Hi

Am going to see a friend in Miami but only for a long weekend (been several times before).

Want to go somewhere else before-hand for a few days i.e. another East Coast City.

Can anyone recommend somewhere that is an easy get-around i.e. no car/taxis needed.

Have done New York and the Keys so they are out.

Suggestions welcomed please.

I looked at a few Central American locations but they bumped the cost up too much and I'd wanna be there much longer anyhow... would consider a Carribean Island if someone had somewhere interesting/not costly to recommend (from Miami).

Ta muchly.

Charleston, SC
http://www.charlestoncvb.com/visitors/

How about a southern city? New Orleans is mighty fine and easy to get around.

Washington DC is always a good choice for lots of interesting stuff and mass transit friendly. I've done weekends there easily.

Boston is easy to get around without a car, if you want to go that far north.

Thank you.

Forgot to add, am a female travelling solo, does that change best options...?

I vote for DC. Lots of free museums on the National Mall. Air and Space one is tops in my book. The whole Smithsonian rules. It's easily gotten around as well. I liked going out in the Adam Morgan area, which used to be sketch but is now hipster.

I always was underwhelmed by New Orleans and thought it was a bit of a dump, before Katrina. I found it to be super sketchy BUT I hear that the sketchy factor has improved since Katrina.

PhotoChick

DC has the advantage of being directly on the way to Florida, somewhat.

I just went to New Orleans, and found it to be fascinating and wonderful.

If you like music, you should never miss New Orleans. You can easily avoid the squalor of the 9th ward, and I found the city to be safe enough. If you go there, I can recommend two hostels:

AAE hostel- Quieter, more efficient, 5 blocks from the main transport, but not too bad. Free pancake breakfast. Friendly enough. For a female- some people would say to go with others when you come back at night. As a male, I found no problems.

India House: A sprawling mansion and a much more social hostel. Better for a more social visit. It's right off the bus line to the center of the city. The people there are good. I liked it there a lot. They have not-bad food sometimes as well, a good kitchen, and a great backyard. They have fairly good maps as well, and a list of all the best jazz and rock gigs going on that night, some of them fairly cheap to free.

Don't expect a good nights sleep there unless you sleep deeply, as it is a kind of party hostel. I had little trouble falling asleep after 11:oo pm, but if you feel like it, the party goes on all night. I was outside. I imagine the upstairs rooms were a lot quieter.

There's all kind of things to see in New Orleans, and I can say with some experience that it was one of the best American cities I have ever been to, especially if you have no car. Most good things are walkable, and public transport is good.

Also the food is fantastic in New Orleans.

Here's another vote for DC- lots to see and do, and the metro system is really handy.

RE: New Orleans.

The city isn't for everyone. Some of its best qualities you may only ever experience if you settle down and stay awhile. Crime is high, people are poor, and the city can be a little dirty, especially in the Quarter or during a holiday. But it is not a dump. It is a place of great people, great food, and great music. It has history and tragedy. Some people come to visit for a few days, romp around the Quarter, and come away with stars in their eyes. Others do the same and write the city off as kitschy or sketchy. But there's much more to the city, and I doubt anyone who experienced it in-depth, even for a short while, would ever call it a "dump".

And I think people throw around words like squalor too freely. There are parts of the 9th Ward that are in ruins. Empty lots, decaying houses. But there are plenty of areas where people have returned, rebuilt, and are living out their lives. I live in a part of the 9th Ward, albeit an area untouched by the floods. And if Katrina's aftermath is to be referred to as "squalor", it's affected many more neighborhoods than the 9th Ward or Lower 9th. And in some parts of the city you wouldn't even know there was ever a disaster.

You can easily get around the city via the streetcar and the bus, albeit not always with any great speed. If you're willing to rent a bicycle or borrow one, you'll have no problems at all. As a woman traveling alone, you may want to avoid going into the less traveled/touristy neighborhoods alone, or alone at night. It's easy enough to meet up with locals or other travelers. The Greyhound or Amtrak comes through town, so you could possibly even get here without buying a plane ticket, although you could just as easily catch a rideshare as well (there's a lot of traffic between travelers going from Florida to Texas, and vice versa.)

If you're interested in visiting New Orleans, I'd be happy to throw out some suggestions in addition to Tortuga's.

some places i never been there ,i will sign as my next desitination.

I second the suggestions of New Orleans and Charleston. New Orleans is definitely what you make of it. You can do the whole party scene or you can take in a lot of the history. Either way there are great restaurants, sites, and the people are welcoming. I spent a day in Charleston walking around the city and loved it. Although I didn't have enough time to see all they had to offer. I would definitely like to go back and explore more.