Closest to the mainland, the Upper and Middle Keys attract anglers—particularly Islamorada, which stretches across four islands in a region known as the sportfishing capital of the world. Check into the 200-room Cheeca Lodge & Spa, a mid-Keys mainstay since 1946. Sign up for any of the charters heading off for the day: into the Atlantic for sailfish, tuna, and mahi mahi, or into Florida Bay for tarpon and bonefish. Glass-bottom–boat outings and diving and snorkeling trips are available at the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo, the first U.S. undersea park, designed to preserve the only living coral barrier reef in the country. Marathon’s Dolphin Research Center, in Grassy Key, offers the chance to interact with 19 Atlantic bottlenose dolphins in their 90,000-square-foot natural-lagoon habitat.
Cross the Seven-Mile Bridge to reach the more protected Lower Keys, where you may spot an endangered Key deer. The most secluded and luxurious accommodations can be found at Little Palm Island Resort, once a fishing camp for President Harry Truman and today a 6-acre resort of 30 thatched-roof bungalows. Accessible only by boat shuttle or seaplane, it’s still more convenient than Tahiti for anyone with a platinum credit card and a South Pacific dream.
Your final destination is Key West. The southernmost point of the continental United States (it is closer to Cuba, 90 miles away, than it is to Miami), this key is known for its fusion of Caribbean, Latin, and American culture and relaxed Margaritaville lifestyle. The population of locals (known as “Conchs”)—snowbirds, freethinkers, artists, and a large gay community (the town’s unofficial motto is “One Human Family”)—mixes with thousands of cruise ship passengers who descend for a few hours every day in the high season. Mile-long Duval Street is home to buzzing restaurants, hand-rolled–cigar stands, ice-cream shops (try the Key Lime flavor), an impressive Butterfly Conservatory, souvenir stores, and a whole host of legendary bars. Sloppy Joe’s draws hordes of tourists, though the original bar where Papa Hemingway used to drink is now known as Captain Tony’s Saloon and is just around the corner. Hemingway aficionados can tour his house and studio, where descendants of his polydactyl, or “many-toed,” cats still wander the grounds, and where Hemingway completed For Whom the Bell Tolls and A Farewell to Arms. History buffs can walk to the Little White House, waterfront vacation home of President Truman, preserved just as he left it.
Tool around town on the motorized Conch Tour Train to view one of North America’s largest concentrations of 19th-century wooden houses, and wind up at Mallory Square pier for the daily sunset-watching ritual among buskers, fire-eaters, and musicians. Don’t miss a chance to glimpse the ephemeral green flash, which allegedly occurs just as the sun sinks below the horizon. If you’re lucky, you’ve found a room at the West Indian plantation-style Gardens Hotel just steps from Duval Street’s hubbub. Lounge for a bit by the pool with a copy of Truman’s or Hemingway’s memoirs, cocooned by lush palms and orchids.
Key West’s Duval Street teems with galleries, gift shops, saloons, and eateries.
WHERE: Key West is 159 miles southwest of Miami. VISITOR INFO: www.fla-keys.com. CHEECA LODGE & SPA: Tel 800-327-2888 or 305-266-7920; www.cheeca.com. Cost: from $199 (off-peak), from $399 (peak). JOHN PENNEKAMP STATE PARK: Tel 305-451-1202; www.pennekamppark.com. DOLPHIN RESEARCH CENTER: Tel 305-289-1121; www.dolphins.org. LITTLE PALM ISLAND: Tel 800-343-8567 or 305-515-4004; www.littlepalmisland.com. Cost: from $595 (off-peak), from $1,190 (peak). SLOPPY JOE’S: Tel 305-294-5717; www.sloppyjoes.com. HEMINGWAY HOME: Tel 305-294-1136; www.hemingwayhome.com. LITTLE WHITE HOUSE: Tel 305-294-9911; www.trumanlittlewhitehouse.com. CONCH TOUR TRAIN: Tel 800-868-7482 or 305-294-5161; www.conchtourtrain.com. GARDENS HOTEL: Tel 800-526-2664 or 305-294-2661; www.gardenshotel.com. Cost: from $165 (off-peak), from $385 (peak). BEST TIMES: Nov–May for nicest weather. In Key West: late Jan for Yachting Race Week; Apr for Conch Republic Independence Celebration; early Jun for Pridefest; mid-Jul for Hemingway Days; late Oct for Fantasy Fest; New Year’s Eve.
A South Beach Institution
JOE’S STONE CRAB
Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.A.
“Before SoBe, Joe be,” touts Joe’s Stone Crab, Miami Beach’s (and possibly the nation’s) number one crab institution, referring to its decades of renown prior to the rebirth of South Beach. Word of its tasty crustaceans spread quickly when the family-run place first opened in 1913, and the line to get in has been long ever since.
