Where are fans staying for Miami’s big game? Many want to be close to the action

Despite the allure of South Beach and the rhythm of downtown Miami, many fans want to stay close to Hard Rock Stadium for the big game on Monday.

Bookings for short-term rentals, an alternative to traditional hotels, are filling up in Miami Gardens, according to a firm that analyzes the hospitality data.

While Miami Gardens, home to the stadium, doesn’t have the supply of short-term rentals found in other areas of South Florida, occupancy rate has soared to 91% for Jan. 19, according to data analytics firm AirDNA, which tracks short-term rental Airbnb and Vrbo data.

Travelers looking for an Airbnb or Vrbo near the game venue is typical, Bram Gallagher, an economist at AirDNA, said in an interview with the Miami Herald.

“You’ll see bookings concentrated closest to the stadium,” he said.

So it’s no surprise that bookings in Miami Gardens for Jan. 19, the night of the college championship between Miami and Indiana, are up 168% compared to a year ago.

Booked rates for Jan. 18-19 are $216 and $200, respectively. But the city doesn’t have much supply of short-term rentals — with just 107 bookings for Monday night, for instance. That’s benefiting nearby areas including North Miami, Hialeah, Miramar and Pembroke Pines, which are all seeing double-digit increases in bookings compared to a year ago.

The larger Miami metropolitan area still has plenty of space, according to the data. The highest occupancy for short-term rentals for Jan. 16-19 is still below 80%., with available rates for those nights from $200 to $250.

Of course, some fans turn to traditional hotel rooms as well. The UM headquarters hotel is the Fontainebleau in Miami Beach and the Indiana base is at the InterContinental in downtown Miami.

But across South Florida, bookings for short-term rentals are on the rise, AirDNA says, despite one of the teams playing in its home stadium, with local fans commuting to the game from their own homes.

Some cities, including Miami Beach and Miami, have restrictions on rentals for less than 30 days, but in reality, property owners don’t always play by the rules, especially during big events like this one.

Bookings in the Miami area, which the firm approximates as Miami-Dade County, are up 14% on Jan. 16, 18% on Jan. 17, 18% on Jan. 18 and 13% on Jan. 19. The night with the most bookings is Jan. 17, with 13,459. Comparisons are with the same dates in 2025.

Average booked rates for the four nights are respectively: $240, $250, $231 and $205. Those are increases of: 9%, 10%, 13% and 10%.

These jumps aren’t enormous, Gallagher said.

As an example, he cited the upcoming Super Bowl in February in Santa Clara, California, home stadium of the San Francisco 49ers. Increase in bookings in the Bay Area for the Super Bowl range from 60% to 100%, he said.

The national championship game is giving short-term rentals in Miami a boost, but Gallagher said “the effect is somewhat diluted.”