Fly to Miami

In Miami, the US and Latin America overlap. Palm-fringed beaches, an Art Deco skyline and a culture built by Colombian, Venezuelan, Haitian and Cuban communities make the city feel thoroughly American and clearly global at once. You will hear Spanish as much as English, and that mix runs through the music, the cooking and the nightlife.

Most people come for South Beach, with its white sand, turquoise sea and pastel Art Deco hotels, yet the rest of the city deserves time too. Built around the Wynwood Walls, Wynwood ranks among the nation's most significant street-art neighborhoods. Calle Ocho in Little Havana is the center of Cuban Miami, where you will find domino parks, cigar rollers and ventanitas pouring cafecito. Over in the Design District, high-end fashion meets contemporary architecture.

As a leading American Airlines hub and one of the biggest international gateways in the country, Miami International (MIA) offers nonstops to most US cities and wide coverage of the Caribbean and Latin America. Thirty minutes to the north, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood (FLL) often has lower fares on Southwest, JetBlue and Spirit.

December to April is the dry season: warm, low in humidity and the most expensive time for hotels. Summers are steamy, with frequent afternoon storms, but flights and rooms are far cheaper. Hurricane season lasts from June to November and peaks in September.