Where to stay the night before in Miami?

[Noblarneyimirish]

Hi all!

I've never stayed in Miami and have no idea where the best place to stay is. We would prefer a clean budget hotel that is close to Bayside Marketplace. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Do any hotels offer shuttles to the pier? Approx how much for a taxi?

 

Thanks for all your help! Happy traveling!

 

Stephanie

[jrlaurie]

Stephanie- Last year I stayed post cruise at the Hyatt Regency Downtown, which is down the street from Bayside. I think I paid about $120.00 or so, and I did that on Priceline. I put in lower bids but thats what it gave me. I have read that others have gotten it for cheaper, like $80.00. It is a decent hotel, I would stay there again. Some complained about noise but I had no problems. It does not have a shuttle to the pier, but they will get you a cab. which I think we paid like $10.00 on the way back from the pier. I also stayed Pre cruise, at the Sonesta Hotel in Coconut Grove, which had the most comfortable mattress' ever (they sell them on their website). The is further from the pier, again no shuttle, and I think I paid like $125.00 on Priceline. Hope that helps.

[Noblarneyimirish]

Laurie,

Thanks so much for your suggestions. I'll be sure to check these two hotels out. Any other suggestions? Trent?

 

Have a wonderful weekend!

[Nickymjw1]

We are staying at the Wyndham Resort in Miami Beach. I booked it through hotwire for $155/night. This is for mid march, so spring break time. That is a good price for that time & hotel category.

 

I have learned that you can't compare the lower star rated hotels in Miami to other places. A lot of cheaper hotels are not well maintained and has rude staff.

 

Hopefully the extra money spend for a higher class hotel will be worth it.

[silentbob007]

If you are not too picky with what area you end up with and think that saving money is worth a bit of a gamble, you might try priceline. For a pre-cruise, I snagged the Radisson downtown for $50. Now, I arrived late and only used it for a place to sleep so it was great, but if I were using it for a "base of operations" for doing stuff that day, it might have been less than ideal because nothing seemed to be in safe walking distance besides the Burger King and Checkers across the street. A taxi to the port was $5-10.

[signman]

Stephanie, depends when you are staying. If it's off season you can find some great prices on very fine hotels. Look at http://www.biddingfortravel.com and the Miami hotels list.

[KruznKel]

Hi all!

I've never stayed in Miami and have no idea where the best place to stay is. We would prefer a clean budget hotel that is close to Bayside Marketplace. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Do any hotels offer shuttles to the pier? Approx how much for a taxi?

 

Thanks for all your help! Happy traveling!

 

Stephanie

 

We are staying at the Holiday Inn Port of Miami.. right across the street from Bayside Marketplace.. We are paying 112 per night.. There are mixed reviews on this hotel.. but the location is great.. Have been told about 10-15 dollar cab ride to the Port.. 25 flat rate from the airport..

[Noblarneyimirish]

Thanks everyone! I truely appreciate all of your suggestions and I will check into all of them. We're arriving on Oct 14th. with a group of 10 and I've been the group's "travel agent" so any words of advise are always welcome.

 

Have a great weekend!

Stephanie

[Sharon17314]

We booked at pre-cruise at Embassy Suites for a 03/04/06 cruise. We paid $137.00 including all taxes and fees on their website. This includes picking us up at the airport and taking us to the pier the next day. You also get a manager's reception which includes free drinks on the night that you stay from 5 - 7 pm and a great breakfast in the morning. All rooms are 2 room suites. I know in Minnesota, Embassy Suites are nice hotels. Can't beat that.:D :D :D

[larie]

How far is Embassy Suites from the pier? Are they reliable in getting you to the pier on time? Just curious, because I have read some other hotels further out only have 1 shuttle to the pier and you couldn't count on them. If this isn't a problem, this sounds like a great deal and I would book at well. Let me know if you know anything about the port ride as we are going in May.

[Sharon17314]

I'm not sure how far they are from the port, but the ride to the port is part of our package. We picked a sail away package that they offer on their website. I had read on another post that if you have a high enough floor you can see the bay.

[BJAMINGIRL]

Just got back from Miami and we had rooms at the Radisson. At this time I would say run don't walk away from any deal here :eek: :eek: It was awful. Also heard from others there a week later said the same thing. I loved this location when it was the Wyndham 5 years ago, but now is run down, bad service, dirty towels and no service.

 

The holiday inn is the best if you want to play at Bayside. Not a great hotel, but location :) location :rolleyes: location:D . I love Bayside. We partied there for 2 days before our cruise.

 

The problem with the Embassy Suites is that it is not near any action. But if you just want to party among your group, you can always do that at your hotel. When we are getting in late, I always stay in that area.

[larie]

Can anyone tell me about the "free" shuttle to the pier from Embassy Suites? When I called they said there was a $10 charge for my kids. Is it free for 1-2 people and then the kids are extra? Also, we don't get in until 11pm Will this be a problem to book a shuttle as the prime times will be taken?

[mrlevin]

Do any of the Miami hotels provide free parking for length of cruise? This worked great at Amerisuites in FLL as we left car there for 20 days. Just wondering if similar capaiblity in Miami.

 

thanks,

marc