Going to Miami for a couple days in mid-December. Looking for a nice hotel near all the good spots. Also want to check out the local boat shops/yards. Should I stay downtown or beach, I've never been so I don't know. Any input would help,thanks.

Definitely stay in South Beach.

What kind of hotel are you looking for? Full amenity beach front? 3, 4, 5 star? 1 or 2 blocks from the beach, but reasonable?

There are not too many boat shops close to South Beach. Cigarette is out in Hialeah. Aventura, aka North Miami has a few scattered places like Lip-Ship and TnT. Other than that, many folks are farther north like Ft. Lauderdale and Pompano Beach. OSO HQ is in Ft. Lauderdale.

I'm going with my father who's looking for a new center console boat. We were originally going to GA to visit family but we figured we would go to FA for a couple days first. So I figured why not Miami, rent a car, and drive around to all the boat shops/yards. I really want to check out Cig and Pantera. My father is thinking about buying a 36 Concept. So where should we stay? Is Miami to far away?

If you stay in Miami bring a spanish dictionary, and plenty of patience ! Your best bet is to stay in Ft. Lauderdale and take the 1/2 hour drive to the boat show. Most hotels around the show in Miami are expensive.

I'm not going to the boat show. I'm just going for a couple days the first or second week in december.

Try the Bently at 3rd and Ocean. It's next to the Nikki Beach club as well as some nice dinning and clubs and not to far from the south beach marina.

Ft. Lauderdale to Miami is no longer a 1/2 hour drive due to I-95 traffic. Its taken me over 2 hours before. You can idle down the intercoastal sometimes faster than driving I-95.

I don't know where Pantera is located, but I am sure you can Mapquest/Yahoo Map them after a visit to their website. Same with Cigarette and Concept. A visit to Active Thunder in Pompano Beach is also worth the trip.

If you are making the trip with your Dad, then you may not need to stay in South Beach. SoBe is the party spot. I'd look for somewhere convenient to everything you want to see. Figure out that area, and then someone can suggest a hotel. Good food can be found just about everywhere, but a dinner at Joes Stone Crab, in South Beach is a MUST. http://www.joesstonecrab.com/ Get there early. First come, first served--no reservations.

If your primary goal is boat shopping, stay further north. Pantera is N. Miami, as is Lip-Ship. Cig is west but sort of half-way between the beach and N. Miami. South Beach is very nice, but expensive and "busy", from a party-scene standpoint. If you do go to SoBe, go to Monty's on Alton for happy hour, 1/2 price raw bar from 4-8 and good people and boat watching.

whatever you do, make sure you plan on taking time for the Miami Duck Boat Tour!!!!

http://www.bookit.com/travel_guide-m...Tours-722.html

Oh and southbeach point too!!! You'll thank me later PS bring your digi cam!