Miami Design Preservation League — Local services in Miami Beach

James was a very great tour guide and knowledgeable also very friendly ....up until the end. He took us on a 2 hour walking tour about Art Deco. At the end of it all He made a suggestion that he gets $10 per person however my friends and I didn’t have that for very personal reasons. We still wanted to contribute something. I’m 7 months pregnant. We walked all the way to the bank and all the way to a 7-11 just to get some change to give him a tip. My friend got the change and gave her what she could as well as my other friend and he went off on us in front of people. Told us we were disrespectful and how he just walked us around for 2 hours and that’s all we were going to give him. Well we walked too as well again at 7 months pregnant. It’s not like he chauffeured us around in a car or anything. We enjoyed the history behind art decos however once he became rude my friends and I perceptions of him changed. We complained and the owner calls us being extremely bias. She asked us repeatedly are we sure he acted unprofessionally , she was very sarcastic , and was asking us did we buy other things at the store when we were getting his tip. We had told her multiple times that we wanted to give him more but just couldn’t and she proceeded to make a mockery out of our situation asking did we get a hotel and some food. She was asking questions that had nothing to do with the complaint at hand. Our financial situation wasn’t her business. It wasn’t what she said it was her undertone. We requested a refund and if we do not get it I’m contacting the BBB. Very bad representation of the company. And here’s my TIP: If you want a tip to be a requirement instead of customary you should include it in the bill. Don’t give people the option if you’re not not going to be grateful for what you get. It was disrespectful to us because we gave...

Do you think you know Art Deco? Think again! With The Official Art Deco Walking Tour by The Miami Design Preservation League, there's so much more than meets the eye.

Our tour guide, Martin, did a great job mixing historical references with comedic relief to teach us about South Beach's rich cultural and architectural history.

We learned why South Beach's pastel color palette reshaped Miami's future, how gamblers found a hotel's secret bookie, and how to identify an original building from a new development.

You won't want to miss this tour. Book today!

P.S. Make sure to visit the Art Deco Welcome Center gift shop after your tour for some unique vintage...

We took the Art Deco History Walking Tour in February and Rick was our tour guide. He was FANTASTIC! Could not have been better. He was one part school teacher, one part oral historian, with a dash of rogue! We got to see inside many elegant lobbies and Rick gave us all kinds of insider information. We gained a deeper understanding of this paradise, and felt like we were in the know. You simply can't stay in Miami Beach without taking this tour. It will change your life!...