Top 10: the best luxury hotels in Miami
An insider's guide to the best luxury hotels in Miami, featuring the top places to stay for lavish design, resplendent suites, exquisite dining, stunning city views and vibrant nightlife, in locations including Downtown Miami, Miami Beach and South Beach.
Faena tapped filmmaker Baz Luhrmann and his Academy Award-winning designer wife Catherine Martin as creative consultants on this luxury hotel overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. The result is a theatrical fantasia in red, gold and tiger print, dusted with mind-bending contemporary art. Suites are outfitted with bright turquoise velvet drapes that look as if they were plucked from a proscenium stage and are now framing a sitting room with a luscious red velvet sofa, overstuffed coral armchairs and a plush Deco area rug. Outside by the pool, a woolly mammoth skeleton dipped in 24-karat gold, by Damien Hirst, stands inside a temperature-controlled glass case overlooking the beach.
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A sprawling five-star luxury resort in posh Bal Harbour, the 227-room St Regis Bal Harbour offers unparalleled service and amenities. Yabu Pushelberg’s shimmering interiors – think enormous crystal chandeliers, glass walls, high ceilings – conjure up a modern take on art deco opulence and the days of grand old hotels. You’ll have to dress up not to be outclassed by the décor. Facilities include the Remède spa (one of the best on the beach), two oceanfront pools, a state of the art gym, children’s club and childcare services. The beach villas (each has its own bathroom, wet bar, indoor lounge and dining patio) come with their own butler.
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A seaside retreat in Sunny Isles Beach, the five-star Acqualina Resort & Spa on the Beach is all luxury, and is home to one of the city’s finest spas. It’s a calmer, quieter alternative to South Beach. The design is Mediterranean opulence with vaulted ceilings, golden chandeliers, copious marble, Spanish tile and limestone, but it's the views of the glittering Atlantic Ocean, by way of the elegant pool deck, that steal the show. The bedrooms have an air of modern luxury, outfitted as they are in a palette of ash grey, cream, champagne and gold with opulent textures like satin, faux fur and high-gloss lacquer, and with large balconies offering views of the ocean or the Intracoastal Waterway.
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A collaboration between American hotelier Ian Schrager and Marriott International, The Miami Beach EDITION occupies a restored mid-century grand dame on the Atlantic Ocean with food and drink by celebrity chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. The hotel’s design tows the line between sumptuous mid-century glamour and restrained modernity with a sprawling, all-white marble lobby occupying the curvilinear lines of the hotel’s historic bones. Original gold mosaic columns twinkle amidst forests of potted palms and entertainment is at every turn with a lobby bar and entrances to the hotel’s multiple dining venues, swimming pool, bowling alley, ice rink and nightclub.
Situated on a unique island enclave off mainland Miami’s financial district, this famed five-star property – with world-class spa and high-end Peruvian restaurant – is a true destination resort. Offering stunning views of Biscayne Bay, its lobby bar and outdoor dining venue cater to a buzzing after-work crowd, while both a stylish pool and man-made beach allow guests to soak up the sun here sans the South Beach scene. Rooms are luxurious with classical furnishings in neutral tones of honey and cream. Spacious accommodations include balconies or large terraces and oversized marble bathrooms with soaking tubs.
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The historic Surf Club on Miami Beach has been given a second life thanks to the Four Seasons. With the restoration of its original Mediterranean Revival clubhouse and the addition of a glittering 12-storey glass tower, the luxury resort brings a bit of Old Florida glamour back to Surfside. The rooms are nothing short of sublime, each with a plush white bed set amidst luxurious finishes like marble, brass and sun-bleached hardwood in a palette of cream and sand tones, and with a pale green accent bench. With white wainscot ceilings in a large diamond pattern and accordion-textured walls, rooms have a clean, jewel box-like composition lined with sumptuous upholstery, from a nubby area rug to an architectural chaise lounge, sofa and desk.
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SLS Brickell is a spacious and luxurious glass tower with fantastical interiors by visionary French designer Philippe Starck and an impressive contemporary art collection. With warm, butterscotch tufted leather sofas, embroidered Picasso throw pillows, faux fur blankets and oversized area rugs stitched with old maps, the second floor lobby is a chic, clubby playhouse designed for the world traveller. The is also a sprawling rooftop pool deck with enviable views of Biscayne Bay and Miami’s skyline, as well as a series of three swimming pools, the Ciel Spa, a private screening room movie theatre and a swanky, state-of-the-art fitness centre overlooking the pool.
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The public spaces of W South Beach are sophisticated and fun on a massive scale. The entrance lobby has enormous brass screens, Mongolian fur-covered chairs, giant purple leather poufs and Damien Hirst and Jean-Michel Basquiat artworks on rotation amongst other contemporary masters. The labyrinthine poolscape offers inspired lounging in a lush, expansive backyard. In the 408 rooms, the effect is less nightclub and more relaxed luxury, with cool white and grey interiors, mirrored surfaces and chandeliers. Each room has a balcony overlooking the beach, a kitchenette, Bose sound system, Bliss toiletries, Wi-Fi and docking station.
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A glittering 54-storey tower in downtown Miami with sweeping views of the Miami River and Biscayne Bay, the EPIC hotel is a luxurious destination featuring London transplant Zuma for fine Japanese dining. The 16th-floor pool deck is chock-full of amenities, with two angular infinity pools and the acclaimed Exhale Spa with results-oriented treatments and Core Fusion and yoga classes. The 411 rooms and suites are designed by Californian designer Cheryl Rowley, who excels at discrete glamour and modern comfort. Each room has a private balcony, honey-coloured wood furniture, floor-to-ceiling windows and sumptuous bedding.
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EAST, Miami is a glistening, modern new-build with floor-to-ceiling windows and an East-meets-West design aesthetic. It’s awash in natural earth tones with high ceilings in the lobby, natural stone walls and brown marble tile floors. While it pays homage to its Chinese roots through clean and spare design, it also draws on Miami’s reputation as a cultural melting pot with international influences ranging from South American cuisine to a Bali-inspired rooftop bar. They’ve tapped local artist Alejandro Mijares to create a mural on the walls of a central staircase. The whole vibe is modern, youthful and luxurious.
