I have two favorite times of the year: Miami Music Week (MMW) and Burning Man. Every year in March it falls right around my birthday. Miami Music Week is a jam packed week filled with the best DJ’s performing at clubs and pool parties. Every year I say I’m going to do something else for my birthday, but something about it keeps me coming back for more. I THRIVE in Miami. I’m so down for the boujee, overpriced clubs with yachts and ANY excuse to get dressed up or party in a bikini. I’ve been to MMW four times and each year the squad gets a little bit wiser and goes a little bit harder. One time I spent almost $2,000 in Miami and my bank ended up shutting down my card. They suspected it was fraud. Let me point out that that was the moment I shouted out “next round on me” and looked like an idiot when I couldn’t buy the round. Every year that we go to Miami, we became more frugal and realize what we should spend our money on and what was probably not a good idea. Here are some ways to save money in Miami:
1. Get your tickets to events in advance. What would have normally been a $50 pool party ticket can end up being $100 for girls and $500 for guys to get in. I’m not even kidding. It is important to plan out what pool parties and club events you plan on going to.
3. Stay in a hotel near the events. The first year MMW we stayed near the airport because it was more affordable, but that was the worst mistake. The hotel had cats crawling around. The maid stole my jewelry and all of sudden none of the staff could speak any English. Although, the jewelry was returned after I threatened to write a bad review.
Beware of Airbnbs in Miami. The second year we booked an Airbnb and I called the host to ask if we could check in early since we had an early flight. He said he did not even have the apartment anymore and failed to even let us know, so I had to scramble around in order to find us a new place to stay. We ended up staying at the Fashion Hotel that I booked on hotels.com. I recommend booking off of hotels.com to avoid any Airbnb scams, and also the best place to stay is in South Beach or Midbeach. Downtown is okay but you’ll end up paying a lot for Ubers because most of the parties are in South Beach.
3. Make friends with people who have tables. I know what you’re thinking…. “she is totally freeloading” but what group wouldn’t want to include people on their table who would be willing to pitch in? Tables/bottle service are not cheap!
4. Don’t buy alcohol at the club. Miami drinks are EXPENSIVE. I’m talking $50 minimum at places like Space and Heart. Get drunk beforehand. Bring a flask. Unless you’re willing to spend some serious cash, then I wouldn’t recommend showing up to the club completely sober.
5. If you’re going to Ultra. Get your tickets when they first go on sale. Ultra is incredible and usually has a stacked line up. The first year I went, I was able to get the tickets when they first went on sale, which ends up saving you a couple hundred dollars. The second year, my dear friend Melody bought us a table, which is about $10,000. If you have a big group going, then a table is the way to go. What better way to live it up at Ultra than to be right near the stage and not pushed around in the crowd? The best part is that you get to order as much alcohol as you want. At one point, we were literally giving away bottles. They also brought around some sushi, which was one of the tastiest sushi rolls we’ve ever had!
We went to Ultra Miami one day, but had a nice view the other day via yacht!
Some of my favorite spots in Miami are
1. Space. Space is my favorite nightclub in all of the America. It is an incredible nightclub that gives off almost an Elrow vibe with all the wild animal decorations. There are multiple stages/levels. The best part about Space is that they open up the roof so if you can make it to the sunrise, it is a beautiful sight to see. Space is also home to some of the most fire tech house artists. You’ll be sure to have an amazing time at this spot!
2. Heart. Heart is an amazing club with multiple levels. One of my favorite events was the Knee Deep in Miami. Hot Since 82 and HiLo were amongst my favorite sets. The secret to this place is that they charge for different levels of the club but in reality, they do not check. So might as well purchase the cheapest tier. We learned this trick by the second year!
3. E11even. E11even is a strip club/night club but it is so lit in there and not your typical strip club. The first time we went, we arrived pretty late and thought we might miss Jauz and Diplo. We asked what time they came on and we were told that they do not come on until 7 am the next day. That literally blew my mind. First of all, who even stays up that late? .. and second why wouldn’t they advertise the tickets for that day instead of the previous night? What was great about it though, was that we were able to hop around from club to club and we actually came back for when Jauz performed.
4. Liv. Liv is as boujee as Miami can get. It is usually the most expensive night club but you have to make an appearance here once! We saw David Guetta here. Although it gets really packed, the sound system is hard to beat. We bought a table but ended up sharing half of it with another group, which was odd in my opinion. Liv is last on the list because it is extra but I think everyone should check it out at least once.
