Help! First time in Florida
 

Hello again folks,,,,we're still at it. Planning our first ever trip to Florida, and we're staying 2 nights in Miami, two in the keys, and 4 in Orlando. Can anyone give us hotel recommendations for Miami, that's close to all the great sites, and affordably priced ($100/night or so). If you know any good stays in Orlando or the keys, we'd love to hear back from you as well.

Thanks

You need to give us more information such as, what time of year you will be traveling, what part of the Keys you plan to visit (there are many Keys), and how many are in your travel party.

Hotel options in Orlando are unlimited and depending on the time of year you are travelling you can get some great deals. Do you want a "resort" type? A suite so you can do your own breakfast/lunch? Just a "sleep & go" hotel? How close to Disney do you want to be? After you've thought all these options through, repost and I'll be glad to help!

Can't offer specific suggestions but if you go to roomsaver.com they have good discounts. You can look at hotel reviews on tripadvisor.com.

Try a text search here for your various locations (type something like inexpensive Miami hotels in the text search)

We are going to be in Miami for 2 nites in Mid November. Thinking about going to the Miami beach area, but heard teh art deco area is very touristy? Any recomendations.

Also going to Orlando for 4 nites, might skip Disney World though. Is there enough to do for 4 days if we skipped Disney?

To me, the trip so far seems like quite a lot of travelling for only an 8-night stay in total.

I often think that 2 nights anywhere only really gives you one full day to explore (the days either side partly taken up with travelling). This is certainly not enough time to get a proper feel for Miami or the Keys (are you aiming to get to Key West?).

How are you planning on travelling between each of these places because that will certainly eat into your time?

Maybe if you can give a bit more information about what you want out of your trip and what you like doing then you will get more specific help.

You could spend a week in Orlando and never go to Disney World and still have plenty to do. November is a great time to come. Super weather, low crowds. If you're not going to do Disney, then I would suggest you stay somewhere on International Drive - it's more localized. If you decide to do Disney Parks, then stay near Disney Village, or 17-92 in Kissimmee. Most of the hotels in that area shuttle to the Disney parks.

dublin, depending upon the time of year, all of Florida can be touristy.

Most importantly, what is your agenda? Are you going to Florida for beaches? Shopping? Amusement parks? Architecture? Dining?

The reason I ask is that you seem vague in your pseudo itinerary. If you aren't going to amusement parks, you may want to limit your time in Orlando or skip it entirely.

RE: Hotels in Miami Beach. South Beach, where the Art Deco district is, is where most of the Action in Miami Beach is. "Touristy"? Of course. But very fun. Good restaurants, great nightlife, trendy shallow people on beautiful beaches.

However, since you're expecting to spend $100/night on a room, you'll probably have to look northward for affordable lodging, and drive or take your cab down to South Beach. If you get up to Coconut Grove, however, that's a pretty happening place nowadays, so you wouldn't be bored to tears not being in South Beach.

Thank you all for your comments and recommendations.

Here's our preliminary itinery.

2 nights in Miami
2 nights in the Keys
4 nights in Orlando

We will be renting a car to go from Miami to the Keys then to Orlando.

You said you're not going to Disney. Are you planning on visiting other parks in Orlando? If you're going to Universal, I would recommend staying at one of their on-site hotels. They are all Loews Hotels and by staying there you get automatic express access to the attractions at Universal Parks.

If lcfdublin isn't going to any Orlando-area theme parks, I can't think of any reason to go to Orlando. So let's assume they will be going to the other parks. Staying on-site at Universal is a good idea.

Having said that, I think that four days in Orlando are one too many for this kind of trip. Two days in the Keys are so insufficient, I would not even bother going. They'll spend the entire time driving from Key to Key. Two days in Miami Beach scratches the surface-- I find a lot to do there when I go.

My preference would be either: (a) four days Miami Beach, four days in the Keys; or (b) four days Orlando, four days in Miami Beach. Personally, I'd go for (a), since I find Orlando slightly plasticky and creepy. But that's me.