National Hotel, An Adult Only Oceanfront Resort

On Collins Avenue in South Beach, keeping up with the Joneses is a full-time job. Landscaping isn’t your thing? Well, you’d put a little more thought into it if the Delano was next door — and across the street from that, the Philippe Starck–designed SLS. With neighbors like these, you can’t blame the National Hotel for pouring $12 million into renovations, and it’s money well spent; this 1939 Art Deco landmark now has the longest infinity pool in town.

For all its updates, including the pool, the gorgeously restored Martini Room cigar bar, and an array of freshly redesigned guest rooms, what the National’s appeal really rests on is its original charm. The hotel has historic clout: it’s listed with the Miami Beach Preservation Board, so renovations needed to occur within a set of rather strict guidelines. Gone are some of the hotel’s dowdier sections — contrary to conventional wisdom, it is possible to swing the wrecking ball in the Art Deco District — and new on the scene are a slew of cabana rooms and suites, a hand-cut crystal chandelier in the ballroom, an intricate mosaic lining the atrium ceiling of Tamara, the National’s French fusion restaurant.

The hotel’s finest original features remain, they’re just updated: the oak bar in the Blues Bar, reupholstered barrel chairs in the lobby, chrome light fixtures illuminating the hallways. In guest rooms and suites, too, the aesthetic reflects the hotel’s original era. The furniture is custom-made with dark sapele wood, accented with chrome; bathrooms feature romantic vanities and pale gray terrazzo flooring, plus the hotel’s signature line of bath products. Luggage racks, leather armchairs, and glamorous tufted headboards evoke days gone by. The three-story penthouse, located directly beneath the hotel’s original cupola, offer spectacular ocean views, and in the new Poolside Cabana Wing, you’ll trade off history for space — and a private terrace facing the pool.