6 Hours in Miami!
 

Hi! Husband and I (both 31) will have a 6 hour layover in Miami (are going from Ohio to Mallorca). Any recommendations on what we can do during that time? We'll be traveling at the end of May and will be there from mid-morning to late afternoon. We'd definitely like any restaurant recommendations, and any sites we can see quickly. Also, from anyone who has done this before, is it even feasible for us to leave the airport for a few hours?
Thanks for any help - it is appreciated!

Will your luggage be checked through?

My suggestion would be to get a taxi to South Beach. Do some walking and have lunch -- price you want to spend will dictate suggestions. Then taxi back to the airport. (About a half hour each way).

Egads! I'm torn on this one.

Miami's International Concorse (I think it is the E concorse) is always a zoo and security is a nightmare.

If you are flying Memorial Weekend, expect huge crowds. If you are flying Saturday or Sunday, remember that is when the cruise ships load and unload.

Only under perfect conditions would I rent a car (under $20 on hotwire) and drive to Calle Ocho in Little Havana and eat Cuban at Versailles.

A cab would also work.

I would definitely not do South Beach particularly if this is over Memorial Weekend May 26-29. There is a huge Hip Hop Festival and South Beach is innundated with 300,000 people.

The weekend before is the Goombay Festival in South Beach. Not as many people but a bunch.

GoTravel makes a great point. Yes, all bets are off if there is a big special event going on in South Beach.

Regardless of what you do, I'd think taxi. Car rental situations could delay you both getting and turning in a vehicle -- not to mention lost time trying to find your way around the madness that is the construction zone called Miami Airport.

Yes, I'm truly at a toss up as to whether or not I'd rent a car.

I'd personally rather have control over where and when I go but I'd full out panic if I got lost.

On the flip side, I'd panic if I couldn't find a cab.

Thanks for the quick replies! A couple of specifics - we will be there on a Monday, and not Memorial Day, so perhaps South Beach will be okay then??? Neither of us have ever been to Miami, and that seems like a fun place to go. As far as luggage, not sure if we can check it all the way through from Ohio, however, I did see on the Miami Airport that there's a luggage storage area, so that might be an option. Didn't even consider the possiblilty of renting a car vs. taking a cab...another option to think about. Thanks!

The main question about the luggage being checked through (and also your being ticketed) was aimed at trying to figure out if when you return to the airport you need to stand in those mile long international check-in lines and recheck your luggage, or if you can bypass all that and go directly to security (still a wait usually). You're going to need to be AT the airport two hours before your flight if you need to go to the regular check-in counter. Maybe and hour and a half if not.

Monday, not Memorial Day? I'd still opt for South Beach by taxi. I can't imagine NOT being able to get a taxi from in front of one of the major hotels in South Beach in the middle of a Monday afternoon.

Monday is Memorial Day.

The OP said Monday, not Memorial Day....

Yea. Sounds to me like Monday, May 22, which can easily still be called "the end of May" yet it is not Memorial Day. Makes sense to me.