Cool and trendy Miami hotel options
Sole on the Ocean and Soho Beach House both terrific choices
MIAMI— This city has hundreds of hotels; budget joints and high-end escapes, and plenty more. Here are a couple you might want to try, one luxury spot in the thick of things in Miami Beach and a cheaper alternative just north in Sunny Isles Beach.
SOLE ON THE OCEAN
Not far from the madding crowds of South Beach, this is a sleek, playful and minimalist spot in Sunny Isles Beach that looks like Berlin meets Florida. Rooms are mostly in beige and brown and white, but with the hotel’s signature; a bright orange and white plastic beach ball on the bed.
I had a glass top coffee table and a huge mirror leaning against the wall. The Alba lounge is mostly white and glass with views out toward Miami Beach, but with glowing, orange Buddha heads to provide some design warmth. They feature two-for-one drinks from 5 to 7 p.m.
All rooms have balconies and at least partial ocean views. Each floor also has a tiny city view room called petite that’s only 220 square feet. Others are more in the 320-350 range.
There’s a $15 resort feet but for that you get two beach chairs, two towels and an umbrella and free Wi-Fi and free calls within the U.S. and Canada.
There’s a heavy international presence here: Russians, Scandinavians, French, Germans and Brazilians looking for a sophisticated spot but without the South Beach scene.
The area is a tad suburban in design, with huge, wide streets and shops fronted by unattractive parking lots. But Sunny isles has shuttle buses to shops and restaurants and the Aventura Mall and there’s a big jazz festival every October.
There’s a nice pool with comfy lounge chairs and a view out to the beach and there’s a small gym and sauna/steam facility, which guests can use while they wait for the rooms to be ready or after they’ve checked out and spent a day at the beach; a nice touch.
The beach staff get excellent reviews on TripAdvisor and I found the employees extremely pleasant.
SOHO BEACH HOUSE
The epitome of hipster/comfort with fabulous design features.
This place in mid-Miami Beach is simply outstanding. And with a price tag to match.
Soho House began as a private club in London in 1995 and now includes restaurants, hotels, cinemas and more in cities across Europe and North America. The latest is in Toronto, adjacent to the new Shangri-La hotel, but without rooms for the public.
Although it’s a private club, the hotel can be booked by the general public. The main restaurant, Cecconi’s, also is open to the public.
Soho Beach House has 50 bedrooms for rent with a private beach area, a tiki bar in a lush garden and two pools. One pool, on the ground floor, is a long, linear affair with bright blue and white cushions and is backed by thick gardens and towering palm trees; very Miami cool. The upstairs affair is a small plunge pool on the eighth floor and is for adults only. It offers fine sunsets and a very cool, outdoor tequila bar with funky Mexican artifacts on the wall and a long row of faded red, yellow, blue and green chairs at a wooden bar with views out to the beach and the Atlantic Ocean.
Cecconi’s dining area is in a covered (when needed) outdoor garden with beautiful lights at night and features fine Italian food. They also have a good deal at lunch; with a starter, main course and dessert for $23. I had a cool salad with kale, radish, ricotta and mango, a fabulous spaghetti pomodoro with deep red tomatoes and fresh basil and key lime pie. Two warnings: folks with allergies should be aware there are pistachios in the pie that aren’t mentioned on the menu. Also, a bottle of sparkling water goes for $8, just so you know. Dinner at the second floor club bar featured terrific stone crabs, Caribbean-roasted chicken and Jamaican-spiced shrimp plus an A-1-plus- plus-plus drink called Picante de la Casa with tequila, lime, cilantro and agave, topped with a bulbous red chile pepper that infused the drink with a smoky, spicy tang. Possibly the best mixed drink I’ve ever tasted. The lobby is ultra-cool, with warm furniture and artsy black and white prints and a cigar bar. The second floor features rough wooden floors and walls and a spa, as well as one of those fun, cheesy photo machines. The hallway is littered with thousands of prints people have pinned on the walls.
Many rooms overlook the Atlantic. The hallways have beautiful art and furnishings. They also have fun with their Cowshed toiletries. The shampoo and bath bottles have names like Lazy Cow or Horny Cow or Knackered Cow. You can reach Travel Editor Jim Byers at jbyers@thestar.ca.