by When the Four Seasons Hotel Miami opened 21 years ago, it was one of the first five-star hotels in Brickell, the financial center of downtown Miami. Today, Brickell is a mini-Manhattan, filled with modern glass high-rise towers and deserving of its reputation as the youngest and most dynamic neighborhood in Miami.
Brickell is by the ocean but not on the beach, but what it lacks in the sandy footprint of its sister hotel Four Seasons at the Surf Club, about 30 minutes away on Miami Beach, it makes up for in its view of Miami work. . -live-play lifestyle.
Where?
Brickell Avenue is the heart of Brickell, a wide north-south high-rise avenue that mixes banks, financial firms, hotels, branded residences and apartments. Step outside the Four Seasons and you immediately feel the pulse of the city. Brickell, 20 minutes from Miami airport, is lively, both business and pleasure-oriented, with excellent restaurants, (Delilah, Sexy Fish, Cipriani, Komodo) and cool cafes. Brickell City Centre, a smart air-conditioned shopping center currently undergoing expansion, houses a range of international branded stores.
Style
Modern Miami with a Tara Bernerd twist. The London-based designer has updated rooms and suites with his version of “mid-century glamour”, keeping the interior light, bright and welcoming. Swirling patterns, color-blocked furnishings and vivid photographs and prints are playful and elegant, while cushions on the window seats invite you to sit and gaze out at the blue water of the Bay of Biscayne.
The reception and main hotel area is on the 7th floor with hotel accommodation from the 8th to the 29th floor. The rooms are well designed, all with Bang & Olufsen Beolit Bluetooth speakers and a wireless iPhone charger and tea and coffee making facilities. A very special shout out to the super-scented super-sized bottles of Diptyque toiletries that made me want to come straight home and order some of my own.
Facilities
If you need confirmation that Miami is the world’s most overworked city, head to the Equinox gym on the 4th floor early in the morning to see the beautiful people working out en masse. Guests at the Four Seasons enjoy free use of the gym and spa as well as extensive fitness classes that range from hard intervals to relaxing yoga – albeit with advance reservations.
On the 7th floor, leading off the main reception area and lined with towering palm trees, is a handsome swimming pool and adjacent Children’s Pool with overwater hammocks, leafy private cabanas and sunrooms. Guests who want to live more of the Miami dream can rent an electric Moke to zip around the area.
extra curricular
Miami was once a one-trick town – an edgy, hedonistic mix of beach and parties – and while many still come for that, there’s also a lot more to Miami now. Head to Wynwood Walls, an internationally recognized outdoor street art district or to the shops and crafts of the Miami Design District, both within 15 minutes by car.
Brave the traffic over to Miami Beach for a walking tour of the beautiful Art Deco South Beach. Take in a Mojito cocktail in Little Havana or zoom in on modern art in the Perez Modern Art Museum (PAMM), a building designed by Herzog & de Meuron.
For a day trip, there are the Florida Keys, boating in Fort Lauderdale or how about touring the Everglades on an airboat, seeing alligators, turtles and birds as you go. The concierge staff, as you would expect at any Four Seasons, have an encyclopedic knowledge of the city.
Food & Drink
Both restaurants have extensive menus and traditional Four Seasons A-grade service. The EDGE Brasserie has indoor and outdoor tables and a cocktail bar and serves a seasonal menu that can include oysters, Wagyu steak, branzino (sea bass). This Sunday brunch is a Miami favorite. Next to the pool but set back from any splash and well sheltered by greenery and large parasol umbrellas, the second restaurant, Bahía, has Mediterranean options and at weekends, with open fire cooking and live DJ sets.
Which room?
Among the 231 rooms and suites overlooking the Bay (the best choice) or the tall glass towers of the city. All room sizes are generous, certainly by UK city standards, and a further four newly refurbished rooms will be completed by September 2024.
Best for…
Brickell’s urban, business-oriented location means there are plenty of guests for work, but it didn’t feel corporate and there’s plenty for vacationers and families too. Miami’s culture, shopping, design and art are all close by and the large grounds and large pool with its Royal Palm trees and shaded cabanas bring the essence of vacation.
Details
Rooms start at $535 per night. Breakfast is not included. fourseasons.com/miami
