Sofitel Miami- a very good find!
Written: Jun 02 '08
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Clean, friendly staff, good service, very nice amenities, nice room, close to airport, good price
Cons: incident with shuttle, but became a non-issue
The Bottom Line: Worth trying, never been to one before, but my wife and I will be looking for other ones in the future!
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| cliffhokie's Full Review: Sofitel Miami |
First, I want to say that this was my first experience with the Sofitel franchise, so my review is strictly based on my experience at the location in Miami (located near the airport).
I stayed in the Sofitel hotel in Miami with my wife earlier this year. Reasons for choosing this hotel was because we had found it recommended online, it was very close to the hotel, and the rates seemed excellent in comparison to others in the area. I want to say that both my wife and myself do a decent amount of traveling on a regular basis, both for pleasure, and for work. Despite this, neither one of us had ever heard of Sofitel and were somewhat skeptical about staying there. We were reassured by reviews and pictures online and decided to give it a chance since we were only staying one night.
The first experience with the hotel in person was actually not that great. They offer a free shuttle from the airport to the hotel, however, I guess the driver had missed us on his rounds and we actually had to wait another half an hour till he came back on his next round. We thought this was going to be a bad sign. However, the hotel was very polite on the phone when we explained our situation, apologized, and attempted to get the driver back out as soon as possible. We will chalk this up to a mistake as the airport is large and there is a lot of room for confusion in the shuttle loading area at the Miami airport.
Once we got the shuttle, the driver was very helpful with everyone, not just us, in getting us on board and taking our luggage for us. He also offered all individuals on board bottled water. Mind you, this is a short trip as the hotel is VERY close to the airport, maybe a five minute drive if that.
The hotel is very nice and the people there were very polite and helpful. They noticed that we were ending our honeymoon and gave a complimentary suite upgrade. The hotel must have been revamped since one of the other reviews on here, because the room we were in and the lobby were all clean and very modern. The lobby is very impressive, and offers a very nice computer lounge with several computers. The connection was a little slow, but otherwise, useful and easy to use and free of charge.
The concierge was very helpful with dinner recommendations and was very knowledgeable about the area.
The room was amazing! However, so as not to seem bias, this was an upgrade to a full suite with separate bedroom, so I can’t comment on the regular king size room we were supposed to get. View is very nice as the hotel is surrounding a manmade lake/waterfront and what appears to be a very nice little ritzy area they are building up.
The bed, pillows, and comforter was very comfortable with down pillows and comforter.
Finally, that night, we ordered room service. That was probably the best surprise of all. The food there wasn’t just okay, it was amazing! I’m assuming it was cooked up by the restaurant they had in the lobby.
Overall, the expectations of this hotel were set low at first, but came out high. This is a hotel not for someone necessarily visiting Southbeach (about twenty minute taxi drive)or the sites, but more so for someone that needs a reasonably priced place to spend the night in that area, and very close to the hotel. It is clean and the staff was friendly, and is a standout hotel in comparison to the many I've stayed in across the whole coutnry. Miami in general is an expensive place, so this was a very good find.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
cliffhokie
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Location: Northern Virginia
Reviews written: 6
Trusted by: 0 members
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