Boating and Sailing in Miami and Miami Beach

Boating, whether on sailboats, powerboats, luxury yachts, Wave Runners, or Windsurfers, is a passion in greater Miami. The Intracoastal Waterway, wide and sheltered Biscayne Bay, and the Atlantic Ocean provide ample opportunities for fun aboard all types of watercraft.

The best windsurfing spots are on the north side of the Rickenbacker Causeway at Virginia Key Beach or to the south at, go figure, Windsurfer Beach. Kitesurfing adds another level to the water-sports craze. The shallow waters off the parking lot in Matheson Hammock Park are like catnip for local kiteboarders. They also blast off from 87th Street in Miami Beach at North Shore Open Space Park.

Marinas

Haulover Marine Center (15000 Collins Ave., north of Bal Harbour, Miami Beach, 33154. 305/945-3934), which has a bait-and-tackle shop and a 24-hour marine gas station, is low on glamour but high on service.

Near the Art Deco district, Miami Beach Marina (MacArthur Causeway, 300 Alton Rd., Miami Beach, 33139. 305/673-6000. www.miamibeachmarina.com) has plenty to entice sailors and landlubbers alike: restaurants, charters, boat rentals, a complete marine-hardware store, a dive shop, excursion vendors, a large grocery store, a fuel dock, concierge services, and 400 slips accommodating vessels of up to 250 feet. There's also a U.S. Customs clearing station and a charter service, Florida Yacht Charters. Picnic tables along the docks make this marina especially visitor-friendly.

Busy Bayshore Landing Marina (2560 S. Bayshore Dr., Coconut Grove, 33133. 305/854-7997) is home to a lively seafood restaurant that's good for viewing the nautical eye candy.

Outfitters and Expeditions

You can rent 18- to 68-foot powerboats through Club Nautico (Miami Beach Marina, 300 Alton Road, #112, Miami Beach, 33139. 305/673-2502. www.clubnauticousa.com), a national powerboat-rental company. You can also get a 100-foot powerboat, but make sure to call a week in advance. Half- to full-day rentals range from $200 to $699. You may want to consider buying a club membership; it'll cost a bundle at first, but you'll save about 50% on all your future rentals. The family-owned Florida Yacht Charters (MacArthur Causeway, 390 Alton Rd., Ste.A, South Beach, Miami Beach, 33139. 305/532-8600 or 800/537-0050) & Sales, at the full-service Miami Beach Marina, will give you the requisite checkout cruise and paperwork. Then you can take off for the Keys or the Bahamas on a catamaran, sailboat, or motor yacht. Charts, lessons, and captains are available if needed.

Playtime Watersports (Collins Ave., Miami Beach, 33139. 786/234-0184.) sells and rents high-end water-sports equipment, including Wave Runners and wind-driven devices. Playtime Events (4833 Collins Ave, ., Mid-Beach, Miami Beach, 33140. 305/216-6967) offers boat rentals, corporate team-building events, and 50-foot catamaran sailing trips from the Ritz Carlton Key Biscayne and from the new Regent Hotel in Bal Harbour. In addition to renting equipment, the friendly folks at Sailboards Miami (Site E1 Rickenbacker Causeway, Key Biscayne, 33139. 305/361-7245. www.sailboardsmiami.com) say they teach more windsurfers each year than anyone in the United States, and promise to teach you to windsurf within two hours—for $69. Rentals average $30 for the first hour and $25 for each additional hour.