Key Biscayne to Stiltsville by Boat

Key Biscayne to Stiltsville by Boat

Rent a boat from Rickenbacker or Crandon Park marinas, motor south across Biscayne Bay shallows to Stiltsville — seven wooden houses on pilings a mile offshore in swimming-pool-colored water. Built from the 1930s as social clubs, half-destroyed by hurricanes, half-preserved by stubbornness, now Stiltsville Trust cultural landmarks in a national park.

Anchor near the houses, cut the engine. Miami skyline shimmering on the northern horizon, nothing else but water and sky. The most profound quiet the city offers. Dolphins cruise, pelicans dive, houses creak on their pilings. The sandbar between Stiltsville and Key Biscayne is Miami's floating weekend party — boats raft up, music plays. Weekdays it's empty and the water is yours.

Half-day rentals from ~$300. Sunscreen, cooler, snorkel. The bay is shallow — seagrass flats can ground a boat. Check weather for afternoon thunderstorms. The trip produces the feeling of leaving Miami without leaving Miami.