General South Florida Sites - For entertainment, dining, sports, and festival information produced in cooperation with the Sun-Sentinel: http://www.southflorida.digitalcity.com .

The site of Florida's official tourism bureau, this extensive website includes information on attractions, beaches, golfing, and water sports, as well as airport information, weather, and maps: www.flausa.com.

This site links to more than a dozen convention bureaus throughout the state. Most of the sites include information on attractions, dining, lodging, and shopping: www.facvb.org.

Detailed information on state parks, right down to what kind of wildlife hangs out where, and the lowdown on fees, attractions, and facilities: www.dep.state.fl.us/parks.

A nicely organized guide to theme parks, marine attractions, museums, boating, fishing, and much more, as well as advice for first-time visitors to the Sunshine State: www.see-florida.com.

City Guides, Dining & Entertainment Sites–A collection of websites regarding Miami, all with links to other relevant websites: gomiami.about.com.

For listings and reviews for Miami arts and entertainment events, restaurants, shopping, and attractions: miami.citysearch.com.

A well-rounded guide to Key West, including an events calendar and extensive listings for attractions, sightseeing and ecotours, theater, art galleries, dining, lodging, fishing, and shopping: key-west.com.

A guide to gay-friendly Key West: www.gaykeywestfl.com.

Featuring local news and up-to-date information on events and entertainment options from the Miami Herald: www.miami.com.

This site offers reviews and listings for attractions, entertainment, restaurants, hotels, and shopping, and includes categories for kids, and gays and lesbians. Unlike some other city guides, Time Out: Miami makes a concerted effort to cater to tourists as well as locals: www.timeout.com/miami.

Miami's leading alternative weekly includes features and listings for music, theater, film, and more: www.miaminewtimes.com.

Here's a nice roundup of music, theater, sports, and dining choices in South Florida: www.sun-sentinel.com/showtime.

Listings and reviews for Miami. Each restaurant has a capsule review and ratings based on surveys received from site users. For many restaurants, only two or three people have bothered to submit ratings, so they may not be statistically significant. However, comments can be instructive, as CuisineNet's readers discuss service, parking, free birthday desserts, and a host of other insightful topics: www.cuisinenet.com.

Reviewing top restaurants, Zagat has made a name for itself as the people's choice, as its listings are based on extensive surveys: www.zagat.com.

And last but not least, Miami Beach's favorite realtor, Yolande Citro, who services many clients including the stars and celebrities with their real estate purchases and sales: www.yolandecitro.com

Agua Spa at the Delano, 1685 Collins Ave., Miami Beach (tel. 305/673-2900), is sublimely situated on the rooftop of the hotel, overlooking the Atlantic, and features stellar treatments such as the milk-and-honey massage that make it popular with celebs and laywomen alike. Lose yourself in a tub of fragrant oils, algae, or minerals for a 20-minute revitalization, or try the collagen, mud, and hydrating masks.

The Ritz-Carlton Spa, Key Biscayne, 415 Grand Bay Dr., Key Biscayne (tel. 305/648-5900), is a sublime 20,000-square-foot West Indies-colonial style Eden in which you can treat yourself to over 60 treatments, including the Key Lime Coconut Body Scrub and the Everglades Grass Body Wrap. For a real splurge, the Fountain of Youth treatment is a 6-hour indulgence featuring a facial, massage, manicure, pedicure, shampoo, styling, and lunch served on the ocean terrace.

Turnberry Isle Resort & Club, 19999 W. Country Club Dr., Aventura (tel. 305/932-6200), offers a sprawling 25,000-square-foot spa with a massive menu of treatments, Finnish saunas, Turkish steam rooms, turbulent whirlpools, and bracing cold plunge tubs that are sure to give you an uplifting jolt.

Spa Internazionale at Fisher Island, 1 Fisher Island Dr., Fisher Island (tel. 800/537-3708), is the city's poshest spa, known for its picturesque setting and the Guinot Paris Hydradermie facial–a 75-minute moisturizing and cleansing facial that leaves the skin silky smooth.

Spa of Eden at the Eden Roc Resort, 4525 Collins Ave., Miami Beach (tel. 304/531-0000), offers salt glows, chamomile polishes, seaweed wraps, and Swedish and shiatsu massages in a spectacular setting overlooking the ocean.

