State Road 826 begins at an interchange with US 1 in Pinecrest, just south of the Dadeland Mall, and heads north as the Palmetto Expressway into Kendall.

It then leaves Kendall, continuing into Glenvar Heights with an interchange with Southwest 56th Street/Miller Drive, which provides access to the University of Miami.

[9] After an exit with Southwest 24th Street/Coral Way, the expressway meets the Tamiami Trail (US 41), providing access to Florida International University.

This interchange also marks the Tamiami Trail's entrance into incorporated Miami, the boundary of which lies on the eastern side of the expressway.

The freeway then has an interchange with the Dolphin Expressway (SR 836) just south of Doral, creating access to Miami International Airport.

[12] It then enters Hialeah proper just after an interchange with Northwest 103rd Street (SR 932),[13] which allows access to the Westland Mall.

The Palmetto Expressway goes into Miami Lakes, interchanges with Northwest 154 Street, then turns through 90 degrees to the east at a point known as "The Big Curve".

[14] The road then proceeds straight east, forming the boundary between Miami Lakes and Country Club,[15] soon interchanging with Northwest 67th Avenue.

[2] Headed back southeast, SR 826 first crosses over the former Seaboard Coast Line railroad, begins to form the northern boundary of Golden Glades,[16] then passes under the I-95's express lanes, meeting the onramp between I-95 southbound and the Turnpike northbound, and the onramp between southbound US 441 and eastbound SR 826.

It then passes over Interstate 95 proper, which lies between the southbound and northbound carriageways of US 441, as it swings back to the northeast and then to the east once more.

[19] Through here, the road is also known as North Miami Beach Boulevard, lined with shops, offices, hotels and other commercial services.

It immediately passes the Mall at 163rd Street on its left, continuing on as a shopping strip for another 1.25 miles (2.01 km) where it meets the northern terminus of SR 909 at the West Dixie Highway.

One block later, after crossing the Florida East Coast Railway tracks, SR 826 meets US 1 once more at Biscayne Boulevard.

Here, the road splits into separate eastbound and westbound streets before it crosses the Waterway over a drawbridge in each direction,[21] and enters Sunny Isles Beach.

[2][3] The busiest sections of SR 826 are in the vicinity of the Miami International Airport and the nearby industrial area to its west, with over 200,000 daily vehicle movements counted between the Dolphin Expressway at Fontainebleau and the Northwest 122nd Street / West 68th Street exit in Hialeah, peaking in the vicinity of SR 934 in Medley with over 250,000 vehicle movements each day.

Reconstruction of the Miller Drive, Bird Road and Don Shula Expressway interchanges began in 2008, and was completed around 2012.