The group decided to take the Latin route into the United States when it opened the Pestana Miami South Beach in 2012. Housed in an Art Deco building steeped in history, a tricky start gave way to a happy ending.
With the Pestana Hotel Group thriving in Brazil, looking further north was inevitable. The United States’ market was seen as very tough, but Miami seemed more accessible, with its familiar beach culture and Latin spirit. In the early 2010s, Dionísio Pestana and development officer José Roquette discovered a beautiful Art Deco building, soon closing the deal and giving the order for construction to begin on the Pestana Miami South Beach.
The façade offers a clear indication of its style and era, with curved-cornered balconies and coloured ironwork. The architect was L. Murray Dixon, an important Miami Beach figure of the 1930s, and one of those responsible for some of the white buildings with blue features commonly found on the beachside avenues. Dixon designed the building to be the Miljean Hotel, which operated until the Second World War, when it became an Air Force barracks.
Just days before work began on the new project, José Roquette received a message in Lisbon. It was from the project architect and simply contained a link to a news story: the recently acquired building had burnt down. While the wooden interiors had been destroyed, the emblematic façade survived and remains preserved with its marble feature and simple mermaid. This was the first time a Pestana had ever risen from the ashes.
Pestana Miami
South Beach
A Pestana hotel in Miami housed in an Art Deco building with a rich history.