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All We Want for Christmas is a Vacation at The Tides

Where: 1220 Ocean Drive [map], Miami Beach, FL, United States, 33130

The holidays are just 82 days away! So what are you going to get for that person in your life who has everything? (Or nothing, depending on how they fared during this financial crisis.)

How about a hotel-package-as-gift, available from the Tides South Beach? They've crafted three for you to choose from--"Suite Indulgence," "Rendezvous for Romance" and "Bed & Breakfast"--which all come with round-the-clock butler service and--natch--a hefty price tag. (Rates start at $1,200 and are good through 2009.)

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Tags: Hotel Pools / → All Tags

How Does Miami's Catalina Stack Up?

Where: 1732 Collins Ave [map], Miami, FL, United States, 33130

A recent visitor to the new South Beach Catalina, Mike Derham, tells Gridskipper what he thinks of Catalina. Here is part of his review:

The whole thing is done up in the generic minimalist modern that most hotels here are decorated with. The advertised "bamboo garden" is claustrophobic- it's the kind of place Chinese prisoners would get half an hour of exercise a day. The rooms have about a foot of space around the edge of the beds- what you see in the publicity shot is what you get. The beds are Tempurpedic (I can't spell space-age materials), which is very comfortable. The bathrooms are small, but the shower head is in the ceiling, which I am partial to.

The recap? Catalina is so-so, but new. In the end we still end up gravitating towards the pool scene hotels, but there is a new building opening in March that could add to the mix at Catalina..

Stay tuned.

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