Things to do in Coconut Grove and Coral Gables

Coconut Grove and Coral Gables are Miami's greenest, most residential neighbourhoods on the mainland side of Biscayne Bay, and the ones that reward a full day rather than a short stop. The centrepiece is Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, an early-1900s Italian Renaissance-style villa with formal waterfront gardens, entry from around $25 per adult.

Coral Gables adds the Venetian Pool, a coral-rock swimming quarry (roughly $15-20 admission), the 1926 Biltmore Hotel, and shaded, low-rise streets built for walking rather than driving between sights. Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden sits a short drive further south.

Because the two neighbourhoods and the garden are spread out compared with compact Downtown, a car or rideshare hops become genuinely useful here, unlike elsewhere in Miami City.