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MIAMI 48 HOURS BEST PLACES TO EAT VISIT AND SLEEP

MIAMI 48 HOURS See our best places to eat, visit and sleep based on a recent trip.

Miami 48 hours – STAY AT THE MANDARIN ORIENTAL

If you only have 48 hours or so in Miami then we suggest you stay at the Mandarin Oriental in Brickell Key. It’s very well located on a private “island” type location just a few minutes walk across a pedestrian bridge from busy, Brickell Key.

Miami 48 Hours DoinDubai Monica Kapila Mandarin Oriental Brickell Key
MANDARIN ORIENTAL BRICKELL KEY

It has it’s own private beach area where we did a fabulous free yoga class too. A great way to start your day. All levels are catered for by the experienced teacher. Mats, towels and water all provided free of charge.

48 hours in Miami Monica Kapila DoinDubai Urban Beach Yoga
YOGA ON THE BEACH AT THE MANDARIN ORIENTAL MIAMI

You can walk all around Brickell Key and have an early morning coffee with local residents before breakfast at La Mar by Gaston Acurio at the Mandarin Oriental Miami.

The hotel has a house car that’s super useful for getting to local places like the shops in Brickell City Centre, local restaurants and even some nearby museums.

Staff are very helpful and knowledgable about the local area when it comes to attractions and restaurants too. So do ask the concierges for help.

Miami 48 hours – EAT HERE

We enjoyed some Miami Spice menus at participating restaurants, curated, set menus that are very good value offered during August and September all over Miami.

Try dinner and drinks at Zuma Miami, a 15 minute walk from the Mandarin Oriental. A taxi back to the hotel at about 10.30 pm took quite a while as there was traffic so be warned, it’s quicker to walk sometimes.

Miami 48 Hours DoinDubai Monica Kapila Dinner at Zuma Downtown Miami
MIAMI SPICE MENU DINNER ZUMA

The vibe at Zuma Miami was excellent. They have tables outside by the water, try for one of those. The bar is buzzy, prices are similar to Dubai.

Food is a little different, slightly on the sweeter side but the names of the dishes are pretty much the same.

Miami has some great Happy Hours for drinks and food so do your research and avail these deals. Usefully many Happy Hours start early at about 4pm so have a late breakfast and snack lunch! We recommend the drinks and food at River Oyster Bar’s Happy Hour in Brickell. That’s available on Saturdays too, but you cannot reserve, just turn up.

Miami 48 Hours DoinDubai Monica Kapila River Oyster Bar Happy Hour Brickell
HAPPY HOUR AT THE RIVER OYSTER BAR BRICKELL

A bit further away is the very cool rooftop of the Esme hotel, try that for some lunch time drinks if you’re walking towards Ocean Drive. The bartender makes great cocktails and the guacamole with charcoal chips is excellent.

Lunch at Mandolin in the Design District was tasty, cool and set in a pretty patio. Think high end Greek taverna, you must book though and follow lunch here with a walk around the Miami Design District just 5 minutes walk away.

Miami 48 Hours DoinDubai Monica Kapila Lunch at Mandolin Design District
LUNCH AT MANDOLIN DESIGN DISTRICT

There is another cool place here called Swan for eating and drinks but it’s more for people watching vs hearty meals!

48 Hours Miami Visit

We suggest you visit historic Vizcaya Museum and gardens. They have a cool Farmers Market just across the road on a Sunday morning. Do download the free audio tour to get the most out of your visit.

Miami 48 Hours DoinDubai Monica Kapila Vizcaya House and Gardens
VIZCAYA MUSEUM AND GARDENS

Art lovers will definitely want to check out the contemporary Perez Art Museum. It’s an airy, well laid out modern museum in a bright building right opposite the Frost Museum of Science. It’s about a 10 minute taxi ride from the Mandarin Oriental in Brickell.

Miami 48 Hours DoinDubai Monica Kapila Perez Art Museum
PEREZ ART MUSEUM DOWNTOWN MIAMI

Walk around Miami Design district and check out all the architecture and designer shops. Have lunch as we have suggested at the Mandolin, Greek restaurant nearby, but do book.

Little Havana isn’t far from Brickell either, but it’s not walkable from the Mandarin Oriental. The area is distinctively Cuban with cigar rolling shops, little cafes and people singing and playing live music on the pavements at the weekend. Little Havana has a real Spanish flavour, and many people speak only Spanish here!

