When you’re trying to stay at a hotel near an airport, there’s a huge convenience factor to selecting a property that’s connected directly to a terminal. That’s because shuttles otherwise tend to run pretty unreliably. Along those lines, there’s an exciting update for my home airport…
Miami Airport’s new hotel with direct terminal access
The new Westin Miami Airport is expected to open in late 2026 (though given how construction projects usually play out, it could very well be 2027 or 2028). Usually I wouldn’t get too excited about a Westin at an airport, but what makes this property special is that it will be connected directly to the terminal. Specifically, it’ll be connected to the check-in area of Concourse D, which is American Airlines’ home. However, all the check-in areas are only a short walk apart, due to the layout of the airport.
The 451-key property is expected to feature direct access to the terminal, restaurants and bars, a pool, fitness center, and spa, and conference space. The hotel will be located just off the “U” shape roadway along the terminals. As you can see below, the Westin will have quite a modern design, unlike much of the rest of the airport.
Miami Airport actually already has a hotel connected directly to the terminal — the Miami International Airport Hotel — though I’m pretty sure that property was last updated in the 1990s, or something.
For those curious about the economics of this hotel being built on airport property, the owners of the hotel have a 50-year lease, and need to pay $2.58 million or 3.5% of gross revenue annually, whichever number is greater.
By the way, it looks like this project had actually been approved several months back, but I guess I haven’t been following along too closely. I just learned about this project when the airport shared the details on Twitter/X.
The thing about hotels at Miami Airport…
One of my favorite things about living in Miami is how close the airport is to the city. Obviously it depends on where you’re coming from, but a lot of Miami residents are 15 minutes from the airport, and it’s maybe 20 minutes from parts of Miami Beach (assuming it’s not rush hour).
There aren’t many major international airports in the United States with such close proximity to the most populated areas of cities. It’s a night-and-day difference between flying out of Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, etc. It’s also one of the reasons that Miami is such an awesome city for plane spotting, as planes either arrive or depart over Brickell, Miami Beach, etc., all day.
If I just had a quick overnight in New York and didn’t have big plans, it would be logical to stay near the airport, since you’re potentially looking at an hour or longer journey into Manhattan. Meanwhile in the case of Miami, I’ve always thought that there’s not much point in staying at one of the airport hotels that’s not on airport premises, since you can typically get to a nicer part of town in around the same amount of time, with a reasonably priced Uber (our public transportation isn’t good, except in specific areas).
Given how Miami hotel prices have increased in recent years, it seems like many airport hotels are now being used by people vacationing in Miami, when they’re looking for more affordable options. And it’s not a bad idea, necessarily, since you’re not actually that far from most places you’d want to visit.
Anyway, for those actually seeking convenience, this new property connected directly to the terminal will be awesome (though probably also not cheap).
Bottom line
The 451-room Westin Miami Airport is expected to open in late 2026, and will be connected directly to Concourse D. It’s fantastic that the airport will be getting a new modern and convenient hotel, since the current hotel at the airport leaves a lot to be desired.
Unfortunately for the next couple of years, expect that this new hotel will just lead to a major construction zone around the road at the airport, as this is a major project.
What do you make of the new Westin at Miami Airport?
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