More than sun and sand: How Miami became a luxury, arts and cultural tourist destination
When luxury boutique hotel group Life House was looking to open its first hotel in Miami, the small New York chain chose Little Havana, an area known for its culture rather than sandy beaches.
“It’s amazing because Little Havana is out there, so many people usually go to Miami to go to the beach, but we’ve seen an influx of people wanting to see another side of Miami,” said Victor De Vita, a spokesman for the hotel brand known for its architectural and cultural designs tailored to the location. “It’s been incredibly successful; the hotel (which reopened in November after a pandemic closure) is booked solid. The fact that it’s far away from Miami Beach has not been a problem.”
A diverse neighborhood near Brickell and the city center, Little Havana has been rapidly gentrifying but retains an array of unique local merchants and cafes.
Life House also opened another lodging property in May in the South of Fifth area of Miami Beach, but De Vita said the overnight visitors there are different.
“People who have been to Miami already and have more experience in the city go to Little Havana,” he said. “We get more first-timers at the South of Fifth location.”
While Miami hasn’t completely shed its infamy as a city to let loose in and party in Wynwood or neighboring Miami Beach, its reputation as a culture, arts and fine-dining destination has put it on the map for a wider range of tourists. Visitors are increasingly venturing beyond the sun and sand of South Beach and experiencing things like art exhibits, live music and dining at local-favorite restaurants and staying in hotels and Airbnbs on the mainland.
High-profile, stylish events like Art Basel and notable achievements like Florida’s debut in the Michelin Guide of best restaurants have also turned the Miami area into a compelling luxury destination. In turn, hotel rates in Miami-Dade County have skyrocketed and many hotels are undergoing multimillion-dollar renovations to reopen with even more posh accommodations. Examples are the Mayfair in Coconut Grove, the historic Deauville Hotel and the Shore Club in Miami Beach. And luxury hotel brands Aman and Bulgari are both set to open lavish resorts in Miami Beach.
“Investments in Miami overall have been more toward the luxury end for the past two decades,” said Peter Ricci, the director of the hospitality management program at Florida Atlantic University. “It’s moved from a middle-class type city to more of an urban city with a higher percentage of luxury condos, homes, and hotels. It’s now competing for a different type of traveler than it did in the 1990s, and will continue to solicit the more affluent types.”
Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber has explicitly said that he wants spring breakers and hard partiers off the beach. However, Gelber and Miami Beach police have been criticized by some for imposing curfews and strict crackdowns on South Beach that have hurt local businesses during spring break and other big tourist weekends.
“I’ve never tried to sugarcoat it: We don’t want to be a spring break destination,” Gelber said. “I’m not looking for people to come here for a right of passage and do whatever they want and behave in ways they never would at home. I’d rather have Miami Beach be known for its yoga studios than all-night drinking contests. ... We don’t even have to be an all-night, hard-party city, we’re not Vegas. We have beaches and beautiful scenery.”
Gelber, a Miami Beach native whose father also served as mayor, said he worked as an usher at the convention center in the Beach in high school.
“Back then, most of the cultural fare was boxing and pro wrestling,” he said. “We went from an aspiring cultural destination to one that is defined and still building on its cultural credentials. We need to define the kind of experience we’re offering and the kind of tourist we’re trying to attract. The cultural tourist should be our mainstay tourist. They’re spending more money, bringing their families and it fits better with our residential community.”
The city, he said, has funneled millions into arts and culture projects, including numerous public art installations, the renovation at Pride Park and the Miami Beach Convention Center, in hopes of attracting a different kind of tourist — one with an appreciation for arts, culture and quality cuisine.
Cathy Leff is the director of Bakehouse Art Complex, a Wynwood nonprofit founded in 1985 in an old bakery that now has a gallery and hosts artist residencies. Incubators like BakeHouse, including Artechouse Miami and YoungArts, have helped fuel the arts community in Miami-Dade, along with funding from organizations like the Pérez Family Foundation and the Knight Foundation.
Leff said pivotal moments in Miami’s development as an arts destination include the 1983 “Surrounded Islands” installation, when artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude surrounded islands in Biscayne Bay with bright pink fabric, along with the 1980s television series “Miami Vice” and, more recently, Art Basel which draws visitors from around the world.
“Art Basel came to Miami and that helped accelerate things,” she said. “Visitors came to Miami and they fell in love with all the cultural offerings. Those things had already been in the making for decades, but it takes so long to build an institution especially in a city that didn’t really have a full-time population till after air-conditioning. We’re a very young city.”
Art Basel traditionally caters to a well-heeled crowd. Hotel rates go through the roof when the renowned arts festival comes to town and lavish private parties take over bars and venues throughout the Miami area. Every year, the artwork goes for eye-popping prices, drawing some criticism that the festival is out of touch and out of reach for your average Miamian.
While Miami has caught the attention of the upper echelon of the art world, people in the arts community and local elected leaders insist it’s not all high-end and luxury. Leff’s Bakehouse complex, which recently got $2 million in government grants, is free for visitors, and is frequented by locals, students and global tourists.
Silvia Simon, 55, a recent visitor from Mexico City, was at Bakehouse to check out the gallery after she took a Zoom class where one of the Bakehouse artists’ work was featured. She’s visited Miami many times over the years and has noticed the city’s evolution, and investment, in arts and culture tourism.
“I see more galleries, gastronomy, museums like the Rubell collection, and a lot more art than before,” Simon said.
Miami Beach officials say it allocates 2% of its city budget towards the arts and has a collection of $20 million worth of art on public display. The Beach’s New World Center and adjacent SoundScape Park offer free outdoor movie screenings and simulcast symphony performances for parkgoers. The Pérez Art Museum Miami is free on the second Saturday of every month and the Design District is full of modern art and sculptures in its open-air walkways and plazas.
John Copeland, director of cultural tourism for the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau, works to entice visitors to Miami for its arts and culture offerings.
“We have such rich culture in Little Havana, Little Haiti, and Overtown and Liberty City,” he said. “These places are unique to Miami in a way that the visitor will only be able to have this experience here.”
This story was originally published July 17, 2022 at 6:15 AM.
