For a week, Sunny Isles Beach or a Surfside house. For a month, a registered Surfside home or a licensed Sunny Isles residence. For a winter season of six months or more, all three towns open up, including the residential streets of Bal Harbour. That is the short answer, and it has less to do with taste than with three municipal rulebooks.
The three towns sit shoulder to shoulder on one barrier island north of Miami Beach, sharing a single stretch of Collins Avenue and one Atlantic beach. Yet each has written its own definition of who may sleep in a private home, and for how long. This guide compares character, beaches, shopping and logistics, then sets out the rules plainly so you can choose with the calendar in hand.
Three towns on one barrier island
Driving north from Miami Beach you enter the Town of Surfside at 87th Street, Bal Harbour Village at 96th Street, and run out of land at Haulover Inlet. Beyond the inlet and Haulover Park, Sunny Isles Beach runs from about 157th Street to the Broward line. The whole stretch is under five miles, which is why visitors treat the three as one place. Residents and code officers do not.
Logistics are nearly identical. Four Seasons lists The Surf Club in Surfside at about 15.6 miles and 30 minutes from Miami International Airport and about 20 miles and 35 minutes from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood; Acqualina in Sunny Isles quotes roughly 30 minutes to MIA and 20 minutes to FLL. Aventura Mall, which Turnberry describes as the largest shopping centre in Florida, sits across the Intracoastal on Biscayne Boulevard, ten minutes from any of the three, with the Brightline Aventura station opposite.
Between Bal Harbour and Sunny Isles lies the land that belongs to everyone: Haulover Park, 177 acres run by Miami-Dade County Parks, with 1.4 miles of beach, the Bill Bird Marina and its charter fleet, a kite concession, a dog beach and, on its northern third, the county’s designated clothing-optional stretch.
Bal Harbour: the village behind the Shops
Bal Harbour can be walked end to end in twenty minutes and feels gated even where it is not. West of Collins, single-family streets curve behind a guardhouse; east of Collins stand a short line of oceanfront condominiums and two hotels, The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort at 9703 Collins, opened in 2012 with 207 rooms, and The Ritz-Carlton Bal Harbour at 10295 Collins, which its own site says is closed for a transformation until January 2027. Our Bal Harbour destination page covers the residences we represent here.
The centre of gravity is Bal Harbour Shops, the open-air centre the Whitman family opened in 1965 and still owns. The long-planned west-side addition, which trade coverage from Traded calls the West Shops, is reported at roughly 200,000 square feet of new retail, financed by a $740 million Blackstone loan closed in December 2024, with Whitman Family Development targeting a third-quarter 2026 opening for its first phase. L’Agence, Toteme and Peserico are reported as first-time arrivals; Bottega Veneta, Graff, Zegna, The Webster and David Yurman are among tenants relocating. As of this writing the Shops has posted no public opening date, the 9700 Collins entrance has been closed since February 2026 and parking runs through the 96th Street garage. Treat the opening as imminent rather than done.
Dining is anchored by the Shops: Makoto on the third floor, Le Zoo, Carpaccio, and China Grill, which reopened here in June 2026 after leaving South Beach, with Stephen Starr’s steakhouse Slim’s announced for the former Makoto space. Bal Harbour suits those who want quiet, a serious beach and the Shops at their door, and who are staying long enough to qualify under the Village’s rules. It is not a town for a spontaneous long weekend in a private house.
Surfside: Harding Avenue and the Surf Club
Surfside is the human-scale town of the three. Nine blocks of single-family and small-apartment streets run between the beach and Biscayne Bay, with a low-rise commercial spine along Harding Avenue, one block in from Collins, where Josh’s Deli at 9517 Harding carries a Michelin Guide listing and the neighbours are bakeries, kosher grocers and a pharmacy that knows its regulars. The town runs an oceanfront community centre at 9293 Harding with a lap pool and a children’s pool, and since April 2024 a free on-demand Freebee shuttle that loops Surfside, Bay Harbor Islands and Bal Harbour.
At the north end stands the town’s one grand gesture: Four Seasons Hotel at The Surf Club, 9011 Collins Avenue, opened in 2017. Richard Meier designed the new towers around Russell Pancoast’s 1930 clubhouse, Joseph Dirand did the interiors, and Thomas Keller runs The Surf Club Restaurant, his first in Florida. With 77 rooms it is intimate, and it is one reason GMCVB’s March 2026 STR report put average daily rate in the Surfside and Bal Harbour submarket at $919.41, against $323.36 for Miami-Dade as a whole.
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Surfside carries its history visibly. Ninety-eight people died in the Champlain Towers South collapse of June 2021, and in August 2026 the Town Commission gave final approval to a permanent memorial in the street-end park at 88th Street. Residents speak of it plainly, and visitors should too. Today’s Surfside is where families return each winter to the same block, and where a well-run private house is an ordinary, lawful way to stay.
