Miami is emerging as the U.S.’s capital of cool. The inaugural Miami Grand Prix in May drew a spectacular cross section of VIPs and celebrities to witness Formula One stateside, making the city feel, according to ESPN, like “the center of the sporting universe.”

To soak up the sun, the Underline is a new outdoor park on the city’s Riverfront, opening in phases through 2025. The first section is Brickell Backyard, a half-mile stretch of bike paths and public spaces (think yoga and live music) underneath the Miami Metrorail, which just won Architizer’s A+ Award for Architecture and Urban Transformation.

The Brickell neighborhood in Miami, Fla. (Jeffrey Greenberg—UCG/Getty Images)
The Brickell neighborhood in Miami, Fla.
Jeffrey Greenberg—UCG/Getty Images

Then there’s the avalanche of hotel openings in the past several months, including the playful Moxy Miami South Beach, the dual-­branded AC Hotel by Marriott and Element by Westin in Brickell (the two share a fitness center and a rooftop pool), and the Art Deco Gabriel South Beach, Curio Collection by Hilton, which is powered exclusively by renewable energy.

Uma House, South Beach, near the convention center, and the Esmé hotel, with its village of bars and restaurants on Española Way, round out the city’s openings for visitors looking for posh playfulness.

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