Taking the red-eye to Miami is always a wonderful experience, especially if you worked all day before and go straight to work after you arrive. (Warning: Irony!) I didn’t sleep much on the plane and hoped that the hotel would let me check in early. With family in town as well I tried to get a hotel close to theirs in Miami Beach. I booked “The Confidante” in Miami Beach and my Hyatt Globalist status would give me some great perks there.
First of all the resort fee gets waived for eligible rates. Eligible rates are basically all rates that earn World of Hyatt points. I booked the cheapest room available with an AAA-rate. This was a great deal because the resort fee of $30 would increase the rate tremendously. However, I still had to pay for parking $44 dollars a night. Besides that, I would also get free breakfast in the morning for up to two adults and two kids. This is a great benefit as well because the buffet is $24 plus tax or you can go a la carte. More about that later.
Check-In
My arrival at around 8:30 a.m. was way too early for their regular check-in time of 4:00 p.m. The valet greeted me outside and I let him know that I will try to check in early if they have any rooms available. He kept the keys for my cars because there is only a very small space for cars to come in and no real parking possibility. I went inside to the front desk and they were able to check me in early and also upgraded me to a Miami Suite. I was surprised about both things actually and was happy. I grabbed my keys and headed outside to claim my bags and leave my car with the valet and a staff member helped me to get my luggage to my room.
Miami Suite (Room 1602)
My room was on the 16th floor of the main building of The Confidante and this is also the top floor of this building. On the 16th floor, there are four suites and 1602 is in the south-west corner of the building. This gave me only a partial beach/ocean view but with a better view towards Miami and along Collins Ave.
The main room features a minibar with refrigerator and snacks on the countertop, a table with chairs, and a sofa for watching movies on the flatscreen TV. At the far end to the right is the entrance to the bedroom. The bedroom has a King bed with nightstands on each side, a closet, and a table with a chair which I used for my laptop. The chair is rather uncomfortable if you sit on it for a longer time.
I was actually pretty amazed by the minibar. They had everything from sodas, water, beers, wine up to heavy spirits like vodka.
The bathroom can be accessed through the bedroom or from the main living area. The toilet itself is separate from the sink and shower/bathtub combo and can be locked with two sliding doors on each side for privacy.
I have never seen a bathroom like this, especially because it has a bathtub and a separate shower which is in front of the bathtub, and half of it is covered with a glass wall. It actually took me a while to figure out how to turn on the showerhead. There is a dial on the wall opposite the showerhead. The dial lets you turn on the water to the shower head and select the temperature. The bathtub is pretty well sized as well.
Separating the toilet and making it accessible from the dorm and the living area is a great idea. So guests can use it without going through your dorm. The only downside there is no sink to wash your hands after you used the toilet. You still have to use the bathroom sink but your guests don’t have to cross through your bedroom.
The Miranda and Penthouse Suite feature a separate bedroom, living room, and dining room compared to the Miami Suite I was staying in. For me, the Miami Suite was spacious enough. Regular rooms at the hotel are often a little bit too small for my taste, but you are here for the location, not for the room.
Public Areas
The hotel lobby invites you to relax, hang out, and meet your friends. There is plenty of seating all over and some more private areas as well. At the front desk, you can loan bicycles for free to get around in town. This service is included in your resort fee. If there are no bicycles available or you need one for an extended time, you can rent a bike like with CityBike and turn the receipt in. The amount of the rental will be deducted from your room charges. A Citi Bike Rental Station is very close to the hotel at the corner of Collins Ave and 40th Street.
Of course, the most favored public spaces are the outdoor heated pools, gardens, and beach access. There is an outside bar near the pools and plenty of pool loungers to hang out and relax. One of the pools has some cabanas located along the long side. Both pools are heated and great to hang out and enjoy the Miami sun. On the far left corner is a little kids play area with beach sand. You can have your little ones play in the sand and relax on one of the pool loungers.
Past the pools is an exit to the Miami Beach Boardwalk from where you can access the beach right behind the hotel. The Confidante has a service station there offering you beach loungers, umbrella, and towels to enjoy the Ocean waters. All these amenities are included in your resort fee. You can also order food right to your beach lounger either at the booth on the beach or via the mobile app and charge it to your room.
Close by is also a lifeguard tower. Always watch and check the flags on the tower.
The Spa+Salon and Fitness Center are located on the 10th floor. Check your in-room guide for available spa treatments. Most of the fitness center equipment is located inside in an air-conditioned room but there are some pieces of equipment outside as well. That’s also where they hold Yoga sessions which you can join if you want. Just ask the staff for the schedule.
You can also come here to hang out and relax. There are some chairs and tables outside and the deck gives you a good view of the beach.
On the 4th floor of the hotel is a Vista Deck with views of the backyard of the hotel. It can be accessed either from the hotel building itself or by the stairs from the backyard. If you enter through the hotel, there is a little lobby area right before you step outside onto the deck. There you find some comfy chairs and a sofa.
Dining
The Confidante offers you three dining options. All of them are great and make your stay more enjoyable. For the early birds, daily complimentary coffee service starts at 6:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m.
The Bird & Bone…
restaurant serves Breakfast, Brunch, Lunch, and Dinner. As a World of Hyatt Globalist member, Breakfast is included in your reservation for up to 2 adults and 2 children. For breakfast, the restaurant serves an a la carte menu or you can choose to go with the buffet. I like the buffet, as usual at a Hyatt property, it’s really grad and has a wide variety of items to pick from. The free breakfast as Hyatt Globalist is a great value here as the breakfast buffet for a person costs $24. Their lunch and dinner menu is great as well and you can find them all on the hotel website.
