The Gates Hotel South Beach — Hotel in Miami Beach

A reminiscent combination of traditional Miami Beach a.k.a. Miami Vice and some of the hip upscale European hostels of the late 90s The Gates' lobby is clean, crisp, open, and airy. Outfitted with ceiling to floor windows, sealed and polished concrete floors, and broad clear acrylic steps ascending to the second floor it seems there something to offer around every corner.

After service by the valet and Bellman, the concierge desk is located just inside. There's a bike rack full beach cruisers for guest use, a sitting/ reading area with desk top Internet access for exploring events and local fare. This area extends a few steps down to a gathering area with a fully stocked bar that looks out onto the pool deck. Just behind the understated check-in counter there was an offering of self-service ice cold fresh squeezed lemonade for any weary travelers. Beyond this area around corner is a coffee station complete with an espresso/cappuccino machine, a cooler stocked daily with fresh wraps and salads, pints of Häagen and Däz, and a selection of various drinks to go. If fast food is not what you're looking for, another 8 or 10 steps will lead you to The Continental restaurant... think 50's diner with neon lights and airstream camper exterior.

We were promptly checked in and even get a choice of an upgrade at no additional expense. Our room was clean & ready, the bed could not have been more comfortable. It was a little on the small side however I was impressed with the innovative space-saving features (sliding doors housing a full length mirror, USB and electrical outlets that popped up out of the bathroom counter top on demand and were hidden again just as quickly with a single push) and never felt like I was in a small room.

Good old-fashioned DirecTV with no hotel channel was nice. We also loved the floor to ceiling windows to let some light in and open things up or pull the room darkening curtains and sleep late. The curtains had tailor-made fixed end pieces that were held in place for the drawn curtain to be tucked behind finishing off the room darkening promise perfectly.

It seems they went to great effort to try and outfit each room with some outdoor access, most of them private, some of them spilled onto the shared pool deck. The pool deck had nice lounge chairs and my favorite were the king size cabanas with nice thick mattresses dressed in fresh clean sheets. This area is also an nicely buffered from the street noise that is only 25 feet away by some kind of moat enclosed by a stone wall, flowering trees, ground cover, and soaring palm trees. "Pool music" plays from the speakers built into the landscape, a hybrid of reggae and mariachi... it's not too loud, in fact my husband had to point it out to me.

You can come and go directly from the pool area into the street, or back into the lobby/bar area, or separately into the restaurant. The first floor rooms have access directly to the pool deck from their patio area, and the lower levels of the hotel each have an outdoor staircase and access door so there's no need to go to the main elevator, all the way to the lobby and then out to the pool deck... So there is no riding the elevator in your wet bathing suit along side guests that are just checking in or out...this is unknowingly appreciated by both parties, I'm sure.

I'd like to say it was perfect and give a five stars rating, however I cannot overlook or understand the choice chairs that furnish the private balconies. It was as if they were chosen by someone who had never use a chair and was hyper-focused on long-term durability in an all weather environment with zero consideration for comfort, yet in a location where the only people using them are doing so to relax. These chairs should be used in places where you want to discourage people to come; they would be wildly successful. We joked that they should be used prisons and considered taking one home to use as a timeout chair.

We will absolutely positively visit here again.... But perhaps this time we will bring our collapsible...

Prefacing this by saying that overall we had a great experience at The Gates, however we did have some road bumps.

I chose to book a room here for my boyfriend's Miami birthday trip based upon its close location to the beach, relatively affordable pricing compared to other hotels in the area, the complimentary beach towels and chairs that come with your stay, and the Walgreens that was right around the corner from us.

We arrived early around 2pm and our room was ready. I booked a standard King room, and our room was on the 7th floor. The layout of the room was very odd compared to all other hotels I've stayed at, such as the closet and drawers being located in the bathroom rather than the bedroom. Our window view were offices about 100 feet across the street from us, whose windows we could see right through. The thick paper shades in the room had tears in them, and one of the glass closet doors was slightly jammed and hanging out of the rolling track so it wouldn't function properly. I was disappointed, but willing to accept it, until we turned on the TV and some of the display lights in the TV had burned out so there were series of bright circular lights in the picture. The TV was the last straw so we went downstairs to request a new room.

