The City of Miami has never been a sleepy town, but rather one under construction and development since Henry Flagler was enticed by Julia Tuttle to bring the railroad south from Jacksonville in 1894. Miami became a chartered city in 1896 with 100 "Americans," only 25 registered voters, all of whom had to be men. It was also the same year that the Flagler railroad finished laying its tracks.

We will swing over to Miami Beach after visiting Bayside Marketplace on Biscayne Bay - a vibrant seaside mall with exotic restaurants, daily entertainment and national brand name stores -a wealth of activity offers something for everyone! Then we will visit the Freedom Tower and the American Airlines Arena. We pass the largest cruise port in the world, onto Ocean Drive, and view the largest collection of Art Deco properties in the United States.

A few blocks away is Lincoln Road and its outdoor mall hosting some of the finest restaurants and bistros, lush foliage, art galleries, and boutique stores.

(If you are on your own, don’t miss the weekend daytime flea market, and flower markets. They are a delight!)

We return to the downtown and travel over the Brickell Bridge to Miami’s version of an Italian Palace with John Deering’s Estate. Then on to the historic fishing village of Coconut Grove, Charles Avenue, the home of the Bahamians who came to establish the railroad. We will travel its charming streets, pass the Coconut Grove Theatre, and its exciting shopping district.

We visit Coral Gables, established as the magnificently planned "City Beautiful" in 1925. Here we view its mansions, the Biltmore Hotel, once a VA Hospital, and the community Venetian Pool establish as his gift to the city by founder George Merrick. We briefly pass the campus of the University of Miami as we travel route A1A back to our starting point in downtown.

Explore with us as we view the past and the future. We follow along the path of the early settlers who lived and built one of the most extraordinary cities of the South.