Century Hotel in Miami Beach works if you want an affordable Art Deco base steps from the sand. Skip it if you care about rock-solid maintenance, spotless rooms, or elevator access.
Century Hotel in one screen
• Choose Century Hotel only if Ocean Drive location and beach proximity matter more than hotel polish
• Skip it completely if you need an elevator, have mobility considerations, or bring heavy luggage
• Expect small, simple rooms in an older building, with inconsistent cleanliness and maintenance
• Plan to eat breakfast elsewhere; treat the included option as a bonus at best
• Best used as a short-stay crash pad for value-focused couples or solo travelers who spend most of their time out
The good
• Prime Ocean Drive location a short walk from the beach and restaurants
• Characterful Art Deco exterior and updated, simple interiors
• Staff frequently described as friendly and helpful
• Rooms generally functional for short stays with work surfaces and WiFi
• Good fit for value-focused couples who prioritize beach time over hotel time
The bad
• No functioning elevator, which is a serious issue with luggage or mobility needs
• Mixed cleanliness and maintenance: worn rooms, noisy AC, and occasional bad odors
• Breakfast is basic and often described as poor
• Street and corridor noise can be an issue for light sleepers
• Parking is off-site, limited, and can be expensive
• Experience quality is inconsistent across rooms and stays
Room reality: what you are actually sleeping in
Rooms are visually consistent with the photos: compact, uncluttered, and modernized, but clearly in an older building. Expect simple layouts with a double or king bed, a small desk or table, and minimal decorative elements. Space is workable for one or two people on a short stay, not for spreading out.
Storage is basic. You will find somewhere to put a carry-on and hang a few outfits, but this is not set up for long stays with multiple large suitcases. Surfaces are clean-lined rather than generous, and there are no signs of dressers or abundant drawer space in the images.
Workable in-room desks appear in many photos, and WiFi is included, so light laptop work is feasible. This is not a full work-from-hotel setup; outlets and ergonomics are functional but not a highlight.
Some reviews mention small or tired rooms, dated finishes, and variable cleanliness. If you fixate on perfectly fresh paint and flawless grout, the age of the building and past-maintenance decisions will bother you.
Noise and environment
Noise should be a deciding factor for you here. This is an older, thin-walled building in a lively area, and reviews report both street noise and interior noise from other guests and corridor activity.
Air conditioning can be noisy as well, which matters if you rely on steady, quiet white noise to sleep. If you are used to South Beach nightlife and do not mind some background sound, you will adapt. If you need hush at night, you should look elsewhere.
The combination of Ocean Drive location, older construction, and individual AC units creates a particular noise profile: bursts of sound from outside, plus mechanical hums and rattles inside. Light sleepers, parents with napping kids, and remote workers needing daytime calls are the ones who suffer most.
People coming for nightlife, who are out late and sleep hard, tend to rate noise as acceptable or not worth mentioning. People arriving expecting a calm, restorative beach retreat keep mentioning it.
What actually works and what does not
What works here
• Location for beach access and walking to bars and restaurants
• Staff generally perceived as kind, responsive, and welcoming
• Simple, modern-feeling interiors that broadly match the photos
• In-room basics: WiFi, a small desk, and a fridge in many rooms
• Good fit for short, price-sensitive leisure stays
What does not hold up
• Elevator: reviews indicate it is absent or unusable, a major issue with stairs
• Cleanliness and maintenance: recurring reports of dust, mold, and worn fixtures
• Breakfast: regularly called poor, minimal, or not worth planning around
• Climate control: some rooms have noisy or weak AC
• Inconsistent experience: some guests get acceptable rooms, others get problematic ones
The core value proposition is clear: you are paying for position in the Art Deco district, not for a perfect building. When that is understood, the rough edges make sense.
Complaints cluster around items that are expensive for an older hotel to fix: structural elevator limitations, aging plumbing and AC, and shallow renovation scope. Those are not one-off mishaps; they are symptoms of a property that has updated style faster than infrastructure.
Guests who travel light, climb stairs without thinking, and treat the room as a place to shower and sleep tend to come away satisfied. Guests who spend more waking hours in their room, or who expect chain-level reliability, are the ones who feel burned.
Amenities and operations reality
What you can count on
• Very short walk to the beach, with beach towels available
• Free WiFi that is generally adequate for basic use
• A refrigerator and iron listed among in-room amenities
• 24-hour front desk presence for late arrivals and basic issues
• Continental breakfast included in many rates, even if not impressive
Where expectations get people
• Elevator: many guests arrive assuming one and are upset to find none or an unusable one
• Breakfast quality and variety are routinely described as underwhelming
• Parking is off-site, can be expensive, and is not clearly outlined in pre-arrival info
• No real on-site leisure spaces beyond the lobby; the beach is nearby but not part of the property
• Maintenance responses are inconsistent, with some issues left unresolved during stays
Marketing leans on words like "spacious" and "boutique" and foregrounds the beach lifestyle. In practice, the most reliable amenity is simply the location; everything else operates at budget-hotel level.
