Developers behind Miami’s prestigious Waldorf Astoria have revealed the first look at the 1,049-foot tower’s $50 million penthouse, one of the most expensive units marketed in the city.
The six-bedroom, nine-bathroom property – which spans approximately 13,000 square feet – will sit atop the nine stacked cubes that make up the sky-high building, located on a waterfront in downtown Miami. Its completion is currently planned for 2027 by architect Carlos Ott and the Sieger Suarez firm.
Renderings of the penthouse interior — designed by firm BAMO — show a modern, airy unit with wraparound windows, enclosed balconies, recessed lighting and luxury marble finishes. Rooms include a private gym, spa, library and theater.
And once completed, the penthouse will stand out against the (currently) clear Miami sky. Although a number of skyscrapers are under construction or have been proposed in the South Florida metropolis, the Waldorf Astoria Miami hopes to be the first to stand out.
“Even among the biggest skyscrapers in the world – in Dubai, Hong Kong, New York – there are a lot of towers,” said Ryan Shear, managing partner of building developer PMG. With the Waldorf Astoria Miami, he continued, “you’re at the top of a world-class city.”
With this in mind, the BAMO team worked on the theme of “transcendence” when envisioning the building’s interiors, explained lead designer Anne Wilkinson, which includes the shared amenities of the 460 residences and 205 rooms and building hotel suites.
The Waldorf Astoria brand is known for its mainstays: a large clock in every location, for example, as well as Peacock Alley, a lounge in the historic New York hotel that has since been replicated at its other properties. In Miami, these spaces are meant to evoke a sense of wonder, with Peacock Alley becoming a “veranda” in the sky, she said, with panoramic views on three sides on the 19th and 20th floors.
On these floors, the building’s version of an iconic clock is a three-story pendulum that Wilkinson says no other Waldorf Astoria location “has ever attempted.” From the building’s restaurant on the 21st floor, the pendulum swings down to Peacock Alley, nearly sweeping its 19th floor just 3 feet off the ground.
In the penthouse, Wilkinson said his team took inspiration from the geometric architecture of the exterior in the palette of surfaces and finishes.
“(Carlos Ott) described the skin of the building as this reflective surface…you can imagine each facet of these cubes reflecting a different part of the sky,” she said. “I thought it was a really nice idea, so we incorporated it into the interior. A lot of our colors are ethereal grays and blues, and even transform into nighttime inky colors.”
Although the original Waldorf Astoria on Fifth Avenue in New York is best known for its ornamental Art Deco architecture, Wilkinson believes the Miami iteration’s clean lines and sky-high penthouse fit well into its legacy.
“If you remember when Waldorf was built, Art Deco was pretty avant-garde,” she said. “And so for me, I think Waldorf is more forward-looking. It’s about the design of the moment.”
