A Good Time at the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach
We weren’t planning on traveling anywhere. After booking our wedding venue at the end of last year, we decided to spend most of 2024 planning our wedding, saving and just staying home. But, as travel photographers and videographers, we knew the travel bug would start to grow stronger and stronger, so, eventually, we knew we’d have to answer the call. That’s when we started looking into travel destinations that were fairly close and reasonably priced. We soon discovered that Miami in June was a good option. Firstly, Miami is super warm, has salt water and lots of happy hour options (our three main requirements for a great trip). Secondly, June is considered off-season for Florida due to potential rain, so hotels tend to be cheaper. After doing a bit of research, however, it turns out that, even during the rainy season, Florida still tends to be sunny for 90% of the day; rains typically roll in around 3 or 4 o’clock and only last for like 10 minutes. So, with our travel destination settled, we booked our flights and found a hotel that looked super cool and epic. Little did we know we were about to have a very good time at the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach.
We didn’t know this at the time, but the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach is a collaboration between music icon and fashion designer Pharrell Williams and nightlife entrepreneur David Grutman. What actually drew us towards booking the hotel was its overall aesthetic. The hotel looks like something right out of a Wes Anderson movie, with pink walls, shelving and umbrellas throughout, striped details that go all the way from the hotel’s bedding to the pool’s flooring, and a pink library room that feels like it was taken directly from a movie set. Yep, the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach is an interesting place - especially if you’re a travel photographer.
So, after spending four nights there, here are some of our favourite things about the hotel, as well as some recommendations for things to do in the area:
The Hotel
As soon as you arrive at the hotel, you are greeted by a courtyard filled with lush tropical plants, giving the main entrance a greenhouse-like feel. As soon as you step into the lobby, not only does the air conditioning cool you off immediately, but the lobby’s adventurous wallpaper immediately transforms you into the Wes Anderson-like sphere, letting you know that you’re in for something epic during your stay here. After checking in, the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach offered us some welcome Prosecco, which was a nice touch (even though we arrived at 10AM)!
The rooms in the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach are a bit on the smaller side. However, they provide more than enough space for two people. Our bed was adorned with a green striped duvet, interesting images on the wall and an old-school, rotary-looking pink phone. We also had a slight view of the hotel’s pool, which I’ll discuss further below. The room was also very clean, and room service tidied it up every day for us.
We didn’t spend too much time utilizing the hotel’s interior amenities, but, as mentioned above, the hotel has a real cool library space if you’re looking to get some reading in or simply want a chill place to work while you’re on your trip. In addition, the hotel also boasts a rooftop, outdoor gym. There is also a grab-n-go cafe on the third floor if you want to pick up some coffee and a quick bite to eat before heading out for the day.
All-in-all, the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach offers a very cool place to stay while you’re in Miami Beach.
Strawberry Moon
Strawberry Moon is the hotel’s famous pool area. We didn’t know this when we booked the hotel, but Strawberry Moon actually hosts pool parties every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. As we are not really wild party people, we were a little concerned that the pool parties would be too noisy (especially at night). The pool parties only run from around lunchtime until sunset, though, so there’s no risk of being awoken in the middle of the night by a wild party at the hotel. We were at the beach during the day, so we never really experienced the pool parties. However, for the few times we were in our room during the day, the pool parties really weren’t that loud and didn’t bother us.
When approaching the pool area, you’re greeted by a large pink wall with the words “Strawberry Moon” written on it. Once in the pool area, there are two pools with striped floors for you to swim in, as well as loungers and booths throughout the spacious area for when you want to relax. A large bar is also right beside the pool if you want a pina colada to help cool you down. There are also metal statues of tropical leaves that not only add to the vibe of the pool area, but also create cool shadows and reflections throughout the day.
Location
The Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach is located two blocks north of Ocean Drive in South Beach (right between 6th and 7th Streets), so it’s an easy walk to all of the restaurants, happy hour spots and nightlife. Being close to Ocean Drive also means that the hotel is close to the beach. This made it super easy to not only enjoy the sun, sand and saltwater every day, but also super easy to get back to the hotel and cool off.
If you’ve never been to Miami, Ocean Drive is busy. And I mean really busy. That’s part of its charm. The one thing I liked about the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach was that we were able to escape from the hustle and bustle due to its location a few blocks away. If you’re looking to have a mix of that vibrant Miami lifestyle along with a more chilled trip, make sure you book a hotel that’s a bit removed from the main strip, like the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach.
Nearby Restaurants and Bars
Now, the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach does provide a cafe and restaurant, but you’re in Miami beach, so you need to get out and explore some of the local restaurants on offer. Here are a few of our favourites from our trip:
Grand Cafe Miami
The Grand Cafe Miami is literally a two minute walk from the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach. This trendy cafe not only has a green wall with a cool neon sign, but also several healthy dishes to start your day off right. We had breakfast and lunch here several times. Some of our favourite meals were the avocado toast, classic acai bowl and salmon bowl.
Pelican
The Pelican is located right on Ocean Drive at the bottom of the Pelican Hotel. It’s situated in one of South Beach’s art deco buildings, providing you with that classic Miami vibe while sipping one of their delicious drinks. We found ourselves here during most cocktail hours, as the beers and cocktails were very reasonably priced, the service was great, and the general vibe on Ocean Drive was awesome.
Osteria del Mar
We had dinner on this beautiful Italian restaurant’s patio a few times during our trip. Located right on Ocean Drive, the restaurant offers a delicious array of classic Italian meals and more great views of all the happenings on the strip. Oh, and it’s a very short walk from the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach. So, if you’re tired but looking for a great place to eat dinner, wander down to Osteria del Mar for sunset.
Conclusion
The Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach not only provides visitors (and travel photographers) with a trendy, well-designed hotel for their vacations, but also a comfortable hotel room, an epic pool area and an easy walk to some of Miami’s famed restaurants. The hotel is also located very close to the beach, making it the perfect place to base yourself if you plan on chilling near the saltwater all day. During our stay in June, we found the hotel rates fairly reasonable, and the weather ended up being perfect. Check out the Goodtime Hotel, Miami Beach when you’re planning your next trip to Miami!