Florida a Tropical Paradise

For those who love a warm tropical climate, I present this post about FLORIDA. I have been living in Florida for more than 3 years, and since I love traveling and getting to know new places, I have dedicated myself to exploring Florida.

Many travelers visit Florida to see the wonderful city of Miami with its Latin flavor, beautiful buildings, and great beaches. Others just want a family trip to Orlando to meet Mickey Mouse. Today I want to show you that Florida has much more than that.

We’ll start by talking about the places from South to North Florida. Let’s begin with Key West, a beautiful archipelago that offers a variety of activities for couples, families, or singles. You can swim with the dolphins, dive, fish, take a boat ride, contemplate under beautiful sunsets, enjoy different eloquent bars, or just relax on the beautiful beaches. Key West is a unique tropical island.

The interesting thing about Key West is that this island offers things to do for all kinds of audiences. You can find the best hotels with great service and high prices. You can rent a house for a large family group. There are hostels for the younger crowd and for those who want to experience the islander atmosphere you can find inns with different themes.

Key West is just a part of a set of archipelagos south of Florida. If we go further north, we will find islands such as Marathon, Layton, Islamorada, Tavernier, Key Largo, among other islands. 

Afterward, there is Miami which infuses Latin flavor from their meals to people to their music. People speak Spanish in many places in Miami, but this does not mean that you cannot get people to talk English or both languages.

Some things you should know about Miami: gasoline is expensive compared to the rest of Florida and the traffic is horrible. Finding parking on the street is quite difficult and you have to pay at every parking meter (in Miami beach $4 per hour). Valet parking and garage parking can also be expensive (some places after 5 hours $40 rate or $7 per hour). If you like to party, then Miami is the perfect place for you. Food and drink prices can be expensive too (around $40 for 2 drinks). 

As in any big city, there are a lot of activities to do in Miami. If you like to relax in the sun I recommend Miami Beach a beautiful turquoise beach. Besides tanning, you can also walk around Miami beach where you will find different shops, hotels, bars, and restaurants right on the edge of the beach. However, you must be attentive to your personal items because there can be pickpockets.

If Miami seems like a very noisy and busy place and if you want something a little quieter yet still want to enjoy Latin flavor of food, music, and people, then I recommend going to Fort Lauderdale.

For casino lovers, in Fort Lauderdale you can find the Hard Rock Casino & Hotel, a great place not only to go play but also to go to the bars and restaurants. If you want another kind of fun then you can go to Las Olas beach, where you will find a busy lively beach and restaurants, bars, and shops all along the beach.

Too much party for you? Do you want a more relaxed place? Tired of the horrible traffic? If the answer to all the questions is YES, then you have to go further north. Let’s continue our tour to the north and we will find Boca Raton, Delray, Boynton Beach, and Lake worth. You will definitely notice the difference in traffic congestion when you drive more to the north of Florida. You’ll see different beaches that are very quiet and relaxing in contrast to popular ones in South Florida. There are also small and medium shopping centers. There are also some night clubs for those who still want to party. When you arrive in these cities, you will notice that Spanish is not spoken as much as in Miami, just as you will not find many places of Latin food.

Mizner Park, Boca Raton. Photo by HoppinCities

The adventure does not end here. Now let’s talk about West Palm Beach. Oh, I love this area… besides having a unique beautiful nature and gardens around the city, it is quiet compared to Miami or Fort Lauderdale. The beaches are beautiful and the surrounding tropical styled shopping centers have a classy vibe. You can find some Latin restaurants, however, this area is more American compared to Miami. Those who seek peace and tranquility can enjoy a day on a beach or go shopping or eat out, without having to get stressed looking for a parking space, driving in bad traffic, and walking among crazy party goers. I definitely recommend West Palm Beach.

But this is not yet everything. Like I said in the beginning, Florida is a state with many cities to go. If we continue north, we will find Daytona Beach and Daytona International Speedway. Oh yeah… for racing enthusiasts, Daytona hosts Rolex 24 and February’s iconic Daytona 500 NASCAR race. This city is quite small and there is not much to do, so it is not necessary to spend many days here.

Another charming city of St. Augustine is a town that will make you fall in love with it. It is perfect for a weekend trip to relax and get out of the routine. St. Augustine is an old town ideal for people of all ages. If you want to know more about St. Augustine, don’t forget to read my post St. Augustine a beautiful old town in Florida.

The most touristy place in Florida… the place of the great parks including Universal Studios and Disney world… you know what I’m talking about… Orlando!! This city is located in central Florida. This city is quite economical compared to the rest of Florida. You have hundreds of hotels of different prices and categories. Apartment rentals, gasoline, and food prices are cheaper. Orlando hosts dozens of beautiful parks in addition to having hundreds of Latin restaurants. As in Miami, the vast majority of people speak Spanish. 

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