HotelChatter

Hip South Beach on a Budget
I stayed here a month ago and had a great time. It wasn't perfect--service is weak--but I had one of the best rooms in all of Miami here. More on Room 400 soon.

Without paying a lot, you could stay here and experience a microcosm of the hipper South Beach hotel scene: the lobbies are striking and brash, designed with grand lingering in mind. Rooms are also gestures - broad white brushstrokes that lay out a lot of light if not room for your laundry.

And without paying much, a stay here would let you tour the art deco district on a bike, use the beach chairs and towels for sunning, use the pool, play pool, start your night with free cocktails, and have fun and hang out with this loud, young, anything-goes pure Miami 2007 hotel.

The Hotel Layout
The Catalina is actually two adjoining hotels combined. The reception building has the Catalina neon out front, and has the two-story floor-to-ceiling windows with a second floor lounge area. Next door is another deco hotel that says MAXINE in beautiful neon script on its rooftop. A restaurant in front of this wing is a solid informal restaurant that allows you to lounge and people-watch along Collins.

Recreation
The Catalina, then, is quite a lot. There's a bar in each of the lobbies, along with games, a pool table, and at the "Maxine," a great pool. So if you're spending three nights here, you have different areas to lounge in. At one of these bars, I spoke to a couple girls who had booked online. They didn't seem to know much about some of the swankier and pricier hotels across the street, but were having a great time using the bikes (the only free bike rental I know of besides the Standard), and walking down Lincoln Road, which begins around the corner. The hour of free drinks seemed to work as a social setting, and the drinks were good, and, truly, free.

Inside Room 400
I stayed in Room 400, which is the only rooftop room in the "Maxine" building. With a corner, nearly all-window glass perch over Collins Avenue, the daytime light was overwhelming. It has a private outdoor deck - one of the best views you can have of Collins Ave and the coolest five-block stretch of  hotels in the world. The night I stayed here the room was an astoundingly cheap $200. A private penthouse in the middle of it all? Consider it booked for my next trip.

Minor Issues
The stay wasn't flawless, though: When I first walked into the lobby with my bags I think the girl at reception literally hid behind the computer screen when she saw me coming - so much for a welcome.

The staff is very young and good looking - and they act like it. I had the feeling that the Catalina was run by its bartenders. Which sends a quick signal to the guest: we're partying here, so should you. At that point, open-minded to an experience unlike my one at the Ritz-Carlton or the National across the street, I drew an amenable lesson from the fact that the red shag carpet that's everywhere - and contributes a lot to the atmosphere -- was frequently stained with black smudges--tar, apparently. What I got was: We don't need to be perfect. It's okay to relax and let loose.

Room Dirt
And so to the rooms. Not practical, maybe, but simple, comfortable--and certainly bleached in all white, typical of South Beach contemporary monochrome sleekness. Taschen art books replace art on the walls. Linens are high thread count; mattresses are Swedish Postur-pedic. I had a fine night's rest, though I tried to sleep outdoors on the rooftop deck beneath the MAXINE sign. Wouldn't you know: too humid in January. I couldn't sleep so I went inside and turned on the AC, feeling like I was floating a bit over Collins Avenue, my dreams arranging and re-categorizing these hotels . . . and adding Catalina's name to pirouetting lists of my favorite hotels.

Related Stories:
· Catalina video [YouTube]
· Miami Beach Hotel Reviews [HotelChatter]