The Biltmore in Coral Gables Is the Most Historic Hotel in Miami — and the Donald Ross Golf Course Is Why You Go

There is no hotel in Miami with a history like the Biltmore. Built in 1926 by John McEntee Bowman and Merrick, the Coral Gables property is a National Historic Landmark — one of a small number of hotels in the United States to hold that designation. It has hosted Al Capone, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and every significant figure in Miami's early social history. The tower is visible from miles away. The pool — at 23,000 square feet, once the largest in the world — is still the most impressive hotel pool in South Florida.

Donald Ross designed some of the most celebrated golf courses in American history — Pinehurst No. 2, Oakland Hills, Seminole. The Biltmore Golf Course is a Ross design, and it is one of the most underreported golf assets in South Florida. A historic Ross course attached to a National Historic Landmark hotel, in the middle of Coral Gables, available to hotel guests — that is a specific combination that does not exist anywhere else in this market.

A 9.4 with 1,005 reviews is a meaningful number. Over a thousand guests have rated this property exceptional. That is not nostalgia — guests are not giving 9.4s to a hotel because of its history. They are giving 9.4s because the experience is delivering at that level. The Biltmore has managed to maintain its historic identity while operating at a contemporary standard of hospitality.

Staying at the Biltmore puts you in Coral Gables — the most architecturally coherent neighborhood in Miami, with Miracle Mile, the Venetian Pool, and a dining scene that includes some of the city's best restaurants. It is a different Miami than South Beach or Brickell, and for the right traveler, it is the better one.

The Biltmore is the hotel you stay at when you want to understand what Miami was before it became what it is. The Donald Ross course is the reason to stay an extra day.