After 60+ years in business, the last remaining motel on Collins Ave. in Sunny Isles is closed. I just finished a stay there 4/26 to 4/31 and was informed that as of 5/1/2012 the motel has new owners who plan to demolish the building and put yet another skyscraper condo complex in its place. Now the best place to stay when visiting Haulover Beach is no longer an option. I felt quite sad to know that I would be the last guest staying in Room 202. This motel was a holdout from a different era and was a godsend (while it lasted) in its proximity to Haulover and at a reasonable price.

We had reservations there for well over a month in advance, but got a call tonight informing us that the place had been sold to developers and would be closed forever in five short days... (FIVE DAYS, people, and we were flying in from New York!!! )

The new owner (since June '11) appears to possess zero integrity... Not only did he screw whomever had reservations after April 30, but he also had the gall to have his desk-staff recommend another dive he (conveniently) runs a few miles south of there on Harding, the Beach Place Hotel.

According to several reviews this site, the Beach Place might well be called The Bed-Bug Inn, but I wouldn't give that AH a penny, even if the place was the Taj Mahal at Motel 6 prices. I can't imagine how a multi-million deal could go down in such short order.... Is there any way he couldn't have known about it before he took my reservation?

Enough about me... It's a sad day for Haulover-goers in general. The OP was a really fun dump in a great location, and now I suppose some fool is going to single-handedly attempt to resusitate the moribund real estate market in South Florida by building another vacant high-rise next to the Trump disasters.

It's an absurd world.

If you are looking for a decent/cheap place to stay with a friendly staff, this is the place. Nothing fancy about it. Walk to the beach and a nearby liquor/convenient store for small items. Einstein Bagels is about a 20min. walk north. Front counter staff offered us chairs for the beach and even a couple of trays of ice for the cooler!

We stayed here mid-February 2012, a second visit. Inexpensive campy mid-century relic with a pool that's right on the beach, it's great. Friendly staff, good housekeeping. Happy to report the new owner keeps the pool warm (former owner kept the pool heater turned off or way down). Nearby: the beachfront restaurant behind Trump Tower II next door is very good; there's a small market just north across Collins Ave; Aroma Espresso Bar‎ (good food too), walk north to south corner of Collins and Sunny Isles Boulevard. Rent a tiny car, the parking is tight, but not the nightmare that others claim. If you want Hampton Inn — go there — and please leave Ocean Palm to those who appreciate it.