Think South Beach is hard to navigate now? Wait till spring break. Here are new rules

Howard Cohen
·8 min read
1

South Beach is taking a page from Taylor Swift’s playbook and is breaking up with spring break. Straight from the city website: “Hey Spring Break, we’re over.”

Fort Lauderdale also wants to let everyone know that it has shed its “Where the Boys Are” spring break reputation, just in case the city gets spillover crowds.

Both cities are putting up some obstacles. So here’s what to know about parking, getting around and beach rules:

South Beach parking

READ MORE: Miami Beach officials clarify sweeping parking closures for peak spring break weekends

Miami Beach will make parking disappear for stretches of March.

▪ When parking will be closed down? All city-owned surface parking lots and most city-owned parking garages south of 42nd Street will be closed from 6 a.m. Thursday to 6 a.m. Monday on March 7-10 and March 14-17.

▪ Exceptions: South Beach residents and workers in the area will be allowed to park in those garages and lots at the normal rate, but need to show identification that proves residency or employment.

Open garages: The Convention Center Garage (G11) at 2016 Washington Ave. will remain open at the normal $20 flat rate on those March dates. A garage on 42nd Street (G6) will be open to visitors at a $100 flat rate, and to residents and employees at the normal $1 per hour rate up to $8.

▪ The other three weekends in March: A flat parking rate of $30 excluding March 7-10 and March 14-17, will be in effect at city parking garages and surface lots in the Entertainment District. These include the garages at Seventh Street and Collins Avenue (G1), 12th Street and Washington Avenue (G2), 13th Street and Collins Avenue (G3), 16th Street between Collins and Washington avenues (G4), 17th Street and Convention Center Drive (G5), 18th Street and Meridian Avenue (G7), Pennsylvania Avenue and Lincoln Lane North (G9), 18th Street and Bay Road (G10), and 23rd Street and Liberty Avenue (G12). The flat parking rate doesn’t apply to residents, access card holders, permit holders or employees with proper identification.

▪ Private parking: Private lots won’t be affected in March. That includes the garage at Fifth Street and Alton Road (G8), which is partially owned by the city but majority-owned by a private company.

▪ Towing: Thought getting towed was costly before? The nonresident towing rate will be $516 — double the normal rate — plus a $30 administrative fee for vehicles towed in South Beach within the boundaries of 23rd Street and Dade Boulevard on the north (including properties fronting the north side of 23rd Street or Dade Boulevard), Government Cut on the south, Biscayne Bay on the west, and the Atlantic Ocean on the east, according to the city.

Parking restrictions

A new messaging campaign from Miami Beach says the city is “breaking up” with spring break.
A new messaging campaign from Miami Beach says the city is “breaking up” with spring break.

Expect enhanced parking enforcement and increased towing of illegally parked vehicles through March — with a focus on residential areas. If you don’t have a residential pass, don’t park in these areas. Residential Zone 5 parking permit holders are exempt from these restrictions, unless noted with signs.

Here’s where the restrictions are:

▪ Collins Avenue from Fifth Street to Española Way starting at 5 a.m. on the Thursday to Sunday periods of March 7-11, 14-18 and 21-24.

▪ Washington Avenue from Fifth Street to 16th Street starting at 5 a.m. on March 7-11, 14-18 and 21-24.

▪ Parking along the 100 blocks from Sixth to 14th streets will be restricted 24 hours daily on March 7-10, 14-17 and 21-24.

▪ Parking along the 200 blocks from Sixth to 15th streets will be restricted nightly from 6 p.m.- 7 a.m. on March 7-10, 14-17 and 21-24.

PHOTOS: What did spring break used to look like in South Beach and Fort Lauderdale?

Ocean Drive

Tourists stroll along Ocean Drive in this spring break file photo from March 22, 2021.
Tourists stroll along Ocean Drive in this spring break file photo from March 22, 2021.

▪ Traffic entrances: Ocean Drive will only be accessible to cars via 13th Street with a sole exit at Fifth Street on March 7-10, March 14-17 and March 21-24. Barricades will line both sides of Ocean Drive to keep pedestrians and motorized vehicles out of each other’s path.

▪ Beach entrances: Access to Ocean Drive will be limited to Fifth, 10th and 12th streets and close at 6 p.m., according to the city plan.

▪ Security checkpoints: These beach entrances on Ocean Drive will have security checkpoints to ensure prohibited items — including coolers, inflatable devices, tents, tables — don’t enter the beach. Amplified music without a city-issued permit will also be restricted.

▪ Alcohol and cigarettes: Drinking alcohol on the beach is always prohibited — not just during spring break. Liquor stores in the South Beach entertainment district are required to close at 8 p.m. Smoking on the beach also is prohibited.

South Beach traffic plan

A map shows Miami Beach’s spring break 2024 traffic plan.
A map shows Miami Beach’s spring break 2024 traffic plan.