Today, in an expanded location, Joe’s is still in the Weiss family’s hands, and many of the employees have been around for decades. On the menu is just one entrée, the stone crab: a delicacy found only in southwestern Florida, the Keys, and along the Gulf of Mexico from mid-October to mid-May. Every day, crabbing boats head offshore to satisfy the daily demand for a ton of claws in the 450-seat indoor/outdoor restaurant. The crabs come in four sizes, medium to jumbo, served without fuss on a newspaper-covered table with mustard sauce or melted butter, hash browns or cottage-fried sweet potatoes, coleslaw, and creamed spinach. Save room for dessert: Joe’s Key lime pie is the real thing.
Joe’s crabs aren’t cheap—Damon Runyon quipped that they were sold by the carat—and their no-reservations policy means there’s always a wait for a table (the line for lunch moves more quickly and you’ll see more locals). But it’s all part of the experience, along with the formally dressed waiters and the lingering allure of nearly a century of Miami players, including Al Capone, Frank Sinatra, and Howard Cosell.
If you don’t care about ambience—and want your crabs fast—head to Joe’s Take Away, which is on-site. You can even get a meal shipped right to your door, whether you live in Chicago or across town.
INFO: Tel 305-673-0365; www.joesstonecrab.com. COST: $24 for medium claws. WHEN: closed Aug–mid-Oct. BEST TIME: Dinner lines tend to be shortest 5–6:30 P.M.
Art Deco on the American Riviera
SOUTH BEACH
Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.A.
South Beach embodies the mash-up of fashion, celebrity, design, hip beach culture, and wealth that has come to define American fabulousness. The Miami area’s location between Europe, New York, L.A., and South America no doubt contributed to its renaissance, but credit must also go to the city’s architectural forefathers, who between the late ‘20s and early ‘40s built a backdrop as beautiful as today’s bronzed and buffed denizens.
South Beach’s Art Deco district crowds some 800 pastel-colored buildings in the Art Deco, Art Moderne, and Mediterranean Revival styles into a mere 1 square mile. Tours are available from the Miami Design Preservation League (MDLP). Afterward, repair to the 24-hour News Café for some of the best people-watching in town.
Miami Beach had its first incarnation as a glamorous playground back in the ‘40s, and then enjoyed a rebirth 50 years later that continues still. Although these days the epicenter of cool may change with the weather, some hotels keep appearing on the radar. The ocean-front Tides South Beach is a Deco queen dating from 1936, whose 2007 redesign helped it reclaim its legacy as the “Diva of Ocean Drive”; the luxurious oceanfront hotel’s La Marea Restaurant is the place to indulge in the scene and cuisine. Less than a mile north, the Raleigh Hotel, built in 1940, is still loved for its Deco pool, tailor-made for the Esther Williams movies that were filmed there. The Delano, with its five restaurants and equally stylish swimming pool, has been a magnet for Miami’s Beautiful People since its lavish 1995 redo by hotelier Ian Schrager and designer Philippe Starck. Art-Deco-meets-Asia at the beautifully recreated oceanfront Setai, which combines a replica of the ‘30s Dempsey Vanderbilt Hotel and a new 40-story tower for a Zen-infused escape. Prices are over-the-top, but so are the amenities. The low-profile Winter Haven Hotel is a restored 1939 classic on the quieter end of Ocean Drive; many of its 71 bright rooms have views of the ocean just across the street.
For the archetypal Miami Beach resort, head just north of South Beach to the Fontainebleau, a 1954 Neo-Rococo classic by architect Morris Lapidus. The favorite seaside palace of the ‘50s Rat Pack and Hollywood filmmakers (it wa
s the setting of Goldfinger, Al Pacino’s Scarface, and Jerry Lewis’s The Bellboy), it draws crowds today for its Vegaslike past as well as new high-design towers, glass-walled spa, and state-of-the-art gym. Expect all these hotels to be booked to the gills when the annual Art Basel Miami Beach comes to town. Begun in 2002 (its Swiss counterpart dates to 1969; see p. 273), this prestigious 4-day art show features works from the world’s top galleries, supplemented by cultural happenings all over the Art Deco district.
