Booking a MR to miami with a 10hr stay. Hoping to get some beach time in SoBe and lunch in Art Deco district.

Cabs are too expensive (keeping true to MR budget). Is there any other way to get to SoBe? If not, I'll rent a car. Not cheapest but still better than cab fares.

Thoughts appreciated.

Take the bus $2.65: http://www.miamidade.gov/transit/rou....asp?route=150

There is probably a super shuttle to the many beach side hotels. Not sure given the limited time if the savings is worth it.
Keep in mind you are going to likely pay for parking while at South Beach when factoring the cost of a rental car. (Plus the annoying toll charge, unless you map your drive to avoid them).

I can find a 1 day rental for 20bucks. How much would parking/tolls add-up? Should I carry coins or these are manned booths?

Cabs are most convenient but @$32*2 (plus tip) for cabs. That's almost equal to my MR fare! Just doesn't sound right.

On street parking (if you can find it) is upwards of $3.00/hr. Most hotels along Ocean Drive, Collins Ave, and Washington Ave have the area blocked off for Valet parking which averages $25.00 per stay.

Tolls are only electronically collected via Sunpass or toll by plate and average $3.00 round trip from MIA airport. You should read another thread in this forum titled "Miami tolls are the biggest tourist rip-off in the country" about the extreme costs affiliated with a rental car and agency additional charges that occur. (I also would like to know where you are getting a rental for $20/day)

Also I had posted a reply in the thread "Best way to get from MIA to Fontainebleau Hotel" about the different ways to South Beach, it's post #2.

Doing Miami/Miami Beach is not cheap even for a 10 hour stay. Also traffic gridlock will keep you in traffic for approx 30-45 minutes each way during the day and even in the night time hours.

Disclaimer- I work in the tourist transportation industry as a driver and dispatcher so I deal with this on a daily basis.

Use priceline and you'll see some rentals

Thanks for the info. BUS seems like the winning option.

I always take the bus from MIA to South Beach. Super reliable and the cost can't be beat.

It departs from near the consolidated car rental facility.

Out of curiosity, I just priced rental cars for five random dates this month. The cheapest price I saw for a 1-day rental was Fox at MIA. It was $10.20, including taxes. Other prices (including taxes): $14.96 at E-Z Car Rental, $16.68 at Advantage, $31.35 at Alamo.

Yep! You got it. But if street parking and tolls are gonna be $25-30 dollars, it does add up to some of the cost. How is Uber option between city and SoBe?

http://www.miami-airport.com/pdfdoc/...r_brochure.pdf

Is that schedule accurate?

Park in the big government garage between Washington and Ocean on 7th St. Parking is $1 an hour and you pay at machines. The garage tends to get crowded so you might have to park many levels up. Avoiding the toll is a pain and unfortunately now is both ways.

Uber is currently illegal in Miami-Dade County, but they are operating at the risks of arrest or fines and impounding of their vehicles. There is an officer assigned to monitoring the app for vehicles entering the airport. The County Commissioners are currently reviewing for the second time a request from Uber to become legal. The problem is the County reaps in millions from the cab companies and Private Motor Carriers in fees to operate as well as licensing of drivers to protect the public from people who mean to do harm and the image for tourism in South Florida.

If they are willing to pay the prices involved, I welcome the competition, but the rates they get paid will go up extremely.

However, Uber is widely available in Miami Dade. I use them to the airport and often home. Often the driver will ask you to sit up front and act like he/she is a friend giving you a ride. Cabs in Miami Dade are horrible, unsafe vehicles, drivers hopped up on who knows what, and constantly trying to rip you off. Too many bad experiences including one years back that almost got me killed because the driver was so stone that he was all over the Dolphin with near misses.

Take the MIA Mover to the the InterModal center and order an Uber. Illegal or not, there are over 10,000 Uber drivers in Miami - the local government now allows them to operate freely and without penalty.

I uber 3x a day in Miami.

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