"Let's face it, unless you are staying at the Lowes or The Ritz Carlton, most S. beach hotels are self served. Staff was very unattentive.. Besides the hookers arguing in the alleyway at 4:00am and the garbage truck slamming the bins at 5:00am, the bed was actually comfortable, maybe I was just whooped. The rm was spacious for one. TV was analog quality at best with a handful of channels. But the tree soap I liked? Yes I did receive my two free welcome drinks. The bartenders were attentive like most should be, and friendly. Maybe the booze kicking in. I also did have breakfast which I thought was a lil above avg compared with the usually rice Krispies, slim bagels, and concentrated OJ. Overall, I think if they steam clean the carpets, get some motivated staff, the property has potential. Again, it's S. Beach, who do you think you are!!! 2.5 out of 5"

"Great location, but disappointed. We wanted to self park, but their parking deck was filled, even for valet. I had to park in a city parking deck about two blocks away which the front desk told me about. The room was very small (we had 3 people). Beds were very hard, and only had a mattress on top of a wooden frame (trendy style low to the ground box frame), without a box spring. Not good if you have back problems. The blankets had holes in them and were dirty. One of the three towels had dirt on them. Windows in hotel looked original, and the bathroom window did not have a curtain, and faced the other building (where there were obvious residents because their lights were on at night). We asked the desk if they had anything we could put in the window, like a piece of cardboard or something, and we never heard back from them. The swimming pool is listed as olympic sized, but it is not. It's large but not by far an olympic sized pool. We wanted to use beach chairs (which it says they offer as daily rental) and the front desk said they do not give them out anymore because people do not bring them back. They need to change this in their information packet. Our room faced the alley in the back and garbage pick up sounded what seemed to be every 10 minutes. I would not stay here again. I would rather stay a little further away from the action and have a better hotel, or at least get the amenities they promise."

"the services was excellent and efficient. even towards the end of our trip , they printed our boarding passes and securely held our luggage until shuttle arrived."

"Just checked out of this hotel. Booked it on Bookit.com and was told We would receive two free drinks, two free breakfasts, VIP Passes and late checkout. I don't know if it was book-its fault or the hotels but we were denied all of the perks. We booked the room on the road and did not have a way to print the 'extras' we were promised but we did write down the Confirmation number but that was not enough. The hotel demanded a printout with all the extras listed. Results=no extras. Rooms were actually pretty clean but that is all I can say about the place. Excellent location but needs a rehab. Air conditioner did not work but the girl at the desk did give me an 'I'm sorry about that' when we checked out. Think twice about booking. If you get promised perks, be sure you have it in writing. Also, 'resort fee' added after the booking stated 'Paid in full' Not my idea of a resort. . Would like a reply from the site"

"I frequent Miami quite a bit, last minute trip ended booking a room through bookit to stay @ the this hotel. When my friend who lives in Miami heard thats where we were staying he told me to change the reservation asap... I tried but was unable because i had booked not directly through them and bookit was unable to change. Nevertheless i thought it cant be that bad plus my girl and i will hardly be in the room anyway. The lobby is cute its ok upon reaching to our room the rugs were dirty like huge stained dirty so was the yellow brownish white sheets on the beds. The customer service guy allowed us to check several other rooms 3 more to be exact all same nasty, stinky, dirty bathrooms and so were the hallways... Find another place clearly the photos and the renevations they claimed they did were just a poor paint job trust me. All i wanted was a clean place to get a 2hour sleep shower and hit the roads. This place was a disgrace the guys at the front desk were really helpful and great other than that i would rather pay extra and stay elsewhere oh and there were bugs flying around in the rooms.... I give it a -1 out of 5...."

"The hotel was old...but smelled good. The front desk staff was not friendly at all. The young guy at the bar was hard of hearing, everything had to repeated at three times. The food at the hotel was awful and over priced. Wont stay there again."

"I didn't like to stay at this Hotel. On the website it seems to see beautiful and new but it is old and the bathroom it is very bad."

"There were a lot of bad reviews about this hotel, but I booked it anyways.
The price was ok compared to some of the others.
It was really well located in Southbeach if your into all the night clubs and shopping.
Our room was clean, nice view of the street, bathroom was clean also.
The staff was what let it down for me, there was only the one guy that helped with some printing and directions, other than that, not very good.
Apart from that, I would recommend the hotel for price and location.
"

"Just checked out yesterday!!

I booked my room @ the Carlton prior to reading any reviews on the hotel. I've visited Miami several times in the past, but have never stayed on South Beach due to the expensive room rates. However, the Carlton was very reasonably priced so I didn't even think twice. I must admit that the reviews I read after paying for the room did scare me a bit. But here is the most accurate review you'll read about this hotel:

1. The room I stayed in was clean. Including the beds, the bathroom, the walls, the floors, the tub and sink! I'm a VERY picky and some might even say high maintenance person, but I was satisfied with the cleanliness of the room.

2. The staff was exceptionally nice! From the moment we walked into the hotel we were greeted by the hotel staff with smiles. They gave us insight on what to do/where to go for the nightlife. Helped us with each and every question we asked, and never gave us anything less than great customer service.

3. Now the hotel says that they were newly renovated, which could very well be true, because I have no idea what it looked like before. It definitely didn't give me the modern feel that I'm used to from other Hotels that I've stayed in. The room itself was ok. But the closet clearly got skipped during the renovations. For me that wasn't a big deal, but for others it might be a deal breaker. A lot of reviews I read stated that this hotel didn't have A/C. Well the unit in room 222 not only works, but cools the room off VERY quickly! The lobby of the hotel was nice also. I wasn't overwhelmed by it, but it was clean and definitely makes you feel like you're on South Beach!