MIAMI DESIGN PRESERVATION LEAGUE: Tel 305-531-3484; www.mdpl.org. Cost: tours $30. NEWS CAFÉ: Tel 305-538-6397; www.newscafe.com. Cost: dinner $25. THE TIDES: Tel 800-439-4095 or 305-604-5070; www.tidessouthbeach.com. Cost: from $315 (off-peak), from $595 (peak); dinner at La Marea $45. RALEIGH: Tel 800-848-1775 or 305-534-6300; www.raleighhotel.com. Cost: from $160 (off-peak), from $395 (peak). DELANO: Tel 800-697-1791 or 305-672-2000; www.delano-hotel.com. Cost: from $435 (off-peak), from $755 (peak). SETAI: Tel 888-625-7500 or 305-520-6000; www.setai.com. Cost: from $695 (off-peak), from $1,500 (peak). WINTER HAVEN HOTEL: Tel 800-553-7739 or 305-531-5571; www.winterhavenhotelsobe.com. Cost: from $129 (off-peak), from $299 (peak). FONTAINEBLEAU: Tel 800-548-8886 or 305-538-2000; www.fontainebleau.com. Cost: from $249 (off-peak), from $429 (peak). BEST TIMES: Nov–Mar for nicest weather; 3 days in mid-Jan for Art Deco Weekend; early Dec for Art Basel.
America’s Most Popular Resort
WALT DISNEY WORLD
Orlando, Florida, U.S.A.
The brainchild of genius animator Walt Disney is an ever-expanding universe of escapism, celebrating magic, technology, nature, and Mickey Mouse. Along with Disneyland (see p. 723), Walt Disney World is among the most popular tourist attractions on the planet, transformed from a forgotten 30,000-acre pasture into four distinct parks, each demanding that you leave the real world at the gate.
The original Magic Kingdom, with Cinderella Castle at its center, has seven themed “lands” radiating outward. It is full of classic rides, including It’s a Small World, and newer attractions like Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin.
Epcot Center, opened 16 years after Walt’s death, presents a mix of science-oriented films, rides, and interactive experiences. Eleven countries and their cultures are represented in pavilions around a 40-acre lagoon. The thrill rides here include the Soarin’ hang gliding adventure, the Mission: Space astronaut adventure, and Test Track, a car stress-test simulator.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios is the most theatrical of the parks, with an American Idol experience that puts you into the show (audition for a chance to perform) and the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, which drops you from 13 stories. At the 500-acre Animal Kingdom real jungle life and landscapes create a safari not unlike a trip to Botswana.
There are countless less expensive hotel options in and around Orlando, but the various Disney-owned and -run hotels are closer to the principal attractions and linked by complimentary transportation. The Grand Floridian Resort & Spa may be the nicest choice, with the air of a breezy turn-of-the-century summer resort.
The nearby Universal Studios Florida lets fans of all ages experience being smack dab in their favorite flick. True adventure junkies love the Islands of Adventure, 110 acres divided into five themed islands ranging from Dr. Seuss to Marvel Comics, and the Harry Potter “park within a park” that opened in 2010.
WHERE: 20 miles southwest of Orlando. Tel 407-934-7639; www.disneyworld.com. Cost: 1-day/1-park ticket $84 (ages 3–9), $91 (ages 10 and up). Resort stays from $100. GRAND FLORIDIAN: Tel 407-824-3000; www.disneyworld.com. Cost: from $460 (off-peak), from $555 (peak). UNIVERSAL STUDIOS: Tel 800-837-2273 or 407-363-8000; www.universalorlando.com. Cost: 1-day/1-park ticket $79 (ages 3–9), $85 (ages 10 and up). BEST TIMES: Jan–Apr and Sep–Nov for small crowds; mid-Apr–early Jun for Epcot’s Flower and Garden Festival; Oct–Nov for Epcot’s International Food and Wine Festival; Oct for Halloween in Magic Kingdom; Dec for Christmas celebrations.
Where the Well-Heeled Winter
PALM BEACH AND THE BREAKERS
Florida, U.S.A.
For a peek into the life of the landed gentry, look no farther than Palm Beach, a 13-mile barrier island enclave established as the winter home of America’s uber-rich in the 1890s, and the essence of upper-crust prestige ever since. At its heart is the amusingly named Worth Avenue, where designer Lilly Pulitzer opened her little juice stand in 1958. Après shopping, drop in to Ta-boo, a ‘40s-era bistro with the air of an updated Victorian palm garden. The Bloody Mary was allegedly invented here to soothe heiress Barbara Hutton’s hangover (a competing legend has its origin at the St. Regis hotel in New York; see p. 846).
Bike the 6-mile Lake Trail, which winds along the Lake Worth section of the Intracoastal Waterway, flanked by bobbing yachts and megamansions. On the Atlantic side of the island, Ocean Boulevard is home to another agglomeration of estates, including Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago, the former home of heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post.
On the mainland, the social set gathers for the January start of polo season at Wellington’s Palm Beach Polo and Country Club. The facility is also home to the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club; its winter festival (January through March) is the nation’s largest equestrian show-jumping competition.
Set up camp at the Brazilian Court, which opened its doors in 1926, welcoming the likes of Greta Garbo and Cary Grant to its Spanish-style suites and courtyards. For dinner it’s French-American cuisine at the hotel’s Café Boulud, an outpost of celebrity chef Daniel Boulud’s New York empire (see p. 847).
