North Miami

We loved this place in November. Designed by Ralph Lauren, so the lobby and sitting areas were very stylized. I suspect we got the deal we got because of neighboring construction, which at times cast a shadow over the pool. But we came for the beach, loved the beach. I guess October is a shoulder season (?) because again it felt like we had it to ourselves.

Also there was a cool little hammock/sandy area between the pool and the beach itself that would have been cool to laze around in, if we had had more time to do the relaxation thing (spent just a couple days between visiting friends with a new baby and a family wedding along the west side of the peninsula).

Easy drive down to South Beach, which we did a couple times.

Best Things Nearby:
Strip malls (which for urbanites, can be a guilty thrill). We did the trip on a budget, so it was nice to have easy access to Pizza Hut, Denny's, Walgreen's right across the street. And a ice cream parlor/internet cafe.

There were also some great Italian restaurants in the area that our concierge recommended to everyone, and we noticed interesting Peruvian, Brazilian, and Argentinean restaurants in the strip malls as well.

A short drive away were good tennis courts, that shared a parking lot with the Ancient Spanish Monastery, the oldest European building in the Western Hemisphere (originally built in early 1100's Spain, shipped by William Randolph Hearst in 1925, stone by stone.) And the Aventura Mall, one of Miami's top malls, is nearby via car as well -- another guilty thrill, and safe haven for the sun-scorched!

Best Things About the Resort:
Man, it's the beach! I love that it feels like we have private access. The waves got bigger every day, which was fun, and we had picture perfect weather, if a bit of a breeze at times. Umbrellas and chairs provided by the hotel enabled us to stay out there all day, every day!

Resort Experience:
One of the tallest hotels in the area, a couple down from one of Trump's new ones. Was probably fancy in its day (in the 70s? 80s?). And it serves its purpose now. Could probably do with a couple more staff members manning the front desk, a couple more beach boys to set up umbrellas, and maybe someone in housekeeping who could deliver us the knife and bottle opener we requested a couple times... but we're low-maintenance, and we were otherwise comfortable. The gigantic room with views all around us (of the beach, down the beach, and across the highway, respectively -- ours was one of the few without an actual balcony) and roomy bathroom (stocked with Aveda products) excited us, as did the bigger-than-your-average hotel gym, and array of spa services! I had a 50-minute Swedish massage that was the ultimate spot hitter, on the third day (sunburn be damned)!

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Good
• Amenities: Excellent
• Unit Satisfaction: Very Good
• Family Friendliness: Very Good
• Service: Good