Walkable neighborhoods with easy access to Downtown Miami in Aventura (Fort Lauderdale: apartment complex, rentals)

[AlfredM]

Hello. In next couple of months I am moving to Miami/Fort Lauderdale area and Aventura is on of the top 3 places I am considering.

What are some of the most walkable neighborhoods in Aventura similar to Coral Gables, Coconut Grove or Brickell in Miami?

I am basically looking for the neighborhood where I wouldn't need a car for the first couple of months and would have easy access to Downtown Miami.

Thank you

[oronzous]

Aventura + Downtown = car

[ruski]

Originally Posted by AlfredM

Hello. In next couple of months I am moving to Miami/Fort Lauderdale area and Aventura is on of the top 3 places I am considering.

What are some of the most walkable neighborhoods in Aventura similar to Coral Gables, Coconut Grove or Brickell in Miami?

I am basically looking for the neighborhood where I wouldn't need a car for the first couple of months and would have easy access to Downtown Miami.

Thank you

Downtown Miami

[AnnRyan]

Okay, so I guessed there was probably a bus running from the Aventura mall to downtown, and I was right. Theoretically, it will take an a hour and a half. (I'm guessing that actually means 2 hours).

See route info here.
Route Details - Miami-Dade County

And you would want to live within walking distance of that bus stop.

I think the rational answer is actually to live in downtown Miami or to go ahead and buy the car immediately. Another option would be to rely on Uber to get back and forth, but that won't be cheap if you're doing it to commute.

[AlfredM]

Originally Posted by oronzous

Aventura + Downtown = car

I know I need a car . I am just looking for the area where I won't need a car in a neighborhood. I can use public transit for first 2-3 months. Just don't want to live in the area where I'll need a car for everything.

Originally Posted by AnnRyan

Okay, so I guessed there was probably a bus running from the Aventura mall to downtown, and I was right. Theoretically, it will take an a hour and a half. (I'm guessing that actually means 2 hours).

See route info here.
Route Details - Miami-Dade County

And you would want to live within walking distance of that bus stop.

I think the rational answer is actually to live in downtown Miami or to go ahead and buy the car immediately. Another option would be to rely on Uber to get back and forth, but that won't be cheap if you're doing it to commute.

Thanks . It looks like a long ride but I can probably survive that for first 2-3 months until I don't get my driver license

[Zebzeb]

Try living in Aventura town center. Check the Venture. If you are okay with apartment living, check out camden Aventura.

[hurricaneMan1992]

Originally Posted by Zebzeb

Try living in Aventura town center. Check the Venture. If you are okay with apartment living, check out camden Aventura.

Hi, I lived around there for 5 years, until the traffic got unbearable. Don't underestimate the traffic--it can take you 20 minutes just to get between Aventura and I-95 during peak hours, and the access ramps around downtown are no joke either!

Yes, The Venture is going to be the most walkable part of Aventura. They even call it a "town center" even though it's just a bunch of strip malls. However, the access to transit is not convenient at all. It'd be a hike up to 191 ST to get to the safe pedestrian crossing.

Besides driving:
The 95 Express is the quickest way to downtown, but only runs a few trips a day and you still have to get to/from Aventura Mall.
The 93 is next quickest way, but it still takes an hour, and that's "on paper" without accounting for traffic jams.
Other routes are even slower, as if an hour wasn't slow enough.

Possibly a better bet would be Commodore or Admiral's Port right behind the Fresh Market on 183rd. Nice views over the lake. You can walk to stuff including the "Town Center" and even the mall if you're in shape, and there are back roads so it's not walking along US1. But again, it is strip malls. I used to live further in at Lincoln Pointe and for an apartment complex I'd recommend hands down it over Camden, but it's more of a hike. However, the best deals in Aventura are in the condos not the apartment complexes. MUCH easier to cross to get the 93 there, and it cuts ~10 minutes off the bus ride. Take Miami Gardens Drive when you get your car, just try to leave before or after school zone hours. You don't have to deal with the Ives Dairy cluster f*** (which is two school zones at different, overlapping times!!!). You even have the option of parking at the Golden Glades park and ride 95 Express instead of having to drive all the way downtown.

[786man]

Originally Posted by AnnRyan

Okay, so I guessed there was probably a bus running from the Aventura mall to downtown, and I was right. Theoretically, it will take an a hour and a half. (I'm guessing that actually means 2 hours).

See route info here.
Route Details - Miami-Dade County

And you would want to live within walking distance of that bus stop.

I think the rational answer is actually to live in downtown Miami or to go ahead and buy the car immediately. Another option would be to rely on Uber to get back and forth, but that won't be cheap if you're doing it to commute.

I rode the 3 route from Downtown Miami to Aventura like 2 months ago. It goes straight up Biscayne, makes a left on 163rd and cuts through North Miami Beach a little, then goes back on Biscayne and ends at the mall. I was on the elongated bus so it was a little more comfortable. You're right, the ride took about an hour and a half, give or take 10 minutes. But I rode the bus on a Saturday afternoon, at about 2:30PM, so it will probably be longer during rush hour.

Like others have said, I'd invest in an automobile.

[FlyMIA]

Aventura is not walkable, period, unless its a few of the developments that are close to shopping centers.

Aventura to Downtown Miami during rush hour is horrid.

You want walking, you want Downtown Miami, move to Downtown Miami, the prices won't be much different than Aventura.

[hurricaneMan1992]

Originally Posted by FlyMIA

Aventura is not walkable, period, unless its a few of the developments that are close to shopping centers.

Aventura to Downtown Miami during rush hour is horrid.

You want walking, you want Downtown Miami, move to Downtown Miami, the prices won't be much different than Aventura.

Agreed, especially if you consider Edgewater and east Little Havana. Aventura has come up quite a bit in the past few years and is really not that much of a bargain anymore. The new apartments a block from Omni station rent for as low as $1400, and you'd be hard pressed to find a good rental in Aventura for cheaper than this. Based on a quick Zillow search, most interesting 1br rentals seem to be starting around $1600 both in downtown and Aventura.