We were provided a new room upon request, however there was a snafu with their bookings and we were given keys to another individuals room. After that, I guess because of the shock of the situation, we were upgraded to a King's Balcony room and I want to mention this 1. Because of the hotels' response to the situation, and 2. To point out that it is well worth spending the extra money to get the room with the balcony in comparison to the standard room. The layout of the room was normal, and the balcony room provided a better view that you would expect staying Miami Beach - street/pool/front of the building view. This hotel also works on a room service request system, wherein they do not visit your room every day, you must schedule to receive room service, or new towels. I actually appreciate that, because I don't need services every day and tend to find having to turn them away every day to be annoying at other hotels.

All the aforementioned amenities that led me to book at The Gates were wonderful. The location was great, walkable to the endless restaurants along Collins Avenue, and it was quiet without many late nights bars/clubs around to make noise. If you chose to go to them though, they were a short Uber ride away. And I must say, the Uber drivers that we booked rides with throughout our entire stay drove carefully and were very respectful, which was a major plus. Ubers are much more affordable compared to renting a car as the hotels typically charge a daily parking fee, which is only valet, and your only alternative is parking garages that also charge overnight fees.

TLDR; the balcony room is worth the extra money, the complimentary beach chairs and towels are private beach area are convenient, the Walgreens around the corner is great to get packs of water/drinks/snacks, the area is walkable at night, restaurants are only 8+ minutes away walking, and it's a nice, safe, quieter area. 10/10 would recommend staying and would definitely...

I stayed at The Gates Hotel Miami Beach for 3 nights during a girls trip in May 2024 while it was still branded as Hilton. While the location is definitely a strong point, within walking distance to plenty of great food spots, the overall experience left quite a bit to be desired, especially when it came to the room setup and billing process.

The lobby is aesthetically pleasing and made a great first impression. It has a very young influencer vibe with some cheap photo-spots, and nothing to complain about. The pool, though on the smaller side, was perfectly adequate and pleasant for lounging. The private beach access was a nice perk, though it’s a bit of a walk and not clearly marked, which made it somewhat confusing to find. The hot tub is tucked away in a spot that felt a bit too hidden, especially for a group of young women, it didn’t feel safe or inviting.

There was plenty to do around the hotel while it was storming. There are events going on including a seashell bracelet class, led by Wendy who was amazing. There was also a salsa dancing class and a sip and paint (however when we went there was no wine, so just a paint). The lobby also has a pool table. We did not utilize the gym.

The room was spacious but some design choices were baffling. The bathroom door doesn't fully close and leaves large gaps—if someone walks by while you're in the shower, you might as well be on display. It's an odd layout that doesn’t offer any real privacy. To add to that, the in-room fridge was located in the bathroom. There’s something deeply unsettling about storing food where you definitely do not want it. Ever enjoyed pulling leftovers out from under your bathroom sink? At some point, we realized our door was not on it's hinge correctly and fell off of it's hinge. In the room were two petite girls, which could have been a safety hazard but luckily it did not fall on us. Based on other reviews, I can imagine the hotel would have loved to charge us an incidental on this if we didn't have just enough coordination and strength to put it back on the hinges (even though we applied no extra force or tampering). Luckily, we were not harmed.

The biggest red flag, however, came at checkout. Just as several other reviewers have noted, billing errors are very common, and resolving them can be a hassle. In our case, we were overcharged, and only after reaching out post-stay did we get it corrected. The hotel doesn’t proactively inform guests of added charges, so I strongly advise anyone staying here to ask for a full printed receipt before leaving the property.

Once I followed up, my billing issue was resolved, and aside from the oddly placed bathroom fridge and the see-through bathroom door, our stay was okay. But between the strange room layout and the hassle over billing, I wouldn’t rush to stay here again. There are definitely better options in the area with more thoughtful accommodations and transparent service. They did not reflect the typical Hilton guest service I...