Victoria’s Secret models have stripped down to their lingerie here. Cardi B performed on New Year’s Eve. LIV, one of the most popular nightclubs in the country, beckons the big-spending partiers. In an earlier era, Frank Sinatra and Lucille Ball were regulars.
Since it opened in 1954, in a region known for hype cycles, for boom and bust, the Fontainebleau Miami Beach has rolled with the times by adding and renovating. Now, it’s time for another major overhaul, one that will add a water park with 11 slides to the pool area.
Miami Beach’s most famous landmark wants to appeal to a group not often associated with South Florida luxury hotels: children. And it plans to do that by renovating the outdoor pool deck and adding water slides and other features that’ll keep kids engaged all day. The area will be separate from the other pools but serve as the heart of a more family-friendly Fontainebleau.
The hotel “will be transformed into a destination for all-ages, with all-new pools and water features, family attractions and slides, food and beverage offerings, and elevated poolside entertainment,” the hotel owners said in a statement. They declined to specify the amount of money they’re investing.
Plans include a 120-foot water slide, one of the largest drops in the country, Brett Mufson, president of Fontainebleau Development, said in an interview with the Miami Herald. That also exceeds the 60-footer at the Tidal Cove water park at the Turnberry Resort in Aventura, Florida.
Like Tidal Cove, with the same ownership, the Fontainebleau water park will be open to the public. Prices have not been announced yet.
As the building plans go forward, so is the permitting process. The Fontainebleau said it has submitted an application to the Historic Preservation Board for a major renovation of the rear yard and pool area. The application is under review by city planners, and the hotel expects to be evaluated either Oct. 21 or Nov. 18.
Timeline for Fontainebleau renovation
Construction at the Fontainebleau, 4441 Collins Ave. in the middle of Miami Beach, will start in the first three months of 2026, Mufson said. He expects the redo to be finished by 2027. The hotel and pool will stay open during the water park construction. “We’ll do it in phases,” he said.
Set on 22 oceanfront acres, across from Indian Creek and about three miles from South Beach and the Art Deco district, the hotel has long been one of South Florida’s most popular luxury resorts. Its original curves and MiMo designs are what makes it one of the most recognized buildings in the world.
The hotel, with 1,504 guest rooms and suites, already has a large pool deck with a 368,000-gallon free-form swimming pool. The pool area has undergone several major renovations through the years.
Even with all the upcoming changes, the total surface area of the pools “will stay the same,” Mufson said. But the configuration will change. The remodeled deck will have a kids pool and a kids camp, and feature interactive games and sprinklers.
The hotel will boast a “new waterfront that will be transformed into a family-friendly resort.” Mufson said.
Key new features
Water slides: The hotel currently has one small slide in the children’s pool. After the renovation, it will have six water slides for adults and teenagers and 5 for children.
Number of pools:The hotel currently has 10 pools on the main pool deck. After the changes, it will have five pools, two hot tubs and what it dubs “an immersive kids play park.”
Current square footage of pool: The Bowtie pool is currently 11,770 square feet and will not change. The entire pool deck is about 19,000 square feet and won’t change significantly.
Cabanas for day visits: Beyond the pools, the resort will also add cabanas. This will allow people who don’t want to spend a full night at the hotel to enjoy the amenities.
“Locals are going to get huge benefit out of this as well,” Mufson said.
The cabanas will have televisions and lockers that visitors can rent for the day.
The new renovations could create as many as 500 jobs, Mufson estimated, while cautioning it’s too early to make specific commitments. Some of the jobs he envisions include ride attendants, lifeguards, food and beverage staff, and guest services personnel.
Other renovations started last year and are near completion. All guest rooms in all hotel towers will be redone by September. The spa and gym will also be expanded.
A new convention center opened at the end of 2024. “That allowed us to bring in more people and more groups to Miami Beach,” Mufson said. With the cabanas and kids and family area, “we now want to bring in a new type of guest.”
History of the Fontainebleau
The Fontainebleau was built on the former estate of car tire mogul Harvey Firestone and opened in 1954. The old Firestone mansion was used as a construction office by the Fontainebleau before it was demolished to make way for the pool and gardens. Miami Beach architect Morris Lapidus designed the hotel.
In 2005, South Florida’s Turnberry Associates, the development firm founded in 1969 by Aventura developer Donald Soffer, acquired the Fontainebleau Miami Beach resort. By 2008, the hotel had undergone a $1 billion renovation, including the addition of two towers, the Trésor and Sorrento.
By then, Jeffrey Soffer and Jackie Soffer, son and daughter of Donald, were running Turnberry.
In 2019, the siblings decided to go their separate business ways. Jeffrey Soffer kept the hotels and formed a new company, Fontainebleau Development. That firm owns the Fontainebleau Miami Beach. Jackie Soffer runs Aventura Mall and other real estate developments. Donald Soffer died in July.
Brett Mufson said the hotel hasn’t had a major renovation in more than 15 years.
“It’s time to reinvent what the Fontainebleau is.”
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