The Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne, Miami

Slept 10 hours in one of the most comfortable hotel beds ever, which that alone made it a great stay (came in exhausted and had an overseas flight the next day). Special shout out to George, was working the bell and concierge desk, who truly went “above and beyond” to be helpful, (please keep this man in mind for a promotion!) also to Kevin (?) who resolved a minor issue with my original room assignment when I arrived. Very happy with my stay. Room tip - first stay, and I thought the room only had a bath, but the shower stall is separate and behind the bathroom door.

An OK hotel but doesn’t worth $1000/night. The room are quite basic and haven’t been remodeled for maybe 30 years The adult pool is decent. We didn’t go to the kid pool Important to know if you have a status on Bonvoy this hotel is not giving you much for it. I am titanium and we didn’t get upgraded, we enjoyed a great view on the parking lot and delivery trucks. There is no free breakfast even at this level in the loyalty program The only great thing is the Sunday brunch. It is expensive ($150/person) but really good

It was our second visit to this resort. Since this time was the Christmas holiday season, so a lot of families were here. Their kids’ club has quite a lot of activities and the club uses the center lawn as their playground. So all kids in the resort were really happy. The family pool was very busy too. The good thing is the food and beverages service was not too slow due to the crowds. On the other hand, the towel hat attendants were too busy so either you need to wait for them or just help yourself sometimes. The good thing is they have a separate adult pool, it is quite calm all day except the hot tub could be busy. We didn’t eat at the Lightkeeper this time, so I don’t know if the dining experience was improved or not. All services were good, from valet to bellman, from check-in to room service. The rooms and corridors need some lifting though. It shows the traces of time now.

I am shocked that this is a Ritz Carlton class hotel. We booked part of a wedding group and maybe that was the issue. Our simple room seemed ok, definitely not what you would expect in RC status, but ok, let's make the best of it. We are here to celebrate a special couple. Issue after issue, mainly the stack of rooms in the wedding part had no A/C. This seemed to be no problem for staff as hey it's January. these rooms had Western exposure, curtains were wide open all day and were HOT. Try to put make up on and do hair when it is 82 degrees in your room. After unpacking all of our gear (lots) they agreed and weren't able to fix the a/c and moved us to another no a/c room. (give it a chance to cool off!) We did and after our event, came up to a broiling room with a note on thermostat. call the desk to move - a/c not working. So at 10:30 at night here we are again packing up. ( Not to mention, no remotes in either room to operate the Tv's) Third room, finally in a different stack. ac appeared to work. We were so tired it didn't matter at that point. TV had been turned on when we walked in at 10:45 - Again - NO REMOTE to turn it off so we can sleep. Front desk was called again and promised to bring one up. We tried to unplug it, but the plug was not reachable. 30 min. later a remote was delivered. The next morning after a day out, I noticed all my magazines and reading material that i had brought from home which I enjoy reading during down time were taken by the cleaning crew. Trying to ask them what happened to them was pointless, as no one spoke any English. We are not demanding or picky guest by no mean and there certainly were some kind and caring staff that were trying to be helpful and they could not be held responsible for our sad stay but jokingly we figured as were drove off at 6:00 a.m. that were had to have been on candid camera.

The Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne is a great spot if you’re looking for something a little more low-key than the hustle of South Beach or Brickell. It’s tucked away in a quieter area, but that’s kind of the whole vibe—peaceful, relaxing, and still very upscale. The room was nice. Not the flashiest Ritz room I’ve stayed in, but it was comfortable and had a great setup. My patio view was on a higher floor and looked out over the circular valet area, which was pretty cool. What really made this place stand out, though, were the outdoor areas. The courtyard is massive, with the signature yellow Ritz building as the backdrop, hammocks, a giant chessboard, and even some games. I’m pretty sure they host weddings there, and I can see why—it’s a beautiful setup. The private beach was another big plus. Early mornings there were just perfect. The pool area was amazing—super spacious, great cabanas, and that perfect sunset view. Yeah, there were a lot of kids around, but it still felt chill and high-end. They also have tennis and pickleball courts if you’re feeling active, which is a nice bonus. Inside, the lobby is stunning, and there’s this really cool whiskey bar that’s worth checking out. One of the quirkiest things I noticed was a champagne vending machine—random, but honestly kind of awesome. Overall, this Ritz is up there as one of my favorites. I’ve stayed at over 10 Ritz-Carltons, and this one definitely hits the sweet spot of luxury and relaxation. If you’re looking for a mix of peaceful vibes and high-end touches, this place is worth it.