HGVC South Beach

[JamminJoe]

Will be checking in (1-bedroom) on 10/18/08, any preference in terms of building/room location that I may make a request for? Anyone know if the renovations have been completed? Thanks!

 

[PigsDad]

We were there in March, and the renovations had not started yet. As for a room preference, we had one of the rooms at the back of the McAlpin building. The one advantage of that is the bedroom is in the corner of the building, so you get windows on two walls instead of one -- makes for a brighter room. And given the small size of the bedrooms, it made it feel more open. Also, you are farther away from the street noise, although I was pleasantly surprised that it was not as busy / loud as I thought it would be.

Even though the units were small, we loved our vacation there -- so much to do and see! And you have to go to Joe's Stone Crabs. Yumm!

Kurt

 

[JamminJoe]

Will do Kurt, thanks for the info.

 

[arnolds8903]

I will be there in Feb., I'll definitely try the Stone Crabs. Any other inside info you can give me? I've been told a car really isn't necessary. Going with another couple, want to do some stuff and don't want to be cheap, but don't exactly have a large budget either.

 

[PigsDad]

We didn't have a car when we went. I think the parking cost was something like $20/day (on top of your rental cost), and we found that it was not necessary since we didn't plan on exploring outside of SoBe. They have a bus route that is geared for the tourists that loops around the peninsula. We used that exclusively, and only used cabs for transportation to/from the airport.

We spend most of our days at the beach (we had our 7 yo with us), sampled lots of great eating establishments, and did some shopping and other activities in the shopping district which was an easy walk from HGVC.

Kurt

 

[tk1780]

Joe

When you get back, could you tell us what you thought of the place and if it was renovated?

Thanks

 

[jimtedjeske]

HGVC SoBe

I just got back at the end of September and the renovations are complete! I think we were the first or second to occupy the renovated units, one BR in McAlpirn. The patio on top of McAlpirn is less crowded since the other building has the fitness center on the top floor. Very few people on the patio in the day or at night.

I think the place looks great, flat screen TV's with DVD players in two rooms, new applicances, new counters, furniture, carpets and paint. You don't need a car, but I got lower airfare to Ft Lauderdale so I rented one at the airport and drove to the hotel then dropped it on Collins Ave at an Avis and walked back to the hotel in about 15 minutes. That cost about $40.00 and I had a Cadillac. We had two units for two couples and had a fabulous time.

 

[arnolds8903]

are all units renovated or just a select few?

 

[JamminJoe]

Hi, I was impressed mostly with the staff and location. The rooms are ok but was not there much so it really didn't matter. I guess my expectations for Hilton were higher, I have only stayed at Vacation Village Resorts and Wyndham so this was my first experience with Hilton. I left with nothing to complain about. The rental car is not necessary at all, I rented for 2-days due to a friend getting married in Miami but it is not needed at all. I will be back there, hopefully soon.
Valet at the resort is $27.00/day. Taxi from Miami Internation is a flat rate of $33.00.

 

[PigsDad]

Hi, I was impressed mostly with the staff and location. The rooms are ok but was not there much so it really didn't matter. I guess my expectations for Hilton were higher

I think you will find that the South Beach location is not typical of HGVC properties. This was an older property that Hilton purchased, so it is definitely not near as nice as the Hilton-built properties. But the location can't be beat!

Kurt

 

[jehb2]

We stayed at HGVC South Beach a couple of years back. The 1-bdrm was actually smaller than some studios we stayed at. But it had a hip feel and you just couldn't beat the location. This was before the kids so we had a blast dancing at the clubs and being able to walk back to the timeshare.

It was a great stay.

 

[Bxian]

We just got back from 4 nights in a 2 B/R-The unit was remodeled and very nice. We were in an ocean front unit (it is my understanding that there are only 4 of those) on the 3rd floor. You could not really see the ocean due to palm trees and berm in front of the beach-but it was nice to have such a quick walk to the beach!

We walked up and down Ocean Drive, beached it, took the Art Deco tour and walked to Lincoln road (shopping and outdoor dining) multiple times. There is a pizza restaurant (Spris) on Lincoln that has great pizzza and salads. We also ate at GrillFish (around the corner drom HGVC) and Tapas Y Tintos (within walking distance-nice tapas, service so-so). There is a restaurant called the Front Porch that is a few steps from HGVC-it has great breakfasts and it is fun to dine outside.

