2013 Art Deco Weekend, Miami Beach

Where can you find plenty of sunshine, beautiful palm trees, coconut cocktails, great food, streets filled with vintage cars, and hordes of people dancing in the streets to the latest salsa beat? If you said Havana Cuba, you’re too far south. I’m referring to the annual Miami Beach Art Deco Weekend. Three of the most fun-filled days South Beach has to offer, and if you missed it, you also missed some of the best Miami weather of the year.

Art Deco Weekend takes place every year during the month of February to take advantage of the cool winter breezes, and it covers eight animated blocks, from Fifth to Thirteenth Street on Ocean Drive.  The beach side is lined with a multitude of tents of antique vendors of all kinds, across the street every restaurant is filled to capacity, and parked on the center of the road or next to the curb classic car owners display their pride and joy; some of the most pristine and treasured automobiles in the country.

As you walk up and down the crowded Ocean Drive, you can’t help but notice all kinds of costumed characters, including W.C. Fields, The Blues Brothers, and someone resembling Carmen Miranda on stilts. Local restaurants have indoor and outdoor seating, and although they’re packed to capacity, it’s definitely worth waiting for an outdoor table so you can enjoy some of the day’s activities and music from a comfortable seat.

Most restaurants on the Beach can be quite pricy, especially during Art Deco Weekend, so if sitting in a restaurant is not your thing, all through the event you can find numerous food vendors offering everything from Polish sausages, to pretzels, arepas, burgers, paellas, and roasted corn, just to name a few of the many different tastes available at lower prices.

This is a Miami event worth experiencing, so if you missed this year’s don’t despair – there’s always next year.

 (for more photos of the 2013 Miami Beach Art Deco Weekend, click here.)