Beacon Hotel

Perfect Hotel For What We Were Looking For...

by A TripAdvisor Member

We spend the first two days of our vacation at the Townhouse Hotel and were very disappointed with this hotel. It was fine but based on the feedback we received from friends we were not at all impressed with the location or rooms at this hotel but I will save this review for the Townhouse. We decided to stay at the Beacon Hotel our last night and found a great rate on Expedia ($80 USD). The lobby and restaurant were fun and you could not ask for a better location. Right in the middle of Ocean Drive. The staff were friendly and helpful. Our room was very nice and the beds were very comfortable. All in all I would certainly recommend staying at the Beacon again as I certainly will. P.S. we met the owner of the Beacon at Johnny Rockets the next day and asked how our stay was and what we thought of the hotel. Very cool.

Great for the money!

by A TripAdvisor Member

My fiance and I just returned from a weekend at the Beacon Hotel. We were very pleased with the hotel for the money that we spent. The rooms are small, but clean, well-equipped and nicely decorated. We found the staff to be very helpful and the location couldn't be better.

The only potential drawbacks... the valet parking was very slow to retrieve our car and the hotel elevator is very small and slow (but taking the stairs is no problem). Also, the restaurant at the hotel is a little pricey... I'd recommend dining somewhere else on the strip.

Overall, we recommend to our friends.

Average hotel with great location

by TripAdvisor Member gregjarvis

Miami hotels are so hit or miss, yet I constantly stay at different hotels.

I used to think that ocean view rooms were a must and that's one of the reasons I chose the Beacon on my last trip to South Beach, but the ocean view was somewhat dissappointing and limited. Additionally the "ocean view" rooms tend to get too bright if you are one to sleep in, as am I.

This particular hotel has drapes that let in so much light that I had to wrap a dark t-shirt around my head so I could sleep.

The room was clean enough and the bathroom was ok, but that's all.

Don't go to the restaurant in the hotel which is very average and overpriced. They will try to hard-sell you the specials (I didn't ask the price and was sold a $75 emaciated lobster). The wine choices we terrible and WAY overpriced as well.

Do yourself a favor and stay off Ocean Drive all together. Try the boutique hotels like the Impala, the Hotel of South Beach (not to be confused with the South Beach Hotel) or the Greenview near Lincoln.

We had a GREAT OCEAN VIEW!

by A TripAdvisor Member

My financee has always wanted to stay in the heart of South Beach. He loves the screensavers with South Beach in neon. We came across the Beacon and asked to see their rooms. A very nice and professional gentleman proceeded to show us ocean view rooms on the 4th and 5th floors. We fell in love with the room. Some of the amenities other than the view were bath robes, safe, Serta mattresses, TV with a DVD & VCR components, small refrigerator, alarm clock and uncarpeted floors (which is pretty smart on the hotel's part, because we came back with sand from the beach and got it on the floor). Our room was clean, the bathroom was just right for two. The hotel is located very close to beach, can't be closer because of the street. If you don't mind the party people then the music till the early morning won't bother you. The sunrise was absolutely AMAZING...I will never forget that. The hotel staff was wonderful and very very nice. The restaurant staff were very courteous, although we didn't eat there the food looked very good, plus they have a menu outside for you to look at. If you choose to not eat there, there are plenty of other places along Ocean Avenue. We are planning on staying at the Beacon when we return!

The worst ever

by A TripAdvisor Member

We stayed at the hotel in september before going on our honeymoon. the second we got to the hotel i was in shock. it is the worst sh*t hole I have ever seen in my entire life. The rooms are too small. You cannot even open the suitecase in the room because there is not much space. cleaning people are mean, they don't let you go in front of them in the elevator. They go first. There is only one elevator and stairs are too steep. terrible experience. There is no way that this hotel is 4 stars. I wouldn't give it 1 star. It should be remodeled and windows needs to be washed in the whole building as well.

Nice room for a good price

by A TripAdvisor Member

We had a great experience here. I heeded the warnings from others about the pricey valet parking and parked in the city parking garage around the corner on 6th St. The room was very nice and clean. This is an older hotel with lots of character so the rooms are not huge, but they are clean. Tile everywhere, no carpet like many other places in S. Florida. The location was perfect, lots to see by walking. The ocean is right across Ocean Blvd. You can spend more on drinks in a night by bar-hopping than we paid for the room. I paid $89 on Expedia and when I asked at the desk about staying another night on our return from Key West the price directly from the hotel was $109. So book online and save. I would stay at the Beacon again and would recommend it to others. The free breakfast at Johnny Rockets was nice but does not start until 9:00 am.

Best hotel!

by TripAdvisor Member GBelanger

Me and a girlfriend stayed at the Beacon for 7 days in october and we had a great stay! First, the location is the best, right in the middle of the action. I found it was also very safe around the hotel, day or night. The staff was super nice and efficient. As we were there for 7 nights, thy gave us a room on the last floor, witch was great. The beds are very comfortable also. And for a low budget like our, it was nice to have the free breakfest at Johnny rocktet, though it could start earlier than 9 o'clock. I recommend this hotel to everyone, and i will retourn for sure!!

Just OK

by TripAdvisor Member bevf

Lacks charm, rooms are small and bare. Has the look of the 30's, but with a decor that suggests a tight decorating budget in the 30's with not very much imagination. It's clean though, and the staff is OK. It is in the middle of the action, but don't try to eat dinner in the immediate vicinity. Take a stroll to Lincoln Road where the food is better and much more reasonable. Or better yet, get a hotel a few blocks away closer to Lincoln Road. The Blue Moon looked fabulous. The beach across the street from the Beacon is ok, but you probably would not have a view of it from your room. Go to there only if you get a great deal. We got our room through Hotwire. And if you're staying there for only a few days do yourself a favor and don't rent a car. There's plenty to do that's walking distance and the car is just an added bit of parking expense and aggravation. Driving is a nightmare.

Would stay there again.

by A TripAdvisor Member

The staff at the Beacon was very professional and always had a smile on their faces. The staff went out of their way to greet you and ask if anything was needed. The room was extremly clean. The bathroom was very small, but atleast it was clean. The location of the Hotel was in a great location across from the beach. The only overnight parking is through their valet service. I did though find an overnight public parking garage a block away which was cheaper than valet.
The price was reasonable and the service was great...I would stay here again.

First Trip to Miami Beach

by RhyceCgy

"Hot times"

This was my first time to Miami Beach. I came with my partner, who had a conference to attend 3 of the 4 days we were there, however I had every day to do whatever I wanted.
The weather was very hot and humid (especially for me coming from the dry plains in Canada). I did quickly learn to wear light clothing and drink lots of water to stay cool.
Some highlights of my trip include sitting by the pool, sitting on the beach and collecting seashells, goign to Lincoln Road Mall, taking a Historic walking tour of South Beach's Art Deco District, and going to Aventura Shopping Mall.
Overall I had a good time. I did find the city streets to be a little bit dirty, however the blue blue ocean, lush greenery, and boardwalk made up for it.
Everywhere charged a 15-17% hospitality tax which I found a bit odd as it compromised the service in most cases. Especially at Rendez Vous restuarant on Ocean Drive at the Beacon Hotel.
I still look forward to going back again next year and exploring even more.

The art deco and Mimo inspired hotels and architecture really impressed me.

I really liked taking advantage of the al fresco dining on the ocean. Aquatica at Eden Roc was nice. The outdoor grill at Fontainebleau was not nice and had pre-packaged, bland expensive food.