Hadn't thought to ask here yet...Not sure why I didn't think of you guys.

We are flying into FT lauderdale the day before our cruise and we also are flying out a full day after our cruise returns (we got cheaper rates waiting a day)

We would like to find a hotel in lauderdale that fits some basic requirements for hubby and I and I can't tell from websites etc. Maybe those of you that use the area alot have some suggestions of good and stay away places? I won't hold anyone to their recommendations I just need a starting block. this is the only part of the trip hubby left me to and I am stuck. Ok what we'd like/need:

NEED:Someplace that we can get reasonable priced or free transport from Airport to hotel. AND hotel to port the next day.

Someplace very nice. And by that I mean nicer than comfort inn. Like maybe radisson, hampton, level but doesn't have to be a name brand. And my reason is this. Hubby stays in hotels alot. He has literally worked his tail off this year and has put alot into getting this trip going. He surprised me with a grand suite and about the only thing he asked for was a nice hotel. (But we have to be realistic- there are 6 of us going (aka 2 rooms ) so price will have to be considered.

One more hubby request was possibly the day we come back in something close to or on the beach.

We have never been to Fort Lauderdale so we are totally clueless on this. ANY help would be appreciated.

TIA

Shelby,
Maybe this website will help you. Look here.

Thanks. I guess I'll just have to take a blind stab at a hotel. I thought with some people that cruise 50+ times like Dave and Sonny that I could get some first person real comments rather than embellished ads. But they shelved my post here and its like a ghost town. I do appreciate your like. At least its something.

Thanks

Shelby, please take advantage of the countless discussions like this one in the past by doing a search (see "Find" at the top of the first message in this thread). Type in Ft. Lauderdale hotels and you'll see the start of several discussions that could be of help to you.

Dave and Sonny read this section, although, like all of us, they may not get to this section every day. Being an Administrator and a Moderator, respectively, they would have also moved your original message to this appropriate section, and would not have left it in the "Royal Caribbean" section.

Thank you for your understanding.

Sandy

Hi Shelby,

When I book a cruise out of Miami or Ft. Lauderdale, I check hotel prices in Miami and Ft. Lauderdale. Sometimes the price difference is more than what the shuttle prices are. I found priceline.com has always been the best for me. You can a general idea of what the price is for 3 or 4 star hotels, then but a bid in for a 4 star hotel at a 3 star price. However, I alway book a hotel to make sure I have a place to stay, then I start bidding on priceline. Usually one or two weeks prior to the date I want is when I get great price on a hotel. You can select the area you want to stay in, and if you bid on a four star, you can't go wrong. Hotels.com is a great site to get prices on hotels. Free shuttle service both from the airport, and to the port, will be hard to find. If you hire a taxi, it's only about $20 tip included, either from the airport, or from a hotel near the port. I hope this answers your question.

Sonny

This doesn't answer the "close to the beach" requirement but, when I sail out of Ft Lauderdale, I always stay at the Embassy Suites. Free breakfast, free cocktails in the early evening and a number of places walking distance to eat. They will pick you up at the airport and the shuttle from the hotel to the dock is free. I've tried a couple of other places but frankly I find Embassy Suites had to beat (and you get Hilton plus airline points)!

Another perq is that in the morning (depending on the location of your suite) you can see your ship waiting for you!

Shelby, close to the beach there are countless numbers of hotels. The Sheraton Yankee Clipper has part of the hotel on the beach. There is the Sheraton Yankee Trader, the Sea Breeze, the TropiRock, the Rui, there's one in Bahia Mar (can't remember the name), etc. If you go to a priceline, expedia or something like that, most of the addresses on A1A will be across from the beach. The Embassy Suites, the Renaissance, the Hyatt Pier 66, Comfort Inn Suites, etc. with an address on 17th street causeway will be near the port. You can catch local buses to the beach from 17th street causeway for $1/pp each way. The water taxi is $10/pp per day and there is a stop at the Hyatt Pier 66 as well as the Grand, which are in walking distance from the Renaissance and Embassy Suites. The cab fare from the airport to any of the hotels on 17th street should be no more than $20, the fare to the port from the airport should be no more than $10, the fare from a hotel on 17th street to the pier should be no more than $10. From a hotel on the beach the fare should be around $20 if you stay below Sunrise Boulevard. Hope this helps.