CUBAN CREME CATALAN AT LITTLE HAVANA

Eat some empanadas and plantain chips at a cafe called El Pub about half way down the main Little Havana street. Cold beers are great to accompany your snacks here. You must try the Cuban creme caramel too! These places are great value for money for authentic food.

Miami 48 Hours DoinDubai Monica Kapila Little Havana
WALK AROUND LITTLE HAVANA

A walk down Ocean Drive gives you a whole feel of Art Deco Miami. We took in the vibes along the sea while heading to the Esme hotel for some lunchtime drinks.

OCEAN DRIVE ART DECO MIAMI

We also had a look at the Faena art hotel that’s in Mid Beach Miami. It’s right on the beach and has a very arty terrace bar. Do check out the gold mammoth statue! Pricey at about USD 26 for a cocktail before tips and taxes though and about USD 8 for a non alcoholic beer.

Miami 48 Hours DoinDubai Monica Kapila Faena Hotel terrace bar
TERRACE BAR AT THE FAENA MID BEACH

After Miami

After 48 hours in Miami, we headed up North to stay with family in Jupiter.

Do a day trip to Palm Beach from Miami if you can and have some snacks and drinks at the iconic Breakers Hotel. Walk down Worth Avenue and explore this Italianate style street. This is about a half day trip in total.

Miami 48 Hours DoinDubai Monica Kapila Lobby Flowers at The Breakears Hotel Palm Beach
LOBBY FLOWERS AT THE ICONIC BREAKERS HOTEL PALM BEACH

Serious shoppers will love the prices at the large outlet mall called Sawgrass Mills. Check if the location works for you though.

Getting to Miami from Dubai

Emirates has a direct flight from Dubai to Miami, but it is a long 16 hour journey. Note it’s not an A380 aircraft so there is no bar on the flight!

There is an 8 hour time difference and the flight leaves here at 3am and arrives the same day local time 11am. So you do gain time if you can get right into the zone quickly!

Note:

This post was written in conjunction with the Mandarin Oriental Miami and the Miami Tourism and Convention Centre as well as Gulf Reps in Dubai.

Thank you for the restaurant suggestions to Bishop Design in Miami. The views, opinions and photographs are all my own.

Monica’s Travel Tips page up to date, practical, useful travel tips including new routes from Dubai.

MONICAS-WEEKEND-Dubai-Eye-

Monica’s Weekend – Recommending cool places to eat, things to do and events in and around Dubai every week on Dubai Eye 103.8 fm.

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VISIT CAPE TOWN

Everyone should visit Cape Town if they can!

Mountains, beaches, fine food, finer wines and friendly people! We’ve just returned from a whirlwind 5 day trip from Dubai.

Here are my recommendations for eating, sleeping and drinking if you plan to Visit Cape Town.

Visit Cape Town DoinDubai Picnic Cape Point Vineyards

Visit  Cape Town – Getting there

A 9 hour direct flight on Emirates from Dubai. Leave at about 9 am in the morning, and get there in time for afternoon tea! Cape Town is 2 hours ahead of Dubai. You could also go via Doha on Qatar Airlines, or via Ethihad, but that involves a long stop in Johannesburg.

Note there is a long gap between meals on the Emirates flight – almost 6 hours, so do take extra snacks on board. I always opt for Asian vegetarian food. Try and book the bulk head/bassinet seats if you can, a bit of extra leg room on a long flight is almost priceless! I watched the Kettering Incident thriller drama series for my ICE screen entertainment, there and back!

Visit Cape Town Emirates Airlines lunch Asian Vegetarian DoinDubai

Where to stay when you visit Cape Town

There is a whole host of hotels and accommodation in Cape Town, decide where you want to be located and then see how much money you’ve got to spend. If you can afford it, then don’t think about it, just stay at the exquisite One and Only hotel in Cape Town. You’ll be talking about the breakfasts here for years to come! It’s also a few minutes walk from the very trendy waterfront area too.

A full post on our experience at the One and Only coming soon on the blog.

Visit Cape Town One and Only bar view

We also stayed at a cheaper option in a 2 bedroom apartment at the Cape Royale hotel not far from Sea Point. This option would work well for families and it’s well located for the waterfront and downtown Cape Town. It’s a good base in a great location and there are some nice cafes and shops within walking distance. There’s a large well stocked supermarket nearby too, great if you’re doing some picnics.

