Miami hotels

[Wennfred]

Kentucky60 just posted on my "Live from the Holiday Inn" thread and said he was able to get a Military Discount for the Holiday Inn, $107.00 thats awesome, I wonder if you have to be Active Military. I need to book the Holiday Inn for next years cruise today.

 

 

 

Fred

[Cruise_More_Often]

Although we were anything but thrilled with the place, it is convenient, a ok location, you can see the ships if you ask for an upper floor and the Bayside Marketplace is really fun. The rooms are clean, with relatively new decor. It is the service we had a problem with. Food service in the dining room may have been the worst we ever had, the rooms were not cleaned until about 4pm and the pool area is nothing. Would we stay there again? Yes, for the money we paid. I think it was about $90 per night, not bad for Miami. They don't have a shuttle to the port (not a free one anyway) nor from the airport. If staying near the port isn't a must I would suggest the Hampton Inn or the Embassy suites near the airport. They do offer free shuttle from the ariport. NMnita

Nita, I was glad to see your recommendation about the Embassy Suites. Earlier in the day I saw a post here on the East Coast board recommending booking Miami hotels early. Our cruise isn't until next February, and when I tried to book the Holiday Inn Bayside, they were completely sold out for our date! So, after a couple of hours of research, and seeing your post, we booked the Embassy Suites. The shuttle from the airport and to the port the next day sold me.

 

For those of you who haven't found the site Hotels by the Pier, it is incredibly helpful. It has maps of the Pier cities, with hotels marked on them. Move your cursor to one of the markings, and the hotel name appears, with links to the hotel's website, its distance to the pier and readers' reviews.

[Cruise_More_Often]

I must be missing something :confused: I just went to the lastminutetravel site and found only links to other travel sites, like travelzoo and hotels.com. Where on that site did you find the area that allowed you to book a cheap hotel?

[BeachBumMama]

Nita, I was glad to see your recommendation about the Embassy Suites. Earlier in the day I saw a post here on the East Coast board recommending booking Miami hotels early. Our cruise isn't until next February, and when I tried to book the Holiday Inn Bayside, they were completely sold out for our date!

Did you try to book online or call them? You may not be able to book this early and that is why it was showing 'no availability'.

 

I too have stayed at the Embassy Suites at the airport and it was very nice. I ended up getting it on priceline for a great price. If you don't understand priceline bidding well, you can go to www.biddingfortravel.com and it gives you great info as to which hotels come up in which areas and the process of bidding.

 

As Nita said, the Holiday Inn is a great location but your average hotel with nothing special other than its location. They Hyatt we stayed at I got on priceline for around $55.00 and that normally goes for $175.00 +. The Embassy Suites at the airport I also got on priceline for about $55.00 I think.

 

Have fun!:D

[Kentucky60]

Kentucky60 just posted on my "Live from the Holiday Inn" thread and said he was able to get a Military Discount for the Holiday Inn, $107.00 thats awesome, I wonder if you have to be Active Military. I need to book the Holiday Inn for next years cruise today.

 

 

 

Fred

 

I think you need to be active duty my husband is in the army reserve. I talked directly to reservation department to book. There are alot of military discounts out there for active and retired if everyone knew it. We had a great vacation in Hawaii at the Hale Koa Hotel on Waikiki beach the military owns this hotel just found out for vacation. It was awesome and the price is great for active and retired halekoa.com check it out all military.

[shebring02lx]

Wow thats amazing!!!

Thanks for posting the photos!

I love visuals!

I thought of going to see Kat Von D, however, aftercare restricts you to a lot of sunlight and water - so wouldnt be such a great idea pre-cruise! :D

[Froufie]

Try easyclicktravel.com or hotwire.com or even priceline.com if you feel comfortable bidding on a hotel.

 

You may also wish to check out tripadvisor.com which has user reviews of all hotel properties - I find it very helpful!

 

Good luck.

 

Froufie

[Cruise_More_Often]

Did you try to book online or call them? You may not be able to book this early and that is why it was showing 'no availability'.

 

I too have stayed at the Embassy Suites at the airport and it was very nice. I ended up getting it on priceline for a great price. If you don't understand priceline bidding well, you can go to www.biddingfortravel.com and it gives you great info as to which hotels come up in which areas and the process of bidding.

