kelly Slater to use Surfline.com. Armed with data sourced by the site’s South Beach forecasters, you’ll be forewarned that at 12:52pm, you should wake up from your nap and move your base camp away from the shoreline to avoid getting soaked when high tide comes barreling in.
9. Work outdoors
If you’re going stir crazy at home or the office, the best place to work alfresco is on the veranda at the Pérez Art Museum Miami, which has stunning views of Biscayne Bay and a cooling breeze. There’s also free Wi-Fi, and self-parking in the garage is $2 per hour during regular museum hours. Admission is not required (though a walk through may stimulate your creative juices).
10. See free movies under the stars
Every Wednesday at 8pm, Miami Beach’s Soundscape Cinema Series screens movies on the 7,000 square foot projection wall in the public park adjacent to the dazzling Frank Gehry-designed New World Center. There’s no admission charge and the diverse program spans various genres and periods—look out for Oscar winner The Theory of Everything in April and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay in May.
11. Score cafecito 24/7
Get your fix of the cracklike, sweet Cuban-style espresso at these 24-hour counters: Manolo & Rene Cafeteria (281 NE 1st St), Mary Coin Laundry & Deli (2542 SW 27th Ave), and the new David’s Café Cafecito (919 Alton Rd, Miami Beach), opening this month.
12. Buy fresh-from-the-boat fish
For high-quality seafood at reasonable prices, it’s worth making a morning trek to the Miami River, where Casablanca Seafood Fish Market has been selling snapper, hogfish, swordfish, stone crabs, grouper and shrimp for 20 years. The market operates its own fishing boats, which guarantees the freshest catch—check for moist eyes, gills and skin.
13. Stock up on cut-price brews
During Growler Hour (Mon–Fri noon–1pm), Wynwood Brewing Company’s core beers are half price. Purchase empty growlers ($5 for the 32oz bottle and $10 for the gallon) and fill with La Rubia America Blonde, Pop’s Porter, and the hoptastic Wynwood India Pale Ale in WBC’s tap room to take home.
14. Have the bar come to you
Miami has an amazing bar scene, but sometimes you just don’t feel like putting on pants. If you find your drinks cupboard is dry, Minibar will deliver booze and bar supplies from local purveyors to your door in less than an hour. Clueless about cocktails? The new app lets you request cocktail recipes, expertpairing suggestions and tasting notes.