Esmé Miami Beach

For travelers of certain tastes, the big, established Miami Beach boutique hotels, with their see-and-be-seen atmosphere, can sometimes feel a bit much. Just one block from the Collins Avenue hotel strip, hiding in plain sight at Washington Avenue and Española Way, is something a bit subtler: Esmé Miami Beach is a Spanish-Mediterranean gem whose bohemian-luxe interiors establish a warm and slightly retro mood — one that’s got nothing to do, for once, with mid-century modernism.

Esmé’s design concept aims to recall the glory days of famous creative neighborhoods like Greenwich Village or the artists’ quarter of Montmartre, and there’s just a touch of a French accent to the rooms and suites, decorated as they are in saturated colors and careful compositions — if Paris were set on the Mediterranean, it might look a bit like this.

As lovely as they are, the accommodations are only half the package. The hotel’s public spaces are woven together, including Sushi Bar, an Omakase speakeasy, Bamboo Room, a tiki bar from Trader Vic’s, Tropezón, a gin-and-tapas concept, and The Roof, an open-air lounge whose cabanas encircle a stylish little pool. It’s something of a refuge from the Miami Beach scene, though, it must be said, not a complete one: Washington Avenue’s busy nightlife scene begins more or less right at Esmé’s front door.