 

As Nita said, the Holiday Inn is a great location but your average hotel with nothing special other than its location. They Hyatt we stayed at I got on priceline for around $55.00 and that normally goes for $175.00 +. The Embassy Suites at the airport I also got on priceline for about $55.00 I think.

 

Have fun!:D

Thanks BeachBumMama. I first tried booking online (many places) and thought, as you did, that it was too early. All the other hotels around allowed booking, though, so I figured something was wrong. Then I called the hotel directly. Although the person I talked to confirmed that they were all sold out between 2/6-2/10, he was unable to figure out what was going on in Miami (or perhaps just something at the hotel) during that period.

 

I have perused biddingfortravel many times and have considered trying Priceline in the past. This sounds like an excellent opportunity to put it to the test. How close to my travel date should I start trying Priceline?

[ballinafad]

We are considering a 4 day fascination with 2 or 3 days at a fun resort in Miami with activities to keep 3 kids busy (age 10,11,13). Any suggestions that won't break the bank. Or perhaps there are fun excursions/waterparks that we could do from a regular hotel. Any help is greatly appreciated.

[curleyjane]

Has anybody stayed in this hotel before? We have reservations to stay there before our cruise and are considering leaving our car there and taking a taxi to the port. The hotel told me it is free of charge but they are not responsible for theft or damage to your vehicle. Thanks in advance.

[hersheysmother]

Thank you so much, everyone. Just reserved a room at the Holiday Inn. I checked out the Bayside Marketplace site, and I know where we will probably be most of the evening before the cruise. It looks like you can't help but find someplace to eat and someplace to shop! Now all I have to do is find a decent priced flight and I'm ready to go!!!

[BeachBumMama]

Thanks BeachBumMama. I first tried booking online (many places) and thought, as you did, that it was too early. All the other hotels around allowed booking, though, so I figured something was wrong. Then I called the hotel directly. Although the person I talked to confirmed that they were all sold out between 2/6-2/10, he was unable to figure out what was going on in Miami (or perhaps just something at the hotel) during that period.

 

I have perused biddingfortravel many times and have considered trying Priceline in the past. This sounds like an excellent opportunity to put it to the test. How close to my travel date should I start trying Priceline?

Never hurts to try far in advance, but I don't think much comes open until closer to your booking date. As that's the purpose of priceline, to fill the empty rooms. Right now I would think would be much too early but you could always try for practice:p . I usually start at least a few months beforehand because if your bid is declined etc. you have to wait, I think, 48 hrs? or 72hrs? to bid again so it might take a few weeks.

 

Making a reservation that can be cancelled within 24 hrs. can be a backup in case you don't get that room on priceline. I always try to book my air on the good price days and if I can get a pre and post cruise hotel for little more than $50.00 I don't mind staying a few nights to take advantage of better airfare. Good luck!:)

 

Did want to add that you can probably get a better idea of when to start trying from looking at the posts of people who have bid and won and what travel dates they booked.

[caribbean dreams]

Thank you so much, everyone. Just reserved a room at the Holiday Inn !

 

 

I think you will be very happy there, we spent 2 days at Bayside Market and wished we had more time, they have great entertainment and bands at night on the main stage.

[jenr]

Cruise More Often

 

Did you enter you travel dates in on the left side of your screen...it should bring up the hotels...not other travel sites... Are you sure you went to lastminutetravel.com? Give it another try...I just went to their site to double check and it worked for me. Good luck!

[kristen2007]

I must be missing something :confused: I just went to the lastminutetravel site and found only links to other travel sites, like travelzoo and hotels.com. Where on that site did you find the area that allowed you to book a cheap hotel?

 

 

I was just on lastminutetravel.com and booked the IC for $111.00 - it is the first hotel listed when I put in my dates (10.3.07-10.04.07)

[claven]

Can you just walk into Miami Ink and get a tattoo? Or, do you need an appointment or is it restricted?

 

Dennis

[firstcruiser06]

Just booked the Jewell for 4/15! Don't want to spend a ton of money and would like to be in safe place near the port.....any suggestions???? (We won't have a car....)

