Hi all,
I'm wanting a nice place to stay with a good pool and can be on the beach or not. It's not a must. We can drive. Anyone stayed at the above. Likely we won't do much of the night scene on S. Beach since we have small kids but we hear the Delano is nice. Mandarin O and Biltmore look very nice too although no beach. Any thoughts? Thanks!

Mandarin.

Mandarin Oriental is the nicest and most lux but the Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne has excellent kids programs and a real beach. The MO beach is beach chairs on the sand in front of the water but the bulkhead prevents you from getting into the water.

No to the Delano. Not kid friendly. In fact, I've never seen kids there and I've probably been there 50 times.

Thank you, it seems I neglected to post this under Florida. I appreciate the responses. I was leaning to the Mandarin as well but the Biltmore looked nice.

The Mandarin is beautiful, but there isn't much in terms of kids amenities close by. The Biltmore pool is huge but it is just a pool - no slides or anything of the sort. I live close to it and I love the hotel. There are also nice parks with playgrounds close by. It's a little further to the beach from the Biltmore than from the Mandarin, although for dining and just strolling, Coral Gables has more options, I think. The Delano just doesn't have a kid feel to me - don't get me wrong it's gorgeous and cool, but it doesn't even whisper "kids" to me (and I have kids and take them to plenty of places).

I do have to second GoTravel's suggestion of the Ritz Key Biscayne for a good mix of what you are looking for. For a weekend with my husband, any of the 3 you mention, for a weekend with my kids, I would probably go for the Ritz.

Okay,
I'll look in the Ritz on Key Biscayne. I appreciate all the input you guys. It's really helpful coming from Seattle!