Away Spa at the W South Beach, 1701 Collins Ave., Miami Beach, (tel. 877-WHOTELS). At press time, we were still awaiting the grand opening of Away, but it will no doubt offer stiff competition to South Beach neighbor Agua. The spa will offer eight different facials, numerous styles of massage (including Hot Stone), and three body scrubs and wraps. There are also alternative healing services like Reiki and craniosacral therapy, herbal mineral baths, and exotic body treatments such as the Star of India (a 90-min. facial-massage-wrap combo), and, for the truly indulgent, the nearly 2-hour Javanese Lulur, which originated as a prewedding service for the princesses of Java.

Driving Along Florida A1A:
This oceanfront route, which runs north up Miami Beach, through Sunny Isles and Hollywood, and into Fort Lauderdale (starting at Ocean Dr. and First St. in Miami and merging onto Collins Ave. before running north), embodies the essence that is South Florida. From time-warped hotels steeped in Art Deco kitsch to multimillion-dollar modern high-rises, A1A is one of the most scenic, albeit heavily trafficked, roads in all of Florida.

South Beach Nightlife:
If you can handle it, you can boogie down until the sun comes up in cavernous, pulsating dance clubs, which are considered amongst the best in the world. If dancing isn't your thing, consider the restaurant-as-nightclub concept defined by places such as Tantra, a grass-floored restaurant/lounge in which Marrakesh meets Miami Beach, or Rumi, a swank resto-lounge in which the likes of Jennifer Lopez and members of Mötley Crüe mix with a colorful crowd of local and international hipsters. Where else can us ordinary folk brush elbows with–or spill Cosmopolitans on–Hollywood starlets, entertainment moguls, and living legends but in South Beach's hot clubs, bars, and restaurants, many of which don't get going until the crack of dawn?

Airboat Ride Through the Outskirts of the Everglades:
Unfettered by jet skis, cruise ships, and neon bikinis, the Everglades are Florida's outback, resplendent in their swampy nature. The Everglades are best explored either by slow-moving canoes that really get you acquainted with your surroundings or via an airboat that can quickly navigate its way through the most stubborn of saw grass while providing you with an up-close and personal (as well as fun) view of the land's inhabitants, from alligators and manatees to raccoons and Florida panthers.

Dining at Big Fish Restaurant on the Miami River:
Some consider dining on the Miami River to be industrial chic; others consider it seedy in a Miami Vice sort of way. However you choose to look at it, by all means do look at it; the sleepy Miami River is nestled below the sweeping downtown Miami skyline, reminding you that even though you're in a major metropolis, things in this often-frenetic city are capable of slowing down to a more soothing pace.

Vizcaya Museum and Gardens:
Built in 1916, this Italian Renaissance-style manse on Biscayne Bay in Miami features 34 rooms of antiques, art, and tapestries; 10 acres of Italian gardens, statues, and fountains; a new orchid display; and a picture-perfect view of the skyline and Key Biscayne.

Wolfie Cohen's Rascal House:
You will wait on line at Miami Beach's landmark diner, but it's never dull, as the cacophony of mostly Northeastern U.S. accents will keep you entertained until you are seated in what seems to be an ancient vinyl booth. The octogenarian waitress will serve you corned-beef sandwiches, brisket, or potato pancakes, and, if you're lucky, she may tell you about the time Sinatra and his Rat Pack came in way back when.

Moonlight Concerts at the Barnacle State Historic Site:
Once a month, on or near the full moon (except during July and August), the Barnacle State Historic Site hosts a concert in the backyard of their charming 1908 Coconut Grove bungalow built on 5 acres of waterfront property. Listeners are welcome to picnic and bask in this sublime setting for a mere $5.

Midnight Snacking at Versailles:
This iconoclastic, gaudy Cuban diner in the heart of Miami's Little Havana is humming with the buzz of old-timers reminiscing about pre-Castro Cuba, local politicos trying to appease them, and a slew of detached people only there for the fantastically cheap and authentic Cuban fare. Much like its French namesake in whose image it's been literally mirrored, Miami's Versailles provides a palatial view of Miami's ever-changing Cuban landscape.

Lunch at News Café on Ocean Drive:
The quintessential South Beach experience, lunching at News Café is more of a spectator sport than a dining experience. What the Big Mac is to McDonald's, people-watching is to News Café, whose Ocean Drive location is one of the best sidewalk spots from which to observe the wacky, colorful mix of pedestrians on parade.

