My friend and I went to Mansion on a Thursday night when Ja Rule was supposed to perform at 11pm. We got there around 10:30, and it was surprisingly empty (till probably almost midnight), but the DJ was awesome--not only did he play great music and remixes, but you hardly noticed one song switching to another, because he blended is amazingly well--truly the best DJing I've heard. Expensive to get in ($20 at the door), expensive drinks ($12 for a shot or a drink), and I heard that there were additional fees to go into different rooms of the club, though my friend and I did not partake. We were there until about 2am, and Ja Rule still wasn't on, but honestly I didn't care, because the DJ was so great.

We didn't have to wait in line long, but I think it's because it was early. You probably won't get into this club unless you're dressed up (for clubbing) to some extent. Lots of guys to flirt with, and some of them were aggressive on the dance floor, perhaps partially because they could get away with it, being so dark and crowded--we both had guys actually sliding their hands underneath our clothing (ew). Aside from this, and the fact that we were both robbed--someone(s) in the crowd somehow managed to steal both our wallets, despite the fact that they were in our zipped-up purses, which have straps so short that the bag is practically in the pit of your arm--I don't know if professional pickpockets frequent the crowd, but my friend and I are not usually people to be taken, and we didn't feel a thing when it happened. So if you want a good time with good music, Mansion is a great place if you're into dance clubs--but be very wary of people's groping hands (who knows, it might have been a distraction while they took our wallets) and thieves in the dark. Otherwise the energy of the crowd was positive and fun. The bouncers were no help when we asked, and the only lucky thing was that the Miami Beach Police Station was right down the road. Have fun, but be careful!

Owned by the same guys as Prive and Opium Lounge, Mansion is currently one of Miami's club hot spots along with the nearby club Snatch. I was just there about a month ago (in January), and in an otherwise slow time in Miami, Mansion was pretty packed. The cover—not more than $15 a person, the drink prices were standard for a club at $10 to $12 for a mixed drink. This club represents the typical Miami club of the moment scene; girls dressed in whatever comprises the latest fashions enjoying the table service, with guys in jeans and button-downs, and some posers thrown in the mix (at Mansion, just to say they've been there once), and the regulars who go for the DJ and the ambiance at a place they discovered long before the outside line around 11pm spilled out across the street. When I was there Sean Paul performed for $20—and it was a Monday night. The music on the Saturday night (and not the Monday) was decent, its reputation is that it's incredible so maybe I was in the wrong room at the wrong time. I was there for the tail end of Mansion, it closed at 4 or 5am. One smaller room was reggae and the larger room had electronica. The other two dance floors we did not explore. This place has nine bars and tends to be packed. Dress well to get in, enjoy the experience. The inside has huge columns, a large stairway as you walk in, and is impressive because of the largeness of things.

One of Miami's hottest nightclubs, Mansion is frequented by celebrities like P-Diddy and Jay-Z. The interior decor is upscale and stylish, and the music is good. However, Mansion represents superficial, elitist Miami at its worst. Don't expect to get in if you are ugly or part of a group with a low girl-to-guy ratio; there is no such thing as "equal treatment" at this club. One of the bouncers blatantly told me when I was waiting in line, "Your money means nothing compared to the thousands of dollars that are going through the back door." Apparently, the line of "regular folks," carefully kept at a certain size in front of the club, is "for appearances only." Bouncers give you and your friends full-body look-overs before letting you in, and enjoy, even encourage, the flirtatious attempts of decked-out girls hoping to gain entrance through their seductive efforts. Even within the club, there is a taped-off section of the dance floor where only attractive people are allowed. While Mansion will certainly give you a premier clubbing experience, the pretentiousness of the place is a little uncomfortable. But I suppose it is a unique experience in itself. See http://www.theopiumgroup.com/index2.html.