They are redoing the Betsy Ross Hotel next door, and it appears they will have a couple of restaurants. Table 8 (has gotten good reviews) is about a block away.

We really enjoyed our stay! We took the "Go-shuttle" from the Fort Lauderdale airport and piad $21 pp one way. We did not rent a car while in South Beach-there are lots of places to walk to.

 

[arnolds8903]

Just got back from South Beach. Everything I learned from TUG was an advantage. We were with another couple. Had a two BR and asked them to hook me up for my 40th B-day. We had 2300 McAlpin (3rd floor 2nd Bldng). It was Ocean view and I thought fabulous. It is what everyone has said it is. South Beach is an adult playground. People are nice but they pretty much keep to themselves. A lot of international people. I got the feel that the economy was suffering there. Asked a few people and they said it would normally be more crowded. We went to dinner on a Fri. night and walked about 4 blocks on Ocean Blvd. We were a bit early for dinner and each place we came to offered us some sort of deal for our meal. We finally settled on a very nice place that offered us 50% off of our bill. The food was fantastic. We found a place called the Pizza Pub and had a large pizza and a few pitchers of beer for under $50. I guess I was thinking I was going to pay New York prices for everything and was pleasantly surprised. I went primarily for the purpose of going to the beach and was not disappointed. Weather was gorgeous and it was everything I hoped for. However, I definitely would not take my kids there. Folks have said the that the resort wasn't up to other Hilton's they have stayed at. It isn't if you're used to I-Drive. But the area isn't conducive to I-Drive. It is art deco and the resort is top shelf for the area. The rooms would be similar to the Flamingo. I did not get a car and was glad I didn't. Didn't need one for what we did. Cabs and local bus system was sufficient. If you're ever down there for the boat show, do check it out. It is the second largest boat show in the world. Something you should see. I would definitely go back based on what my agenda is.

 

[tk1780]

HGVC South Beach thoughts

Was at South Beach this past week and stayed in a 1-bdrm on the first floor that faced the other HGVC bldg. I got in at 12:30am for 2 nights.

The room was redone quite nicely. Stainless steel appliances, granite countertops nice carpets. Much nicer than last year before the renovation.

Location can't be beat.

Only piece of advice. There are a couple of couches and chairs in between the two buildings and it can get loud if you go to bed early. So the first floor is bad for that because they are right outside your window.

 

[JonathanIT]

I've stayed at this property several times in the last couple years. It is one of my favorite HGVC properties; I love the fact that it is a renovated historic bldg. I haven't been there since the recent make overs inside the units, so I can't wait to go back.

A note about parking: several people have mentioned that they don't like to have cars here. It is true that there is plenty to do in the immediate vicinity of South Beach; there is hardly a more vibrant place within walking distance of any HGVC except maybe HHV in Waikiki or the new West 57th in NYC (when it opens).

However, I always prefer to have a car (that's just me I like to drive, especially convertibles in FL). Contrary to what it may seem, it is very easy to get street parking in front of this hotel. Street parking in SoBe is metered, via centrally located vending machines that print vouchers to be placed in the windows. They can be printed for 2 hours at a time, and they only go until 9 pm... after that parking is legal and free until 9am the next morning. For instance if you purchase two hours of parking at 7:02pm, your ticket will actually say valid until 9:02am the next morning. True, you have to move the car or buy another ticket by 9am, but then I didn't find this a problem. Parking later at night can be found directly in front of the hotel, I never parked farther than in front of the next building. Also, I always felt it was safe in this area with the well lit lobbies and 24 hour staff present of all the hotels nearby. I find I spend less than $10/day on parking on average.

There are numerous reasons to have a car. I like to drive in Miami, it really is a gorgeous city with all the water surrounding it. I spend a lot of time in Fort Lauderdale (about 20-30 mins) sometimes when I stay in Miami. I frequently drive here from Orlando (about 3 hours) for a few days on longer stays there. The drive out to Key West (a full day) is also spectacular.

Just MHO over course, YMMV. That's just me, I like to have a car! Just don't let all the talk that you shouldn't have or don't need a car here scare you away from bringing one if you want it.