I booked my hotel a month in advace and when I arrived at the hotel at 2pm was told that I would have wait until 4. That was ok because it was policy and procedure. At 4 I went to the counter for the agent to explain to me that there was only a King room for a guest of 5 including a child. I was told that there were plumbing issues and that the plumbers were working on it and I told them I was willing to wait, then was told that it wouldn't be until the next day. I explained that it would not work we both were calm during this process and I asked for a refund and was told that only management will be allowed to refund once again I was willing to wait ( I'm very patient), then was told the manager would not be in. So I stepped to the side and called the police because policy states that if I don't check in at a certain time I would be charged fully w/o a refund. The police arrived and also complimented me on how calm I was; by the time they got there the lobby was now filled with guest waiting for a room. This hotel only has 15 rooms and rooms are sold thru expedia, trip advisor, booking, directly with hotel, and other 3rd party cites so its understandable why they are always overbooked. There is a sister hotel across the street that was also overbooked but they assured me that I would have a room there, I went there to find other guest complaining about no water, lights etc. and notice that the same manager I was told was out for that day was across the street. He did not want to give my refund, after the police talked with them I received my refund at 7:15pm. I worked for a independently hotel and I know all about the excuses they come up with to have an excuse, independently hotels sells room like the airlines sells seats. They often overbook with the thought that people wouldn't show up and profit is made. Don't stay here unless its in the middle of the week. I can say so much but my mind is moving faster than my hands.

Pros:

1) 3 blocks from beach
2) Free beach towels and chairs
3) AWESOME air conditioning

Cons:
1) Poor Management - took 2 hours to check in. People (thankfully not us) did not get confirmed and paid for room reservations. No advance notice to these people who called the police because the hotel was not refunding their money on the spot.
2) No security/no one at desk - at 3 AM, drunk guests roaming the halls and knocking on doors
3) Security did not do anything even on confirming the EXTREMELY strong stench of marijuana wafting down the hallway. They knocked on door and the guy opened it and said he would open the windows.
4) No maid service - how is this a hotel ?
5) The faucets in the bathroom were only loosely coupled to the wall - they came off.
6) No pool - but there is a pool fee - to use the pool at a sister hotel which is terrible

All in all, if you are single or if your expectations are very low - then stay here. Else do not.

We stayed at Hotel Astor 2 nights on a May Weekend. The hotel was clean. The staff was friendly and helpful. The recommendations for dinner and a club were wonderful. You are 2 blocks from the beach. The rooms and bathroom were spacious. The only problems was the rooms' doors are noisy when they shut. I guess if you are planning to party hard you won't notice the door noise when you sleep. We did not need a car. We walked, hired a cab or took a bus. We rented segways for 2 hours to go all over SOBE. Even took the bus to Downtown Miami. $2 each way. There is a French bakery across the street for Breakfast. We ate dinner one night at Grazie which is two blocks away. Yummy.

Great hotel, I always stay here when I visit SOBE. This time I bought a guy friend with me and he loved it as well. We had a great time nd walked to everything.