FT. lAUDERDALE Hotel On Beach?????????

[nomie]

I have asked this before but no one seens to know. I would like a hotel that is right on the beach for a pre-cruise(3day)stay. Nothing fancy but clean and nice that is within walking distance to stores and restaurants. Would like to try priceline but it says beach area. Yankee Clipper looks nice as does Doubletree but Holiday Inn does not. Anybody have any ideas as to a place to stay that is not too much$$$ or a way to bid and get that hotel right on the beach?

[dosi]

Actually Host Chris stayed at the Holiday Inn via Priceline and said it was quite nice and a great deal considering the price he paid on Priceline. I would just pick 3 star beach area in Priceline and bid around $50 and take what comes up. If you are right on the beach it can never be that bad now can it?? :o

[crsshiplover]

I just got the Hyatt 66 for $80 11/12/04 on PL. It is noted as 4* beach. It is not right on the beach, maybe a mile or so away. I do know I can take the water taxi for $5 all day or buy a 3-day pass for maybe $10 and then if you get off at the Bahia stop, it is just across the street. I've stayed at the Clipper and it was nice. Are you a Starwood member? If so, they have a promo right now for points and cash.

[crsshiplover]

BTW, I didn't bid for a 3* on the beach because I was afraid of the HI.

[arlenemilt]

Marriott Harbor Beach Resort has been coming up on Priceline. Suggest you read biddingfortravel.com to see if that's still true. You don't bid for a hotel; you bid for a resort. That's the only one that used to come up and it's magnificent.

 

Arlene

[nomie]

I think there are a lot of hotels in the beach area but not right on the beach. If Cris stayed at the HI and liked it then it cannot be that bad. I just read some reviews on it but they could be old. I hope Cris reads this and maybe commit's on it. As for the Marriot Harbor,we stayed there last year and it is beautiful but it is not near anything and the restaurants are very pricy. I was looking at the Hyatt66 but that is probably just as pricy. I would not mind either one of these places but my boyfriend hates fancy places and hates to walk too far.

[mariapd719]

Sheraton Yankee Trader - across the street from beach but has a bridge to walk over to the beach and very close to restaurants and shoping and nightlife

[CruiseFever]

Ok the Holiday Inn is not a luxury property. In fact it's a solid 3 star but no more. The big draw there is the price and location, neither can really be beat.

 

One of the cool things about this hotel, right across the street from the ocean, is that ALL the rooms face the ocean. The side of the hotel that faces away from it has no windows.

 

We've stayed here twice and it's pretty easy to nail down on hotwire, not so easy to nail down on priceline. See Burbunny (Amber) at http://www.biddingfun.com or go to http://www.biddingfortravel.com and do some homework. I do that before every bid. Did you read how crsshiplover (above) got the Hyatt? Both those sites are full of information just like that.

 

The hotel does have room service and a restaurant which are both quite adequate. Excellent Blueberry Pancakes in the coffee shop. Around the corner is Primanti Brothers Pizza, a 24 hour NY style place that is awesome and the Blue Fish Restaurant a little pricey for what it is but chock full of local flavor. Right around the corner is a little ice cream parlor that is one of the big reasons we're moving to Florida next year.

 

There's a guy that runs this place who's a delight to just stop and talk to. You'll find him on a chair out front of the hole in the wall place when there's no customers, watching the whole scene backdropped by a breathtaking (for this Kansas kid anyway) ocean view. Inside he scoops up ice cream just inside a big picture window that allows him to keep that same scenery in sight at all times. A transplant from the tough streets of Detroit, he welcomes toursts and locals alike who seem to all delight in the simplicity of his job and outlook on life. You'll just have to stop by.

 

The rooms themselves are standard Holiday Inn fare but, like a lot of hotels in the area, including the Yankee twins, old. They're well maintained but have a lot of miles on them.

 

But located on busy A1A, a land cruising, people watching attraction in and of itself, the Holiday Inn is right in there with all the action. We've stayed all up and down the street and I only liked the Yankee Clipper better as it is one of the few that is actually right ON the ocean in the area. Most are across the street like the Holiday Inn.

[nomie]

Thanks so much Chris and everyone else. Now I am not afraid to bid on priceline. Will do that tonight.Yes I have read the recommended websites(for days now) so now I feel ready. Will post results after I bid.

[Adamcruises4life]

I stayed at the Marriott Beach Place Towers right on Fort Lauderdale Beach. It was absolutely beautiful. We had a one bedroom suite - included a seperate bedroom with a jacuzzi tub, a bathroom with shower, a living room, balcony, and a fully equipped kitchen. We stayed here for 3 days and it was well worth the money. The hotel had a beautiful pool, hot tubs, games room (w/ arcade), convenience store, underground parking, and a roof-top lounge (with a tv and pool tables), and much more. Also, it was located in the Beach Place ... a Fort Lauderdale Beach meeting spot ... a couple floors of beach stores, beach bars & restuarants, and a courtyard for entertainment. It was right on the beach and on the most popular blvd. in Fort Lauderdale ... the beach strip here is amazing!

