The Art Deco District in Miami Beach features some of the best examples of Art Deco architecture anywhere in the world. The majority of the buildings here were constructed during the heyday of the Art Deco movement, in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The pastel-hued buildings that line South Beach and Miami Beach each have their own special tales and reflect thoughtful, individual craftsmanship. The Art Deco style evolved in the freewheeling artistic environment of the unsettled period following World War I, where shell-shocked civilians and soldiers alike questioned traditional paradigms. In rejecting the past and grasping for a new and different future, people sought to distance themselves from the recent horrors of the war. Art Deco’s new and ultramodern motifs suited this mindset perfectly. Exotic flora- and fauna-based motifs imposed on neoclassical structures was a novelty, and a far cry from the Old World opulence beloved by the empires that toppled during the war.

To see the evolution of this style in Miami Beach, begin your tour at the Art Deco Welcome Center, located on 1001 Ocean Drive. Run by the Miami Design Preservation League, it is a great place to get maps of (and advice on navigating) the neighborhood (especially Ocean Drive, Lincoln Road and Espanola Way). Enthusiastic members, who are largely responsible for saving the Art Deco District from complete annihilation, can help you understand the historical importance of the buildings. Look for geometric adornments, rounded corners, pastel color combinations and streamlined facades. Key places to see are the Breakwater Hotel and the Waldorf Towers.