Surfcomber Hotel, South Beach, Miami, Florida Review

By Oyster.com
December 16, 2011

Scene
A reliable, 186-room chain hotel with a trendy, beachside location, the Surfcomber attracts families and clubbers alike, but its location is the main draw, not its cramped rooms.

It's a mixed crowd at this 186-room hotel -- from kids singing in French for their parents at the pool to single fellas plotting their "game plan" for the night at the nearby Skyline bar.

For most guests, the main draw is the hotel's location -- a prime piece of beachfront real estate along the poshest few blocks of South Beach's Collins Avenue, and beside some of the swankiest be-seen hotels like the Delano and Shore Club. The rooms are significantly less expensive than at the hotel's luxe neighbors, but it's not the only affordable hotel nearby -- check out the National or South Seas hotels, which both have pools and beachfront access but also have more spacious rooms.

Service
Reliable, professional service for the basics -- check-in, room service, and porters -- but the concierge isn't the most knowledgeable.

Porters are positioned to open doors, check-in is quick (made even better by a free welcome cookie), room service is prompt, and service requests -- like extra towels -- are delivered swiftly.

The concierge was so-so, as is to be expected at a mid-range hotel. I tested her by asking where I could find Miami's best seviche or the best local dive bar, but she only seemed familiar with super-touristy spots on Ocean Drive.

Room service is available between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m., and poolside bartenders keep loungers well hydrated.

Service at the Terrazos restaurant was friendly, cheerful, and attentive, though I did have to wait 10 minutes before someone came to take my order.

Location
An ideal location right on the beach and a short walk from South Beach's many bars, restaurants, and clubs.

View on a Larger Map
The hotel is located right on the beach, within quick walking distance of South Beach's chic party central and the be-seen bars and restaurants of the nearby Delano and Shore Club hotels.
Some of South Beach's best dining, drinking, and shopping can also be found at the Lincoln Road outdoor mall, just two blocks away.

Beach
Prime beachfront property with access to the boardwalk via two gates. But the hotel doesn't offer beachside service or chairs.

The Surfcomber sits directly on South Beach: Walk past the pool area and through one of the two gates, and you're on the boardwalk. From there you'll find a narrow but well-trodden path through the seagrass to the beach.

Once on the beach, however, guests are on their own: The Surfcomber has no beach services. Guests can purchase chairs and umbrellas from an independent beach-services stand called Beach Aqua Circus. Chairs run $10 per day, $15 with an umbrella, and can only be paid for in cash. The deal is the same at the Richmond and South Seas next door. However, guests at the similarly priced Catalina hotel across the street get two free chairs with their room.

Great food on the beach is available at the nearby Love Food Cafe, a charming yellow shack on the beach that's been there for decades. It serves up amazing burgers and salmon seviche.

Rooms
Rooms are pretty cramped (especially the bathrooms), and they're looking pretty shabby (especially the bathrooms) -- but all the modern treats are there: flat-screens, iPod docks, and Neutrogena bath products.

Like any Doubletree hotel, the decor -- lots of beige accents against commercial green carpet -- is not the draw. But the beds are comfortable -- soft sheets and duvets, and thick, firm pillows -- and all rooms come with high-quality features, like a 32-inch Philips flat-screen TV (including all of the major networks plus Showtime on demand), a clock radio with an MP3 connection, a Nintendo Game Cube console, a free copy of USA Today in the morning, and a coffeemaker with Wolfgang Puck-brand coffee and two bags of Numi organic tea. Wi-Fi in the lobby is free, but you'll have to fork over $8 to access it in the room. There is no safe in the room for laptop storage.

Standard rooms start at about 200 square feet -- a bit smaller than at most South Beach hotels, but far from the smallest. Still, with two full beds, a desk, a chest of drawers, and a chair, my room felt really cramped -- a sentiment echoed by many other guests, even those who only had a king or queen bed, as most rooms do (two doubles are rare). In addition to the standard rooms, the hotel also has four 400-square-foot suites, which unlike the others can fit a rollaway bed.

The bathroom in the standard room is among the smallest in Miami -- truly only big enough for one person. The door could only open about three-quarters before slamming into the toilet. There are some nice touches, like thick, soft towels and Neutrogena bath products, including face wash and moisturizer with sunscreen. But in my room, the floor appeared permanently dirty, there was mildew in the grout, and the counter needed scrubbing. Plus, the bathroom fan -- which turns on automatically with the lights -- was annoyingly noisy, as in it sounded like there was a loose marble bouncing around inside. Not to mention the cockroach lying belly-up by the toilet.

