Fodor's Expert Review The Standard Spa, Miami Beach

An extension of André Balazs's trendy and hip—yet budget-conscious—brand, this shabby-chic boutique hotel is a mile from South Beach on an island just over the Venetian Causeway and has among South Florida's most renowned spas, trendiest bars, and hottest pool scenes. The message: we'll do what we please, and the cool kids will follow. The scene attracts trendy 30- and 40-year-olds interested in showing off at the pool and then indulging in the hotel's many "do-it-yourself" spa activities, including mud bathing, scrubbing with sea salts, soaking in hot or arctic-cold waters, and yoga. An 8-foot, 103-degree cascade into a Roman hot tub is typical of the handful of adult pleasures on the pool deck. You can also go kayaking around the island. On the hotel facade you'll see the monumental signage of a bygone occupant, the Lido Spa Hotel, and the much smaller sign of its current occupant, hung, with a wink, upside down. Rooms are small and simple, though they have thoughtful touches like a picnic basket and embroidered fabric covers for the small flat-screen TVs. First-floor rooms have outdoor soaking tubs but very limited privacy, so few take that plunge. The waterfront, alfresco Lido Bayside Grill makes for great people-watching.