Renee D.
Yelp
Alright let me get into this. I encourage those of you who are considering Kimpton Surfcomber for a stay that you read this review in total because I have a lot of points to make that should help with your decision.
First, I did a lot of research before booking this hotel considering location, room amenities, resort amenities and price of course and these were the factors that won me over.
Loved the location. Nestled in the heart of Collins Avenue right in the middle of a lot of action. There were tons of options for eating, drinking and having a good time. Also a short walking distance to Lincoln Road Mall if you are up for shopping and it's away from the craziness of the Ocean Drive strip. Also convenient, I LOVE LIQUOR liquor store (trust me you need this), Surf Style (convenient if like me and my friend you need cheap flip flops, souvenir magnets, sun screen and they have some really cool Miami gear) and Walgreens (for those other random incidentals).
About the room(s). We had a queen double. The room was very spacious and very clean. I loved the bed. It was super comfortable. TV had my member information on the screen upon my arrival where I could view my bill, see how many points I'd earned, etc and that was a welcoming touch. However, there were definitely signs of wear and tear upon closer inspection. There was a big plastic ottoman that seemed out of place and a little tattered, a glass desk with a strange wood box attached underneath and the dresser where the fridge was located obviously had leaky track record. The tub in the bathroom had all sorts of knicks in it and the sink was all glass, bulky and got really messy when I used it. Also the way the bathroom is set up you can not get up close on the mirror. You have the toilet, the big sink and then the tub/shower all next to each other. So if you're a guy and need to shave or a girl who wants to do her makeup, the bathroom mirror is not conducive to that. Thankfully there was a full length mirror outside the bathroom and honestly at this point I just appreciate that the sink was in the bathroom because honey some of these other hotels with the sink outside in the actual room with no privacy is a deal breaker for me I don't care how close to the person I am sharing the room with.
Shall we now discuss the mini bar situation. There's a mini bar and then there's a Miami Beach mini bar. I have NEVER in my life seen a hotel go to this extent to stock a room with items you will be triple charged for if you partake in them. Okay, the bar and snacks on the dresser....sure but the refrigerator was also stocked to the gills with wine, champagne, waters, beers, soda's. Even on the nightstands were additional waters. It was not until later I saw the 10.00 price tags on the bottle tops. It also took me a minute to discover the wine rack hanging on the wall with a price list attached. The cheapest of them being 75.00. This is why I LOVE LIQUOR should be your first stop. It certainly was mine and I took all of Surfcomber's stuff out of the fridge, put it in the corner and replaced it with my stuff for a fraction of the price.
On our second night which was the 4th of July the air in our room stopped working. While we were out they sent someone up to check it out but by the time we resurfaced it was still not working. We were informed around midnight that it would not be able to be fixed during our stay and they wanted to move us to another room which was fine but it was late and we were drunk, tired and did not feel like packing so they gave us some fans. We moved in the morning and I discovered this room had a coffee maker. Our previous room did not. Kind of not fair.
Sorry this has been a very long review so let me wrap it up by saying that while the rooms had their pros and cons the property itself is absolutely amazing!!! From the patio outside the front door (where I took my smoke breaks), the spacious lobby area, all the cozy nooks and crannies of seating arrangements, the restaurant, the bar, the meticulously landscaped covered walkway that you stroll to the pool, the private cabanas, the outdoor pool bar, the game area to the attentiveness of the staff and the overall resort feeling is why Surfcomber rates high in my book and I would stay there again. Also noted, the daily evening social hour with your choice of wines and an appetizer and the constant presence of a full, chilled water keg right at the back door where you come in from the pool area was always a welcome site because Miami is hot yall!!! The last thing worth mentioning is the incidentals hold fee they put on your bank account is hefty. On top of my regular hotel nightly charges they held 450.00 that was not returned to me until days after I got back home so keep that in mind.