The Biltmore has dominated the Coral Gables skyline since 1926, its 315-foot tower modelled on the Giralda in Seville visible for miles. Built by George Merrick and hotel magnate John McEntee Bowman, the hotel was at the centre of 1920s high society — Judy Garland, the Roosevelts, and Al Capone were all guests. During World War II it served as a military hospital, and it sat abandoned for years before a $55 million restoration in the 1980s.
The grounds are open to visitors. The enormous pool — once the largest in the world — is surrounded by colonnades, and the lobby is worth walking through for its vaulted ceilings and hand-painted frescoes. Free guided tours run on Sundays.
story: > Al Capone had a regular suite at the Biltmore, and the hotel's thirteenth floor is said to be haunted by the ghost of Fatty Walsh, a gangster shot during an illegal casino game in 1929.