Golden Sands Hotel, Miami Beach

We stayed in this hotel for a little over 2 weeks. It was quite convenient for us that like to stick around the beach and our room in the morning and go sightseeing in the afternoon. Upsides : inexpensive, right on the beach, bathroom was very clean, towels were changed everyday. The pool is nice when nobody partied in it the previous night. Covered parking. All kind of stores, boutiques and restaurants around. Located on north beach so it has easier access than south beach, usefull for us that like sight seeing and dont want to get into traffic too much. Downside : would need a little update, the carpet was old as well as the furniture. Some homeless hanging around but they are very peacefull. Parking is a little tight if you got a big ass car. A little far from south beach but it can be an upside :) note: we didnt try the restaurant/breakfast

Definitely not luxury, but not bad, either. A very retro-looking hotel which has certainly seen better days: the lobby is something out of a cheesy Vegas hotel (lots of cheap marble and bronze paneling), the carpets are worn, and the windows need washing. Watch out for the parking garage, too: the spots are about as tight as you can possibly get and you might worry about your rental getting dinged. But, for $80/night there's still lots to like. Reasonably clean rooms, friendly staff, a pool/bar area, and the beach is about 50 feet out the back gate. The area outside the hotel is predominantly hispanic, with lots of great, inexpensive restaurants and bars with a vibrant atmosphere. Walk west 20 minutes and you'll be in Normandy Square, which has more great restaurants and a weekend bazaar. Manage your expectations and the Golden Sands can be an inexpensive blast from the past; spend some time in the area and you might find that North Miami Beach can be just as fun (if nowhere near as glitzy) as South Beach.

So, to be honest the place itself is not that great. It is very old, a bit grimy, the homeless hang out ouside the lobby and it is not the cleanest...but I would stay there again in an instant b.c it has the best location. Easy access to their pool and 30 second walk to the beach. It is surounded by great little south american restaurants and a great small town vibe in the big mess of miami. After I got used to the hotel I didn't mind it at all and am trying to stay there again this winter. They also have parking...not free, but like ten bucks a day...whatever, this place is worth it soley for the location!

Conveniently located on the beach, but it is in the North. So if you want to hang out in South Beach, its about a $20 cab ride. Nice area, good service, cheap rates.

If you want customer service...this is NOT the place for you! Don't you dare ask for more pillows after you realize that what you currently have are cloth pancakes. They give you a really hard time for that. The breakfast buffet is not included the way it is advertised. They charged for a safe that we didn't use. So if you go... use it because they'll charge you anyway! The staff was grumpy. Location was decent only because it's right on the beach and there's a grocery store across the street. It was pretty cheap but you get what you pay for.

this hotel was right on the beach...wonderful wasn't new but fairly clean(except for bathrooms around the tub had moldy spots), pleanty of towels, nice lobby, no controls for heat or air in some of the rooms, hotel staff friendly and helpful