Relishing the View from Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Recreation Area:
You haven't truly seen South Florida until you've checked out the view from the southern point of Key Biscayne. Whether it's the turquoise water or the sight of Stiltsville–seven still-inhabited aquatic cabins dating back to the 1930s, perched smack in the middle of the Biscayne Channel–it may take a little coercing to get you to leave.

Scuba Diving off Jupiter Beach:
In 1988, Jupiter Beach lifeguard Peter Leo spotted an anchor and a cannon while on his routine morning swim. Turns out, they belonged to what is believed to be the shipwreck of a Spanish galleon dating back to the 16th or 17th century. Giving literal meaning to South Florida's Treasure and Gold coasts, this wreck is worth holding your breath for.

Happy Hour at Mai Kai:
Polynesia meets Fort Lauderdale at Mai Kai, the trippiest tiki hut this side of Tahiti, with its sarong-clad bartenders, a fiery hula show, and an exhaustive menu of frozen concoctions.

Discovering Your Inner Flipper at the Dolphin Research Center:
Learn to communicate with and touch, swim, or play with the mammals at the nonprofit Dolphin Research Center in Marathon Key, home to a school of approximately 15 dolphins.

Eyeing the Estates on Palm Beach:
The winter playground for the Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous set, Palm Beach is lined with jaw-dropping palatial estates. While many of them are hidden behind towering shrubbery, head south on South County Road, from Brazilian Avenue, where you will see some of the most opulent homes ever built. Make sure someone holds the steering wheel if you're driving, because you will do a double take.

Lounging Poolside at the Delano:
In addition to tanning, the scene here is about striking a pose and pretending not to notice the others doing so. If you're staying at Miami's Delano, and if you're savvy enough to score one of the luxe lounges, prepare to overhear some interesting conversations between the movers and shakers who bake here. Though the hotel itself is overrated, the pool is worth every bit of its splash and flash.

Boating Through the Intracoastal Waterway:
The waterway that connects the natural bays, lagoons, and rivers along Florida's East Coast snakes around from the Florida-Georgia border all the way to the port of Miami. A ride through the Fort Lauderdale Intracoastal provides a sublime view of million-dollar waterfront houses.

Having a Postbeach Beer at Jimbo's on Key Biscayne:
Who knew that a dive housed in a wooden shack in the mangroves of Virginia Key, serving beer from a cooler, would become one of Miami's best-kept local secrets? That is, until now.

Salsa Lessons at Bongo's Cuban Cafe:
If the only salsa you're familiar with is the kind you put on your tacos, get over to Bongo's, the hottest salsa club north of Havana, where Miami's most talented salsa dancers will teach you how to move your two left feet in the right direction.

Thanks to the following sources for our Miami Community Information:

"Miami" - Frommer's
"Miami Overview" - Fodors.com
"Miami: A Key to the Neighborhoods" - Concierge.com
"Miami, Florida" - RandMcNally.com
"Miami" - Bradmans.com
"Miami City Overview" - World Travel Guide
"Neighborhoods in Brief" - Frommer's

Best Historic Hotel:
With a guest registry that reads like a who's who of history crossed with an engrossing whodunit, Miami's monumental, Mediterranean revivalist-style Biltmore Hotel (tel. 800/727-1926 or 305/445-1926) opened its doors in 1926. Guests ranging from Al Capone to the duke and duchess of Windsor loved the stately hotel so much that they never left, so say those who claim the hotel is haunted. Ghosts aside, this national landmark boasts the largest hotel pool in the continental United States as well as a 300-foot bell tower modeled after the Cathedral of Seville.

Best Cheap-Chic Hotel:
West Palm Beach's Hotel Biba (tel. 561/832-0094) is a funky, single-story, converted 1940s motor-lodge-turned-boutique hotel featuring an oversized swimming pool, Asian gardens with sitting areas, a reflection pond, and the ultrahip Biba Bar. Rooms start at $79.

Best Celebrity-Saturated Hotel:
The Delano (tel. 800/555-5001 or 305/672-2000) still reigns as Miami's number one celebrity magnet, attracting stars and starlets who you'd find at A-list Hollywood parties. The hotel's star power makes up for its sterile rooms.

Best Role-Playing Hotel:
With rooms such as "Me Tarzan, You Vain," or "Best Whorehouse," South Beach's Pelican Hotel (tel. 800/7-PELICAN or 305/673-3373) takes the concept of escapism to an entirely new level.