The mismatch is largest around vertical access and breakfast. Many travelers assume any multi-level hotel in the U.S. will have a working elevator and a breakfast worth relying on each morning. Here, stairs are part of the deal, and breakfast is something you grab if you are not picky, not a feature you plan your mornings around.
Operationally, the staff often earn praise for attitude, but they are working within the limits of an older, value-oriented building. If your stay depends on immediate, guaranteed fixes to HVAC or plumbing, this is the wrong property.
Who this hotel actually fits
Works for
• Couples and solo leisure travelers who mainly care about being on Ocean Drive near the beach
• Value-focused guests who prioritize price and location over polish
• Travelers comfortable with stairs and light luggage who will not miss an elevator
• Short-stay visitors who will spend most of their time out in the city
Not for
• Anyone with mobility issues, stroller needs, or heavy luggage requiring an elevator
• Travelers who are strict about cleanliness and expect chain-level maintenance
• Light sleepers who need quiet rooms and silent AC to rest
• Families planning to spend long stretches of time in the room
• Remote workers or long-stay guests who rely on consistent room quality and calm
How to think about Century Hotel within Miami Beach
In Miami Beach terms, Century Hotel is a location-first, budget-boutique option on Ocean Drive. You choose it when you want to wake up steps from the sand and nightlife without paying resort rates.
It competes less with polished, amenity-heavy resorts and more with other older Art Deco properties that have been cosmetically refreshed. Within that group, it offers cleaner visual design than some, but no real advantage on infrastructure or amenities.
If you want pools, gyms, energetic lobbies, and full-service experiences, you should be looking at larger hotels elsewhere on or near Collins Avenue. If your priority is a simple base in the historic district with character and acceptable comfort, Century is in the consideration set.
Best and worst trip types for this hotel
For a quick beach getaway where your days and nights are spent outside the hotel, Century can work well. You get a recognizable Art Deco setting, a short walk to the water, and proximity to bars, restaurants, and the broader South Beach scene.
For party-focused weekends, bachelor or bachelorette trips, and spontaneous couples’ escapes where the room is secondary, the value proposition holds up. Noise and simple rooms are less of an issue when you return late and leave early.
For work trips, longer stays, or any visit where you need reliable sleep, consistent climate control, and strong maintenance, Century becomes a risk. The same applies to family vacations where nap windows, early bedtimes, and stroller logistics matter.
If you are planning a once-a-year, special-occasion trip and want everything to feel elevated and worry-free, this is not the right match.
What reviews keep repeating
• Location near the beach and in the Art Deco district is praised again and again
• Staff are often described as friendly, welcoming, and helpful
• Breakfast is routinely called basic, limited, or disappointing
• Multiple guests mention room cleanliness issues, including dust, mold, or bad smells
• Wear and tear in rooms and bathrooms is a recurring theme
• Air conditioning is sometimes noisy or not strong enough
• The lack of a working elevator surprises and frustrates many guests
• Noise from the street, hallways, and other rooms shows up regularly, though not for everyone
• Parking is seen as expensive or inconvenient compared with expectations
• Overall sentiment is mixed: some guests feel they got solid value, others would not return
Dissatisfaction usually comes from expectation gaps, not from the core facts of the property. Guests who book it like a true budget choice, expecting stairs, some wear, and modest breakfast, tend to rate it fairly. Guests who read "boutique" and see clean photos, then arrive assuming a higher standard, feel misled when they encounter musty smells, chipped fixtures, or noisy AC.
Because the issues are structural and recurring, you cannot count on an upgrade or a quick fix to solve them. If those risk factors matter to you at all, you should not assume you will be one of the lucky, positive-review stays.
High-intent questions, answered
Is Century Hotel worth it?
Century Hotel is worth it only if you prioritize Ocean Drive location and beach access over everything else and are comfortable with an older building that has inconsistent cleanliness and maintenance. If you treat it as a value base and keep your standards in check, you can get a fair deal; if you expect polished boutique quality, you will likely be disappointed.
Is it noisy at night?
It can be. Reviews mention street noise, hallway noise, and sounds from other rooms, plus some noisy AC units. If you are used to lively urban environments or plan to be out late, you may be fine, but light sleepers should assume they will hear more than they would like.
Are the rooms small?
Rooms are on the smaller, simple side, especially compared with newer hotels, but functional for one or two people on short stays. There is enough space for a bed, a small desk or table, and luggage, but storage is limited and the layout is not ideal for long stays or heavy packers.
Is parking easy?
Parking is not a strong point. It is off-site, can be expensive, and details are not clearly highlighted in advance. If you are driving, budget both time and money for parking logistics, or consider staying somewhere with dedicated on-site parking instead.
Updated:
Jan 15, 2026