Miami and Fort Lauderdale may be youngsters when it comes to city age—119 and 100 years old, respectively—but that doesn’t stop them from boasting historical homes, architecturally unique buildings and other fascinating venues that create one-of-a-kind settings for group events.
Bonnet House Museum & Gardens
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Bonnet House is a 35-acre subtropical estate and historic home museum set on oceanfront land in the heart of downtown Fort Lauderdale and offering a variety of unique venues for corporate gatherings and cocktail parties, including a lush center courtyard.
Historic Needham Estate
Set on Fort Lauderdale’s New River and steps away from the bustle of Las Olas Boulevard, this private home immediately transports the visitor to old South Florida, circa 1925.
“It’s like The Great Gatsby here,” says Stacy Stern, the estate’s event planner. “In fact, one company is going to do a Bonnie and Clyde event, complete with vintage cars and a casino.”
With its Mediterranean Revival style, popular in 1920s South Florida, the grand home features an original wrought-iron stairway, Cuban tile floors and cypress ceilings, while lush grounds are designed to maximize balmy subtropical evenings. And yet the city, including the vintage Riverside Hotel, is within walking, or water taxi, distance.
“It’s a true Florida experience when you can leave your hotel, get in a water taxi and go to your event at the Needham Estate,” Stern says. “It’s a big wow.’”
Broward Center for the Performing Arts
Fort Lauderdale’s premier performance venue is also a center for private events of all sizes, hosted in a number of main theaters, smaller black box and cabaret theaters, classrooms, lobbies and lounges. In addition, a new ballroom and bistro opened at the Huizenga Pavilion in October.
“We host anywhere from 700 to 1,000 events a year,” says Carmen Ackerman, project manager for the Riverwalk Arts & Entertainment District, a partnership of arts and entertainment organizations that includes the Broward Center, Bonnet House and the Museum of Art.
Windridge Yacht Charters
Headquartered in Fort Lauderale, this off-site venue goes off-land to docking locations in Miami, Boca Raton and Palm Beach, accommodating 10 to 430 aboard the 170-foot Lady Windridge and the 131-foot Windridge K, which recently completed a $1.2 million renovation.
The Alfred I. Dupont Building Touted as Miami’s only Art Deco skyscraper, the Alfred I. Dupont Building opened downtown in 1939 and still retains its Depression Moderne architectural flair. The glamorous landmark offers 22,000 square feet of event space on the mezzanine level, including a former bank complete with teller windows and two bank vaults.
“We host corporate events, award ceremonies, concerts, you name it,” says Deborah Lindenfeld, venue and events manager.
Hialeah Park
In 1925, when most Miamians lived near the coast, a racetrack opened in what was then the hinterlands of Hialeah. Today, Hialeah Park and Casino, dubbed “the world’s most beautiful race course,” is an oasis of French Mediterranean architecture and picturesque gardens set in the busy heart of Hialeah, a bustling city north of the airport. Group events are hosted in 10,000 square feet of elegant indoor space and more than 1 million square feet of flexible outdoor function areas.