Best Out-of-Place Bed-and-Breakfast:
Located on the outskirts of gritty, bustling downtown Miami is the historic Miami River Inn (tel. 800/468-3589 or 305 /325-0045), housed in five restored clapboard buildings dating back to 1906. By the looks of this place, you could swear you were somewhere in New England–until you step out for a breath of the balmy air.

Best Hotel in a League of Its Own:
Jules' Undersea Lodge (tel. 305/451-2353) in Key Largo really gives you the low-down on the full Keys experience by requiring all guests to scuba 30 feet underwater to get to their rooms, which are literally located under the sea, in the mangrove habitat of Emerald Lagoon.

Best Art Deco Hotel:
The Raleigh Hotel (tel. 800/848-1775 or 305/534-6300) in Miami is the reigning diva of Deco, dating back to 1940. It features one of the most photographed palm-lined swimming pools, reminiscent of the days of Esther Williams.

Best Gatsby-esque Hotel:
As you drive up to the Breakers (tel. 800/833-3141) in posh Palm Beach, you can't help but feel the spirit of Jay Gatsby beckoning you into this mammoth Italian Renaissance-style hotel.

Best Beach Hotel:
Miami's Beach House Bal Harbour (tel. 877/782-3557 or 305/865-3551) was inspired by the great beach homes of the Hamptons, Nantucket, and coastal Maine, and when you stay here, you will feel like someone's houseguest rather than an anonymous hotel guest.

Best Inexpensive Hotel:
It's hard to find a hotel on South Beach with both good value and excellent service, but the Crest Hotel Suites (tel. 800/531-3880 or 305/531-0321) delivers and peaks as one of Miami's best bargains and coolest hotels.

In Key West, the Grand (tel. 888/947-2630), despite its name, will not leave you with a huge tab at the end of your stay. The rooms in this hotel are bright and airy and the proprietor works hard to keep you happy.

The Blue Seas Courtyard (tel. 877/225-8373) in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea is a terrific deal that's just 1 block from the beach. It features rooms drenched in Haitian and Peruvian art, as well as a garden pool.

Best for Families:
In Miami, the Sonesta Beach Resort Key Biscayne (tel. 800/SONESTA or 305/361-2021) is known for its complimentary children's programs led by trained counselors who supervise kids, grouped by age, in pool and beach activities and on field trips including dinner, movie, and museum excursions. Fees apply for meals/certain excursions.

In Fort Lauderdale, Marriott's Harbor Beach (tel. 800/222-6543) has a Beachside Buddies program for children ages 5 to 12, offering half-day and all-day children's activities that range from seashell collecting to hula-hoop contests. The 8,000-square-foot, free-form swimming pool, expansive sand beach, and instant access to water toys also keep kids entertained.

The Boca Raton Resort and Club (tel. 800/327-0101) has activity programs designed for distinct age groups: Boca Tots (ages 3-5), Boca Bunch (ages 6-11), and Boca Sport (ages 12-17). Upon registering children in the program, each parent is given a beeper with a 60-mile radius so that they may be contacted by their children at any time.

Best for Romance:
In Miami, the Hotel Place St. Michel (tel. 800/848-HOTEL or 305/444-1666) is a cozy European-style hotel whose wood-floored dark-paneled rooms are adorned in antiques, transporting you from sunny Florida to gay Paris.

Imagine an intimate haven on your own private island and you've got Little Palm Island (tel. 800/343-8567), located just 3 miles offshore in the Florida Keys, accessible only by boat or seaplane, and quite possibly the closest thing to paradise, with only one telephone on the entire island.

In Palm Beach, modeled after a quaint English inn, the Chesterfield Hotel (tel. 800/243-7871) is absolutely seductive, thanks in part to its sexy, sultry Leopard Lounge, its cozy fireside library, and Churchill's Cigar Room.

Best Guesthouses/B&Bs:
The Villa Paradiso Guest House (tel. 305/532-0616) may be smack in the heart of frenetic South Beach, but once you're inside you're worlds away, with rooms facing a sun-drenched courtyard and a host who is genuinely glad to see you, unlike some of the more attitudinal staff found in other nearby hotels.

In Fort Lauderdale, La Casa Del Mar (tel. 954/467-2037) is located right on the beach and offers cozily appointed rooms. The owners bend over backward to make sure your stay is a fantastic one.

Best for Celebrating a Big Deal:
The Forge Restaurant on Miami Beach (tel. 305/538-8533) is a multichambered, ornately decorated (and priced) monument known for its decadent wines, steak, and fish.

