If you are nocturnal this is a great location

Hotel centrally located so ideal for beach, shopping, restaurants and nightlife. Bars and clubs open until 5.00 a.m. so be prepared for a disturbed nights sleep. Decor and service was excellent. Bar area not particularly inviting or comfortable so you will want to spend more time in neighbouring hotel bars. Would recommend the Hotel Astor for cocktails. Roof top pool has wonderful views and plenty of sun loungers. Go for a junior suite if you want more space. Has recently added wireless internet connection.

Bad service

I am posting about Wish,the restaurant because I found no other spot to post.

The food was good, but the lack of service is going to kill this restaurant. None of the wait staff at our table spoke English. Someone dumped off a menu in our laps and the next guy comes up and says are you ready to order? and this is a 4-star restaurant? We said do you have any specials, to which he replied, "everything is special. " We asked some questions about a couple dishes and he just said it's good..

The General Manager , came up to our table just before we were leaving and asked if everything was Ok.. we explained to him the service.. he didn't really want to hear any negative comments and acted very pre-occupied. By the way they add 20% to your check and don't tell you... also at the bar... same thing. It was so dark in there you could not see the bar tab and of course the bartender, who was not friendly at all.. didn't tell us, a service charge was added in, so he got double!

Chic, Comfy, and Casual

I decided to try THE HOTEL on a pre-cruise stay in Miami because of the fantastic promotional price of $149 per night.

The special price was for their cheapest room, called a "designer" room. When we arrived, we asked to see the room and it was pretty small, had frosted opaque windows, and a microscopic bathroom. I went back to the front desk and politely but firmly asked to be upgraded.

They gave me a "couture" room and that was slightly larger overall, but the most noticeable difference was the actual see-through window overlooking Collins and a VERY large bathroom (stocked with Kiehl's products). The suite was booked on my visit, otherwise I would have sprung a few extra bucks and stayed in it.

The service from the desk staff and concierge was polite but unimpressive - they appeared to be training several new people on my visit there. The bellman, a very friendly (and quite gay) Puerto Rican was the absolute best bellman I've ever seen at a hotel. He was very helpful, spoke candidly about what to do and where to eat, and was very gracious about accepting tips.

Wish, the in-lobby restaurant, is pretty decent, but quite expensive.

I'd suggest venturing out and experiencing another restaurant that has more to offer.

Now, if there is one saving grace of THE HOTEL, it is the rooftop pool overlooking the ocean. There are really no words to describe how awesome it is. You just have to experience it for yourself.

I would never pay rack rate for THE HOTEL - which is around $300 a night. I only suggest staying here if you can get a great price on a Cotoure room.

The (Crappy) Hotel of South Beach

Not really worth the money. For $275 in the high season (February), it just wasn't worth it. Our room was nice, but the bed was tiny - it wasn't a queen-sized bed, as we expected - it was only slightly bigger than a full-sized bed. The windows were frosted over, so you couldn't see the building next door which was six feet away (perhaps a blessing is disguise), but it was disheartening to open the shades to see a sign that says "Window only opens four inches." The walls in the room were paper-thin - we could hear everything in the room next door to us. And since the room was occupied by two girls who came home drunk (and loud!) every night at 2:00am, this was particularly annoying. The bathroom was miniscule - the two of us could barely fit in it, but the retro design was kinda cool. Our remote control didn't work, which was a bummer. The rooftop pool is nice, but the pool is the size of a postage stamp. The view is great, but the rooftop bar closes at 8:00pm, thus limiting your options for a drink before dinner. The restaurant (Wish) seemed over-priced -we skipped it and headed down Collins Ave each night. And the one time we called room service, it took them 30 minutes to deliver a pot of coffee and two muffins, even though the hotel is only four stairs. Finally, the elevator broke while we were staying there, and we had to climb the stairs, which was not enjoyable.

It seems that the name "The Hotel" is something of a misnomer.

