cities with "downtown" vibe (Miami, Fort Lauderdale: for rent, hotel, townhouses)

[LHBR702]

Would anyone suggest cities in the Greater Miami/Fort Lauderdale area that have a nice downtown area with shops, restaurants/cafes, bars, parks, etc. Not necessarily on a large scale as with larger cities, but just someplace where you could get out for a nice walk, get some coffee or ice cream or a bite to eat, walk your dog, etc.

[vpcats]

Originally Posted by LHBR702

Would anyone suggest cities in the Greater Miami/Fort Lauderdale area that have a nice downtown area with shops, restaurants/cafes, bars, parks, etc. Not necessarily on a large scale as with larger cities, but just someplace where you could get out for a nice walk, get some coffee or ice cream or a bite to eat, walk your dog, etc.

Miracle Mile (Coral Gables).
Coconut Grove
South Beach
South Miami
Dadeland area?

[LHBR702]

Thanks, vpcats
We visit South Beach often and like it very much. I will check out the other cities you mentioned.

Question - I see a lot of very attractive townhouses for rent in Homestead, Fl, but don't know anything about the area. Using Mapquest it comes up as nearly 45 minutes from Miami, but townhouses in the area come up when doing a search in Miami. First, and most importantly, is it a nice area and secondly, how far is it from Miami?

[vpcats]

Originally Posted by LHBR702

Thanks, vpcats
We visit South Beach often and like it very much. I will check out the other cities you mentioned.

Question - I see a lot of very attractive townhouses for rent in Homestead, Fl, but don't know anything about the area. Using Mapquest it comes up as nearly 45 minutes from Miami, but townhouses in the area come up when doing a search in Miami. First, and most importantly, is it a nice area and secondly, how far is it from Miami?

OH DEAR. Well. Homestead is FAR. It is a terribly slow and long commute into Miami. Miami ran out of buildable land and expanded. Homestead was suddenly into a building boom and had lower prices to attract people. I don't have anything really good to say about Homestead, nor anything terrible. I don't have much experience with that part of town.
HOWEVER, there is someone on this forum who can probably give you more OBJECTIVE information.

[LHBR702]

Nah, hearing that it is FAR and that nothing really good to say comes to mind seems good enough for me. Thanks, I'll check out the other areas you mentioned earlier.

[doggiebus]

Originally Posted by vpcats

Miracle Mile (Coral Gables).
Coconut Grove
South Beach
South Miami
Dadeland area?

VPCATS - Great suggestions, Dadeland area only if you live in the high rises across from the mall.

[lulu]

I do that all the time in the Gables, walking around Miracle Mile with my dog or friends w/kids and they romp in the parks. They can eat ice cream or we all maybe stop by one of those outdoor cafe's. Sometimes, I go alone and sit outside at Starbucks or go to Barnes & Noble, on the mile, and read a book. This weekend our Farmers market starts. Also, the unique & gorgeous Chihuly glass exibit amongst the trees/plants is going on at Fairchild gardens (details can be found on the web) - the artist learned the glass art from Murano, Italy artisans, really awesome at night. During the holidays...we had free horse carriage rides - still going on for free at the Biltmore Hotel for restaurant patrons. We have old fashioned trolleys going around that are free. Our unique beautiful, one of a kind, Venetian Pool which was a rock quarry to build the first homes here in the 20's. We have open house art gallery night on the first friday of every month...free meter parking till March, hopefully it will stay free from now on on Gallery nights. Anyhow, it's a Mediterranean lovely family type atmosphere, full of trees, where one can walk around eating goodies w/kids and of course the pooch. Our police dept. is great, if you have a problem they'll be there in a sec. Please do visit the area...
Here we have a diverse maturer crowd. Not necessarily an older crowd (there are all ages) but it's not a hip happenin' place, like South Beach - the younger crowds tend to go there for clubbing, partying and stuff...