[twocats]

Care to state the price? Priceline, direct or internet reservations?

[Adamcruises4life]

Care to state the price? Priceline, direct or internet reservations?

 

I think we paid around $200 CAD / night ... I just went on their website and a 1 bedroom suite is listed for $200 US / night now ... I booked this hotel with my travel agent ... which I believe are still the best resource for everything! ... We would have had to pay $300 CAD if we would have booked directly through Marriott .. this hotel is a little bit more because it is part of the Marriott Vacation Club Resorts.

[Adamcruises4life]

I just went on their website and a 1 bedroom suite is listed for $200 US / night now ...

 

Actually ... a one bedroom GUEST ROOM is listed for $200 US / night .... we had a "1 Bedroom, 1 Bathroom VILLA" which is currently listed for $275 US / night ... so we paid $200 CAD for the villa in peak season .. so we did get an excellent deal!

 

Here is the website ...

 

http://marriott.com/property/propertyPage.mi?marshaCode=FLLBP

[Tina0922]

Places on FLL Beach include: Marriott Harbour Beach Resort, Sheraton Yankee Clipper Hotel, Sheraton Yankee Trader Hotel, Radisson Bahia Mar, Double Tree Hotel, The brand new Atlantic (a resort I believe), Holiday Inn, and Howard Johnson. All of these are right on the beach and walking distance to shops and resturants....some just longer walks than others.

 

Hope this helps. Any question I will be happy to help assist.

 

Tina

[nomie]

OK, I finally went on priceline and bid $50.00 for a 3*hotel on the beach and was turned down. :( I thought this was reasonable after reading what other people bid. Wonder why my bid was not accepted. Should I try for a 2* or up my price more? I did up it to $55.00 but that didn't work either. It just said to change something but what? I want the beach area.

[crsshiplover]

When are you bidding for?

[nomie]

Nov 3 to Nov 6. Nothing going on at that time I don't think.

[crsshiplover]

Yeah, the boat show is over the 1st, and I'm not aware of anything else. I can tell you I bid up to $77 for the downtown and beach area for a 4* and got denied. I bid 3* downtown $71 and got denied. I bid $83 for a 3* downtown and got denied. I finally got a 4* for $80 on the beach. That was for 11/12. I wouldn't be surprised if you have to go a bit over $50. It is getting to be high season then. Good luck.

[Cruisin' Lisa]

We liked the Holiday Inn. adequate, not fancy.

 

Just stayed there this past weekend post Carib Princess cruise for our family of 6. Got it on Priceline for Aug 28-30 for $50/night. Got 2 double beds on the 12th floor. Saw Seabiscuit on their TV and watched closing ceremeonies of the Olympics.

 

Ate at Primanti Pizzeria's twice --got a 18 in cheese pizza for $11. Got $1 Hot dogs for the kids at the 7-11 one block away, and ice cream and slurpies there too. My Husband and I went on a date and ate at Blue Fish and had coupons for free drinks, I got halibit and he got ribs and it cost $31 for 2 people, including the drinks ( free rum and coke and Kalhua and cream) plus $5 tip.

 

Went to Galleria Mall. Had a 3 day water taxi pass for $10/each. Went to Riverfront area and found this awesome place called Max's Grill right there that has lunches EVERYday for $3.99 each including salmon/mashed potatos/vegie or chicken club too big to finish or a mahimahi burger, or 8 oz sirloin burger. Cost for the six of us was $26 before tax--can't beat that even going to McDonalds.

 

Enjoyed being able to walk across the street literally to the beach and swim in the warm Atlantic ocean, as opposed to the cold Pacific ocean where we live.

 

Had a great time post cruise in FLL, and wish we were still there. . sigh.

[nomie]

Did you get the Hyatt 66? I just might try that. $80.00 is not bad at all for a 4*

[crsshiplover]

Yes, I did. I think that is the only 4* in that area. Do you know about using bid zones that don't have 4*s? You might try $77-78-79. I did 3 rooms w/$5 insurance each and the grand total was $292.26, so I'd guess you'd end up paying $92 or so on an $80 win.

[twocats]

Love the idea of the coupons, where did you find them? Would they be in any tourist magazines? :confused:

[Cruisin' Lisa]

Found the coupons for free drink (beer, house wine or well drink -- of which rum/coke and kalhua /cream were considered a well drink) at the Doubletree lobby which is where we got the water taxi (water taxi stop #3). . .probably could get the coupons at any major FLL hotel.

[twocats]

Thanks so much for the answer, we will be on the lookout.

[jeniceglassman]

Nomie, I booked the Howard Johnson for $56 back in Feb for this October. We had actually stayed next door to it several cruises ago. You might want to check it out. On the beach without the $$$ price.