Hi friends, welcome to my Miami series! This trip is about as spontaneous as I can be. About two weeks before our migration south, Jon found out he had to attend a two-day work conference in Miami. I wasn’t planning on going, but when Jon said he was staying at the Four Seasons in Brickell, my interest was piqued. We decided to fly down early and to have a day of relaxation in Miami Beach. We booked our hotel two days before our flight, extremely last minute for me. Unintentionally, our trip coincided with spring break and St. Patrick’s Day. Thankfully for us Miami Beach was having a “spring break breakup” and had streets blocked off, a curfew of 12am, beaches closed at 6pm, you couldn’t buy alcohol from a store after 6pm, and police were monitoring almost every intersection. This created tons of traffic, but Miami felt very tame and quiet. We appreciated this because our room was on the first floor, so we would’ve heard a lot of noise at night without the curfew.
Jon and I stayed at the Marlin Hotel and it was perfect for the night. It was two blocks from the beach, had good reviews, and they provided beach chairs and umbrellas. We got to the hotel before check in so we dropped off our bags and made a beeline for lunch (I’m going to do a separate post on all the food) and Walgreens for some sunscreen. While we waited for our room to be available, we found a shady bench on the esplanade and people watched. Like NYC, Miami Beach is full of characters too. 
Once our room was ready we reorganized and then headed to the beach with an umbrella and beach chairs from the hotel. It was very relaxing listening to the waves crashing, feeling the warmth of the sun, and sticking our toes in the sand. We would’ve stayed longer, but we had dinner plans with Jon’s coworker and her husband.
The following morning Jon and I grabbed some delicious Cuban iced lattes and walked along the beach. A perfect start to the day!
We had to check out of our room but could still use the beach chairs, so Jon and I headed back to the beach. It was a little too windy for the umbrella so I used the towel to guard myself from the sun. I sunburn easily so the beach isn’t always the most relaxing place for me. This explains why we go to cities and on hiking trips.
It was pretty hot (mid 80s) and if we still had access to our room I would’ve went in the water to cool off, but I couldn’t show up to the Four Seasons looking like a wet dog.
We were only in South Beach for about twenty-four hours, but it was nice to relax on the beach and replenish our vitamin D levels for a short time. We didn’t realize how much we needed some R&R. Stay tuned for all the Miami eats!
That sounds wonderfully relaxing!
A much needed break for sure!
A nice impromptu decision Lyssy. I used to ask Pat along on my business trips too, but they were never as exciting a location. You two look like a couple of Canadian beach goers, all covered up from the sun. I still recall the worst sunburn I ever got was at St. Pete’s…on my feet. I left them sticking out. Ouch. Happy Wednesday. Allan
Jon usually gets to go to cool places and his company’s HQ is in Montreal so he goes there at least once a year. Sunburn on the feet really hurts! I got sun poisoning in St. Pete’s when I was a kid, not fun!
Sounds like a great little getaway. It’s a shame that spring break has gotten so out of hand that all those crackdowns are necessary, though it sounds like it worked out well for you guys.
I think I read last year there were two fatal shootings and completely out of control. It is a shame people can’t have fun responsibly.
Sadly, that does not surprise me…
Four Seasons Miami – that’ll do nicely
It sure did 🙂 especially when we didn’t have to foot the bill.
What a great break! Good for you for being so spontaneous. 😊 Maggie
It was a much needed break 🙂
Despite all the exciting design and big-city excess, the city’s number one draw still remains its natural, sparkling beaches. And how they can not – I mean, just look at those sparkling white sands and the beautiful colour of the water. I am glad you had a wonderful time and an opportunity to relax. Thanks for sharing 🙂 Aiva xx
The soft sand and sparkling blue of the ocean was a dream! The perfect place to relax after a long winter 🙂
I’ve only visited Florida for Orlando (i.e. Universal Studios), so I haven’t been to the rest of the state, let alone the world-famous Miami/Miami Beach. Incredible you had 80-degree weather in winter! Looks like a wonderful, spontaneous trip– it’s those last-minute bookings that end up being the most-memorable and exciting visits. Can’t wait to see what you ate in Miami Beach (I assume you at least had some Cuban food)!
I imagine that would be a long flight from CA! We got lucky with some great weather, although I wasn’t used to sweating haha. It was a great trip and so worth being spontaneous! We ate a very random variety of food. I think the only actual cuban food we had was the coffee and maybe an empanada haha.
Lovely Lyssy. It’s always good to head somewhere warm when it’s cold at home. It was great that you could tag along and enjoy some time together before the conference got under way. We should all take these spontaneous opportunities to travel as you never know what’s around the corner!
It was nice to ditch our winter coats for a few days! I agree it’s always great to get away and travel as much as we can while we can 🙂
Glad you were able to book something last minute during March Break and join Jon in Miami. The beach looks beautiful. My husband feels your pain when it comes to sunburning easily!
It was a much needed break, the beach and water were stunning! It is touch being the suns #1 enemy haha
I am impressed at how blue and clear the water looks there. This looks like the perfect place for a relaxing vacation in the sun!
It’s great that took this opportunity to join Jo on his Florida trip. The beach looks amazing! Being spontaneous pays off!
Aw it looks beautiful, and so good to get a bit of sunshine out of the depths of winter 🙂
Miami Beach looks beautiful, especially that turquoise-colored water. Glad you took care not to burn! If you ever saw “The Heartbreak Kid” (Ben Stiller was in a remake of the original), sunburn played an critical role in the story.
Love the shots of the colourful lifeguard towers ( think that’s what they are?) A last minute beach break sounds great fun, good to shake off the early Spring chill for a few days.
Talk about relaxing! Look at that beach! Wow. What a great impromptu getaway!