 

Hi,

Just returned from cruise from Port of Miami, we stayed at the Hyatt Regency where we won for 169.00 per nite, thru hotwire.com. Total about 200.00. We just slept there, we arrived dropped our luggage and took the Metro (for free) 2 stops over to Bayside Marketplace where we stayed until midnite, (cool place to shop and hang out). HIGHLY RECOMMEND. The Hyatt told us places to go for liquor and breakfast before our 1200 check out and then got us a $12 taxis to the Port for our cruise. We would stay there again, just would not eat there as it is very expensive. It was alittle noisy because of all the construction going on, one year from now they will not have a view. The pool looked good but we didnt have time and You NEEDED YOUR ROOM KEY TO WORK THE ELEVATORS... which was a nice plus for security.

M:cool:

[caribbean dreams]

Can you just walk into Miami Ink and get a tattoo? Or, do you need an appointment or is it restricted?

 

Dennis

 

Could you imagine the line if you could/

 

But no, it's by appointment only and i think someone else said you have to go online to schedule one.

[OceanFantasys]

I must be missing something :confused: I just went to the lastminutetravel site and found only links to other travel sites, like travelzoo and hotels.com. Where on that site did you find the area that allowed you to book a cheap hotel?

 

I had the same problem.. I tried the same address in my browser and no such luck. All I got was the same as you so I went to my internet explorer browser and the website came up so try that.. Hope it works for you.

[Kiki in Michigan]

Looking for some advice of where to stay in Miami on the night before we cruise. I'd like something near the port. Any recommendations are greatly appreciated!

[Host Kat]

Howdy Kiki in Michigan!

 

Welcome to the Gulf Coast Departures Forum! This is where we discuss Galveston, Gulfport, Mobile, New Orleans, & Tampa.

 

Per the Community Guidelines and to help you out, I am moving your thread to the East Coast Departures Forum http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=415 where it will be on topic. The new location is the best location for more of your fellow Cruise Critic members to see it and help you with the information you seek. The ports are Baltimore, Boston, Cape Liberty, Charleston, Ft. Lauderdale, Jacksonville, Miami, Montreal, New York, Norfolk, Philadelphia & Port Canaveral.

 

I sincerely hope this will be satisfactory and glad to have you aboard Cruise Critic!

Kat

[new2cruising2008]

First I want to say that I have never been to Miami, but I'm in the same "boat" as you as far as looking for a place to stay near the port. I posted before with the results of my search (so far).

 

Here are the highlights:

 

If you want both a shuttle from airpport and to port, I found only 2 with free shuttles and fair-positive reviews on tripadvisor.com (real traveler's advice). Best Western in Coral Gables, and LaQuinta Airport East (free bfast). Some of the others the hotel was rated poorly or the shuttle service poor or nonexistant despite their claim on their website. Hampton Inn Dadeland (free bfast) gets positive reviews & has a shuttle from airport and charges $15pp for shuttle to port. So, if you have more than 2 people, you could get a taxi for less. None of these properties is near the port. So these are great options if you plan to have a car or; don't plan to see anything of Miami during your stay--this is strictly a pit stop on your way to the port.

 

Holiday Inn Port of Miami (kids eat free), Courtyard by Marriott Downtown, and Hampton in Key Biscayne (free bfast) are all near the port and Downtown. None have shuttles to airport or port. Airport taxi with tip is about $30, to the port is less than that because you can actually see the port from some of these hotels. You would be near Bayside Marketplace (Marina with water tours, shopping, and restaurants, sometimes entertainment, mostly a tourist hangout).

 

If you wanted to stay near the Beach/Art Deco area, your choices get limited. Expect to pay more for less quality of a property. Rodeway Inn South Beach is 1 block from the beach. Another option is a stay at a hostel. Clay Hotel and Hostel is both a hotel and hostel. They have hotel-style rooms and hostel-style rooms. They are in the Espanola Way area. clayhotel.com I've heard great things about Atlantica Hotel near South Pointe Park; this will only work before May 31st stays -- then it will turn into a hostel & I don't know who will be running it.

