Miami Hotels :-South Beach?
 

I will be travelling to Miami in November. I will be travelling by myself and I am looking for a safe hotel/area to stay in. I am thinking of staying in South Beach since I do not plan on renting a car. Any advise/info would be appreciated. Thanks.

It's a broad request. How much do you want to spend per night? Do you want a stylish, trendy spot, or are you happy with a more anonymous hotel experience (i.e., Holiday Inn/Ramada level)?

First of all, the main drag of South Beach is pretty well-patrolled and busy at all hours of the day and night. However, plan on taking cabs very late at night if you're more than a few blocks from your hotel (say, after 4 AM). Cab service is plentiful, so that shouldn't be a problem.

Also, what kind of accommodations are you looking for?

In the deco district, things are busy 24/7. Most hotels have restaurants/nightclubs on the front porches and have a lot of activity. The hotels are all across the street from the beach (Lummus Park is oceanfront). One big caveat is that the sleeping rooms at these motels can be very small. One exception to this would be the Casa Grande but it is very expensive.

In the Lincoln Road Mall area, the hotels are more resorty and larger. They are also oceanfront and some have very large rooms. If you can, look into the new Ritz-Carlton South Beach.

Either way, it is an easy walk to everything is South Beach is only about 20 blocks long.

GoTravel is right about the South Beach areas. The caveat about room size at the old Deco-era hotels is for the most part dead-on accurate. I did manage to get a pretty big room at the Cardozo this summer, and I loved it, but it was cityview and the john was still miniscule. Still, for a comfy king-sized bed, I was happier than a pig in mud.

One thing to clarify: The Ritz-Carlton South Beach will now be opening December 11 of this year, according to industry press releases. It's been pushed back so many times I've lost count, but they just might make this date.

TravelPro~
It also depends on what your price range is. I say check quikbook.com and tripadvisor.com for reviews to make sure you're not getting a roach motel. Basically any hotel in South Beach that is going to be under $75 a night will be questionable, especially in November, which is high season.
I would say check into the Winterhaven Hotel, small but would work for one person and it's right on Ocean Drive. Rates may be in the $140 range or the one I stayed at where I felt very safe and I was travelling alone also, is the Blue Moon on Collins which you might get for about $110.

High season starts the weekend before Thanksgiving. Quickbook is an excellent suggestion.

rjw, the Ritz-Carlton is going to be working 24/7 to get that hotel open by December 11th. I will be very surprised if they pull it off.

GoTravel: I know what you mean about the R-C's woes. They're playing a blame game in the press to find fault in the delays (the gist: previous contractor missed all deadlines). They'll be rolling out phases of the re-open-- a little over 100 rooms on 12/11, it seems. Not sure if they'll be in the DiLido. But I bet that, if you can deal with the construction, you can get quite a bargain from R-C.... Now, how about the Victor?!