Update:
In August 2018, the hotel moved the position of the buffet to the other side of the dining area. Besides the new location, there is now an omelet station where a chef will prepare your omelet to your order. This a great addition to the regular offerings as you get to see the chef preparing the omelet right in front of you. Of course, there is still an a la carte menu beside the buffet.
The Backyard
This gives you the option to dine at the pool, garden or right on the beach. At the beach, they serve you until 6 p.m. and on the pool and hotel backyard until 7 p.m. Find the menu and more options on the hotel website. This is a great service, especially hanging out at the beach and have your dinner served to you at the beach.
Conclusion
The Confidante is definitely a great hotel right on the beach. A big downside is that they only offer valet parking, which adds additional costs to your room rate. But pretty much every hotel in this area only offers valet parking. You can call ahead to the front desk and let them know that you will need your car and they will pull it up for you. That way you save some waiting time. Overall the hotel was great and I had a good time here. The staff was amazing and always tried to help out and make you feel welcome. The only downside is the slow internet connection at the hotel. Especially during the evening hours after sunset, the speed goes down drastically. Normally I wouldn’t complain but when the speed is so slow that you can’t use certain Google Apps and Features, for example, it is definitely too slow. The hotel transferred me to their Tech-Support provider for internet issues and they told me that they can’t do anything to speed up my connection. If you need a fast internet connection, you will have some issues here. It’s not that bad, that you can’t use the web at all. I was still able to stream my movies from Amazon Prime without interruption, but the latency times are high here.
But you are coming here hopefully for the beach and for some downtime from work and all the stress. Turn off your devices and relax and grab a lounger at the beach or the pool and have a great day. Explore Miami and enjoy some amazing food in the city. There is so much to do and see here.
Address:
4041 Collins Ave,
Miami Beach, FL 33140
USA
Phone: +1 (305) 424-1234
Web: https://theconfidantemiamibeach.hyatt.comhttps://seattle.grand.hyatt.com
See Map below
Hotel
- Free WiFi
- Valet parking ($40)
- Fitness Center
- 2 heated outdoor pools
- On-Site Restaurant and Bar
- Backyard Gardens
- Beach Access and Service
- Direct Access to the Miami Beach Boardwalk
Room
- WiFi
- Flatscreen TV
- Coffee Maker
- Dry Cleaning Service
- Minibar and Snacks (for a charge)
- Safe
- Room Service
Hotel
24-hour receptionist on duty
Check-In: 04:00 p.m.
Check-Out: 12:00 p.m.
24 hours valet parking
Dining
Bird & Bone
Breakfast
7:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m., daily
Lunch
11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m., daily
Lobby Bar
3:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m., daily
Dinner
Sunday–Thursday: 6:00 p.m.–10:00 p.m.
Friday and Saturday: 6:00 p.m.–11:00 p.m.
TALDE
Dinner
Sunday–Thursday: 6:00 p.m.–11:00 p.m.
Friday and Saturday: 6:00 p.m.–2:00 a.m.
Late Night Noodles
Friday and Saturday: Midnight–2:00 a.m.
Happy Hour
6:00 p.m.–8:00 p.m., daily
The Backyard
The Pools & Garden
9:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m., daily
The Beach
11:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m., daily
Pool, Fitness Center and more
Fitness Center
24 hours Monday – Sunday
Valet Parking
In and out privileges
- Location
-
Address:
4041 Collins Ave,
Miami Beach, FL 33140
USA
Phone: +1 (305) 424-1234
Web: https://theconfidantemiamibeach.hyatt.comhttps://seattle.grand.hyatt.comSee Map below
- Amenities
-
Hotel
- Free WiFi
- Valet parking ($40)
- Fitness Center
- 2 heated outdoor pools
- On-Site Restaurant and Bar
- Backyard Gardens
- Beach Access and Service
- Direct Access to the Miami Beach Boardwalk
Room
- WiFi
- Flatscreen TV
- Coffee Maker
- Dry Cleaning Service
- Minibar and Snacks (for a charge)
- Safe
- Room Service
- Hours of Operation
-
Hotel
24-hour receptionist on duty
Check-In: 04:00 p.m.
Check-Out: 12:00 p.m.
24 hours valet parking
Dining
Bird & Bone
Breakfast
7:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m., dailyLunch
11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m., dailyLobby Bar
3:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m., dailyDinner
Sunday–Thursday: 6:00 p.m.–10:00 p.m.
Friday and Saturday: 6:00 p.m.–11:00 p.m.TALDE
Dinner
Sunday–Thursday: 6:00 p.m.–11:00 p.m.
Friday and Saturday: 6:00 p.m.–2:00 a.m.
Late Night Noodles
Friday and Saturday: Midnight–2:00 a.m.
Happy Hour
6:00 p.m.–8:00 p.m., daily
The Backyard
The Pools & Garden
9:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m., dailyThe Beach
11:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m., dailyPool, Fitness Center and more
Fitness Center
24 hours Monday – Sunday
- Parking
-
Valet Parking
In and out privileges
$44 per night
Peter has a passion for Traveling, Photography, and Geocaching. These are the best ingredients for amazing adventures all over the globe. “Traveling is fun, no matter if you stay in a luxury hotel or travel like a backpacker.” Peter shares his experiences on his Blog www.gatetoadventures.com
Some of Peter’s photos are published on corporate websites, in-flight magazines, travel guides, and much more.