I’ve stayed in my share of the various Marriott brands, but a recent trip to Miami offered the chance to try out the AC brand, in the tony suburb of Aventura, conveniently located between Miami and Ft. Lauderdale and near plentiful shopping.

My first impression of the property was genuine surprise—the bright, spacious lobby was clean and modern, but not remotely sterile, thanks to touches of warm honey-colored wood. Funky lighting and beautiful artwork added more character to each space. I could imagine this as a high-end hotel in the center of Barcelona or Buenos Aires.

AC Hotel Miami Aventura, which is not yet one year old, has 233 guestrooms with city or water views, a fully stocked fitness center, an outdoor pool with adjacent bar and five meeting rooms. Our room featured a sleek, minimalist design and included a large flat screen TV, small fridge, sitting area complete with couch and a working desk. The walk-in shower was gorgeous, with textured walls and top-mounted sliding doors made from a faintly greenish frosted glass.

Some rooms have a typical American layout, but a select number have a European flair. These feature a more open feel, with the bathroom basically deconstructed. One door separates the room from the shower and another from the toilet. The wash basin and a thin mirror are open to the rest of the room, making it feel more spacious. Director of Sales & Marketing Claudia Passamonti told me that they’ve found the design to be most popular with European and Latin American guests.

While AC doesn’t have a traditional full-service restaurant, there’s an optional European buffet breakfast served daily that was wonderful. The selection of quiches was delightful, and the croissants were among the best I’ve had outside of Europe. Eggs, juice, fruit, yogurt and other buffet regulars were also offered. A special “breakfast scramble,” which consisted of a slice of bread topped with scrambled eggs, cheese and prosciutto could be ordered from the very attentive staff members.

On our second morning, one staff member insisted we try a tasty concoction of chia seeds soaked in coconut milk, topped with a sort of mango jam—amazing.

In the evening, the lobby bar is a hive of activity, although guests also spread out to the various seating areas arrayed around the ground floor. A nice selection of tapas is available, along with a decent wine list and some fun specialty cocktails.

A decade or so ago, the trend of integrating televisions into mirrors (generally in guestroom bathrooms) was all in vogue among some hotels. It was a silly waste of money and a trend I was glad to see fade away. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that the AC hotel had integrated large screen TVs into a couple mirrored walls near the lobby bar. Finally, an application for this technology that makes sense. Bar patrons gathered around one of the TVs to watch the Winter Olympics in the evening, but in the daytime, the TVs were either off or didn’t come across as obnoxious or intrusive in the same space.

AC Miami Aventura impressed me in one final area—the staff. Sometimes, during a stay, you’ll encounter an employee whose helpfulness, attitude or spirit really catches you by surprise and greatly improves your whole experience. I can’t recall the last time I had multiple such encounters during a hotel visit. But here, three employees—from the front desk, breakfast area and the lobby bar—all made an impression on me and left me eager to come back.

Great design is nice, but if it’s not backed up with great people, the concept will eventually fail. AC Hotel Aventura is certainly shining on both fronts.