The Setai

The Setai, Miami Beach is the quietest of the city's Forbes Five Star hotels, built around Henry Hohauser's 1937 Art Deco landmark at 20th and Collins. Expect approximately 135 rooms and suites, three courtyard pools held at three different temperatures, two MICHELIN Keys and Asian-Art-Deco interiors. It holds no MICHELIN star and does not chase a scene.

"The calmest five star on the sand, built around a 1937 Henry Hohauser Art Deco landmark and three pools held at three different temperatures."

Aggregate 9.6/10 on our editorial scale (Room & Design, Service, Location). Independently scored; see our methodology. This is our opinion, not an aggregate of user reviews.

Affiliate disclosure: we may earn a commission from bookings at no cost to you. We never accept payment for placement. Hotel status, room product and Michelin ratings were verified against official sources and the 2026 Michelin Guide Florida in July 2026. Resort fees and valet charges were checked separately and move frequently.

What makes The Setai special?

The Setai is a preservation project as much as a hotel, and the 1937 building is the reason to choose it. The original structure was the Dempsey-Vanderbilt Hotel, designed by Art Deco architect Henry Hohauser, and the modern tower and the Asian-Art-Deco interiors were built around it rather than over it, with dark woods, bronze fittings and 1930s detailing carried through. There are approximately 135 hotel rooms and suites, and the landmark building additionally contains 87 studio and one-bedroom suites. The hotel is a member of The Leading Hotels of the World. Its record is the most consistent in the market: Forbes Travel Guide Five Star in the 2026 Star Awards, and Five Star every year since 2014, plus two MICHELIN Keys. Keys are a hotel award and not a restaurant star, and The Setai holds no starred restaurant. The other signature is the courtyard, where three outdoor pools are held at three different temperatures, a detail no other Miami Beach hotel replicates.

Which room should you book?

Approximately 135 hotel rooms and suites sit under the hotel operation, and the landmark Art Deco building contains a further 87 studio and one-bedroom suites, so the address is larger than the hotel room count suggests. The interior language is consistent throughout: dark woods, bronze fittings and 1930s detailing translated through an Asian-Art-Deco lens, which reads as calm and adult rather than tropical. That restraint is the property's strongest and most divisive quality. Guests who want hush and low lighting rate the rooms very highly; guests expecting colour and energy sometimes describe them as austere. Families should note that children are less well catered for here than at the larger resorts up the coast, and the atmosphere is deliberately adults-leaning. Ask about position when booking, because rooms in the historic 1937 building and rooms in the modern oceanfront tower are meaningfully different products at the same hotel.

Where should you eat and drink?

The Setai holds no MICHELIN star, and its restaurants should never be described as starred; the two MICHELIN Keys it carries are a hotel award. What it does have is three distinct kitchens. Jaya covers South and South-East Asian cooking, drawing on Thai, Vietnamese, Korean, Indian, Chinese and Japanese influences, and is the restaurant most closely tied to the hotel's identity. Ocean Grill is the beachside option, Mediterranean-Italian, and works best at lunch. Japon is contemporary Japanese and the newest of the three. Executive chef across Jaya and Ocean Grill is Vijayudu Veena. The honest caveat is price and range: food and beverage costs on site are very high and there are few casual options within the property, so guests staying several nights usually end up walking out for at least some meals. Lincoln Road, roughly 10 to 15 minutes on foot, is the obvious release valve.

What is the spa and pool like?

The three-temperature courtyard pools are the property's most-quoted amenity and the claim is accurate: a lap pool at about 75F, a centre pool at about 85F and a family pool at about 90F, so you choose your water by what you actually want to do in it. The Spa at The Setai is curated by Valmont, holds a Forbes Travel Guide Four Star rating, and has treatment rooms with private steam rooms attached, which is rare and genuinely useful for couples. Beyond the courtyard, the hotel is oceanfront on South Beach with direct beach access and a private beach service. The overall wellness proposition here is quiet rather than programmed: there is no day-club scene on the pool deck, which is precisely why regulars return.

Where is The Setai, and how do you get there?

The Setai sits at 2001 Collins Avenue, at 20th and Collins, on the quieter northern end of South Beach, which is the best of both positions in this part of the city. It is oceanfront with direct beach access and private beach service, and there is no road to cross. Lincoln Road is roughly a 10 to 15 minute walk south, and Ocean Drive and the Art Deco historic district roughly 15 to 20 minutes on foot, so the nightlife and the restaurants of South Beach are reachable without a car while the noise of them is not. Wynwood is roughly 15 to 25 minutes by car and Miami International Airport roughly 20 to 35 minutes, about 11 miles. Walking and driving times are approximate; traffic on Collins Avenue during events can be significant.

What do guests consistently say?

Guest feedback on The Setai is unusually stable, which is what fourteen consecutive years of Forbes Five Star recognition since 2014 tends to produce. Praise concentrates on the three-temperature pools, the preserved 1937 architecture and the hush of the public spaces. The recurring criticisms are consistent too. First, valet parking is expensive and there is no self-park alternative, a repeated irritation for guests with a hire car. Second, the deliberately minimal, adults-leaning atmosphere reads as impersonal or austere to a minority of guests, and children are less well catered for than at the larger family resorts. Third, food and beverage pricing on site is very high and there are few casual options within the property. Those are fit issues rather than failures of execution, and they are easy to plan around if you know them before you book.

Honest cons: who should skip it?

Parking is the first practical drawback. A 2024 Miami Beach survey listed valet at USD 49 per day, and there is no self-parking option, so a hire car carries a compulsory daily cost. The resort-fee picture is genuinely unclear: the same survey listed USD 25 per room per night, while some 2026 sources state that no separate resort fee is charged because it is folded into the room rate. Confirm both at booking rather than assuming either. Second, the hushed, adults-leaning atmosphere does not suit everyone, and families with young children will find better facilities elsewhere on the coast. Third, on-site food and beverage pricing is very high with few casual alternatives inside the property, which pushes the real cost of a multi-night stay well above the headline rate.