My husband booked the hotel for one night before our cruise departure, which happened to be my birthday. We were looking for affordable to splurge in other areas of the trip so I braced myself for the 2.5 star rating. We're not brats; we try to find good deals on Priceline, but found none for South Beach. It would not have been too bad an experience except when we arrived what looked like a loiterer was hanging out on the front porch, and another was lingering on the stairway in the long, dank hall. I was feeling pretty scared at that point, but we summoned up the courage to give it a try and call it an experience. On final assessment, the rooms are clean, but sparse. The blinds did not open, but there was nothing to see anyway. The place is old, and you could not help but envision all the seedy deeds that take place in a hostel such as this. We put our friendly face on for the staff and they were friendly in return. We pushed the sofa in front of our door for the night and anticipated revelry, but it was actually very quiet and peaceful all night, though one drunken, long-haired partier did trip in the door around 10. If you'd like to test your nerves of steel, and are sheltered by nice Holiday Inns and a few Hiltons, this will be an experience for you.
