Day Tripping to Fort Lauderdale from Miami

There is no place like Miami – the culture, the beaches, the nightlife – but if you’re looking to venture out on a day trip, Fort Lauderdale is a great place to explore. Miami’s neighbor to the north, Fort Lauderdale has some great places to shop, eat, drink and be merry as well as interesting modes of transportation.

Las Olas Boulevard

Photo of Las Olas Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale Florida © cliff1066™

Las Olas Boulevard is probably the best known street in Fort Lauderdale. It’s a beautiful, tree lined boulevard running from downtown all the way out to the beach.

It’s lined with boutiques, restaurants, bars, cafes, clubs, art galleries and more. It’s a great place to stroll, shop, eat and people watch.

Sun Trolley

Fort Lauderdale’s Sun Trolley is a fun way to see the city. Trolley routes run from Las Olas Boulevard to the beaches to downtown and the convention center.

The Sun Trolley runs on bio-diesel and so is an environmentally friendly way of seeing and traveling around Fort Lauderdale.

One of the fun things about the Sun Trolley is that it operates on a “Wave and Ride” system. There are no defined trolley stops. To ride the Trolley, just wait somewhere along one of the Trolley routes, wave at it as it approaches and it will pull over for you to board.

Sun Trolley fares start at $.50 and vary depending on where you want to go.

Here is a discount coupon for Sun Trolley – pay the fare for one person and a second person rides for free!

Beachfront Promenade

Fort Lauderdale’s Beachfront Promenade is a 1.5 mile (2.4 km) stretch of beach, boardwalk and shops along pristine Fort Lauderdale beach. The promenade is a great place to stroll, especially at sunset.

There are restaurants, bars and cafes just across the street that offer amazing views of the Atlantic Ocean, tons of shopping, movie theaters and access to Fort Lauderdale beach.

Water Taxi

Photo of Water Taxi, Fort Lauderdale Florida © ckramer

A great way to see Ft. Lauderdale is by water taxi. Because of its more than 300 miles (482.8 km) of canals and waterways, Fort Lauderdale is sometimes called the “Venice of America”.

A day pass for the water taxi ticket costs about $15 and it includes unlimited boardings at any of their 14 stops around Fort Lauderdale.

Getting There

It’s about a two hour trip from Miami to Fort Lauderdale by public transportation and about 45 minutes by car. For directions, go to Google Maps.