Favourite Eating places when you visit Cape Town

  • The Bungalow in Clifton – Seafront and greenery with stunning interiors, I loved this place for the vibe, food and setting. Do take a jacket or shawl even it’s hot in the day, as it often turns much cooler in the evenings…

Visit Cape Town restaurant interiors DoinDubai

  • The Grand Beach on the Waterfront – This place is by the sea, it’s has a full restaurant but we had a whole area by the seafront. It’s got a beach club vibe with lovely drinks and snacks, casual and laid back, great for a late lunch. I LOVED the fact the music wasn’t deafening loud as in some beach clubs we’ve been to in Thailand and Turkey.

Food is of a very good standard at the Grand Beach.

Visit Cape Town Grand Cafe Sushi by the Sea DoinDubai

  • Kloof Street House in Kloof Street –  High class, urban gothic with amazing food and very impressive wines. Their bar tenders are hugely skilled at making a variety of different shots here! I’m not a shot girl at all, but even I was impressed with the caramelised orange and hazlenut shot! Great for a blow out dinner in a fabulous setting!

Also recommended but didn’t get round to trying

  • Le Caprice –  on the seafront
  • The Food Lab on Bree Street near Long Street.
  • The Test Kitchen and The Pot Luck Club both in Woodstock in the Old Biscuit Mill. Co incidentally we spoke about the Test Kitchen a while ago on the Ticket Dubai Eye 103.8! If you wander around Woodstock, do try the coffee at the Micro roastery Coffee Express, fabulous coffee. Eat at any of the cafes you like the look of! Need gluten free? Then ask for the Banting option.
  • Melissa’s seemed like a really good cafe in Franschoek too.

When you visit Cape Town visit the  Vineyards

You have to visit Cape Town’s Vineyards and try the fine wines and food on offer, even it’s a just a plate of cheese and crackers! The quality is outstanding.

Visit Cape Town DoinDubai Tokara vineyard cheese board

Choose from the Stellenbosh or the Franschoek areas, both about 50 minutes drive from downtown Cape Town depending on traffic and the route you take.

We LOVED Tokara in Stellenbosh for a great all round wine tasting session and high quality lunch experience.


Get a table on the large promontory platform on top of the vineyards for lunch if you can.

Visit Cape Town DoinDubai Tokara Vineyard wine tasting

We also visited the more traditional Lanzerac Vineyard. They organized a chocolate and wine tasting pairing for us for which they are known. We also visited the Cape Point Vineyards as part of a special lunch party. We all adored the setting, the views and the peace of the place, fabulous food too. The picture of me at the top of this post is from the Cape Point Vineyards.

Visit  Cape Town – What stood out for us

For us, an unforgettable, must do is definitely lunch at the sublime Babylonstoren working farm, garden, vineyard and restaurant. LOVED this place and need to go back here with my children one day! A full post on that experience coming soon on the blog. The pictures and video on the Babylonstoren post should speak for themselves though!

Visit Cape Town DoinDubai Babylonstoren Stirrings

Visit  Cape Town – what to buy

  • We bought scented candles and soaps from Babylenstoren, you’ll find it impossible to resist their shop of scents!
  • We also bought wine from the Tokara wine estate, pack that carefully in your suitcase!
  • A new find for us and very popular apparently was the incredibly good Innveroche gin made with the fin bos herb, specific to Cape Town. Pair with your favourite tonic and you’ll soon see what all the fuss is about!
  • Pick up some Proteas, Cape Town’s national flower, beautiful and very good value, I recommend going to Caroline’s Fine Flowers in the Waterfront Mall. They are very experienced at packing them up for you so you can carry onto the plane. Ask for Amanda.
  • 2 local brands of toiletries I liked were Charlotte Rhys and Rain, both Cape Town favourites I think, with lot’s of natural ingredients.
  • Buy some Rooibush tea from any supermarket – Woolworths’s food is popular – or grocery store. A natural, caffeine free tea with a very clean taste, available here and in London, but better from Cape Town itself.
  • Browse for homewares and accessories around Woodstock, visit the Old Biscuit Mill area and just potter about. You’ll find some nice things.

