Sleepover Miami 2016 – local design + networking

The Sleepover events are a highlight of the hospitality design calendar. Organised by the team behind Sleeper and Supper magazines, this is an event not to be missed! Having previously attended Sleepover Amsterdam and Sleepover Copenhagen I knew I was in for a great trip with interesting visits, fabulous people, and informative talks – Sleepover Miami did not disappoint.

Although I have visited the USA a number of times, this was my first trip to Florida; I made the most of it by adding a couple of extra days on to explore. I can’t cram all my thoughts into one blog so watch out for subsequent ones on specific locations!

We stayed at The Hall, South Beach Miami – a recently revived Art Deco building which has a great, relaxed vibe about it. The rooms weren’t overly fussy, but comfortable. I liked the little attention to details such as The Hall beach bag that was hung in the wardrobe for you to borrow for day trips!

On the first day we visited the The Miami Edition, The Confidante and 1 Hotel as part of the Beach Tours – each hotel had its own unique style whilst still retaining a strong Miami essence. Then for a complete contrast we had drinks at The Freehand Miami, a hostel with a boutique and lively community feel to the public areas. Dinner was held at the poolside at Nautilus, A Sixty Hotel. It was fantastic to relax with the other attendees and discuss our thoughts on each of the properties visited.

The second day commenced with an interesting talk on ‘The Beach and Beyond’ held at Faena Hotel. Hosted by Guy Dittrich with speakers Laurent Fraticelli, General Manager of EAST Miami; Jason Pomeranc, Co-Founder of Sixty Hotels; and Sandor Scher, Co-Founder of Claro Developments; this was lively discussion about Miami past, present and future. After the talk we started the Beyond the Beach Tours. Our group headed to the Design District first where we admired all the unique shopfronts and art sculptures. Next it was off to Brickwell to have an exclusive tour of EAST before its doors open in a few weeks’ time. We finished our tour at Wynwood Walls, having fun taking selfies with all the street art!

The event closed at the rooftop bar of EAST – watching the Miami skyline change as the sun went down. Reminiscing over drinks with old and new friends about how much we had seen and done in less than 48 hours! It was the perfect conclusion to a jam-packed hospitality exploration of Miami’s offerings.

Yet again, the Sleepover team surpassed all expectations and executed a well organised, interesting, and thoroughly enjoyable event. Big thank you to the team for working so tirelessly to ensure all 100+ attendees got to see so much of Miami and for not losing any of us along the way! Can’t wait for next year, and am intrigued as to which location we’ll get to explore next.

For more information about Sleeper Magazine visit www.sleepermagazine.com

For more information about Supper Magazine visit www.suppermagazine.co.uk