Miami Boat Show

boltman

boltman

Active Member
Dec 28, 2005
1,507
Flint/Swartz Creek MI, Ported in Whitehall/Montagu
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480 Sedan Bridge
"Sea Ray's Best Boat Ever Made"
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700 hp MANS Diesels Thundering Cathedrals of Torque!!
Hey anyone going to the Miami boat show? Michigan Sea Ray owner here looking to go to the show this year, need to know a great place to stay, Not much into partying, just want a nice place to stay and a great boat show to see, help if you can?

Robert and Maryanne Chapman
Boltman and the admiral
 
If you like, you can stay in any hotel on south beach where the boat show will take place. I will be going to the boat show as well.
 
Great place to stay close to the Convention Center in South Beach would be Lowe's ..

Another older favorite is the Fountainbleau Hilton.

There's also further south in Coconut Grove; a Ritz Carlton.

Are you going to rent a car, or rely on shuttles and taxis? There will be a lot of CSR members going so let's keep in touch as it gets closer.

Barry
 
Barry, you have nice ta$te in hotels!

Not much about the Fountainebleau is old anymore. Or cheap! If rooms are still available, be prepared to pay in the $500/night range for that prime location.

Same goes for Lowes. There's actually a Ritz on the beach too. It's more contemporary than the Grove property, but the Coconut Grove Art Fest overlaps with the boat show, so the Grove isn't much easier to get into.

If you want to stay in a high end property in a prime location for several days, be prepared to set aside a boat payment (or two) to pay the hotel bill.

Look far and wide though - it's worth the trip even if you have to get lodging further away. If you haven't booked air tickets yet, that could also be tricky, so remember to search fares at FTL as well as MIA.
 
Yeah, I know...but they are close and if no rental car, there are shuttles to get to the convention center. But you are right, there are other boutique hotels that might be cheaper, or if they have a car they can fly into Ft. Lauderdale and stay up this way and just drive down to the show and save $$ on the hotels and airfare.

Of course as far as restaurants go; nothing beats Joe's Stone Crabs (and if invited I can get you in without waiting-where otherwise it could be a 1-2hr wait). Or a walk from the convention center to Lincoln Road where there are so many great restaurants with outdoor seating!

Keep in touch as it gets closer and let's see how many of us can meet down there. Allow a lot of time to find a parking space..it will be crazy and BIG.

Barry
 
There are 3 different locations for this show. Call them Collins avenue (think they call it the brokerage show), the convention center for most of the displays and sea isle marina. if you go to the MBS web site, they dont talk about collins avenue. there is a fourth location, but that is for specially challenged people called sailors.

double check for this year, but the sea rays for feb 2006 were at collins avenue and that is where i would stay. anywhere on south beach.

I'm up for joey crabs.
 
We're thinking of staying in Fort Lauderdale, to keep the price of the hotels down and to actually get there, not many flights available into Miami... Any thoughts on this decision....?
We're beginners at this so be kind..... flights aren't cheap either,Anyone have a favorite Airlines they use...
 
Boltman...you're right on. I've worked in FL and flown into Ft Lauderdale and Miami for years and definitely like Lauderdale much better. Smaller airport, easier to get in and out of and getting a rental car is a breeze. The airport is 10-15 minutes from any hotel brand you might want. I like staying in the Lauderdale area it's easy to get on I-95 and heading south to Miami takes about 30-45 minutes.

If you want to stay on the ocean, there's the Harbor Island Marriott. If you want to stay on the itnercoastal, there's the 17th St Marriott with a marina attached. Across from this hotel is a Hyatt.

Also, Los Olas is a nice little dining and shopping area with a hotel called The Riverside where you can take water taxis to some nice restaurants. You're a mile or two from the beach and many good restaurants.

Staying in downtown Miami or South Beach doesn't interest me as it's too congested, too trendy and expensive. It's fun to visit and take in all the sights though. If you like stone crabs, Joes Stone Crabs is the place to go in Miami.

If you connect in Atlanta, you have lots of airline choices. Air Tran might be the least expensive and of course Delta, because Atlanta is their home.