Visit Cape Town DoinDubai The Old Biscuit Mill

Visit Cape town – Did you know…

That Cape Town is borderd by 2 oceans, the colder Atlantic, much nearer Cape Town airport and the warmer Indian ocean, reached via a 2nd flight from Cape Town to George. That’ll have to be on our next visit!

Visit Cape Town DoinDubai Atlantic Ocean view

Uber is used extensively by locals in Cape Town. It seems to work well. I can’t wait to go back! Let me know if you have any questions, I’ll try and answer them here.

Know anyone else who’d appreciate an honest review and genuine recommendations based on first hand experiences?

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Read another version of this article on Travel Arabia here.

Thank you Monica.

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BABYLONSTOREN CAPE TOWN

Babylonstroren Cape Town is a magical place that’s certain to delight people of all ages. Here’s why we think you MUST make time to visit Babylonstoren Cape Town.

What is Babylonstoren Cape Town

Babylonstoren is a working farm, shop, garden and restaurant complex set in 3.5 hectares of glorious Cape farm land. It originates in the 17th century and has a Dutch heritage. There is a small boutique hotel you can stay at. There is also a wine tasting room on site.

Do you need a visa to visit Cape Town? Depends where you’re from: Check out if you need a visa using this BBC FEATURED TRAVEL SITE. 

We visited for lunch on a Sunday afternoon as part of our 5 day Cape Town trip. It’s the only wine estate that charges an entry fee in the area, but it’s well worth it.

Where is Babylonstoren Cape Town

Babylonstoren is an easy 45 minute drive outside Cape Town about 15 minutes before the town of Franschoek. We hired a private taxi to take us there, stay with us and bring us back. You could easily do the drive yourself though, roads are good and well signposted. Here’s a map showing you the exact location:

What did we have to eat at Babylonstoren

The lunch menu at Babel restaurant is split into stirrings, progression and culmination. Most dishes are offered with or without a wine pairing option. I found that really helpful. You can choose your stirrings/starters by colour, the options were red, yellow or green.

I chose red and can say this was one of the prettiest, most creatively put together starters/light meal I’ve ever eaten!

Babylonstoren Cape Town DoinDubai Starters the Red Plate

The gaspacho soup in a glass was zingy and fresh, it usually comes in a large black bowl but as we were sharing, they split our gazpacho into 2 small glasses. I had the excellent beetroot risotto to follow which was creamy, salty, fresh and wholesome all at once. Everything cooked at the restaurant is made using ingredients grown on the farm, so there is a genuine farm to fork philosophy at work here and they work with what’s in season.

Visit Cape Town DoinDubai Babylonstoren Stirrings

An idea of prices at Babylonstoren Cape Town 

The picture speaks for itself! We were speechless at good value these prices represent. (The printed prices are in South African Rand)

Babylonstoren Cape Town DoinDubai Stirrings Prices

We LOVED our prickly pear snack we were offered while waiting for our lunch!

What to buy there

That will present you with a problem as there is so much to buy from Babylonstoren!  Decide if you’d like things that are perishable, like bread and cheese or things that will last, like beautiful coffee table books, scented candles and soaps. It’s the perfect place to stock up on gifts!

Babylonstoren Cape Town DoinDubai Beautiful Gifts

I particularly liked the oud and rooibush candle as that was a perfect mix of South Africa and the Middle East for us!

How to book a meal at Babylonstoren

You must book your meal before you go to Babylonstoren. You can make your booking 2 months prior to when you’d like to go but not before. We sat in the air conditioned area of the inside of the restaurant as it was very extremely hot the day we visited . You can sit outside on the terrace in the garden of Babel restaurant where we ate.

There is a smaller coffee shop The Greenhouse where you can have a drink or a snack.  That’s more casual. You don’t have to book for the coffee shop.

Have you been to Babylonstoren or has this article inspired you to go? We’d love to know!

Their website. 

Looking for a Cape Town hotel?  Read about our experience at the One and Only Cape Town.

Need ideas of where to eat and drink in Cape Town?  Read the insider guide to Visiting Cape Town.

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CAPE TOWN HOTEL

Cape Town Hotel – The One and Only 

There are a handful of up market hotels in Cape Town, here’s why we think you should choose to stay at the One and Only Cape Town.

