PRICE:
Frommer's Highly Recommended

Located off the beaten path, the Indian Creek Hotel is a meticulously restored 1936 building featuring one of the beach's first operating elevators. It's also the most charming hotel in the area. Besides that, the service is impeccable. Because of its location facing the Indian Creek waterway and its lush landscaping, this place feels more like an old-fashioned Key West bed-and-breakfast than your typical Miami Beach Art Deco hotel. The recently revamped rooms are outfitted in Art Deco furnishings, such as an antique writing desk, pretty tropical prints, and small but spotless bathrooms. All the rooms have been completely renovated. Just 1 short block from a good stretch of sand, the hotel is also within walking distance of shops and restaurants and has a landscaped pool area that is a great place to lounge in the sun. If you're looking for charm, friendly service, and peace and quiet, stay away from the South Beach hype and come here instead. A note of caution: one reader who stayed there complained that the staff was surly, the room was dirty, and the lush courtyard was overgrown. To each his own, but that doesn't excuse the fact that they had to get up at 7am to move their car from the street because the desk clerk didn't tell them about a parking permit -- obtainable at the hotel, no less -- would exempt them from having to fill the meters. The good news is that there is new ownership and things seem to be running more smoothly. There's also a restaurant, finally, Creek 28, so you don't have to always run out for sustenance.

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's South Florida including Miami and Keys, 5th Edition, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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