Star Island and the Flagler Memorial
The villas in Trailer 1, filmed from a jet ski across Biscayne Bay, are Star Island, the man-made island off the MacArthur Causeway. The giveaway in the frame is not the mansions but the white obelisk above the trees on the right: that is the Flagler Memorial on Monument Island, and it can be seen from across the bay. No canal view can produce that sightline.
At a glance
- Address
- 1200 Brickell Ave, Miami, FL 33131
- Coordinates
- 25.77404, -80.14889
- District
- Vice City
- Confidence
- Strong
- Where it is seen
- Trailer 1 (0:11) and Trailer 2 (2:19)
How confident are we?
The white obelisk in the trailer identifies the spot: the Flagler Memorial on Monument Island is visible from across Biscayne Bay.
Star Island was built in the 1920s out of mangrove fill by the developer of nearby Miami Beach, and it has been the most expensive residential island in the world for most of its history. Its mansions line a single private road, with deep-water docks on the bay side and the downtown skyline a few minutes away across the water.
The obelisk
The Flagler Memorial stands on Monument Island, a smaller artificial island next to Star Island, and is the reason the whole frame is identifiable. It was completed in 1921 and is one of the most recognisable silhouettes on the Miami waterfront: a tall white column with a statue on top, visible from far out in the bay.
| Detail | The real thing |
|---|---|
| Address | 1200 Brickell Ave, Miami, FL 33131 |
| Coordinates | 25.77404, -80.14889 |
| In-game name | Star Island |
| District in game | Vice City |
| The obelisk | Flagler Memorial, Monument Island |
| Built | 1921 |
What to actually look at
The island itself is private, gated and not a place you can walk. What you can do is look at it from the water, and the boat tour route deliberately passes close to the north tip of Star Island and then holds at Monument Island so you can frame the obelisk against the downtown skyline.
Millionaire's Row, and the boats
South and west of Star Island, the string of barrier islands along the eastern edge of Biscayne Bay is known as Millionaire's Row: Palm Island, Hibiscus Island, Sunset Island and the Venetian Islands. The deep-water channels between them are lined with private docks and moored superyachts, which is where the megayacht density in the trailer comes from.
Privacy and photography
These are private residential islands with residents who do live there. Photograph from the water, on the public route, and do not go ashore, dock, or use a drone over private property. The boat tour keeps to the public channel for exactly this reason.
Where it sits on our route
Star Island and the Flagler obelisk are the centrepiece of the Miami Vice City by Boat tour, which loops out of Bayside Marina past PortMiami and Fisher Island, along Millionaire's Row, and then holds for the golden-hour skyline shot with the obelisk in frame.
The causeway above
The MacArthur Causeway crosses from Brickell over to the islands and passes directly over the north tip of Star Island, which means there is a public road with an unobstructed view of the mansions and their private docks from above. It is the closest you can get to the island without a boat, and it is where most people first understand what the game is drawing.
Frequently asked questions
Is Star Island in GTA 6 the real Star Island?
Yes. The white obelisk above the trees in the trailer is the Flagler Memorial on Monument Island, which is visible from across Biscayne Bay only from the water east of Star Island. That sightline is what pins the frame to this location.
Can you visit Star Island?
It is a private gated residential island. You cannot drive or walk onto it. The boat tour passes close by on the public channel.
What is Millionaire's Row?
The string of private islands along the east side of Biscayne Bay: Star, Palm, Hibiscus, Sunset and the Venetian Islands, known for their waterfront mansions and deep-water docks.
See it on a Leonida Tours route.
Star Island and the Flagler Memorial is one of the stops we drive past every day. Join a small group and see it in person, with a local guide who knows what to look for.
See this on the tour
Unofficial tours. Leonida Tours is an independent tour company. Our tours are not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored or licensed by any game publisher or their affiliates. All game titles, characters, place names and trademarks belong to their respective owners and are used here only to describe the real-world locations that inspired them. Every stop on our tours is a real, publicly accessible place. Photography via Unsplash.