A 451-room Westin hotel planned for Miami International Airport is dead. The FAA rejected the project over concerns that the 150-foot structure would create a radar blind spot, posing a safety risk to aircraft operating at MIA.
Developers had been negotiating a redesign for nearly two years before concluding the project was no longer economically viable. The hotel had been expected to open in 2026 with direct terminal access.
The Westin deal came out of a years-long competitive bidding process. Under the agreed terms, MIA would have received annual payments of $2.5 million or 3.5% of gross revenue, whichever was greater. That revenue now goes with the project.
Airport officials are moving to issue a new request for proposals for a different hotel operator. Given where things stand, any replacement project realistically would not open before 2030 at the earliest.
MIA currently has one airside hotel option — the Miami International Airport Hotel, an aging property connected to the terminal. A new in-terminal sleep pod facility, Wait N’ Rest, has also opened, though it is a limited offering.
The airport is in the middle of a $14 billion modernization program spanning roughly a decade.
