HOTEL HIGHLIGHTS
• The 157-room
Hotel Colonnade Coral Gables has opened in the city's Miracle Mile shopping district. The property offers 23,000 square feet of meeting and event space, including the 8,932-square-foot Rotunda and 4,284-square-foot Merrick Ballroom.
• The 250-room Le Méredien Dania Beach at Fort Lauderdale Airport is scheduled to open next September with a 55,974-square-foot ballroom.
MIAMI
Local Update
• The 96-room Hotel Palomar South Beach will open in Miami in 2018. Set along the Collins Canal on Alton Road, the Kimpton property will be adjacent to the Sunset Harbour neighborhood and close to the west end of the Lincoln Road pedestrian mall. The new-build hotel will have a rooftop pool, an adjacent gourmet restaurant and a fitness center.
• The SLS Brickell Hotel & Residences, with 124 guest rooms and 450 condo residences, has debuted near the city's downtown Design District. The 55-story tower has more than 55,000 square feet of indoor/outdoor event space, including a ballroom and four breakout rooms.
• The 275-room Atton Brickell Miami Hotel has opened in the city's Brickell Financial District. The first Atton property in the U.S. for the Latin American chain features 4,000 square feet of meeting space; a rooftop pool with cabanas; and Lima, a restaurant serving traditional Peruvian dishes.
ZIKA RESOURCE
This summer, mosquitoes carrying the Zika virus were found in several areas around Miami-Dade County. One affected area, Wynwood, has now been declared safe. For area updates, see
here.
ALL-VEHICLE TERRAIN
On Hutchinson Island in Stuart, the Elliott Museum showcases a colorful collection of vintage cars, motorcycles, wooden boats and more. Group tours are available.
WATCH THIS SPACE
The iconic Miami Beach Convention Center is undergoing a massive expansion and other upgrades. When the project is completed in 2018, the center will have more than 500,000 square feet of exhibit space, a 60,000-square-foot ballroom and 81 new breakout rooms totaling 190,000 square feet.
Meeting Hotels: At the latest count, Miami has 53,600 hotel rooms.
To find and compare hotels, and send RFPs, visit mcvenues.com.
Convention Centers: Miami Beach Convention Center; exhibit space, 502,848 square feet; number of meeting rooms, 70; (786) 276-2600
Miami Airport Convention Center; exhibit space, 76,360 square feet; number of meeting rooms, 49; (786) 276-2600
Miami Convention Center; exhibit space, 28,000 square feet; number of meeting rooms, 37; (305) 539-3000
Airport Transit: Miami International Airport, about seven miles west of Miami's downtown district; transfer cost by taxi to downtown, $42; by shuttle, $17 per person; by Uber, $13. By taxi to downtown Miami Beach, $53; by shuttle, $21 per person
Taxes: Miami Beach: room tax, 7%; sales tax, 7%; total tax on hotel rooms, 14%. Mainland: room tax, 6%; sales tax, 7%; total tax on hotel rooms, 13%
Contact: Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau, (305) 539-3000; or (800) 933-8448; planners.