Miami Beach is often defined by energy, spectacle, and sun-drenched glamour. Yet beyond the headline-making nightlife and sprawling resorts lies a quieter, more considered side to the city, one where history and design, wellness and intimacy, converge. From the enduring elegance of The Palms Hotel & Spa to the contemporary, design-led charm of Maison Felix, these coastal retreats reveal two distinct, complementary faces of Miami: one storied, the other freshly imagined.
The Palms Hotel & Spa: A Sanctuary From The Strip ( or ..A Miami Original )
Something is reassuring about arriving in a place that offers provenance and pedigree and knows exactly what it is. This hotel has long been part of Miami Beach’s quieter, more elegant rhythm. This oceanfront retreat feels deliberately different, quieter, softer, and deeply grounded in a sense of place. Set on one of the widest stretches of white sand in Miami Beach, The Palms offers not just a place to stay, but a sanctuary shaped by history, family interest, and a thoughtful commitment to wellbeing and sustainability.
The story of The Palms begins in 1941, when it opened as the Sea Isle Hotel. Designed by Roy F. France, one of the architects instrumental in shaping Miami Beach’s Art Deco identity, the building remains a rare example of early oceanfront architecture preserved with care.
The symmetrical massing and clean horizontal lines characteristic of early Miami Beach modernism remain intact. While many of its neighbouring properties have been replaced by glass towers, The Palms retains its low-rise silhouette, reinforcing its historic scale against the Atlantic.
Since 1989, the hotel has been owned and operated by the same family, whose long-term stewardship underpins its charm. The gardens alone are a masterpiece of creation, having been lovingly designed and developed by the owners to create an oasis of calm and a welcome boundary to the hectic pace of Miami Beach.
The hotel’s structural bones, footprint, and orientation remain largely unchanged, even as interiors have evolved. This preservation approach ensures authenticity rather than imitation, a continuity of place rather than a nostalgic reconstruction.
My stay began in a Superior Oceanfront King room, where floor-to-ceiling glass draws the outside in. From your bed, the ocean stretches endlessly, its mood shifting with the light. At sunrise, I watched the beach slowly come to life; early runners tracing the shoreline, palms stirring gently, the sea catching flecks of gold. It is the kind of view that recalibrates you before the day has even begun.
Wellness at The Palms is embedded in the rhythm of the place. So what better way to detox from a long transatlantic flight than to surrender to the delights of a Zen Ayurvedic Massage at the AVEDA Spa, a brand that perfectly aligns with the entire Palms philosophy. The combination of Ayurvedic rituals, warm oils of rice, soy, sesame, intuitive touch, sheets that felt like the purest bamboo and a sense of unhurried presence combined to release the aches and drain of travel fatigue.
Each morning, that philosophy unfolds most memorably on the beach. Morning yoga on the white sand, led by Pascal, a knowledgeable and highly skilled teacher, is gentle yet purposeful. Her calm presence encourages awareness over ambition, making the session accessible to all. As waves provide a natural cadence and the day gradually awakens, the practice feels less like exercise and more like communion with place, an uplifting, quietly transformative way to begin the morning.
Sustainability is central to the experience. The Palms’ “Inspired by Nature” programme informs operations, guest engagement, and community initiatives. Through the sweetly named “Bucket List”, children are encouraged to participate in beach clean-ups, collecting discarded debris and rubbish, earning a small reward for their efforts in the form of a much cherished ice cream. It is a simple yet effective lesson in environmental care, perfectly in tune with the hotel’s ethos: wellness extends to the planet as well as the individual.
Maison Felix: A New Voice in North Beach
While The Palms reflects Miami’s enduring soul, Maison Felix embodies its contemporary, design-led evolution. Opened recently in North Beach, this boutique property is small, intimate, and deeply connected to its neighbourhood, which is emerging as a hub for artisan shops, galleries, and creative cafés and restaurants such as Sushi Bichi, Hidden Food Club, Silver Lake Bistro, La Poubelle, Miami Beach Bandshell.
Maison Felix occupies a restored 1948 building, retaining its original stucco walls and Spanish barrel roof tiles, yet layered with a fresh, contemporary sensibility.
Felix Cohen, the hotel’s creative mind, has blended heritage with a tactile, Mediterranean-inspired design: warm textures, burnt-orange and turquoise accents, and curated art by local creatives, resulting in interiors that feel quietly luxurious and profoundly personal.
With just 29 rooms and suites, Maison Felix achieves an intimacy that larger properties cannot. Ground-floor rooms open directly onto a central courtyard oasis, shaded by palms and centred on a reflective pool, where mornings can begin in quiet contemplation and afternoons invite languid reading or restful swims. Upper-level rooms offer private views over the leafy calm of North Beach streets, while vaulted ceilings and abundant light enhance the sense of space and serenity.
The hotel’s focus is on subtlety and presence rather than spectacle. Its restrained scale encourages guests to explore the surrounding neighbourhood, moving at a pace that mirrors the property’s ethos: curated and calm. Service is quietly attentive – as a gluten-free traveller the sweet spot for me is not to overfuss but deliver effortless quality ingredients and choices which the team did in abundance.
This alone can create a sense of belonging rather than performance. As one of the hotel’s guiding voices remarked at its recent opening, “We didn’t want a scene; we wanted a sanctuary.”
In a city often defined by bold gestures, Maison Felix reminds visitors that boutique hospitality at its best is about connection, community, and calm. A place to pause, exhale, and discover a new rhythm in Miami Beach.
Old and New: Miami in Dialogue
Together, The Palms Hotel & Spa and Maison Felix present a compelling portrait of Miami Beach as a city of contrasts. One honours history, family stewardship, and wellness; the other explores contemporary design, intimacy, and neighbourhood vitality. Both offer sanctuary in their own ways, inviting travellers to experience the city beyond its headline-making glamour.
Whether drawn to the timeless serenity of a historic oceanfront retreat or the fresh, tactile intimacy of a design-led boutique, these coastal gems remind us that Miami is often reduced to spectacle, but beneath the gloss lies a city negotiating its identity between Art Deco nostalgia and glass-towered ambition, Latin heritage and global capital, shoreline stillness and unrelenting reinvention. You can choose the Miami that fits you best.