 

Finally, suburban options in Kendall. SE of Miami are some nice properties if you have a car. Best Western Kendall is brand new & has great reviews & free bfast. Comfort Inn & Suites in Kendall also has great reviews & also a free bfast. Parking your rental or own car is not difficult. There's even attractions out this way; however, driving into Miami can be a pain. No shuttles.

[escape077]

Hello! I'm a first-time Cruise Critic member and have heard that you all are great advisors.....so, I'm seeking your advice. We're cruising next February 08 on Royal Caribbean's Brilliance, and we seek your advice on a pre-cruise hotel. We arrive in Miami in the afternoon the day before the cruise and are looking for a nice hotel--clean and fresh--reasonable price (relatively speaking)--in a safe area. It doesn't have to be a 5-star hotel...but we don't want the "no tell motel" either! We've heard some bad reports about the airport shuttles, so we seek a free and timely/efficient shuttle from the airport and the hotel close enough to the pier so we don't have to pay, say more than $20 for a taxi. We'd also prefer an on-premises restaurant to catch a nice dinner...or a reasonable restaurant within a very short & safe walking distance (not fast food!). Any opinions on the Hampton Inn at Miami Airport/Blue Lagoon, Hampton Inn at Miami Dadeland or Hyatt Summerfield? Others? We thank you so much.:)

[CLAUDIA&JAY]

Hello! I'm a first-time Cruise Critic member and have heard that you all are great advisors.....so, I'm seeking your advice. We're cruising next February 08 on Royal Caribbean's Brilliance, and we seek your advice on a pre-cruise hotel. We arrive in Miami in the afternoon the day before the cruise and are looking for a nice hotel--clean and fresh--reasonable price (relatively speaking)--in a safe area. It doesn't have to be a 5-star hotel...but we don't want the "no tell motel" either! We've heard some bad reports about the airport shuttles, so we seek a free and timely/efficient shuttle from the airport and the hotel close enough to the pier so we don't have to pay, say more than $20 for a taxi. We'd also prefer an on-premises restaurant to catch a nice dinner...or a reasonable restaurant within a very short & safe walking distance (not fast food!). Any opinions on the Hampton Inn at Miami Airport/Blue Lagoon, Hampton Inn at Miami Dadeland or Hyatt Summerfield? Others? We thank you so much.:)

 

 

Well it depends on if you would prefer to be in the party area of South Beach or outside of that area near the airport or downtown Miami. There are tons of hotels there and I can only speak of the South Beach ones. However I am familiar with the Sheraton by the airport and it is a rather nice hotel, with a great restaurant and bar on premise. If you can let me know if you guys would prefer to be either in the South Beach District or more closer to the airport I can provide you some suggestions of the hotels that are not "no tel motels"...lol.

 

In regards to the shuttles, depending upon which hotel you book most have shuttles to and from Miami International. There is also super shuttle which is not too expensive either. It's about $20 per person and will take you directly to your hotel. The website for them is supershuttle dot com

 

If you take a taxi from the airport to your hotel, the cost will vary by the Zone in which your hotel is located. The flat rate for Taxi's ranges from about $20-$40 in the Miami area.

 

 

I hope this is helpful and again let me know which area of Miami you guys would prefer and I can provide you more info on hotels.

[CLAUDIA&JAY]

Looking for some advice of where to stay in Miami on the night before we cruise. I'd like something near the port. Any recommendations are greatly appreciated!

 

Kiki, I'm definitely gonna help you out.. :)

 

We frequent Miami a few times a year so I remember our first time wondering where to stay and how far should we be away from the port.

 

First though, would you prefer to be closer to the port of Miami or be closer to South Beach? In all actuality South Beach is a very short (2-3 miles) cab ride from the port, so it's all about what you guys are planning on doing the night before. There are several hotels to choose from in the South Beach area, however some are a bit overpriced just because of the location. When will you be cruising? That also impeccable to where you will want to stay at in the event there is a special event going on in Miami at that time.

 

Fewer of the South Beach hotels that are moderately priced provide shuttles to and from the airport or to the port but there is a group of them that do provide a free shuttle service and are actually some pretty nice hotels.

 

There are a lot of hotels near the downtown/airport area as well.

 

But of course the million $ question is how much do you want to spend for one night at a hotel?

 

 

Let me know and I can provide some suggestions for you that will suit your needs.

 

 

J