Grand Beach Hotel Surfside

Eduardo is amazing! He goes beyond the call of duty!!! He will make sure you have the most pleasant stay!!! He went out out of his way for us when we wanted to change rooms for a better view and he gave us all the time and patience and some more.

Stayed for 3 nights and would have happily stayed for another 3! ++ Very comfortable, large bedrooms Super easy access to beach Good and very reasonably priced food / extras Lots of space in public areas Free yoga lessons We found all staff to be very friendly - - The swimming pools are small - but you do have the ocean on your doorstep A quieter alternative to South beach and we would definitely stay here again

A very nice property and building in front of a nice stretch of beach. Spacious rooms, very nice decor overall, nice roof-top adult only pools and bar. Service is mediocre. Maintenance of the hotel is subpar with the risk that the property will deteriorate fast. Pool area at the ground level is nicely appointed but way too crowded and not well cleaned. Water in the two pools is very murky (clearly filtration system is inadequate versus the load) and the pool had to be shut down during our stay as water was unhygienic and had to be drained. Guests are also contributing to the mess by discarding papers / cups etc on the ground and staff is not bothered much with keeping things in orders. Patio furnitures is not regularly cleaned. Restaurant is overpriced versus quality of food. Breakfast is overpriced and quality poor. Hotel should really teach its staff how to prepare a decent coffee and cappuccino (they use nespresso so it should not be that difficult- yet the coffee/cappuccino are terrible!!) Location: Surfside is a relatively quiet area so good for families but the downside is that there is not much entertainment at a walking distance. The Bal Harbour Shops (one of the most upscale mall ever where one can find all the finest brands) is two blocks away. Some good restaurants there but pricey. Overall, with a bit more of attention by the Hotel staff / manager this property could really shine. It requires better trained and more enthusiastic staff and some investments in maintenance and proper cleaning equipment.

We stayed here prior to cruise and loved it. Check in was easy and our rok. Wasn't quiet ready so Maria gave us a drink voucher and we sat at the bat and she came and found us with our key. The foyer is lovely and bright and free water is available. We found our room. With no problem and wow was huge. 2 bathrooms and lounge large bedroom and large balcony with view of the ocean and the children's pool. The only snag balcony not private but that didn't worry us. We went to have a look at the pool on the roof. This was lovely large beds and canopies. 2 spa pools and veiws over the city and ocean. We did use this the next day. The service was good and we has light lunch which was excellent fruit and cottage cheese is my new favourite!!!. Drink service very good. You can rent a large cabana for 20 dollars a day but the sun beds are good. No children allowed up here so it's quiet. The back of the hotel leads to the beach and wow the beach is clean and quiet romantic especially as the sun is going down. We had room service which wasn't food other wise it would have been a 5 star. The food was cold on arrival but this was sorted. We had bed and breakfast and ate in the restaurant. Billy Ho is a staff and very warm and welcoming. He is very attentive as are all the staff. The food choice is good and the omelette station is excellent and the gentleman making then was very helpful on the area bit to mention the best omelette ever. The fruit and pastries fresh and I has poached eggs which were perfect. Check out was easy and the bell man got us a taxi to the port. Def stay again we have stayed in some great iconic hotels around the world and this is up there. The linens are excellent and bed so comfy and pillow were very good quality. Bathroom toiletries very good standard. And shower very good. Was nice to have 2 tv one in the bedroom and one in the lounge area

This is a lovely hotel, very modern and very smart. The amenities (pool, bar, restaurant etc) are good and nicely appointed. The position (on the beach) is very good. So, why the title to this review? Well, anyone (like us) who has stayed at real 5-star hotels - especially in Asia, NYC/Chicago and Western Europe - will be aware of the level of service and comfort that marks a real 5-star hotel, and this hotel does not reach this. Notwithstanding this, and given that the hotel is some miles of South Beach, Miami, the prices are outrageous. As examples - the buffet breakfast works out at £70 a couple (for a very ordinary display of food); valet parking around £45 a night (including taxes). Room costs vary, of course, but they are at South Beach prices. And, one point about service: we stayed three nights. Our room was properly serviced on our first and third nights - but the second night it was serviced late and appallingly. We had to call house-keeping and get the room re-done. Also, there is no evening turndown service, with fresh towels. So, without going into more examples and detail, it's a good 4-star hotel but a very long way from 5, so representing poor value for money.