FLL - Lots of Questions! Hotel/Transport/Group Dinner/Water Taxi

[Ariyel]

Hello! I've been reading tons of threads here and I can't say enough how great all the information is!

 

I'm trying to make some decisions for our pre-cruise night and day and thought I'd ask for advice, opinion, and input from all of you lovely folks. I'm wordy, so my apologies for the long post!

 

Here are all my dilemmas:

 

1. Hotel for 1 night pre-cruise. The problem/challenge - our 1 night pre-cruise happens to be November 6 (departing November 7), 2015. This is right in the middle of the big Boat Show ... which I didn't find out about until just recently. Oops. Due to the Boat Show, the usual suspect hotels which are most recommended are either sold out or sky high. I think we've decided that it's more practical to stay on the SW side of the airport (Stirling Road and 95 area) since there are some reasonable rooms there still.

 

I'm debating between the Quality Inn and the SpringHill Suites there. Any input? Prices are pretty comparable (around $150 for Friday night).

 

The other option would be to stay much further north (i.e. Lauderdale-by-the-Sea or Cypress Creek areas). That seemed like it would make getting there from the airport and back to the port the next day a real hassle though.

 

2. Group Dinner. We are cruising with a group of 19 people, but everyone is making their own arrangements. I thought it would be nice to have a group dinner for those who are in FLL the night prior to the cruise. Suggestions for a place that can handle a group well, especially during the boat show? It seems like most suggestions are more NE of the airport (near Las Olas/17th St. areas). Extra credit for transportation solutions for this many people who won't have cars!

 

3. Water Taxi during Boat Show. I had seen a post mentioning that the water taxi service was changed/interrupted during the boat show. Does anyone have any info on that? I looked at the boat show website and the water taxi website but didn't see anything about it.

 

Thanks for reading this far and for any input/advice you can give!!

[oncruisecontrol]

Have you checked out Homewood Suites on Griffin Rd in Dania Beach on the south side of the airport? Or the new Residence Inn on Anglers Ave in Dania Beach? Regarding the group dinner, not sure of your budget, but The Rustic Inn Crab House on Ravenswood Rd can handle a large group. But it is a famous place and a little pricey, but it is seafood. Tropical Acres Steakhouse on Griffin Road can probably handle a large group also. These restaurants would be convenient if you stay in a hotel south of the airport.

Edited June 28, 2015 by oncruisecontrol

[Ariyel]

Have you checked out Homewood Suites on Griffin Rd in Dania Beach on the south side of the airport? Or the new Residence Inn on Anglers Ave in Dania Beach? Regarding the group dinner, not sure of your budget, but The Rustic Inn Crab House on Ravenswood Rd can handle a large group. But it is a famous place and a little pricey, but it is seafood. Tropical Acres Steakhouse on Griffin Road can probably handle a large group also. These restaurants would be convenient if you stay in a hotel south of the airport.

 

Thanks for the ideas Oncruisecontrol!!

 

Just checked out Homewood Suites (it has available rooms but they show at $250/night) and the Residence Inn is fully booked up, but it was definitely worth looking into.

 

Thanks especially for the restaurant suggestions! I was struggling to find good ideas on the South/West sides of the airport. Tropical Acres looks especially promising (we have a few non-seafood eaters in our group, so I think they'd feel very limited at the Rustic Crab Inn). I really appreciate your post!

[BlueHerons]

I think the Stirling Road area is a good idea.

 

The Water Taxi is used as an actual taxi/ferry system during the boat show and it only does pick up and drop offs and suspends its service.

 

I highly recommend attending the boat show. You'll never see as many mega yachts (yachts over 100 feet) in your life again. You'll see private yachts up to 450 feet. There are also great food and beverage options. I've attended the boat show before and never made it past the bar!

 

A good restaurant that can accommodate your group would be Cheesecake Factory on Las Olas. It will fit everyone's needs.

 

http://www.showmanagement.com/fort_lauderdale/event/

[oncruisecontrol]

Glad to be of some help. The hotels you originally asked about are near a shopping center called Oakwood Plaza. There are several casual restaurants in this plaza such as TGI Fridays, The Ale House, Red Lobster, and Sweet Tomatoes(this is a buffet). I believe all of these could accommodate a group of 19 persons.