Miami Beach police will limit access to some neighborhoods beginning at 6 p.m. each Thursday through Sunday in March — except the first weekend (March 1-3) and the last weekend (March 29-31) when the days will be reduced to Friday through Sunday — to reduce traffic around several neighborhoods.

Neighborhood access: The spring break traffic plan covers the South of Fifth, the West Avenue and the Flamingo Park neighborhoods.

How to enter: Drivers can access the South of Fifth neighborhood via Alton Road, Washington Avenue and Collins Avenue. The Flamingo Park neighborhood can only be accessed via Alton Road. The police and city may make alterations as needed. “Local access restrictions will be enforced on some city streets to limit traffic and improve mobility for residents and business patrons,” according to the city.

DUI checkpoints and license plate readers

A Florida Highway Patrol officer interacts with a motorist during a DUI checkpoint on Fifth Street between Meridian and Washington Avenues in Miami Beach, on March 25, 2023.
A Florida Highway Patrol officer interacts with a motorist during a DUI checkpoint on Fifth Street between Meridian and Washington Avenues in Miami Beach, on March 25, 2023.

▪ Where the license plate readers are: Miami Beach police will have license plate readers in the eastbound lanes of the MacArthur and Julia Tuttle causeways on March 8-10 and March 15-17. You can expect significant traffic as eastbound travel lanes will be reduced on the MacArthur and Tuttle causeways, according to city officials. Miami Beach police will also have a license plate reader set up along the Fifth Street corridor on March 22-24.

▪ Where the sobriety checkpoints are: A DUI checkpoint will be in place along Fifth Street on March 8-9 and March 15-16.

Miami Beach trolley

Service: Miami Beach’s free citywide “trolley” service will operate an enhanced service from 8 a.m. to 1 a.m. March 8-11 and March 15-17. An extra trolley bus will run on the South Beach Loops A and B and two additional vehicles operating on the Collins Express.

More Miami Beach information: Visit the city’s spring break page at www.miamibeachfl.gov/breakup/.

Fort Lauderdale

READ MORE: Fort Lauderdale may crack down on spring break parking with $100 rates

Fort Lauderdale once was so popular with college students descending on the beach there were spring break films set on its beaches like the Connie Francis-George Hamilton romp, “Where the Boys Are” in 1960. A 1984 flop remake reimagined as a sex comedy followed with Lisa Hartman, around the time the town earned the sobriquet “Fort Liquordale.” Soon after, city officials lost their taste for the annual ritual.

Now that Miami Beach is “breaking up” and has enacted major measures this season Fort Lauderdale is preparing for spring break 2024 with a “organized fun” campaign, which largely means increased parking rates and violation fees to prevent overcrowding on the beach.

Here’s what to know if you’re flocking to Broward.

Parking fees: You could pay $100 in city garages and lots along the beach on A1A starting the weekend of March 8 and lasting through the month. Drivers could face a $125 violation fee if they don’t move their car once their street parking expires. The Fort Lauderdale City Commission will vote on the temporary high impact event hikes at its March 5 meeting after preliminary approving the plans in February.

Beach rules: Alcohol, coolers, tents or tables or similar structures, live or amplified loud music and electric or motorized scooters will be banned in certain beach areas.

Ride-share locations: Designated pick-up and drop-off locations will be set up in downtown near Esplanade Park and Southwest Fourth Avenue and near Fort Lauderdale Beach on Castillo Street. All ride-share drivers will be prohibited from stopping along A1A.

A free shuttle: Fort Lauderdale’s LauderGO shuttle has five routes that can bring residents and visitors to key locations in the city at no cost like the Beach Link, which has stops including the beach and Bahia Mar and Beach Place.

Increased police presence and enforcement in entertainment areas from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. daily through March.

A Fort Lauderdale police officer, right, keeps an eye on traffic on A1A and Poinsettia Street on Fort Lauderdale Beach on Feb. 28, 2024, ahead of spring break.
A Fort Lauderdale police officer, right, keeps an eye on traffic on A1A and Poinsettia Street on Fort Lauderdale Beach on Feb. 28, 2024, ahead of spring break.

Colleges, universities spring break schedule

Spring break is staggered at both national colleges and universities as well as at Florida schools — private and public.

Here’s when some Florida schools of higher education set spring recess for 2024.

▪ Barry University: March 4-8.

▪ Bethune-Cookman College: March 4-9.

▪ Broward College: March 4-10.

▪ Florida A&M University: March 11-15.

▪ Florida Atlantic University: March 2-8.

▪ Florida International University: Feb. 26-March 2.

▪ Florida State University: March 11-15.

▪ Miami Dade College: March 25-31.

▪ Palm Beach State College: March 4-10.

▪ University of Central Florida: March 18-23.

▪ University of Florida: March 9-17.

▪ University of Miami: March 9-17.

▪ University of North Florida: March 18-23.

▪ University of South Florida: March 11-17.

▪ University of West Florida: March 25-31.