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🇺🇸 North America & Caribbean · metro 5.7M

Miami

Miami is a coastal city in the southeast portion of the U.S. state of Florida. The Miami metropolitan area in South Florida has an estimated 6.39 million residents. Miami has the third-largest skyline in the U.S. with over 300 high-rises, 70 of which exceed 492 ft. Miami is a major urban center and leader in finance, commerce, culture, arts, and international trade. Miami is a majority-minority city, with 70.2 percent of the city's population identifying as Hispanic and Latino as of 2020. PortMiami, the city's seaport, is the busiest cruise port in the world in both passenger traffic and cruise lines. Due to its strong commercial and cultural ties to Latin America, Miami has been called the "Gateway to Latin America".

Typical weather

1981–present
JFMAMJJASOND
wet-seasondry-season
coldcool warmhot ▢ outlined = best time to visit
JFMAMJJASOND
Best time to visit Jan, Feb, Dec — mild (15–26 °C mean) and not wet months.

City Rhythm

measured
Eat well at 2 a.m.
15% of food & drink open past midnight
Work all day from a café
98 h open per week
Run Sunday's errands
98% of shops open on Sundays
Find breakfast before 8
40% open before 8 a.m.

Opening hours, by kind of place

median across mapped venues
Food & drink5,227 places mapped
08:00–23:00
0006121824
15%
open past midnight
94%
open on Sundays
98h
open per week
8%
open 24/7
Shops & errands1,844 places mapped
07:00–22:00
0006121824
2%
open past midnight
98%
open on Sundays
105h
open per week
15%
open 24/7

Vital absurdities

measured · the Anti-Awards

Same time system

by rhythm

What to do each season

2
Nov-Apr

dry-season

warm and dry; openmeteo mean 21.2-24.4 °C (Wikipedia winter highs 24.7-26.8 °C, Jan coolest at a 20.1 °C daily average; lows fall below 10 °C only 3-4 nights/winter); the driest months (Dec-Mar 1.7-2.2 mm/day); the high season

  • the peak visitor and convention season — South Beach, the Art Deco District and the boating/sailing economy at their most usable; thundershowers rare
  • Art Basel Miami Beach (December), the Calle Ocho Festival (March) and the Miami Open (Mar-Apr) cluster in the dry season
May-Oct

wet-season

hot, humid and wet; openmeteo mean 26.2-28.9 °C (Aug warmest 28.9; summer mid-80s to low-90s °F); the wet season (Jun-Sep, Jun wettest 7.0, Sep 6.4 mm/day); 'daily thundershowers occur in the humid unstable air masses'; dew points 22-23 °C; the Atlantic hurricane season

  • daily afternoon thundershowers and high dew points reshape the beach, boating and street schedule; heat pushes life toward water, A/C and late evenings
  • the hurricane season (Jun-Nov) — the defining seasonal risk; the sea breeze gives afternoon relief

What it is known for

🏖South Beach / Miami Beach🏖the Art Deco District (Miami Beach)PortMiami (the busiest cruise port in the world)'Gateway to Latin America' / 'Capital of Latin America' (70.2% Hispanic)🍜Little Havana (Calle Ocho, Versailles restaurant)🏦Brickell / Downtown (international banks; the skyline)the third-largest U.S. skyline (300+ high-rises)🏖Art Basel Miami Beach (December)🎭the Calle Ocho Festival (largest Latin music festival)🍜Cuban sandwich / medianoche / Cuban espresso / croquetas / Floribbean cuisine🏖Biscayne Bay / boating / coral reefsthe Miami Heat / Inter Miami (MLS)the Miami accent / Miami English dialect🖼Coconut Grove / Vizcaya Museum🚇Metrorail / Metromover / Tri-Rail / Brightline

Important moments in a year

March (since 1978)

Calle Ocho Festival

  • the Calle Ocho Festival — the largest Latin music festival in the country
  • a Little Havana street festival
wikipedia:Events
December

Art Basel Miami Beach

  • Art Basel Miami Beach — brings the international art market and party circuit
  • a defining annual cultural/commercial moment
wikipedia:Tourism and conventions
Mar-Apr

Miami Open

  • the Miami Open tennis tournament at Hard Rock Stadium
wikipedia:Sports
annual (spring)

Miami Grand Prix

  • the Miami Grand Prix — a Formula 1 race on city streets
wikipedia:Sports
early March (10 days)

Miami International Film Festival

  • independent international and American films screened across Miami
wikipedia:Events

On the record

source-tracked
nature

Miami has a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen climate classification Am) with hot and wet summers and warm and dry winters.

wikipedia:Climate
nature

There are two basic seasons in Miami, a hot and wet season from May to October, and a warm and dry season from November to April.

wikipedia:Climate
nature

During the hot and wet season, daily thundershowers occur in the humid unstable air masses. The wet season is defined as the period during which the average daily dew point temperature is above 70 °F (21 °C).

wikipedia:Climate
nature

The heat is often relieved in the afternoon by thunderstorms or a sea breeze that develops off the Atlantic Ocean.

wikipedia:Climate
nature

The Gulf Stream, a warm ocean current, runs northward just 15 miles off the coast, allowing Miami's climate to stay warm and mild all year.

wikipedia:Geography
nature

The elevation of the area averages at around 6 ft (1.8 m) above sea level in most neighborhoods, especially near the coast.

wikipedia:Geography
movement

PortMiami, the city's seaport, is the busiest cruise port in the world in both passenger traffic and cruise lines.

wikipedia:lead
social

Miami is a majority-minority city, with 70.2 percent of the city's population identifying as Hispanic and Latino as of 2020.

wikipedia:lead
history

Miami has the third-largest skyline in the U.S. with over 300 high-rises, 70 of which exceed 492 ft.

wikipedia:lead
everyday

Brickell Avenue has the largest concentration of international banks in the United States.

wikipedia:Neighborhoods
food

Cuban immigrants in the 1960s originated the Cuban sandwich and brought medianoche, Cuban espresso, Bistec de palomilla, and croquetas, all of which have become symbols of the city's varied cuisine.

wikipedia:Cuisine
food

By combining [Latin, Caribbean, Soul, Jewish] with mainstream American cuisine, it has spawned a unique South Florida style of cooking known as Floribbean cuisine.

wikipedia:Cuisine
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