MIAMI — Miami Beach, a long-standing spring break getaway, may be no more as police continue to enforce strict rules, sending partygoers looking for alternative vacation spots.
As Miami Beach Police continue to crack down on stringent rules, enforcing a hefty $100 parking fee, midnight curfews, security checkpoints, DUI enforcement and a bolstered police force, many ‘Spring Breakers’ are simply taking the party elsewhere.
Gregory Turovsky, 24, of TripleTGetaways, a student-organized travel agency based in Florida, has said many of his clients are looking towards other warm, coastal destinations for 2025 Spring Break.
Miami will always be a popular destination, however, for Spring Break, the city of Miami and the Miami Beach Police Department are cracking down, installing harsher penalties, curfews and DUI checkpoints, all aimed at trying to curb rowdy Spring Break behavior,’ Turovsky told the DailyMail.com.
‘They are doing a lot of work to deter ‘Spring Breakers’ because in past years celebrations have unfortunately caused property damage and even worse, people have gotten hurt and even killed in the past,’ Turovsky added.
There were more than 1,000 arrests and nearly 100 gun seizures during a couple of weeks of the 2022 Spring Break season – before local law enforcement began cracking down.
Businesses, however, say they have lost millions of dollars in revenue due to the strictly enforced curfews.
Michael Witt, the operator of a popular Miami nightclub, said he has been impacted.
‘In lost revenue – up to half a million dollars this weekend,’ he told CBSNews after last year’s Spring Break vacation.
There are also strict rules in effect, like no outdoor dining on Ocean Drive and no alcohol sales after 8pm.
‘You see like cop car every 10 feet,’ local resident Alexey Yashkichev told CBS. ‘I went to Publix and I couldn’t buy a bottle of wine after eight surprisingly.’
Now, the Florida-based travel agency recommendeds alternative – and more affordable – destinations, some even in the Sunshine State.
Turovsky, the company’s founder and CEO, recommended partygoers looking to stay in Florida to visit Panama City Beach, Daytona Beach and Fort Lauderdale – just 30 miles from Miami.
‘Because of what we are seeing in Miami, we have seen a lot of people swing to other parts of Florida. Fort Lauderdale is another popular Spring Break destination,’ he said.
Turovsky added that these destinations are, on average, more affordable than the globally-known city of Miami.
“Destinations like Fort Lauderdale still offer the fun nightlife experience most college kids are looking for in Miami, but way cheaper,” Turovsky said.
“All the pricing in Miami is inflated, way inflated. To get into bars or clubs you’ll have to pay a cover fee before even buying a drink. Because Miami is a tourist hotspot, to go anywhere is just going to be more expensive.”
Others have taken to TikTok to gather intel on where the party is moving ahead of the coveted spring vacation.
Some have suggested alternative destinations like Houston and South Padre Island in Texas.
TripleTGetaways has also seen a higher demand for their vacation packages often offering weeklong stays abroad and luxurious cruise vacations.
“We have demand for our tiered vacation packages. Most are for trips abroad for locations like Cancun, Bahamas, Cabo San Lucas,” he added. “A lot of my friends are heading on cruises this year.”
As many prepare to head off on their Spring Break vacations, Spirit Airlines has compiled a list of the most sought after destinations for the 2025 season.
Rana Ghosh, Senior Vice President and Chief Transformation Officer at Spirit, confirmed the searches were to fly to places in Florida, Nevada, and Puerto Rico.
Spirit found that most of its travelers have been searching for flights to Orlando International Airport.
Its amount of spring breakers has grown significantly as the popular Orlando Airport broke its departing passenger record with 204,128 fliers on March 16, 2024.
Among the most searched destinations the discount airline saw searches for Fort Lauderdale most notably, then Las Vegas, Miami and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
By SAMANTHA RUTT/Daily Mail