Best Romantic Restaurant:
La Vieille Maison, in Boca Raton (tel. 561/391-6701), is housed in a 1920s-era structure, with a stunning courtyard, superlative haute French cuisine, and intimate, private dining rooms.

Best Waterfront Dining:
It's a tossup between Biscayne Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, but whichever you prefer, there are two restaurants that provide front-row seats to both. The Mandarin Oriental Hotel's global fusion restaurant, Azul (tel. 305/913-8258), faces the Miami skyline and beautiful, tranquil Biscayne Bay, while the Ritz Carlton Key Biscayne's Aria (tel. 305/365-4500) faces the Atlantic, but its Mediterranean cuisine could have you thinking you're floating off the coast of, say, Spain. Tough decisions, but both are winners. Louie's Backyard in Key West (tel. 305/294-1061) offers Caribbean cuisine and one of the best views of the gulf you'll ever have.

Best Restaurant Worth the Wait for a Table:
The legendary South Florida institution known as Joe's Stone Crab Restaurant, in Miami Beach (tel. 305/673-0365), refuses to take reservations, but that doesn't stop people from clawing their way into the restaurant for a table–despite a wait that's often in excess of 3 hours.

Best Cuban Restaurant:
There's always a debate on who has the best, most authentic Cuban cuisine, but for those of you who have never been to Havana, Miami's Versailles, in Little Havana (tel. 305/444-0240), is the quintessential Cuban diner, featuring enormo us portions at paltry prices.

Best Steak House:
Boca Raton's New York Prime (tel. 561/998-3881) may be part of a South Carolina-based chain, but its steaks are a cut above the rest. The only problem may be scoring a reservation.

In addition to the Forge Restaurant, Christy's, in Coral Gables (tel. 305/446-1400), is the Miami carnivore's choice, with superb steaks and famous Caesar salads.

Best New World Cuisine:
It's a tossup between the restaurants of the original founders of the palate-pleasing fusion of Florida and Caribbean (Floribbean) ingredients: Norman's, in Coral Gables (tel. 305/446-6767), owned by James Beard chef Norman van Aken, and Chef Allen's, in Aventura (tel. 305/935-2900), owned by chef Allen Susser. Whichever chef's cuisine you choose, they both do wonders with mangoes.

Sexiest Restaurant:
Tantra, in Miami Beach (tel. 305/672-4765), brings a bit of exotic Marrakesh to South Beach with an aphrodisiac-inspired menu, grass-lined floors, and an equally sultry crowd that isn't afraid of getting in touch with its sensual side.

Best Scene:
Rumi, in Miami Beach (tel. 305/672-4353), is a sexy, cacophonous global-fusion restaurant/lounge whose gorgeously prepared dishes are enough to rival the beautiful and sometimes famous people who convene here. Joia, also in Miami Beach (tel. 305/674-8871), exemplifies South Beach's spin on La Dolce Vita with its fine Italian cuisine, celebrity clientele, and requisite paparazzi hiding nearby in the bushes.

Best Sunday Brunch:
Nemo, on Miami Beach (tel. 305/532-4550), turns its open kitchen into a help-yourself-to-anything, calorie-busting Sunday brunch of gourmet fare and insanely good desserts. Boca Raton's Mizner Park (tel. 561/395-0770) features a gourmet all-you-can-eat $19 brunch–an unheard-of value in swanky Mizner Park.

Best View:
Big Fish, in Miami (tel. 305/373-1770), is all about gritty-chic, located on the Miami River, where tugboats and cargo ships slink by as you indulge in fresh fish and sip good Italian wine under the glow of the brilliant downtown skyline hovering above. Red Fish Grill (tel. 305/668-8788) is ensconced in Coral Gables' Matheson Hammock Park and located on the edge of a saltwater lagoon, a setting so blissfully distracting, you may forget to pay attention to what's on your plate.

Best Haute Cuisine:
Mark's Las Olas, in Fort Lauderdale (tel. 954/463-1000), and Miami Beach's Mark's South Beach (tel. 305/604-9050) are both owned by celebrity chef Mark Militello, whose New American cuisine restores the faith of gourmands whose palates once belonged to the Pan-Asian Fusion movement.