Sunny Isles Beach: Florida’s Riviera, vertically
Sunny Isles Beach incorporated in 1997, when about 13,000 residents voted to leave unincorporated Miami-Dade; the city’s own history recalls the old “motel row” where the Beatles stayed at the Castaway, and notes that assessed value has since climbed past $10 billion. The city calls itself Florida’s Riviera, and the skyline is a continuous wall of branded towers along two miles of Collins.
Porsche Design Tower at 18555 Collins, completed in 2017 by Dezer with 132 units and elevators that lift residents’ cars to their apartments, set the tone; Residences by Armani/Casa at 18975 Collins, by César Pelli, followed. Bentley Residences at 18401 Collins is now rising: Florida YIMBY reported in August 2026 that the 62-storey, 716-foot tower with 216 residences had reached about 13 floors, with completion expected in 2028. Acqualina at 17875 Collins is the established resort. The community is markedly international, with long-standing Russian-speaking and Latin American second-home populations, and the restaurants along Collins and at the RK Center plaza at 18106 Collins reflect it.
Sunny Isles has the broadest supply of large furnished condominiums of the three, often with pools, gyms and beach service in the building. Views are extraordinary; street life is thin, and you drive to most things. For families, Norman S. Edelcup Sunny Isles Beach K-8, opened in 2008, is the city’s public school; Surfside and Bal Harbour addresses are generally zoned to Ruth K. Broad Bay Harbor K-8 across the bridge, to be confirmed with Miami-Dade County Public Schools for any given address.
The rental rules that make the decision for you
Everything above is preference. What follows is law, and it changes what you can book more than any amenity list. The summary is drawn from each municipality’s published rules as of October 2026; because fees and ordinances change, Villoura confirms the position with each town before any booking is contracted. Our guide to Miami rental rules covers the rest of the county.
Bal Harbour Village. Section 21-363 of the Village Code prohibits renting all or part of a dwelling in the residential districts for any period under six consecutive calendar months. Each permitted rental requires a Vacation Rental Certificate, limited to two per property in any 12-month period, at $150 per rental period under the current fee schedule, with a Village inspection before approval and a designated agent reachable around the clock. Nightly lodging is reserved to hotels, which in the Ocean Front district must have at least 100 rooms, and every day of unlicensed renting counts as a separate violation. The Village hosts its code on Municode via the Village Code page; the Clerk’s office (305-866-4633) will confirm the certified text.
Town of Surfside. The Town defines a short-term rental as a residential unit rented for between one day and six months. Renting without registration is unlawful; registration is required for each rental period, and no more than three registrations are issued per property in a 12-month period. The owner must name a responsible party whose number is answered 24 hours a day by someone with authority to fix a problem, and must pay the Town’s resort tax. The rules are on the Town of Surfside short-term rental page; the registration fee is set by Commission resolution and not published there.
City of Sunny Isles Beach. The City requires a licence from its Code Compliance Department to rent a single-family home for less than six months; applications are taken at the Government Center, 18070 Collins Avenue (305-792-1875), and each stay is registered on a City form. For condominium units, the City’s short-term rental licensing page requires an annual per-unit licence ($300, plus a $100 business tax receipt), state and county tax registrations, a locally resident responsible party able to attend within one hour and, decisively, either a consent letter from the condominium association or bylaws permitting the use. Many towers do not permit it. Fines run $1,000, then $2,500, then $2,500 with a one-year suspension.
| Town | Feel | Best for | Minimum-stay reality in a private home | Nearest grocer and dining strip |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bal Harbour | Quiet, guarded, village-scale | A season; Shops at the door | Six consecutive months, certificated, two per year; otherwise the St. Regis | Bal Harbour Shops; Harding Avenue in Surfside |
| Surfside | Low-rise, walkable, family | A week to a month in a house | One night to six months, registered per period, three periods a year | Harding Avenue, roughly 93rd to 96th |
| Sunny Isles Beach | High-rise, international, resort | A week in a tower; a month with approval | City licence for homes under six months; condos need licence plus association consent | Collins Avenue, with RK Center at 181st Street |
A week, a month or a season: what you can book, and how it is taxed
Three to ten nights. In Bal Harbour your options are the St. Regis and, from January 2027, the Ritz-Carlton; no private home may lawfully take you. In Surfside, a registered house or the Four Seasons. In Sunny Isles Beach, a licensed home, a condominium whose building permits short stays, or the resorts. The choice between a Surfside house and a Sunny Isles residence is one between a garden and a sky; our overview of where to stay in Miami sets both against South Beach.
Thirty nights. A month changes little in law and a great deal in comfort. Surfside’s registered homes are the natural fit, and the three-registrations-a-year cap means a well-managed house hosts only a handful of guests annually. Sunny Isles licensed homes and association-approved condominiums serve relocating executives and families between houses; our 30-night-plus furnished residences are curated with these rules already cleared. Bal Harbour remains closed to private stays under six months, however good the house.