 

Another hotel option in the area would be Cambria Suites in Dania Beach, which is right off of Stirling Road near the Oakwood Plaza shopping center. Or also Marriott Courtyard on Gulf Stream Way in Dania Beach. This hotel is in walking distance of Islamorada Fish Company restaurant which is at Bass Pro Shops. It is a seafood restaurant, but they also have burgers, chicken sandwiches, pasta, etc.

[oncruisecontrol]

I think the Stirling Road area is a good idea.

 

The Water Taxi is used as an actual taxi/ferry system during the boat show and it only does pick up and drop offs and suspends its service.

 

I highly recommend attending the boat show. You'll never see as many mega yachts (yachts over 100 feet) in your life again. You'll see private yachts up to 450 feet. There are also great food and beverage options. I've attended the boat show before and never made it past the bar!

 

A good restaurant that can accommodate your group would be Cheesecake Factory on Las Olas. It will fit everyone's needs.

 

http://www.showmanagement.com/fort_lauderdale/event/

 

Re the highlighted bit: Agreed. However on a Friday night there may be a long wait at The Cheesecake Factory to seat a party of that size. And the OP mentioned a transportation issue if they stay south of the airport.

[DanJ]

How much time do you have on the Friday after your flight lands? It's amazing how time flies on that day, especially if you arrive in the afternoon. We have stayed in the Stirling/95 area a few times and recommend it as well. However, once you are there, you are basically there, as it's no where near the rest of the stuff you are talking about. For those 2 hotels you mentioned and at those prices, the Springhill Suites is a no brainer. Book your room before you start suggesting it to your travel partners, as I suspect the rate will climb as they start booking. There are several restaurants in the Oakwood Plaza across the road, Hollywood Ale House and TGI Fridays are 2 that come to mind, that would be able to accommodate your group, although getting you all together might take a wait.

[BlueHerons]

Re the highlighted bit: Agreed. However on a Friday night there may be a long wait at The Cheesecake Factory to seat a party of that size. And the OP mentioned a transportation issue if they stay south of the airport.

 

Oops! I misread. I thought the OP was asking for restaurants on Las Olas specifically.

 

Hollywood Ale House would be a good pick.

[Ariyel]

Thank you for the great feedback, it's super helpful!

 

I'm going to try to respond to each person's post here, so bear with me!

 

BlueHerons - thank you for the input on the Stirling Road area and for the info on the water taxi! Knowing the water taxi will not be running as normal is super helpful so we're not taken by surprise on that. Thanks for the input on the boat show too, I think it might be fun and might as well get the benefit of being there during the show!

 

Oncruisecontrol - thank you for more restaurant ideas! We actually have almost all of those same restaurants here in California, with the exception of the Hollywood Ale House, which I'll check out! My group can be a little hard to find the right spot for - as a general rule they're not big on chains, but at the same time it's hard to find a place that can accommodate a big group that's NOT a chain!

 

I did look into the other hotel options you mentioned - the Cambria Suites shows as sold out for the night I'm looking at. The Courtyard by Marriott on Gulf Stream is a great suggestion and I'm adding it to my list for my friends!

 

DanJ - It depends! I think we may end up coming in on a red-eye, so we'd have literally all day from 6:30 AM on (after getting to hotel and dropping bags with the bell desk). It looks like, due to the boat show, there may be some extra shuttles running to get us to more active places and we could always go check out the yachts as BlueHerons suggested!

 

If we take a "during the day" flight, then a lot of this planning is moot because we'll just be getting to the hotel, sleeping, and getting up and leaving the next day on our cruise.

 

So after all the hotel researching, I happened on a great deal (at least I think so)! I ended up booking at the Hyatt Place on Stirling (basically next to the SpringHill Suites I had been looking at) for only about $10 more. TripAdvisor reviews were very favorable, so I went ahead and jumped on it.

 

If anyone has good or bad input on the Hyatt Place on Stirling, please let me know also.

 

Thanks again for all the great feedback!

[DanJ]

That Hyatt Place us much newer, maybe 5-ish years old, where the Springhill Suites is one of the original hotels at that highway intersection. Both are great at the prices you were quoted for a high demand date. I don't know about shuttles to the boat show or downtown from this area, the hotel can tell you info on that. The shuttles and water taxis mentioned above are in and around the Boat show itself, which covers the area from the convention center at the port and northeast up 17th to Seabreeze to Las Olas area.