Fort lauderdale hotel question

[MsJ]

Hi...this past February was the first time we flew to FL a day ahead of time. I am planning to do that for next years cruise as it made for a much more relaxed embarcation day...this year I booked the hotel and transfers with the TA through Princess......we stayed at the Marriot North...I found things fine but my husband complained because it was far away from the ocean..there were no good restaurants within walking distance and he didnt like having to wait around for the bus to transfer...(gheesh)...I told him if he didnt like it he could do the planning next year..well thats never going to happpen so I am looking for recommendations for hotels in Fort Lauderdale that are near the ocean..within walking distance to restaurants..and could be an easy taxi ride to the port...and that I can book myself.....think I am asking too much:) Thanks for any info anyone might want to share Marianne

I have been searching Hotels.com and Expedia..but I cant seem to figure out which hotels has all three of those things...oh and he won't go to any chain restaurants

[Kineticoh20]

Hi...this past February was the first time we flew to FL a day ahead of time. I am planning to do that for next years cruise as it made for a much more relaxed embarcation day...this year I booked the hotel and transfers with the TA through Princess......we stayed at the Marriot North...I found things fine but my husband complained because it was far away from the ocean..there were no good restaurants within walking distance and he didnt like having to wait around for the bus to transfer...(gheesh)...I told him if he didnt like it he could do the planning next year..well thats never going to happpen so I am looking for recommendations for hotels in Fort Lauderdale that are near the ocean..within walking distance to restaurants..and could be an easy taxi ride to the port...and that I can book myself.....think I am asking too much:) Thanks for any info anyone might want to share Marianne

I have been searching Hotels.com and Expedia..but I cant seem to figure out which hotels has all three of those things...oh and he won't go to any chain restaurants

 

We have stayed at pier 66 and enjoyed it. I think I heard it was renamed. I t is at the marina.

[B and B Rookie Cannucks]

Check out the East Coast Departures link there is a wealth of information about hotels in FLL. :)

[brwneyedgirl72]

If you want to be in walking distance to the beach, you will have to stay down on A1A. The Yankee Clipper is an old standby and is relatively close to the pier. There are a good deal of high end hotel going up right now on Ft. Laud beach, but they are all convenient to the cruise terminal. You can also try Bahia Mar or Bahia Cabana.

[BrianTom]

What are you willing to spend a night? I live in Ft. Lauderdale and once I know your budget I can give you several recommendations.

[Kaye from Chicagoland]

BrianTom -

 

A local - WOOO-HOOOO!

 

What's your opinion on the Fort Lauderdale Grande? I have a temporary reservation there which could be changed - of course. I looked up the Embassy Suites but they are almost $100 more per night.

 

Don't want to chance Priceline or Hotwire. Fort Lauderdale Grande does offer smoking rooms according to the website (yes, my husband still smokes - but not in the house - so it's not a prioity) - don't need to be near the beach - I think from the pictures of the Waterway looks beautiful. Is there a liquor store nearby?

 

Thanks in advance!

[mii]

As one poster mentioned go to the North american Homeports section and then scroll to East Coast Departures. There is a whole thread on just Florida alone. All sorts of info on hotels, shuttles, restaurants, etc.

 

Marilyn

[Celhubb]

The Yankee Clipper is a dump. It is very obvious that the hotel is very old and used. A fresh coat of paint and new moulding just doesn't cut it. The stairwells smell like urinals...and have probably been used as such.

[Sandy R]

We just booked the Ft. Lauderdale Grand for next March. As of Jan. '08, Hilton has spent a ton of money redoing it. Tripadvisor posters seem pleased now the construction is done. And, the photos on the website look good.

 

Brian... would really like your input as a local. What do you think about the Grand?

[CKDoodle]

We stayed at the Yankee TRADER in February and LOVED it!! Right at the beach and lots of restaurants right there!

[Spender Nui]

We just booked the Ft. Lauderdale Grand for next March. As of Jan. '08, Hilton has spent a ton of money redoing it. Tripadvisor posters seem pleased now the construction is done. And, the photos on the website look good.

 

Brian... would really like your input as a local. What do you think about the Grand?

 

Hadn't that been he Marriott? If so we've stayed there several times and always enjoyed it.

[Colo Cruiser]

We have stayed at pier 66 and enjoyed it. I think I heard it was renamed. I t is at the marina.

 

 

I don't think it is renamed, still the Hyatt Pier 66.

 

The Marriott Marina was sold and renamed the Grand or something similar and it is at the opposite end of the bridge from the Pier 66. :)

[SHIPMEOUT]

We stayed at the Yankee TRADER in February and LOVED it!! Right at the beach and lots of restaurants right there!

 

Just got this off the Yankee Trader website:

 

"The Sheraton Yankee Trader Hotel will close officially on June 1, 2008 and undergo a property-wide, multi-million dollar rejuvenation, with plans to re-open brandishing its new Westin flag in February 2009. Guests looking for a fantastic Fort Lauderdale Beach vacation are invited to reserve a room at the Sheraton Yankee Trader’s sister property, the Sheraton Yankee Clipper Hotel, located just 1.5 miles south on Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard."

