The National Hotel Miami Beach

We loved this spot and will be back. The pools are amazing, and the beach access and location are hard to beat. Service was amazing throughout the hotel. Kiki at the front desk was the best, so kind and genuinely caring toward all the guests!

The pools are a real highlight: one huge, unheated 205 Ft lap pool and a smaller heated one. Outside, they have free sunscreen and water, and the attendants are incredibly helpful. The hotel is right on the beach, beside a lovely long walkway, and the decor has a beautiful, eclectic retro feel. It's adults only and well placed near Lincoln Rd and Española way, with lots of good restaurants around. We caught Victor Valdés at the bar on Saturday, and he was incredible. They advertise music on Fridays and Saturdays, though during our visit music was only playing at the bar Saturday. I highly recommend seeing him perform. A couple of things kept this from being a five for me. There were no hooks for bathroom towels, which made it hard to reuse them, and the bathroom itself was tiny. The tub also wasn't very clean, which was disappointing. The food was okay, but nothing memorable. Still, we definitely plan to return to this unique hotel.

The noise made it hard to rest here. Construction next door meant jackhammers woke me early every morning, and a bar or restaurant played loud music until around 2:00 AM. The pool area gets very little sun because the cabanas block it. The hotel is outdated and poorly maintained; my room had torn curtains, windows that wouldn't open, no fresh-air circulation, and a persistent musty, moldy smell. I'd avoid a street-facing room. I also had trouble getting help when something went wrong. On my second day, housekeeping mistakenly took a personal item. I reported it right away and was told they'd investigate, but nobody followed up for two days. I had to ask every morning for updates and contact different departments myself. They never found it and offered only one breakfast as compensation, which felt inadequate. The front desk didn't seem to know how to handle problems. Beach service was poor too: towels were often unavailable, the person responsible for them was rarely there, and the waiter wasn't providing proper service. Bringing your own food to the beach may save some frustration. The hotel doesn't live up to its price or reputation. I wouldn't stay again or recommend it without major improvements to maintenance, noise control, and service.

We stopped by Aqua for a drink, and Zouheir escorted us to the bar with such a warm, friendly welcome. I haven't had that kind of hospitality at any hospitality establishment in years. When we came back because we'd dropped our cell phone charger battery, he recognized us right away, walked us back to our seats to look for it, and alerted security and staff to keep an eye out. Plenty of places would've just said, “go look, good luck.” You can tell the team here puts guests first. Why isn't there a seven-star rating?