Of course, all of this is just my opinion....and everyone likes something different.

Good luck and have fun! :thumbsup:
 
I was born on Miami Beach and have spend my life here in South Florida...Fort Lauderdale is a great choice, there are a lot of hotels either on the beach, or intracoastal, or on Las Olas Blvd. If you want to PM me with a phone # I'll be happy to talk to you about what you are looking for. Air is another story..Not sure from where you are coming what is available, Southwest, Spirit, Jet Blue, all have great prices if they fly to or near your location.

Joe's is still #1, and a must if you have never been, but be prepared to wait unless you get there when they first open at 5pm. I've been going for over 40 years and when my friends are in town and want to go, they always invite me so I can get them in without the wait.

Also the restaurants on Lincoln Road are great not only for the food, but to people watch, as they all have seating outdoors and the views are great.....:)

Barry
 
Look up Barton G's for dinner. I'm not much for fancy, over-the-top dining, but this place was a show worth every penny.
 
Boltman, We are flying in to Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday 2/13 and we are staying at the Bahia Mar until Sunday.
 
I'll be there Thursday to Sunday. Staying in S. Beach, as the wifey and I like the sights and sounds and you can walk to the convention center.

Bought plane tickets today at www.cheaptickets.com and saved a bundle from Atlanta compared to Expedia and Travelocity!
 
Wow, I'm not normally a cheap man, but this is looking to be a 1500.00 weekend.....How are all the rest of you doing it?
As I said I love spending Money... but 1500.00 to look at boats I've already seen in the dealership.. now I know theres huge boats down there but golly whiz people................
 
Ok Guys you made up my mind for me,,, 1500.00 is a tight buget? OMG what do you people do down there, Come on tell me I'm getting excited here..????????? What am I missing out on we'ver never been there before?
 
I've been going to the Miami Boat Show for a few years. Last year we stayed at the Holiday Resort across from the Sea Ray display on Collins Ave.

I add my expenses for the four days I spent there last year,about $2500, a little bit expensive but a lot of fun.

Sea Ray offers a free shuttle servivce from there Hotel (Holiday Resort this year)to any of the boat show locations, for Sea Ray Owners Club Members, this is a great service, our driver gave us his cell number and we just called him for a ride (we tipped him nicely and got great service).

This year we are staying in Fort Lauderdale and commuting to the show, it's cheaper if you can deal with the traffic and parking while on vacation.

Maybe you we can meet up there, you can buy me a $9 cocktail!

Good luck and have fun at the show!
 
The tragic part is Sea Ray can't throw their big party at the Eden Roc because it is STILL under construction. That party is a great fun to go to.

It has gotten progressively more expensive over the past 6 years. This year, my wife and I are flying in on Wednesday and headed to the Keys for Wednesday night and Thursday (Valentine's Day). Then driving back on Friday to do the boat show on Friday and Saturday. The hotel in Key West is $400 per night and the hotel in South Beach is $575 per night. So the hotels are $2000 and then you add food, alcohol and "must haves" from the boat show.

That said, you can find cheaper hotels (and save 50%) to stay at in the Miami area. The problem is traffic and getting to and from the show.

-John
 
It's like any major city during a holiday or show..Vegas can be cheap except when there is a major convention in town..I was in NY just before XMas and the hotel I stayed at was about $400.00 plus all the taxes made it closer to $500/night but it was in a great location and we walked everywhere.

You can either stay where the action is and walk around to where you want to go if South Beach is your scene, or stay a little further up in Fort Lauderdale if you have a car. This is the time to use all the discount .com's to get the best deal. Just give yourself a lot of time to see everythiing..The convention center alone can take a full day; then you have the on water sites...

We can all try to get together that weekend either Saturday or Sunday so as it gets closer we can post or PM some cell #'s to get in touch.
Barry
 
I think we should start planning logistics and phone numbers now. The more we put it off, the less time we have to plan, especially if it's a big group, I would hate to leave someone behind.

While we wait for everyone to get settled in reserving hotels, we need to set up a meet and greet spot and then head to the boat show.
 
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