Overrated (in the traditional SoBe way)

Ummm... some serious problems at "The Hotel". We booked for May 2003 and arrived to find a tiny (tiny!) room, with the only window frosted to block the adjacent building. Dirty room, as well. The front desk staff was diffident, but only when we hit the much hyped pool on the roof that night did the limitations of the place all come crashing upon us. The rooftop pooldeck was grimy, the pool tiny and shallow, and the adjacent restaurant (The very nice News Cafe, which is worth a visit, by the way.) belched charbroiler fumes out their smokestack all over the pool deck at "The Hotel".We checked out the next morning, and went to The National Hotel, and stayed 7 days. The National provided a much better experience--a breathtaking pool, beach access and beach service, a cinematic building that oozed old world charm, and an gracious staff from bellman to concierge. The price was similar, but the experience was heads and tails above our one night at "the Hotel".The place suffers from the same affliction a lot of the smaller inns and historic properties suffer in South Beach--more attitude than expertise, and a lack of attention to detail that would make a true hotelier grimace (and certainly makes guests grimace...in fact, we departed after just 1 night...)

REALLY liked The (very stylish but not flawless) Hotel

My boyfriend and I were down in South Beach for a much anticipated long weekend before Thanksgiving to celebrate my 30th birthday. Having come to Miami on numerous occasions in the past and dining at their ever-fabulous restaurant, Wish, I've always wanted to stay at The Hotel and was now getting my chance.My hat's off to Todd Oldham, whose design of the hotel - everything from the furniture to the great dimmable lighting throughout - was spot on in delivering a tres facconable yet comfortable South Beach feel.The Hotel's location is unbeatable - right in the center of everything and a mere block from the beach. Although after spending any time up by the rooftop pool with the amazing view of the ocean, you won't want to go to the beach anyway. It was utterly idyllic up there and was topped off by attentive service by the bar staff.You CANNOT stay at The Hotel (or in South Beach for that matter) without dining one evening at Wish - its outdoor patio is one of the most romantic settings I've ever had the pleasure of dining at and the food is some of the best in Miami.Now for some cons: Sound-proofing is definitely an issue. The first room we were put in was a really nice size with big built-in closets and seating and a decent-sized bathroom. Unfortunately, this room was right next to the alley - we were awoken much too early by the sounds of banging metal and loud yelling. After the second morning - I had them move us to what was supposed to be a quieter room away from the alley. With this room we inherited two new problems: Number one, the room was a quarter of the size of the first one with what was probably the smallest bathroom I've ever seen. And two, the noise you could hear was almost worst and definitely more frequent than in our previous room. The sounds from the hall - doors slamming shut and people passing - were unusually loud. Not wanting to have to move again for our last night, we put up with it for two nights.After finding out about the weather back home, we decided to stay one more night - and for this one, we were moved to a room (#315) that was just right. The moral of my story - The Hotel is a fabulous place to stay...just be sure when reserving that you request a room away from the alley and NOT #301 or others like it.

Go For It! Beautiful Hotel, Great Service

Beautiful bathrooms, excellent locationcomfortable beds, attentive serviceawesome roof top pool and bar.Great for singles or couples, no children.

Poorly treated

My wife and I, along with 2 friends, reserved 2 rooms at The Hotel several months before our trip. Needless to say, the rooms were discounted because we made our reservations so far in advance. In any case, the Marlins thenn went to the World Series, and were playing in Miami the week of our trip. We called to confirm our rooms a week before, and were assured there would be no problem. When we arrived, however, both rooms had been given to others, and they could not accomodate us. We were assured that this was NOT because the other people were paying rack rates, though I don't believe it. Regardless, we were given one complimentary night at a significantly inferior hotel, then required to pay higher rates then we would have at The Hotel for the remainder of our stay. Furthermore, because we had heard such great things about the restaurant at The Hotel, Wish, we ate there any how. They didn't even have the decency to buy us a round of drinks for our inconvenience. This is not the way a high-end hotel should treat its guests. Dont let this happen to you. STAY AWAY!

Stylish, Roomy

I stayed in a suite at this hotel which was above the lobby. It was stylish, beautiful and roomy. It was recently redesigned by Todd Oldham and it shows, The bathrooms were modern and beautifully tiled, and there were fresh flowers in the room, room service was excellent. The only part that was tough for me was that it was noisy at night due to the location, and the bar below, but staying on a higher floor away from the street probably helps escape this. Also there is a rooftop pool which is small but beautiful and the view from the roof rocks, plus you can have drinks and get massages at the pool.

It was better before Wish took over the lobby!

Like the hotel, however do not like the fact that they have moved Wish into the lobby...too junky. Does Todd Oldham know about this? The pool area an service was great. Found a great place called Sagamore...check it out.