A few of the rooms have oceanfront views, and some have courtyard views. Management says you'll need to specifically request one of these when you book, or you'll get stuck looking at the wall of the Marseilles Hotel like I did.

Features
Great pool with a waterfall and free Wi-Fi in the lobby. The gym is a bit cramped, but the equipment is top-notch.

The hotel has one heated pool. The lounge chairs are clean and white, and the waterfall gives it a nicely posh touch. Two elevated decks on either side of the pool have additional chairs and tables under white tents -- a quiet escape from the sun, with a nice view of the ocean. A bar with poolside drink service is just steps away. All in all, this pool beats the comparably priced competition at the National and the South Seas.

The gym is small but the equipment, including the Precor elliptical and two treadmills, are in good shape. The three machines have personal video monitors and come with headphones that have replaceable earphone pads. In addition to the cardio options, there are also three medicine balls and a full set of weights, although there's nothing lighter than five pounds. The Glade air freshener, though, was way too strong for such a small space.

Wi-Fi is free in the lobby but costs $8 for a one-day pass in the rooms. However, there are two computers in the lobby that are free for guests to use.

Valet parking is an exorbitant $39 per night, making it even more expensive than the decidedly more upscale Delano a few blocks down the street.

Family
Rooms are small, so it could be a very tight squeeze, but there's a great pool, direct access to the beach, and kids menus at the restaurant.

Cots and rollaway beds are both free, but the rollaways don't fit in the 200-square-foot standard rooms. But standard rooms with two full-size beds are available, as well as connecting rooms. There are also 400-square-foot suites, but they don't have pullout sofas.
The shallowest section of the pool is still 3 feet deep (the deepest end is 6 feet) and thus not ideal for small children.

The Terrazos restaurant has high chairs and a kids menu offering cheeseburgers ($7), grilled cheese sandwiches ($5), and pasta ($6), all of which come with chips or fries (even the pasta).

Cleanliness
Clean pool and grounds, but some of the bathrooms come with some dirty floors and mildew.

In my room, I found debris that hadn't been vacuumed in the corners, but the main space was otherwise clean. The bathroom is a different story -- the floor looked permanently dirty, there was mildew in the grout, and the counter needed scrubbing. Plus, I woke up to this cockroach lying belly-up by the toilet. This could've happened at any hotel, and no one else I spoke to complained of roaches, but still, this gets chalked up as a fail.
The main spaces in the hotel are kept clean, including the grounds, the gym, and the pool. The lobby looked pretty dated during my stay, but it has since been renovated.

Food
Incinerated fish, overpriced breakfast, and frozen crabcrakes -- plan to eat most meals outside the hotel, where excellent restaurants abound.

There's an extensive menu at Terrazos that ranges from spice-rubbed salmon salad ($16) to a New York strip sirloin ($28). But food reviews across the board are negative. Example 1: The ahi on my seared tuna salad ($16) was incinerated, plus it had the unusual problem of having too little dressing. Example 2: I spoke to a couple who watched a waiter carry a box of frozen crabcakes into the kitchen -- they were later found to be dried out and disgusting (and carried a $16 price tag).

The breakfast buffet ($14.75) consists of the usual eggs, bacon, homefries, boxed cereals, toast, and danishes, but I expected better quality: The eggs were cold, the bread was storebought, the pastries tasted a day old, and the orange juice wasn't fresh-squeezed. My French toast ($11) was acceptable, and healthier options, like whole-grain cereal with fruit ($6) and whole-grain pancakes ($13), were also available.

In short, you're better off heading outside the hotel to eat. There are plenty of excellent restaurants within walking distance, many of which are along the Lincoln Road open-air mall, just two blocks away.

Bottom Line

A reliable chain hotel among trendy boutique hotels, the Doubletree comes with a huge, beautiful pool, direct beach access, and a great address on swank Collins Avenue. But 182 of the 186 rooms are small and worn -- especially the bathrooms -- and better deals are to be found at other nearby hotels, like the South Seas.

This Hotel Also Featured In

» Gay-Friendly Hotels in Miami
» Gay-Friendly Hotels in South Beach

Things You Should Know About Surfcomber Hotel

Address

» 1717 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139

Hotel Is Also Known As...

» Doubletree Surfcomber Hotel Miami-South Beach
• Doubletree Miami Beach
• Miami Beach Doubletree

Room Types

» City View Suite
» Double Bed Room
» King Bed Room
» King Bed Oceanfront Room
» Ocean View Suite

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