At times, Miami feels like a city that only rarely looks to its past, relishing in the shiny newness of shimmering skyscrapers and trendy hot spots. But the Magic City is also full of underappreciated gems like the Selina Miami Gold Dust, located in the burgeoning MiMo District.
Built in 1957 across from the old Playboy Club, the Gold Dust Motel was at the center of what used to be considered the motel capital of Florida. In its heyday in the 1960s, it wasn t uncommon to spot the Rat Pack hanging around the area. A few decades later, the neon sheen of the neighborhood faded when it became Miami s red-light district, with the motels charging on a per-hour basis. Eventually, developers saw the area s potential, with spots like the Vagabond and the New Yorker undergoing extensive renovations and reopening as boutique hotels.