4. The pool is not an olympic sized pool, but it is definitely not a kiddie pool. As a matter of fact its better than a lot of the pools that I have swam in while staying in Marriott or Hilton properties so definitely no complaints there.

Overall I would give this hotel a 3 out of 5. I think it was average. Nothing amazing, but definitely not the dump that a lot of people are portraying it to be. When you consider the cost and the location, it is definitely worth it. If you're planning on going to Miami just to sit in your room then this may not be the place for you. But if you just need a CLEAN place to sleep, bathe, and change clothes then I say go for it! I think a lot of these people giving bad reviews went to the Carlton expecting to get the Ritz Carlton!!! Big difference! "

"It is a very simple hotel,

I liked the hotel

staf is nice,

nightclub package they offer is worth (inspite of you just can drink a few drinks in the hotel bar, for most of the drinks you have to pay ),

pool is nice,

internet wiereless is free and good,

they charge a $13 for a resort fee what I think is unfair once that is a very simple hotel and not a resort

you can pay $25 for parking in the hotel parking
OR
you will have to pay $12 each 8 hours for parkin on the streets. You have to change your 'parking ticket' every 8 hours.

there is a good locker

the TV has very few options

the sunlight wich comes from the window disturbed me in the morning, there is no 'blackout curtain'

you can get free towels to go to the beach,

you get 2 bottles of water per day, for free,

i stayed in a king size bed, very confortable,

there is a smal fridge, but it is quite dirty and it hasnt been cleaned when I statyed there,

best thing: HOTEL LOCATION

worst thing: carpet is dirty and disgusting and maybe, this would me make look for another hotel in the same area.

"

"Having never been to Miami we didn't know what to expect, but great staff and lobby bartender made uncertainty turn to fun. The price was terrific since having difficulty walking and don't often have ability to afford accomodations so close to beach. "

"Don't try to go to sleep before midnight as the lobby music will be too loud to do so.
Our closet also had a leak while rainfall so our clothes had to be removed as well.
The bathroom was pretty clean in general but every second towel had black spots and looked just dirty.
For a hotel which claims to be 'newly renovated' I was really unsatisfied and will definitely not return."

"This hotel is very clean and had all facilities such as tea and coffee. A bit noisy by the pool where others had their own music and the service at the bar was slow."

"Great Location!!! Withing walking distance of shopping, restaurants, and the beach.

The hotel is a lounge at night, but the music is not extremely loud and never bothered us while we slept. Valet parking was very nice, we never had to use our car until we checked-out.

Negatives, our closet had a leak and smelled of mildew. My friend and I could not hang our clothes in the closet so we had to hang them on the bathroom door. The TV had a horrible picture.
"

"This Hotel had very bad reveiws. Do not believe them . Started checking in with very pleasant staff. Holding our suitscases until our room was ready. Our room was a corner room very large over looking the pool. Very clean !!! The maid service was also very good . Close to everything. The beach is one front street away. The pool was cleaned very morning . Good value for the dollar. "

"Let just start off my saying please DO NOT listen to any of the negative reviews trust me!! I am a very picky person who has traveled to many places & this place was just GREAT! We arrived on 8/4 at 9am & they let us check in early because our room was already waiting for us, which was a plus. The room was nice and comfortable. It was clean and we never had any issues with the AC, room getting cleaned, etc. The pool was great, I saw someone cleaning it during our 5 day stay and it was clean. One of the great things about this hotel is the location, near the beach, clubs & restaurants (hint eat breakfast, really good breakfast at the Caliver for only $5 :) Take care and come to the CARLTON. You won`t be upset, it was great for 2 picky travelers from NYC! ENJOY!"

"Let just start off my saying please DO NOT listen to any of the negative reviews trust me!! I am a very picky person who has traveled to many places & this place was just GREAT! We arrives on 8/4 at 9am & they let us check in early bc our rm was already waiting for us which was a plus. The rm was nice & comfortable. It was clean & we never had any issues w/ the AC, rm getting cleaned & etc. The pool was great, I saw someone cleaning it during our 5 day stay & it was clean. one of the great things about this hotel its the location, near the beach, clubs & restuarnts (hint eat breakfest really good breakfest at the Caliver for only $5 :) Take-care & come to the CARLTON you wont be upset it was great for 2 picky travelers from NYC!!! ENJOY!!"

"Our day 5 trip from Aug 4-8 at the Carlton was freaking great! I am a very picky person & I have travled to many places around the world. After reading so many negative reviews about the Carlton I am not going to lie, I was afraid to even stay here. However, we arrived at the hotel at 10am & our room was ready & they let us check in early:) which was a plus bc we were both tired from our early flights. Entering the room I was just soooo happy to see that it was clean! I checked the sheets, bathroom & I had no types of complaints. We had no issues during our stay!!! The pool was very nice & CLEAN!!! the AC worked GREAT during our stay & it general we had a great time.....it was a plus to get the beach towels the hotel had bc we didnt have to use our own. So please dont be afraid to stay here!! Its also a plus that its located on 14th & Collins bc u are able to walk everywhere!! If you want to get great priced food go to the Cavlier they have great deals & for a store go to 14th & Washington Ave they sell everything wayyyyy cheaper there!! So enjoy ur stay at the Carlton like we both did!! WE LOVE YOU MIAMI :) "