Best People-Watching:
The News Café, in South Beach (tel. 305/538-6397), practically invented the sport of people-watching, encouraging its customers to sit at an outdoor table all day if they want, lingering over the passing parades of people while sipping a cappuccino. The Delano Hotel's pricey Blue Door restaurant (tel. 305/674-6400), in Miami Beach, provides a front-row seat to the hordes of hipsters who flock there.

Best Comfort Food:
Big Pink, in Miami Beach (tel. 305/532-4700), serves kitsch in large doses, featuring TV dinners served in trays. Fun and funky, and the food's pretty good, too.

Best Italian Food:
Miami Beach's Macaluso's (tel. 305/604-1811) would make Tony Soprano very proud of his Italian heritage, thanks to Chef Michael's expertly prepared Staten Island-meets-SoHo cuisine. Tuscan Today Trattoria, in Fort Lauderdale (tel. 954/566-1716), churns out primo Tuscan fare in its imported-from-Italy wood-burning brick oven.

Best Mexican:
The fresh, authentic Mexican fare at El Rancho Grande, in Miami Beach (tel. 305/673-0480), will have you swearing off Taco Bell forever.

Best Star-Studded Sushi Restaurant:
Nobu, at the Shore Club Hotel in Miami Beach (tel. 305/695-3100), is known for its star sushi chef and owner, the legendary Nobu Matsuhisa, but the raw facts about this restaurant are as simple as its stellar clientele (which includes Madonna, among others): It's unquestionably the best sushi in town. For fabulous sushi minus the Hollywood vibe, Miami Beach's Shoji Sushi (tel. 305/532-4245) is at the top of the A-list.

Best Seafood:
Grillfish, in South Beach (tel. 305/538-9908), is simple, unpretentious, and consistently serves the freshest fish in town–any which way you desire.

Best Late-Night Dining:
In addition to the 24-hour News Café (see above and) and Big Pink (see above and), Ft. Lauderdale's Lester's Diner (tel. 954/525-5641) is a 24-hour institution, serving classic greasy-spoon fare at ridiculously cheap prices. The Floridian, also in Fort Lauderdale (tel. 954/463-4041), serves everything from eggs to steaks, 24 hours a day, but the vantage point for people-watching rates higher than the food.

Kitschiest Dining:
Wolfie Cohen's Rascal House (tel. 305/947-4581) is a must for those looking for a retro-fabulous North Miami Beach experience, with a wait staff as old as the vinyl booths and the best corned beef on rye south of the Lower East Side. Green Turtle Inn, on Islamorada (tel. 305/664-9031), is an old-fashioned Florida Keys institution since 1947, featuring moderately priced steaks, stone crabs, and, yes, turtle, to the tune of campy pianist Tina Martin.

For Tranquility:
Matheson Hammock Park Beach (tel. 305/665-5475) in South Miami features an enclosed man-made lagoon that is flushed naturally by the tidal action of the adjacent Biscayne Bay. The serene beach is surrounded by the bay's warm, calm waters and a backdrop of tropical hardwood forest.

The beach at Bahia Honda State Park (tel. 305/872-2353) in Bahia Honda Key is one of the nicest and most peaceful in Florida, located amidst 635 acres of nature trails and even a portion of Henry Flagler's railroad.

For Watersports:
Hobie Beach (tel. 305/361-2833), located on the south side of Key Biscayne's Rickenbacker Causeway, is one of the most popular beaches for watersport enthusiasts, featuring jet-ski, sailboat, windsurfing, and sailboard rentals; shade, if necessary, from the Australian pine; and a sublime view of the picturesque downtown Miami skyline.

For People-Watching:
Lummus Park Beach (tel. 305/673-7714) is world renowned, not necessarily for its pristine sands, but for its more common name of South Beach. Here, seeing, being seen, and, at times, the obscene, go hand in hand with the sunscreen and beach towels.

Not nearly as scenic, but still heavily populated, Fort Lauderdale Beach (tel. 954/468-1597) is the site of many a bacchanalian Spring Break, Frankie and Annette, and now, an eclectic–albeit calmer–mix of young, buff beach bums.

For Nature Lovers:
MacArthur Beach (tel. 561/624-6950), in West Palm Beach, is considered by many nature enthusiasts to be the most beautiful nature park in South Florida, with a nice stretch of beach set against a lush and diverse background of foliage, plus a state-of-the-art nature center and renowned sea turtle awareness program.

For Nude Sunbathing:
For that all-over tan, the place to be is the north end of Haulover Beach (tel. 305/944-3040), nestled between the Intracoastal Waterway and the ocean. A gay, nude beach is also there, as is an area for nude volleyball.

