Geometry, Glamour & the Golden Age: Art Deco Weekend Returns to Miami Beach this January

Centered on the theme “Celebrating Air, Land & Sea,” Art Deco Weekend returns to Miami Beach January 9-11, marking its 49th year honoring the city’s most storied style. The beloved festival invites visitors to step inside history with guided tours of landmark art deco hotels, homes and cultural icons that have doubled as stars in Hollywood films and pop culture for over a century.

Credit: Provided by the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau www.miamiandmiamibeach.com.

With their curved corners, sun-washed hues and geometric flair, Miami Beach’s more than 800 art deco buildings feel less like architecture and more like art in motion. A simple walk down the street becomes a time machine back to the glamour of the 1920s and ’30s, where every façade reads like a vintage postcard come to life.

During the weekend, thought-provoking talks at The Wolfsonian - FIU trace the links between design, transportation and technology, while Lummus Park comes alive with live music, dance performances, and free swing and shag lessons that echo the pulse of the Jazz Age. Along Ocean Drive, lively market tents brim with vintage treasures, artisan goods, artwork and local flavors. Family-friendly activities and exhibitions ensure the era’s spirit captivates guests of every generation.

Credit: Provided by the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau www.miamiandmiamibeach.com.

Miami Beach’s famed Art Deco District, home to the nation’s largest collection of the luminous architectural style, stretches from Fifth to 23rd streets along Ocean Drive, Collins Avenue and Washington Avenue. The district comes to life through daily walking tours led by the Miami Design Preservation League, where visitors discover art deco alongside Mediterranean Revival and Miami modern design. Icons such as the Colony Hotel, the Clevelander South Beach and the Villa Casa Casuarina anchor the neighborhood as timeless symbols of South Beach style.

Art Deco Weekend adds a flavorful flourish this year with the debut of An Art Deco Taste of Ocean Drive, a new culinary series from the Ocean Drive Association and the Miami Design Preservation League. Throughout the weekend, participating restaurants present curated prix-fixe menus ($35 for lunch and $45 for dinner), inviting art lovers to savor Ocean Drive’s global dining scene between events. Showcasing an array of cuisines, the experience serves up a delicious way to enjoy the architecture, culture and electric spirit that define Art Deco Weekend.

Credit: Ocean Drive Association

Through January 31, 2026, Galeria Ocean Drive hosts 100 Years of Art Deco: A World Celebration in Miami Beach, an open-air exhibition that charts the global influence of art deco while spotlighting Miami Beach’s unmistakable tropical spin on the style. Featuring more than 100 images from around the world, the installation invites visitors to wander, photograph and reflect on the lasting legacy of one of the 20th century’s most defining design movements. This exhibition is free and open to the public.

Credit: J’Adore Miami Beach

Art Deco Restaurants

The landmark at 1060 Ocean Drive enters a seductive new chapter with J’Adore Miami Beach, a modern supper club and cabaret that nods to the past while reimagining the future. Built in the early 1930s as the Bon Air Hotel, the Mediterranean Revival property introduced arches, stucco walls and handcrafted details just before the art deco era took hold. Long a witness to Miami’s rise from winter escape to cultural capital, the storied corner now comes alive through J’Adore’s weekly performances, where musicians, dancers and acrobats channel the romance of the 1930s with the pulse of modern Miami.

Art Deco Hotels

Credit: The Betsy - South Beach

The Betsy - South Beach is a luxury oceanfront resort set within Miami Beach’s Art Deco District, first opening in 2009 after the restoration of the historic Betsy Ross Hotel. A transformative expansion in 2016 united the property with the former Carlton Hotel, a Henry Hohauser design celebrated for its classic art deco style, under the vision of architect Allan T. Shulman and designers Diamante Pedersoli and Carmelina Santoro. The two buildings connect through “The Betsy Orb,” an architectural marvel conceptualized by Shulman that functions as a bridge, a public art piece and an art gallery. Today, the Dixon Wing honors the property’s origins, with highlights including the Carlton Room, a communal “beach-chic” gathering space, and an event venue with walnut wood floors and raffia displays.

Perched along Miami Beach’s iconic Beachwalk, Cadillac Hotel & Beach Club, Autograph Collection is an oceanfront resort in the heart of Mid-Beach at 39th Street and Collins Avenue. Originally opened in 1940 and designed by acclaimed architect Roy F. France, the art deco property was refreshed in 2018 by Bill Rooney Studio, channeling the glamour of the 1940s European Riviera. Preserved terrazzo floors, lush greenery and a wraparound mezzanine set the tone in the lobby, leading to The Lobby Bar and Riviera, a versatile public and meeting space opening onto a terrace overlooking two pools and private beachside service. Guests can enjoy wine at Bungalow Beach Bar & Grill, Italian fare at Donna Mare Italian Chophouse, or quick bites and gelato at Il Merkato.

The Gates Hotel South Beach offers a stylish playground on Collins Avenue, near the Atlantic Ocean and South Beach’s vibrant nightlife. Its 235 guest rooms and suites blend vintage throwbacks with contemporary details, reflecting South Beach’s lively art deco spirit through midcentury and tropical accents. Built on the site of the 1954 Motel Ankara by architects Reiff & Feldman, the hotel preserves elements of the original Googie style, including the pool designed by R.P. Witt, with room wings arranged in an L shape to embrace the pool deck and frame sweeping views along Collins Avenue.

Credit: Balfour Miami Beach

Formerly known as The Lord Balfour Hotel, Balfour Miami Beach, a Registry Collection hotel, is a historic property with 82 guest rooms and suites across two art deco buildings linked by a charming courtyard. Designed in 1940 by noted architect Anton Skislewicz, the hotel blends timeless style with art deco elegance, featuring original terrazzo floors and restored elevator doors in the lobby. Outdoors, the courtyard offers terra-cotta mosaic tiles, rattan seating and an elevated plunge pool for leisurely sun-filled afternoons.

By ML Staff.