I stayed in this hotel in December and it was quite an experience. The location is perfect just across the street from the beach at the heart of the ArtDeco district. From here you can walk around vibrant Miami Beach downtown and experience Cuban and latin american culture. The views are nice, the rooms are perfect size. For the best views, make sure you get a room that faces the street/beach. Staff was friendly. No breakfast included.

perfect views of South Beach, rooms were perfectly comfortble and good shower. Easily accessable to all the shops, bars and restaurants. Food and cocktails at the Cardoza was great. A perfect place to stay in Miami, right on Ocean Drive.

just got back from 4 days in south beach, where we stayed at the Cardozo hotel. having stayed at many of the art deco hotels in south beach, I think the Cardozo is one of the better choices. a lot of the complaints I have read on trip advisor about the Cardozo are made by people that just don't understand where they are staying...sure all the 90 year old art deco hotels have small bathrooms, its not like they have a way to make them bigger...the bathroom at the Cardozo was small but it had been updated and they did the best they could with the space they had to work with...never ran out of hot water either!
we stayed in room 205, this room was dead center, right above the bar...the room was quite. the room had been updated and nothing was broken. the bed was average, ive see worse. the décor was a little sparse, and had wood walls and a wood floor. no art or accessories, I guess they were going for a minimal look...and they succeeded! there was no Gloria estavan books or music in the room that others had mentioned...one night we ask for additional towels, they were there in 2 or 3 minutes. for the price the room was a good deal.
one of the other things I liked was the location, it was close enough to the ocean ave night spots, but far enough away that you couldn't hear the partying late in to the night...the Clevelander, and oceans 10 both have outdoor bars that are very loud, fun to go to, but nice to get away from when you are done partying. there was a guitar playing singer at the Cardozo but he was not overly loud..another plus about the location is there is a parking garage right behind the hotel, its like its part of the hotel, since we always rent a car, we had a convenient place to put it...$20 per day compared to $35 per day plus tip for valet parking...
now about the food and drinks at the Cardozo. I read many reviews about the oversize drinks that were served, however they were not your only choice, regular size drinks are readily available. I also noticed that all the hotel sidewalk cafes were offering the oversize drinks as well...this must be the new thing..
ok, about the food, the café is a leased department, has nothing to do with the hotel..in fact I think all the sidewalk cafes are owned by the same food vender, as all their food taste the same, cost the same, has the same specials and is promoted very aggressivly by pretty girls as you walk by each hotel. it is what it is...not great food, not horrible food... if you want a great meal go a few hotels north to the betsy hotel and eat at blt steak, a five star meal with five star service. we also ate at "Red, the steak house" at 1st. and Washington, ( a 6 dollar cab ride) it is great, also a few doors away from Red, is Milos, also a great choice..both are expensive, about $250 for 2 to eat and drink, but after all if you are on a budget you usually don't go to south beach. we also ate breakfast at a diner named jerrys, its on Collins a five minute walk from the Cardozo. average food and poor service...also had breakfast at the Cardozo, very good and not expensive. so just eat breakfast at the hotel. the room also had a refrigerator, great for stocking your own booze in and doing a little pregaming...
the staff were friendly, helpful and didn't bother you...just what im looking for in a staff. the room was cleaned each day, usually as soon as we left, I always leave a few dollars on the table each day for the maid, and I always get good service...you know that's a crappy job, so don't be a tightwad...
I notice that the tip was included at many places, so be sure to check your bill, according to the servers that's the only way you are going to get a tip from the Europeans, and they far out number the americans.
I think ive covered just about everything, all in all the Cardozo is a better than average choice for south beach, you cant compare these hotels to 5 star hotels in las vegas, these are century old properties, that were never intended to be what they are now, funky little art deco hotels, so just enjoy south beach for what it is.....great weather, an international crowd to people watch, the ocean just a few steps away and a good place to wind down for a few days...a nice little getaway...

The Cardozo definitely isn't fancy, I would call the rooms adequate; however, the location is perfect. It sits right in the heart of South Beach. The rooms are covered with dark wood and look like they should be a north woods cabin rather than on South Beach. The rooms are small similar to most rooms on South Beach, but hopefully nobody spends much time in their room on South Beach. Service was very good and the workers were friendly.