For Seclusion:
The producers of Survivor could feasibly shoot their show on the ultra-secluded, picturesque, and deserted Virginia Key (tel. 305/361-2749), on Key Biscayne, where people go purposely not to be found.

John U. Lloyd State Park (tel. 954/923-6711) in Dania Beach is unfettered by high-rise condos, T-shirt shops, and hotels, and remains intact with an untouched shoreline surrounded by a canopy of Australian pine to ensure that your seclusion is, indeed, highly guarded.

For Gay Beachgoers:
South Beach's 12th Street Beach (tel. 305/673-7714) is the beach of choice for gay residents and travelers who come to show off just how much time they've spent in the gym, and, of course, catch up on the latest gossip and upcoming must-attend parties and events. Oftentimes, this beach is the venue for some of the liveliest parties South Beach has ever seen.

For Kids:
Miami's Crandon Beach (tel. 305/361-5421) is extremely popular for families with kids because of the shallow water created by a neighboring sandbar. Convenient parking, picnic areas, a winding boardwalk, and a multi-ethnic mix of families grilling, dancing, and relaxing are the benchmarks of this beach.

Best Party Beach:
In Key Biscayne, Crandon Park Beach, on Crandon Boulevard, is National Lampoon's Vacation on the sand. It's got a diverse crowd consisting of dedicated beach bums and lots of leisure-seeking families, set to a soundtrack of salsa, disco, and reggae music blaring from a number of competing stereos. With 3 miles of oceanfront beach, bathrooms, changing facilities, 493 acres of park, 75 grills, 3 parking lots, several soccer and softball fields, and a public 18-hole championship golf course, Crandon is like a theme park on the sand. Admission is $2 per vehicle. It's open daily from 8am to sunset.

Best Beach for People-Watching:
Lummus Park Beach, a.k.a. Glitter Beach, runs along Ocean Drive from about 6th to 14th streets on South Beach. It's the best place to go if you're seeking entertainment as well as a great tan. On any day of the week, you might spy models primping for a photo shoot, nearly naked (topless is legal here) sun-worshippers avoiding tan lines, and an assembly line of washboard abs off of which you could (but shouldn't) bounce your bottle of sunscreen. Bathrooms and changing facilities are available on the beach, but don't expect to have a Cindy Crawford encounter in one of these. Most people tend to prefer using the somewhat drier, cleaner bathrooms of the restaurants on Ocean Drive.

Best Swimming Beach:
The 85th Street Beach, along Collins Avenue, is the best place to swim away from the maddening crowds. It's one of Miami's only stretches of sand with no condos or hotels looming over sunbathers. Lifeguards patrol the area throughout the day and bathrooms are available, though they are not exactly the benchmark of cleanliness.

Best Windsurfing Beach:
Hobie Beach, on the side of the causeway leading to Key Biscayne, is not really a beach, but an inlet with predictable winds and a number of places where you can rent windsurfers. Bathrooms are available.

Best Shell-Hunting Beach:
You'll find plenty of colorful shells at Bal Harbour Beach, Collins Avenue at 96th Street. There's also an exercise course and good shade–but no lifeguards, bathrooms, or changing facilities.

Best (Ahem) All-Around Tanning Beach:
For that all-over tan, head to Haulover Beach, just north of the Bal Harbour border, and join nudists from around the world in a top-to-bottom tanning session. Should you choose to keep your swimsuit on, however, there are changing rooms and bathrooms.

Best Surfing Beach:
Haulover Beach Park, just over the causeway from Bal Harbour, seems to get Miami's biggest swells. Go early to avoid getting mauled by the aggressive young locals prepping for Maui.

Best Scenic Beach:
Matheson Hammock Park Beach, at 9610 Old Cutler Road in South Miami (tel. 305/665-5475), is the epitome of tranquility, tucked away off of scenic Old Cutler Road in South Miami. And while it's scenic, it's not too much of a scene. It's a great beach for those seeking "alone time." Bathrooms and changing facilities are available.

Best Family Beach:
Because of its man-made lagoon, which is fed naturally by the tidal movement of the adjacent Biscayne Bay, the waters of Matheson Hammock Park Beach are extremely calm, not to mention safe and secluded enough for families to keep an eye on the kids.

Best Beach for Seculusion:
Virginia Key on Key Biscayne, where people go when they don't want to be found. It's also incredibly picturesque.