Miami Beach with HotelTonight
Carillon Wellness Resort
Beachin’
Nautilus by Arlo
Palms
Sazón Cuban Restaurant
Carillon Courtyard
The Naked Taco
Nautilus by Arlo
Carillon Bedroom
Carillon Bedroom
Nautilus by Arlo
The Carillon Sunset Pool
This post is in partnership with HotelTonight. All opinions are our own.
Wow Miami was incredible. We learned new things like Cuban food is the superior food, you can use too much sunscreen, our idea of what constitutes a skimpy swimsuit was way off, and no matter how many days you spend at the beach you’re going to want more (so always book as long a stay as you can!).
When we first started planning our trip, we knew we wanted to explore as much of the beach as possible, and given that we had a full week to do so, staying in two different spots sounded fun. With a sophisticated list of needs that included rest, pool-side wine (the best kind of wine), and lots and lots of time spent laying in the sun, we took to HotelTonight—our absolute favorite hotel booking app—and scanned their options for the “luxe” category filter to find one wellness resort spot in North Beach (The Carillon) and one swanky hip spot in South Beach (The Nautilus). HotelTonight has so many f-a-b-u-l-o-u-s looking listings in Miami it was pretty hard to decide, but we settled for two that fit our vibe. So let’s talk about these spots:
Where We Stayed
The Carillon is a North Beach wellness resort, which basically means that in addition to being a place for rest, relaxation, and cocktails, this place also has rigorous bootcamp classes, a rock-climbing wall, sunrise yoga that people actually attend, dance classes, a massive fitness center, and like a thousand pools. OK it was four pools, but that’s a lot! We LOVED being able to be so active on vacation. Beyond all that, the hotel itself is absolutely stunning. Our bedroom view literally made us gasp when we walked in. There were so many windows, we were right on the beach, all that jazz. Incredible. It was truly a luxurious experience, with everything from the concierge services to the onsite restaurant to the pool attendees being ultra accommodating.
The Nautilus is a South Beach hotel, with a hip lobby that seemed popular with a younger crowd. It was was swanky in a hip, not stuffy, kinda way. There was a fantastic bamboo-lined walkway that led straight to the beach, two bars that were both decked out and gorgeous, and a relaxing pool-side lounge area that included those little woven hut-bed things in the photos above. It was very cute and very…happening. Do people still say “happening”?
Where We Ate
We stuck to casual, affordable eats while we were there. And while we usually like to do a lot more adventuring when we travel, for us this trip was all about taking it slow, so we really didn’t venture very far—but still managed to find some really great spots to eat! All of the below places will run you about $15-$20/person before factoring in alcohol.
Sazón is a traditional Cuban restaurant right off the beach in North Beach. It’s got an adorable little interior and delicious Cuban staples like vaca frita, ropa vieja, and Cuban sandwich. It’s casual and breezy and great for lunch.
Las Vegas restaurant is really similar to Sazón in the style of the cuisine, but it’s a little more buttoned up (but by no means fancy) with white table cloths and a nice wine menu. It makes a great dinner spot.
The Naked Taco is a vibey spot right off the main strip in South Beach. They’ve got experimental tacos and nachos, and the food is light and fun and, given the comparisons in the area, not remarkably expensive.
Taquiza is a local chain with a really dope sangria pitcher situation and the MOST incredible hand-torn blue corn tortilla chips we’ve ever had. They’re called totopos (which I think might just mean “tortilla chip”?) and are basically thick crispy pieces of tortilla that are soft and chewy inside and crispy on the outside. Get the guacamole with them! The tacos at this spot are also great, though pretty small so order several.
And other than sleep, eat, and drink we basically just stayed on the beach, which really was our whole plan from the beginning, so… ideal. We must have used way too much sunscreen though, because we somehow didn’t quite get as tan as we hoped?? Guess it’s time to head back already.
Thanks so much to HotelTonight for sponsoring this post! Check them out for great hotel deals on your next trip, and use code “PRTHIS” to get an additional $25 off. :)
xoxo Beau (and Matt!)
