Greater Miami

Greater Miami, also known as the Florida Gold Coast, is a region along the Atlantic coast of southern Florida in the United States of America. It consists of Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties. Miami Beach has been one of America's pre-eminent beach resorts for almost a century, and Miami has undergone a massive building boom.

Because it is sandwiched in by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Everglades to the west, the Florida Gold Coast is a lengthy 110 mi (180 km) north to south, but never more than 20 mi (32 km) east to west. Miami is from Fort Lauderdale,  from Naples and  from Key West.

Regions
The inland regions of these counties, as shown on the map, are part of the Florida Heartland and the Everglades.

Get in
The Gold Coast is considered the area between Palm Beach and Miami so any airports and bus stops between these cities can be used for entrance:

By plane
in Miami and  are the most popular entry points to Gold Coast from all over United States as well as surface transport to the Florida Keys, Southwest Florida, Orlando, and the local cruise terminals from Ft Lauderdale-Hollywood & Miami International Airports with multiple intercity bus and shuttle lines. There are direct international flights from Canada, South America, Central America and the Caribbean to both Ft Lauderdale and Miami and from Cuba, Europe, the Middle East (Israel, Turkey, UAE, Qatar); Mexico, Morocco and Russia to Miami only. There are also alternative airports with connections from all over the United States and seasonally from Canada, which may be closer to your final destination in:
 * in West Palm Beach (just west of downtown) is also the nearest commercial airport to West Palm Beach and the Treasure Coast up north with flights from within the U.S.

By bus
Most intercity bus companies in the area have a scheduled stop at the Miami International Airport, Ft Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, the Cruise Terminals, and/or additional locations as stated in their websites. They typically connect Miami to Orlando in one direction and to Tampa (via Naples & Ft Myers) in the other via Ft Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. Some may include Port St Lucie and/or Ft Pierce before going up towards Orlando. Other destinations served from Miami are Jacksonville via I-95 corridor and the Florida Keys via US Hwy 1 with the following:



By train

 * Amtrak runs two daily services from New York City, the Silver Meteor and Silver Star, via Washington, D.C., Savannah, Orlando, Tampa and other cities along the eastern coast. The two trains take slightly different routes; the Silver Meteor calls in Charleston while the Silver Star takes an inland route, calling in Raleigh and Columbia. Journey time from New York is about 28 hours but is often subject to delays. Locally Amtrak trains run the same route as the Tri-Rail trains except they only stop in West Palm Beach, Delray Beach, Deerfield Beach, Ft Lauderdale, Hollywood and terminate at the . All the stations except the Miami Amtrak Station offer cross platform transfers between Amtrak and Tri-Rail. The Miami Amtrak Station is located in a separate building next to the Metro Rail/Tri-Rail Transfer Station.


 * Brightline (operated by Virgin Trains) began an intercity passenger service from West Palm Beach via Fort Lauderdale to Miami in May 2018. There are up to seven departures per day, with frequency planned to increase over the next couple of years with no intermediate stops between Miami, Ft Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. An extension from Orlando International Airport towards Tampa via Walt Disney World is under construction and is expected to start service in 2023. Brightline trains operate along separate tracks from Amtrak & Tri-Rail and stop in separate stations in Miami, Ft Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Orlando.

By train
The area is served both by a new higher speed line (the private Brightline) and a slower commuter rail line with more stops (Tri-Rail). Some destinations are more convenient by different lines; for example, the Brightline serves Miami's downtown areas better while Tri-Rail is better to go to Miami International Airport as well as smaller communities.

The private Brightline service runs between Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, and is to be extended to Orlando by 2022. This "higher speed/almost high speed rail" service is the only privately owned and operated intercity railroad in the United States. The whole journey takes 1 hour 15 minutes - 30 minutes between Miami and Fort Lauderdale and a further 45 between there and West Palm Beach - about the same time as driving in good traffic and an hour quicker than an equivalent Tri-Rail trip (although Tri-Rail has more stops and thus may be more convenient in certain areas). Both run on separate tracks and use separate stations.

By bus
The following are county operated public transportation in the Greater Miami Metropolitan area:
 * Miami Dade Transit operates the Metrobus, Metromover, and Metrorail (an elevated rapid transit train) between Miami, Miami Beach, Doral, Hialeah, Homestead, Florida City, Opa Locka and other points in Miami-Dade County. Connections to Monroe County Transit in Marathon Key (Rt #301) and to Broward County Transit in Hallandale Beach (Rt 'E'/105).
 * Broward County Transit (BCT) Local public transportation between Ft Lauderdale, Hollywood, Pompano Beach, Coral Springs and other points within Broward County. They also operate express connections to Miami on the 95 Express (Pembroke Pines & Miramar to Miami Civic Center on 3 separate routes) and the 595 Express (BB&T Center to Miami Civic Center & Miami/Brickrell on 2 separate routes)
 * Palm Tran Local public transportation between West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Boynton Beach, Boca Raton, Riviera Beach, Jupiter/Jupiter Beach, Wellington, Belle Glade and other points in Palm Beach County. Connections to Borward County Transit in Deerfield Beach.

See

 * Coral Castle in Homestead is an odd complex of stone structures, built with enormously heavy stones, and allegedly by one man, without the help of modern equipment.
 * Lincoln Road in Miami Beach - a popular pedestrian mall lined with shops, sidewalk cafes, bars and galleries.
 * Miami Seaquarium aquarium on Virginia Key in Biscayne Bay in the city of Miami with a pair of local Manatees.
 * City of Miami Cemetery is a historic cemetery in Miami.

Stay safe

 * During periods of extensive flooding, or when traveling near canals, take care to avoid the Greater Miami's alligator population, which has been steadily climbing since the 1950s.

Go next

 * Central Florida
 * Southwest Florida