Review

Receive a free Hg2 guide when you book a room online

In 1919 developer Carl Fisher swapped his yacht Eagle for William Vanderbilt’s 216-acre winter island estate. Fisher Island has become home to a community of 1920s-style villas and can be reached by helicopter, ferry, rowing boat, submarine or whatever other mode of transport the celebrities on the island choose.

The hotel offers villa suites, cottages or seaside villas, but all have views of Biscayne Bay and the Downtown Miami skyline. This is as private as it gets in Miami. The resort has its own beach, tennis courts, golf course, spa and salon, and the idea is to enjoy the facilities out of the view of the general public. In addition to hot tubs, guests are given golf buggies to travel around the island.

There is a high-quality restaurant in the Vanderbilt Mansion and there’s also the Beach Club and Sunset Bar, while South Beach’s nightlife is still within easy reach.