Visiting Miami was a last minute decision to include in our round the world trip. Mainly because it was cheaper for us to book two cruises (value for money) than it was to spend time on main land. I found it really difficult finding accommodation in Miami. According to tripadvisor, most places were crummy and rundown but had a high price tag. We made the mistake of changing our accommodation choice last minute, forgetting the continuous days of research I had done to find a suitable place with a reasonable price tag. We decided to book a hotel room @ $100 a night as the hostel we had booked was around $300. You get what you pay for in some cases!
The hotel we booked was a disaster! The taxi driver couldn’t even find the place for starters and almost mumbled ‘good luck’ as we paid the taxi fare and he drove off. Instead of being greeted by the man at the front desk, we were shown a photocopy of a African American woman’s passport & was asked if we knew her. She had stated to the hotel that we booked the room on her behalf… What! We were shown to our room, which resembled a tiny prison cell. The bathroom was disgusting, room reeked of bug spray and the door didn’t even feel securely shut. I burst into tears, freaking we were going to get bed bugs or worse. We were offered a free ‘upgrade’ to a room the slightest bit better than before. Thankfully, we made it through the night. We are generally not picky people, having stayed in shared hostel dorms & the like but nothing has ever compared to this ‘hotel’ – we decided to pay the extra and find a nice hotel somewhere else for the rest of our stay!
We booked our first cruise through Royal Caribbean with 4 nights visiting the ports of Nassau, Bahamas; Cococay, Bahamas & Key West, Florida.
Nassau, Bahamas
The water in the Bahamas was amazing, the colours were the clearest blues. Our first port of call was Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas. We walked through Festival Place, booking a taxi to Paradise island where most visited Hotel Atlantis but we chose to relax on the beach where the waves crashed massively right on the shore and icy cocktails were served by the minute. After a fun day in the sun we head back towards the dock, walking past Government House and through shops like Diamonds International before heading to Senor Frogs for cocktails served in yard glasses and free shots given out as we danced to the music.
Cococay, Bahamas
We were tendered to the private island of Cococay, welcomed with white sands and cute colourful markets. A buffet style lunch was included on the island which we ate between swimming, snorkelling and sun baking on the beaches.
Key West, Florida
Key West was the last port on our 4 day cruise. We walked around the cute streets still amazed at the colour of the beautiful blue waters surrounding us. We stopped at a few tourist shops, creeped at all the alligator heads for sale! We walked to the southernmost point & southernmost beach of continental USA before visiting the Key West Butterfly conservatory to waste some more time before boarding back on the boat and heading back to the port of Miami.
Back in Miami, we walked around downtown finding a luxury 3.5* Hotel called B2 Miami downtown – thankfully we were not stuck in that horrible hotel! We had the comfiest king bed and the complimentary shampoo & conditioner were my favourite brand; Aveda. With our wobbly sea legs, we walked across the road to the Bayside Market place to look at shops and for somewhere nice to eat. Jumping in a taxi led us over the MacArthur Causeway, passing bright blue waters & mansions built on islands. Miami beach is beautiful! Many people filled the streets and beaches including fit people working out, young and old. We had lunch & cocktails in one of the many restaurants / bars that lined the main streets. We explored the back streets in Miami which can be super sketchy – I think our first experience in Miami may of scared us from this city. I do like Miami, but there’s not much to do unless waiting for your next cruise, relaxing on the beach or here for Spring Break!
Continue on to the next blog for part two..
ONLY HAPPY WHEN I TRAVEL 