the mommy avenger

I can’t think of a better escape from the cold, wintry mountains of Utah than to the sandy shores of Florida. So we booked a trip to Miami to see what the fuss was all about. After a week with the sun on my skin and my toes in the sand, I totally get the hype!

Miami has so much to offer and I was so excited to explore it! With the gorgeous turquoise waters surrounding us, one of the first excursions we did was head over to Biscayne Bay and book a cruise with Island Queen Cruises & Tours. We figured getting on a boat and seeing Miami from the water would be a great way to start, and we were right!

Jungle Queen Cruises & Tours offers a variety of experiences to choose from. We opted for their very popular Millionaire’s Row Sightseeing Cruise. Easy to book and super easy to get to, we found ourselves ready to board the ship for an hour and a half of entertainment.

The boat was very comfortable and covered, which was great to keep us protected from the strong sun. No matter where you sat on the boat, you had a great view, but you could also walk around and go to the bow or stern of the boat for unobstructed views, too.

Once on board, you can get settled, grab drinks and snacks from the friendly bartender and be prepared to hear story after story about the origination of Miami from our bilingual tour guide. He was a great guide and very entertaining to listen to. As we explored the waters of Port Miami, Miami Beach, Fisher Island, and saw all the homes of the rich and famous, he engaged us all with his interesting tales and facts. He was extremely knowledgeable and it was fascinating to learn all that we did.

I loved seeing the famous homes. The 80’s fanatic in me got quite excited when the Miami Vice theme song started playing through the speakers of the ship and we were informed that we were in front of a famous Miami Vice house on Hibiscus Island. Check out Season 1 Episode 7 and you will see this home.

We saw other homes, too, like Gloria Estefan’s old home, P. Diddy, J.Lo’s and other even more impressive compounds on Star Island. We learned that pharmaceutical sales might just be the career you need to make it big enough to afford such amazing digs!

House upon house was more opulent than the last and so much fun to explore from the ship. We got to see Port Miami as well as all the gigantic cruise ships ready to embark on their vacation destinations and got to see the Miami skyline.

I’m so glad that we were able to take the cruise, as it was a wonderful way to explore and see the city from a different perspective than from just the coast line. Getting up close and personal to everything was so much fun. It is something I highly recommend doing for couples or families. It’s very well done and something you will be sure to thoroughly enjoy.

To learn more about Island Queen Cruises & Tours and to book your own for when you are in the Miami area, visit them online.

^{*we were invited to facilitate a feature, all opinions are our own.*}