Bikini Hostel, Café & Beer Garden Free Breakfast & Dinner!

This building used to be a hostel for young travelers from around the world. It later became a homeless shelter for more than 100 people, with the City of Miami Beach assigning a police officer outside around the clock at taxpayers' expense. The shelter eventually closed for good and is set to be demolished following a real estate deal. The residents were reportedly moved to other shelters. It is permanently closed.

I arrived around 10 PM for a weeklong booking and checked in, only to find the upstairs was like a homeless shelter. They refused to refund me. Avoid this place unless you need a roof and a bed. It really is that bad.

For $220 I stayed two weeks, so the price and location were hard to beat. Free trolleys go around North and South Beach, and the ocean and bay are nearby. Security was good, it was clean, and things ran smoothly given how many people were there. I had mostly good roommates. It's a hostel and homeless center together, and people were asking for cigarettes all day. The rooms get hot. Breakfast was cereal and toast, and dinner was a TV dinner. Still, the value worked for me.

I left a day early. The terrace was closed, and there's no beer garden or cafe, despite what I expected. The place also looks nothing like its photos now, and the included breakfast was just two pieces of toast with half a cup of coffee topped up with milk, even after I asked for none. Of the hostels I've tried, this was the worst. It felt more like a homeless shelter.