Nobody pretends that Miami is a city to look at. It is a city to be in.” - Jan Morris, travel writer and author of Journeys.
 
No other American city can match Miami for cool. Some of the country’s hippest bars and clubs line South Beach, with musical beats that get pulses pumping nightly. And by day, there’s always the chance of bumping into Miami’s numerous celebrity residents, such as Jennifer Lopez, Enrique Iglesias and rap star P Diddy, in the designer stores of Lincoln Road. Heavyweight fashion houses Versace, Gucci, Chanel and Prada have homes here, rubbing shoulders with newer, exclusive boutiques, including Neo Acessario and En Avance, where would-be shoppers must first meet the approval of bouncers behind velvet ropes.
 
People-watching in Miami is everyone’s favourite pastime. The bars of up-market hotels such as the Delano, Shore Club and Ritz-Carlton are perfect for celebrity spotters. Otherwise, take a table and a coffee at a South Beach pavement café and watch super-fit, lycra-clad roller-skaters and shapely young cigar-selling Latinas going by.
 
But don’t be intimidated by all the beautiful people and fast living. For those seeking a quieter life, Miami also boasts an enviable blend of charm, scenery and culture, from the neon-lit, architectural wonders of the Art Deco area of South Beach, the 83-acre botanical paradise of Fairchild Tropical Garden to the slice of Cuban-immigrant life that is Little Havana, home to some of the city’s most colourful characters.
 
Summer is hot and humid but with January and February temperatures averaging 20C, Miami is the perfect destination to escape the winter chill. Roller-skates are optional.