Or unpack at the fabled Breakers, built by railroad visionary Henry Morrison Flagler. Modeled after Rome’s Villa Medici, the legendary 560-room, 140-acre resort has Venetian chandeliers and fountain-splashed grounds leading down to a half mile of white private beach. The Mediterranean-style indoor/outdoor spa is frequently named one of the country’s finest, and dinner at L’Escalier is culinary theater. The decadent buffet Sunday brunch at The Circle is also a don’t-miss.
Henry Flagler’s heirs rebuilt The Breakers after a devastating fire in 1925.
WHERE: 70 miles north of Miami. TA-BOO: Tel 561-835-3500; www.taboorestaurant.com. Cost: lunch $30. PALM BEACH POLO AND COUNTRY CLUB: Tel 800-257-1038 or 561-798-7000; www.palmbeachpolo.com. When: peak polo season late Jan–Apr. THE BRAZILIAN COURT: Tel 800-745-8883 or 561-655-7740; www.thebraziliancourt.com. Cost: from $220 (off-peak), from $325 (peak); dinner at Café Boulud $65. THE BREAKERS: Tel 888-273-2537 or 561-655-6611; www.thebreakers.com. Cost: from $270 (off-peak), from $450 (peak); dinner at L’Escalier $100, brunch at The Circle $90. BEST TIMES: Nov–May for weather; Jan–Feb for the peak of the social season.
A Beachcomber’s Bonanza
SANIBEL AND CAPTIVA ISLANDS
Florida, U.S.A.
Down on Florida’s southern Gulf coast, Old Florida lives on. Of the more than 100 neighboring islands, the best known are Sanibel and Captiva, connected to the mainland by a 3-mile causeway and to each other by a reputation for palm-stenciled sunsets, romantic sugary-white beaches, and arguably the country’s best shell collecting. A good northwest wind can fill the beaches with hundreds of varieties of shells, most in one piece. Collectors wake before dawn and patrol the sands with flashlights, scrunched over in what has become known as the “Sanibel Stoop” or the “Captiva Crouch” (head to secluded and beautiful Bowman’s Beach for a little less competition). Rainy day? Get your fix at Sanibel’s Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum. It has the most comprehensive collection of its kind in the country—some 150,000 specimens.
There’s more than just gorgeous beach here. Visit Sanibel’s J. N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge, 6,390 cool acres of mangrove estuary, marshes, and West Indian hardwood hammock. Birders come to watch for more than 320 species, including bald eagles, wood storks, and peregrine falcons. Footpaths, bicycle trails, and kayak and canoe routes crisscross the area, or you can motor along the winding Wildlife Drive.
Captiva and Sanibel’s three most interesting neighbor islands, locate
d in Pine Island Sound, are car free and accessible only by boat. Cayo Costa State Park’s deserted beaches offer yet more excellent shelling, while over at Cabbage Key Jimmy Buffett is said to have found inspiration for his song “Cheeseburger in Paradise.” At the other end of the spectrum, Gatsby-esque Useppa Island is home to the Collier Inn, where Teddy Roosevelt vacationed with his tarpon-fishing friends. Today it operates as a private club that welcomes nonmembers for overnight stays and lunch through special charters. Nearby Boca Grande on Gasparilla Island hosts an annual big-purse tarpon tournament.
Roseate spoonbills wade at the J. N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge.
WHERE: 135 miles south of Tampa. VISITOR INFO: www.fortmyers-sanibel.com. SHELL MUSEUM: Tel 888-679-6450 or 239-395-2233; www.shellmuseum.org. “DING” DARLING REFUGE: Tel 239-472-1100; www.fws.gov/dingdarling. COLLIER INN: Tel 888-735-6335 or 239-283-1061; www.useppa.com. How: Nonmember overnights through Southwest Florida Yacht Charters. Tel 800-262-7939 or 239-656-1339; www.swfyachts.com. Lunch charters through Captiva Cruises. Tel 239-472-5300; www.captivacruises.com. BEST TIMES: May–mid-Jul for tarpon season; Dec–Apr for peak shelling (winter storms in Dec–Jan commonly drive shells ashore); Nov–May for weather and bird-watching.
A 2,178-Mile Walk in the Woods
THE APPALACHIAN TRAIL
Georgia to Maine, U.S.A.
The Appalachian Trail, the world’s longest continuously marked footpath, wends its way along the eastern states from Georgia to Maine. Completed in 1937, it attracts between 3 and 4 million people every year. Most just tackle a portion of the trail, while 500 to 600 “through-hikers” complete the entire journey, from Georgia’s Springer Mountain to Maine’s Mount Katahdin—a trek of about 5 million steps, passing through 14 states, 8 national forests, and 6 national parks.
1,000 Places to See Before You Die Page 118