Hello,

We are going on a transatlantic cruise in April of 2008 and we have a reservation at the Cypress Creek Courtyard by Marriott. The party consists of two couples. We sailed out of Fort Lauderdale once before, and we have been on 20 cruises. However, this is the first time we are going with another couple.

As this hotel is in the north part of Fort Lauderdale, I plan on renting a car at FLL.

My questions...are there places to park at the Port Everglades cruise terminal while we go through Embarkatiion (you can do this in San Diego and it works really well), and then return the car to FLL.

OR should we use Go transportation (a van and town car transportation company) from FLL to the hotel and the next day use this company to go to the cruise terminal.

Any suggestions on this willbe greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Fred

Hi Fred, we stayed up in the Cypress Creek Marriott once and rented a car. It was a mess trying to get the car back and catch the shuttle. I wanted to drop my hubby off at the port with our luggage, then take the car back and take the shuttle back to the pier. It turned out that I would have had to pay for another day car rental because I couldn't get the car back before the turn-in time. So I ended up turning in the car the night before and having to pay a cab to transport me back to the hotel because the rental car shuttle wouldn't go that far. I wanted the car because I was born and raised in Ft. Lauderdale, so I wanted to go around the area and show my hubby my schools, old houses, etc. It turned out to be such a mess, but you're so far from anything cab fare is expensive. If y'all don't mind eating Marriott food, then the Go transportation might not be a bad idea. However, since there will be enough of you to watch the luggage and stand in lines, you should be ok dropping them off at the pier and taking the car back. Just make sure you have a lot of time to do it, the shuttle may not take you back to the port, you might have to get a cab which can take a while. We rented through Enterprise and Budget. I believe it was Enterprise that would take us to the port and Budget wouldn't. Best wishes and good luck!

Hello,

Thank you for the excellent advice. I will check with Alamo to see if there is a shuttle from their facility to the port. In addition to the taxis, I would think that there is local bus transportation serving the ports and cruise terminals.

We stayed at the Cypress Creek Courtyard several years ago. Is it still a very nice place?

Fred

quote:

Originally posted by shelby:
NEED:Someplace that we can get reasonable priced or free transport from Airport to hotel. AND hotel to port the next day.
TIA

A few hotels that fit your criteria are the LaQuinta Inn & Suites in Hollywood, Sleep Inn & Suites in Dania, The Hampton Inn and Suites in Plantation. All offer free pickup at the airport, free transport to the cruiseport with free breakfast thrown in.

The Marriott is still very nice, just not close to anything. But the rooms, service, and property are still very nice.

I understand the cost savings many see when looking for a hotel for pre or post cruise stays. But I have found especially in Ft Lauderdale the taxi service is dependable and reasonable. The pros and cons are many, but I find using my own transportion, rather than a shuttle has many advantages. I arrive at the port and receive excellent curbside service from the RCI handlers, and am not part of an entire bus of passengers unloading at one time. When I depart, the same holds true, there is a dedicated taxi line, and I can be at the airport while a bus is still loading passengers. I can keep better track of my luggage, to and from the ship. (Althoough the airlines have lost my luggage, over a DOZEN times, but always on the way home froma cruise...hmmm.) I shop for a hotel that meets my needs and allow $$$ for private transportation, because it is less congested that way.

We ended up staying at the Comfort Inn /Hollywood on Stirling road the night before. It was like $80 but we had to get 2 rooms. The lobby was very nice but the rooms reminded me of the old strip motels at the Jersey Shore in the 70's, peeling paint, musty smell, 30 year old tv. So we booked the Hampton next door for the way back. Both provided transportation that was reliable. The only bad thing was our flight was delayed coming in and we arrived at 9 pm not realizing they have sign up times for shuttles to port ---our plan to arrive around 11 am turned into them promising us we would leave the hotel at 12:30. We finally had to do some fanagling to get them to take us earlier and the kicker was that shuttle had a dozen empty seats.
The hampton was much nicer and of course more expensive and I disagree with the comment I saw someone made about taxi service in Ft Lauderdale. We paid $120 to get the 6 of us to and from the beach.( and we had to beg a taxi to return us to the hotel)
Maybe I'm too country but that was ridiculous. I could have rented a car for less.