Miami

Once the bastion of America's more senior holidaymakers, in recent years Miami has ignited into an exotic city of sizzle.

Festooned in lush tropical foliage, soaked in sunshine and suffused with Hispanic culture, its beaches are dripping with beautiful people, its streets with fast cars and in-line skaters, and its hotspots with glamorous shops, restaurants, bars and nightclubs.

While the 'Golden Girls' are indeed also still hanging out there, it's hard to spot them between the fashion shoots, film stars and fun seekers.

Situated in Florida, near the southeastern tip of the country, the territory that's often referred to as Miami is in fact two cities. Miami proper is sprawled on the mainland; it's here that you'll find the immigrant districts of Little Havana and Little Haiti, as well as fabulous shopping, fusion dining and architecture in Coral Gables and Coconut Grove.

The area south of Downtown, and along the causeway to Key Biscayne, is also speckled with attractions such as the excellent Miami Museum of Science, Vizcaya Museum and Gardens and the Seaquarium.

Many visitors, however, have their sights set mainly on Miami's sister city, Miami Beach, which occupies a sandbar to the east. Home to the Art Deco Historic District - 18 blocks of vibrant architecture created between 1920 and 1950 - it's also got a world-class arts and entertainment scene brewing in Lincoln Road Mall.

The star attraction, though, is the perpetual party playground of South Beach, which pulsates all day and cranks it up an extra five levels at night.

If you can drag yourself away, you're only a day trip from the serenity of the Everglades National Park... or additional nocturnal shenanigans on Key West.