A season. At six months and a day the map redraws itself. Bal Harbour’s residential streets become available on a certificated lease, and the Village’s calm is exactly what a December-to-June resident wants. Surfside and Sunny Isles remain open too, now without registration churn. NOAA’s climate normals for Miami put average December-to-April highs between about 76 and 84°F, which is the whole argument for the winter season stay.
Taxes. Surfside and Bal Harbour sit outside Miami-Dade County’s tourist taxes. According to the County’s own schedule, the 3 percent Convention Development Tax excludes Surfside and Bal Harbour, and the 2 percent Tourist Development Tax and 1 percent Professional Sports Franchise Facility Tax exclude Surfside, Bal Harbour and Miami Beach. In their place each town levies a 4 percent municipal resort tax on accommodation, on top of Florida’s 6 percent sales tax and Miami-Dade’s 1 percent surtax. Sunny Isles Beach carries the full county stack. The Florida Department of Revenue’s guidance on transient rentals (GT-800034) governs duration: rental periods of six months or less are taxable, while a bona fide written lease for continuous residence longer than six months is exempt. The season is not only lawful in all three towns but the most tax-efficient way to be there.
For owners: two business models on one beach
The rules divide owners as cleanly as guests. A Surfside house, or a Sunny Isles home or condominium with association consent, can run a compliant short-stay programme: registered per period in Surfside, licensed annually in Sunny Isles, with a responsible party on call and taxes remitted, and in Surfside a hard annual cap that rewards fewer, longer, better-paying bookings. A Bal Harbour owner is, by law, a six-month-lease owner with two certificated tenancies a year at most; the business is securing the right winter resident early rather than filling nights.
Villoura’s Miami property management runs both models, handling registration or licensing, inspections, the responsible-party obligation, tax filings and guest vetting. Owners considering either route can start at list your home.
Frequently asked questions
Can I rent a house in Bal Harbour for a week?
No. Bal Harbour Village Code section 21-363 prohibits renting a dwelling in the residential districts for any period under six consecutive calendar months, and each permitted lease needs a Vacation Rental Certificate, capped at two per property per year. For a week in Bal Harbour your lawful options are the St. Regis and, from January 2027, the reopened Ritz-Carlton. Confirm the current text with the Village Clerk.
Which of the three towns is best for a family with young children?
Surfside, for most families. It is low-rise and walkable, Harding Avenue has breakfast, groceries and a pharmacy within a few blocks, the community centre has oceanfront pools, and registered houses may be rented for a week or a month. Sunny Isles Beach suits families who prefer a tower with pools and beach service. Bal Harbour works for families staying a full season.
How far are Bal Harbour, Surfside and Sunny Isles Beach from the airports?
Both airports are practical. Four Seasons quotes about 15.6 miles and 30 minutes from Miami International to The Surf Club in Surfside and about 20 miles and 35 minutes from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood; Acqualina in Sunny Isles quotes roughly 30 minutes to MIA and 20 minutes to FLL. For Sunny Isles, FLL is often quicker.
Is the Bal Harbour Shops expansion open?
Not as of October 2026. The west-side addition, reported at about 200,000 square feet with a third-quarter 2026 target for its first phase, has no publicly posted opening date; the 9700 Collins entrance has been closed since February 2026 and parking runs through the 96th Street garage. China Grill reopened in June 2026 and Toteme in July. Check the Shops’ own updates before planning around the new wing.
What taxes apply to a short stay in Surfside or Bal Harbour?
Both towns are excluded from Miami-Dade’s 3 percent Convention Development Tax, 2 percent Tourist Development Tax and 1 percent sports facilities tax. Each instead levies a 4 percent municipal resort tax on accommodation, on top of Florida’s 6 percent sales tax and the county’s 1 percent surtax. Under Florida Department of Revenue guidance, stays of six months or less are taxable; a bona fide written lease longer than six months is exempt.
Can I rent a condominium in Sunny Isles Beach for a month?
Only if the building allows it. The City licenses each unit annually for stays of six months or less and requires either a consent letter from the condominium association or bylaws permitting the use, plus a locally resident responsible party. Many towers prohibit rentals under six months or a year. Villoura confirms association rules before offering any Sunny Isles residence for a 30-night stay.
Choosing with Villoura
Decide the length of stay first and let the towns sort themselves: a week points to Surfside or Sunny Isles Beach, a month to a registered Surfside house or an approved Sunny Isles residence, a season to any of the three. Villoura’s villa specialists know which houses are registered, which towers consent and which Bal Harbour leases come free for the winter, and our concierge handles the rest, from Haulover charters to a table at The Surf Club Restaurant.
