Usually when I jetset to South Florida,

my first instinct is to post up in Miami.

Anybody who’s traveled there knows it’s just a vibe, with everything you desire from beaches to brunches just footsteps away.

But this last trip led me to a different part of the coastline into Hollywood. Much different than the Hollywood (California) I landed in just a few years ago, this city is quieter and less pretentious. Perfect for a quick, relaxing stay. Its proximity to bigger cities like Ft. Lauderdale and about a 40-minute ride to Miami made it a good contender for a short stay. It was also a great place to test out Sonder— a company that specializes in boutique apartments and hotel-style accommodations.

I had first learned about Sonder a few years ago while looking up alternatives to hotels and AirBnb’s. After browsing through some of their listings in various cities, I quickly bookmarked the site due to the uniqueness and perceived quality of their rentals. In the words of Forbes, it offers “nightly rentals that (feel) like apartments but (have) the consistency and quality of a hotel.” Perfect for someone who takes their travel accommodations seriously. The downside is that their locations are limited, and sometimes I’m not the one in charge of travel plans. So it would be years before I would get to test them out for myself.

Since my trip was short and the other options a bit expensive, I figured now was a good time to take a leap of faith— sometimes where you stay can be a gamble when traveling. I narrowed down the options to Circ Hotel due to its aesthetic and low cost (we spent $333 total for a two-night stay).

They have an easy-to-use app that provides you with everything from check-in details to recommendations for food, grocery, and more. They also provide customer service, who were quick to get back to me when I was trying to see about early check-in (there’s also an early check-in / later check-out feature built into the app, but it’s not guaranteed that they can accommodate your request).

Finding the place was a breeze, and though we were initially told that we couldn’t check in early, they had a luggage room behind the front desk that allowed us to store our stuff while we went exploring around the area for something to eat (the on-site restaurant wouldn’t open until dinner). Dodging raindrops and deepening puddles, we landed at The Tipsy Boar, which was about a five-minute walk from our room. The music was loud, the drinks just the right mix of flavor with the promise of fun. And within minutes I received a notification that we could check in early.

Back at the hotel, I punched in our code to the room and was surprised that it was actually much nicer than the pictures showed. We had a decent view of the city, and everything was simple, yet clean. The bathroom was really the highlight with a modern luxe aesthetic. A nap was calling me, but laying down meant that I couldn’t promise to get back up before morning. So instead, I flipped open my suitcase and debated which outfit was worthy of warm but wet weather. And although the rain kept us from being able to visit the beach and boardwalk area, we did at least get to see some water via the rooftop pool, which, unfortunately, the rain kept us from enjoying that as well.

I won’t say we were there long enough to get the full experience of what they had to offer, but the first night we went out it looked like the on-site restaurant was packed. The next night we got in pretty late as well, but that morning we sipped oat milk lattes and munched on empanadas (mine a vegan Impossible one) in the little café before heading out to celebrate with some college friends (#HU, You Know!). And from what my friend said the late-night rooftop situation later that evening was lit and bustling with activity. None of which disturbed our sleep.

For a quick getaway, this was definitely one of the better experiences I’ve had with hotels. And I would even come back here again. Hopefully on a sunnier weekend, where I can escape to the beach for some true R&R.