The New Breed

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The Miami area is in the midst of an unprecedented real-estate explosion, and hotels are turning up all over. Miami Beach will soon see entries from Rosewood Resorts (the Acqualina), Canyon Ranch (a new health resort), Le Meridien (Sunny Isles), and Regent (two condominium-hotel projects). Morris Lapidus's landmark Sheraton Bal Harbour is being demolished and replaced with a St. Regis condo-hotel. On Key Biscayne, Sonesta Hotels is tearing down the old Sonesta Beach Resort and building a new $300 million property with five-star ambitions, to compete with the nearby Ritz-Carlton. (The Ritz-Carlton chain also has properties in South Beach and Coconut Grove.) Downtown Miami's standard-bearers of luxury—the Four Seasons Hotel Miami and the Mandarin Oriental—are still firing on all cylinders; the Mandarin has even started throwing a weekly SoBe-style party on its artificial beach. Ian Schrager, of the Shore Club and Delano, reportedly plans to open properties in North Miami Beach and downtown. Meanwhile, stealing a page from Schrager's book, 29- year-old Sam Nazarian has hired Philippe Starck to redo the old Ritz Plaza, right across the street from the Starck- designed Delano.

It's a bold new order, and a crowded field, with plenty of good values. Below, some of this year's standouts.

The Standard, Miami
André Balazs's first spa hotel.
DOUBLES FROM $150
40 ISLAND AVE., MIAMI BEACH 305/673-1717
www.standardhotel.com

The Raleigh
Balazs recently revamped this 1940 Art Deco jewel, which has one of America's great pools, where Esther Williams once filmed her Technicolor aqua-dreams.
DOUBLES FROM $195
1775 COLLINS AVE., MIAMI BEACH 305/534-6300
www.raleighhotel.com

Hotel Victor
Opened in February, adjacent to the old Versace mansion, this new 91-room property—owned by Hyatt—is the first American hotel orchestrated by Paris-based designer Jacques Garcia. The Victor has the now requisite hammam, as well as a celebrated in-house restaurant, VIX.
DOUBLES FROM $305
144 OCEAN DR., MIAMI BEACH 305/428-1234
www.hotelvictorsouthbeach.com

The Setai
This much-anticipated condo-hotel combo arrived in August and is plush as all get-out, with a champagne-crustacean-caviar bar, three outdoor pools, and an opulent spa.
DOUBLES FROM $485
2001 COLLINS AVE., MIAMI BEACH 305/520-6000
www.setai.com

Sanctuary Hotel
A tasty little 30-room property with a spa, salon, rooftop bar, and trendy Sugo restaurant for the chattering classes.
DOUBLES FROM $499
1745 JAMES AVE., MIAMI BEACH 305/673-5455
www.sanctuarysobe.com

Bentley Beach Hotel
Still in its pre-opening–gala phase, the 109-suite Bentley Beach—a member of Small Luxury Hotels—was designed by Architectonica and is hyping the first Caroli spa in North America.
DOUBLES FROM $395
101 OCEAN DR., MIAMI BEACH 305/938-4600
www.thebentleyhotels.com

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