One and Only Cape town DoinDubai bar view

Location in Cape Town

The One and Only hotel Cape Town is situated a few minutes walk away from the iconic Waterfront area of town. We felt completely safe walking around this area of Cape Town. There are also a number of very smart apartment blocks in the vicinity, not high rise buildings like Dubai, but low rise style flats set in palm lined avenues and streets. It’s an easy 25-minute car journey from the One and Only hotel. We took the hotel private shuttle service from the airport.

Rooms at the One and Only Hotel

We stayed in a Mountain View King room that overlooked Cape Town’s famous Table Mountain. Our room had a balcony with 2 chairs and a table and was my favourite place to have a cup of rooisbush tea in the morning. Cape Town is 2 hours behind Dubai so you will wake up early, that’s a good thing in Cape Town as there is so much you’ll want to do! Get some Cape Town ideas and facts if you’re planning a visit.

I honestly couldn’t fault my room. It was a very good size, it had a large balcony window so there was a great deal of natural light. There was a sofa in front of the very comfortable bed. The linen I think felt as if it was at least 600 thread count!

The kettle for making hot drinks was filled with water for us and wasn’t hidden away in a cupboard with a difficult to reach plug! The bathroom was particularly well laid out with separate areas for showering, dressing, make up etc

Facilities at the One and Only Hotel – Cape Town

I only used the pool at the hotel, which was filled with natural water and almost seemed like a lake pool. Cape Town can get quite cool in the evenings so despite the pool being heated, us Dubaians may find it a bit cold! So swim in the middle of the day when it’s warm if your schedule permits. I loved all the birds that settled on the pillars at one end of the pool and the backdrop was very natural. The hotel also has a full service spa that I didn’t get time to try.

One and Only Cape Town Swimming Pool DoinDubai

Restaurants at the One and Only Hotel – Cape Town

We ate dinner at Reubens, then later that night joined some friends for dessert at Nobu. Both restaurants are on the ground floor.

Visit Cape Town DoinDubai One and Only Cape Town outdoor table at Reubens

My favourite meal was definitely breakfast at Reubens on the terrace in front of the lake with the agapanthus dotted around the edges. The setting was perfect but do be warned, these tables are very sought after! I loved the proteas (Cape Town’s national flowers) set in bud vases on our table too.

Dubai folks listen up, these flowers are real even though they look artificial. So I haven’t even started seeing what’s on offer for food, but I’m already delighted! If you’d like to buy some proteas to take home then I recommend Caroline Fine Flowers in the Waterfront Mall.

The breakfast spread is outstanding. I particularly liked all the local fresh fruits on offer from Cape gooseberries, raspberries, strawberries and blueberries. There is an emphasis on everything being freshly made. It almost seems like things taste “home made” despite us being at a hotel buffet!

I ordered a decaffeinated soya milk cappuccino thinking that may present an issue, but that wasn’t a problem at all! In fact Cape Town is filled with healthy cafes and restaurants. The breakfast set up reminded me a little of the Broadmoor hotel in Colerado in the States, especially with the mountains at the back.

While Reubens was superb for breakfast, I felt our dinner there could have been improved upon. I don’t eat beef so all the steak options were out for me, but there were too many deep fried items on the dinner menu at Reubens.

One and Only Cape Town Reubens Dinner DoinDubai

Having said that the wine list at Reubens is outstanding. They have 3 areas or wine lofts on different floors of the restaurant that house some incredibly good reds, whites and rosees. We let our sommelier Musa select for us based on our food, and we were very impressed.

One and Only Cape Town Red Wine at Reubens DoinDubai

Check if you NEED A VISA for visiting Cape Town

We tried dessert and after dinner drinks at Nobu with some friends much later that night. Dessert was very good and our friends (some of whom are strict vegetarians!) were very happy with their food. It was fairly late, around 11pm or so on a week night, and the restaurant was quite quiet, but unlike Dubai, I don’t think Cape Town is a very late night place mid week.

Stand Outs at the One and Only Hotel – Cape Town

I’d definitely stay at this hotel again if I was visiting Cape Town. It’s not cheap, but we found most hotels in Cape Town to be expensive. There were a few stand outs that made this hotel worth it.

  • Location and safety
  • Room size and views of Table mountain
  • Linen quality
  • Breakfast at Reubens

Find out MORE about Cape Town 

  •  Find out more about what to do in Cape Town as far as eating and drinking goes.  You MUST make time to go to Babylonstoren too.
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Check if you need a visa for visiting Cape Town using the finder below: best to know exactly what you need. 

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