 

Cindy

[Kaye from Chicagoland]

We just booked the Ft. Lauderdale Grand for next March. As of Jan. '08, Hilton has spent a ton of money redoing it. Tripadvisor posters seem pleased now the construction is done. And, the photos on the website look good.

 

Brian... would really like your input as a local. What do you think about the Grand?

 

Ditto! Is there a liquor store near this property?

[Rob & Beckys mom]

We stay at the Renaissance Hotel on 17th street. Hotwire is ok, but be sure to get a good price as they change several times a day. Just ask for a 4 star hotel in the Las Olas area & you will get Renaissance hotel for around $135 a night. Everything is right there, grocery store, liquor/wine, restaurants & the water taxi. If you are not comfortable using Hotwire call and book your own room, Princess charges per person NOT per room.

 

Jan

[shofer]

You don't say what time of year you are going. Florida in February is very pricey and if you are there during Super Bowl week, forget it! We were also @ the Marriott North this past February and really enjoyed it. We did miss being able to find a liquor store nearby but thought the restaurants were ok for casual dining for one night.

 

I don't like crowds or lines so I am fine with boarding the ship a little later so we can check in immediately and walk right on. The bus transfer only took 20 minutes to get to the pier.

[Vanilla]

We like the Embassy Suites on 17th street. Right in front of a grocery store/mall/liquor store.... across the street are lots of restaurants - all within walking distance. Full service breakfast and a free booze party in the evenings. Nice hotel, nice pool....10 minutes from the air port and 10 minutes to the cruise port.

[Toto2Kansas]

We like the Embassy Suites on 17th street. Right in front of a grocery store/mall/liquor store.... across the street are lots of restaurants - all within walking distance. Full service breakfast and a free booze party in the evenings. Nice hotel, nice pool....10 minutes from the air port and 10 minutes to the cruise port.

 

I agree, the Embassy Suites is always our first choice for a pre or post cruise stay in Fort Lauderdale. They have it all, including great two room suites. Close enough to the water taxi to walk if you don't mind a little walking, and close to restaurants and shopping. A nice pool also.

In fact, we just booked it for two nights before our cruise in January.

[royalcruz]

The Fort Lauderdale Grande is a nice hotel on the west side of the 17th Street Causeway Bridge. There are a few restaurants within 2 blocks, including Fish (expensive), China Grill (expensive), Bistro 17 (expensive), Bimini Boatyard (casual, moderate), Bravo's (moderate), Chef's Pallete (moderate). It is a block away from the port extrance. Total Wine and Spirits is about a mile west, but I don't know of any closer liquour stores. The beach is a short drive east. The Harbor Beach Marriott is probably the closest beachfront hotel to the port. It is kind of isolated but does have a spa and a great restaurant called 3030. I would expect it to cost less to stay there than the fancy new hotels.

[telephoneman52]

I like to use tripadvisor.com the hotels are ranked and you can get the cost from all of the on line sites. It also has flights and resturants on it. I hope this is ok to say that name.

[mollyanne]

I like to use tripadvisor.com the hotels are ranked and you can get the cost from all of the on line sites. It also has flights and resturants on it. I hope this is ok to say that name.

 

It is! TripAdvisor owns Cruise Critic!;)

[cruiselifers]

She can not do any Marriott's, they are all smoke free. Also if the Yankee Clipper re-opens in time as the Westin she can not use that either as all Westins are smoke free as well.

To the OP, before you actually make the reservation I would suggest you call the hotel you want to make the reservation in and make sure that they do really have smoking rooms. If that is a deal breaker for you, do not depend on the Website because they are often incorrect and outdated. We ran into that this year with the Holiday Inn were we actually reserved a smoking room, and I printed out my confirmation and brought it, only to walk into a totally smoke free hotel. This was in January, kind of tough to find another half way decent hotel in Ft Lauderdale in January last minute.

Good luck.

[MsJ]

Hi..I wanted to say thanks for all the info....about FLL hotels......I have been sick and was unable to get back here for a while...I am going to look at the Embassy Suites and the Grande for now.....we are off tonight to The Keys so have been wraped up in that trip.....so I will be getting back to cruise planning in a few days..Thanks again.. Marianne

[blindrid]

The Yankee Clipper is a dump. It is very obvious that the hotel is very old and used. A fresh coat of paint and new moulding just doesn't cut it. The stairwells smell like urinals...and have probably been used as such.

 

I think this is a bit strong. We stayed there a few weeks ago and it worked fine. It needed a bit of TLC (which they are begining to do). It was fine, clean and the location was good - across the street from a beach and walking distance to some nightlife. Water taxi is also walkable also. Neighborhood liquor store is a few blocks away.

 

They had smoking rooms but my wife prefers non-smoking so I had to walk on the beach to have a cig. Tough break ......

[purplefan01]

CKdoodle - is the Yankee Trader part of marriott or something like that?