8 Best Day Trips From Fort Lauderdale – TravelAwaits
3. Feel Miami’s Cuban Soul And The Wild Walls Of Wynwood
Greater Miami includes both Miami (about 40 minutes from Fort Lauderdale) — the largest city in South Florida — and Miami Beach, just across the bay. There’s just too much to see in one day, so you may want to spend a day in each.
You can get a good feel for the cultural diversity, cutting-edge sophistication, and personality of Miami by visiting Little Havana and the Wynwood Arts District.
First head to Calle Ocho, the core of Little Havana, where you can journey to the heart of Cuban culture by perusing home-made cigar shops, Latin music shops, authentic ventanitas (walk-up windows with Cuban coffee), and botanicas (religious goods stores). Check out the generations of Cuban-born aficionados playing dominoes at Maximo Gomez Park (also known as Domino Park). And yes, go to Versailles Restaurant; you may have to wait and there may be lots of other tourists, but lots of Cuban Americans frequent it for its authentic Cuban food. Check out their bakery next door to the restaurant.
Wynwood Walls is about 15 minutes northeast of Little Havana, but it is a different world. The area became a blank canvas for artists from around the world in 2009, when it was part of the Art Basel in Miami. Wander the indoors and outdoor art areas, where you’ll encounter more than 80,000 square feet of abandoned warehouse walls. Just outside the walls, Wynwood is home to some 70 art galleries, outdoor restaurants and bars, and hip retail stores.