The Area was very family friendly and th pepole was wery welcoming.
The hotels was of a wery varying standard and it was a lot to save by "shopping around" befor deciding.
All in all - it is a place to recomend!

South Florida has undergone many transformations over the past few decades. It is a great destination for all types of travelers regardless of what appeals to you. Of course one of the biggest reasons that people visit Florida is the sunshine and beaches. For those of us who may be, shall we say, lack that perfect gym body not to worry, great news for all of us. Ft Lauderdale is a great place to go if you wish a more laid back relaxed beach experience. To the south you have the much more glamerous and hip beaches in Miami. To the north you have Palm Beach with its mansions and such. The great thing about Ft Lauderdale is that you can access both by car and it is fairly convenient. This allows for all members of your travel family to choose from this wide range of tastes. However if you just want to relax and enjoy the sun and sand without the worry about how you look, this is it. Ft Lauderdale has a midwestern feel to it, the residents are friendly folks with easy smiles and attitudes. The beaches themselves are kept fastidiously clean. There is a wide variety of people of all ages and sizes and shapes on the beach. You do not feel out of place no matter what your looks or style. It is the perfect place for you if you just want to relax and enjoy the beach and let your cares go. The accessability is good and safe also.(Although I can not speak to parking and access to the beach as I myself did not drive.) It is better anyway if possible to stay within walking distance of the beach. Pricing of course will vary by location and ammenity but is pretty resonable. The airport is not as cramped or overcrowded feeling as Miami and many airlines serve Ft. Lauderdale.
So grab your lotion, lose your stress and relax in the attitude free sunshine of Ft Lauderdale.

My husband and I stayed at the Marriott Harbor Beach Resort and Spa. The hotel was great; nothing really to complain except for the high prices for food and snacks and parking.

Since it rained all week, we were forced to find stuff to do. There was nothing to do other than eat, which we did find a few good resturants, and shop. We recommend the Rustic Inn for good crabs. We went to Sawgrass Mills, which was not as nice as other Mills that i have visited. Las Olas was expensive, but at least was close to the hotel. Even the movie theatres that we visited were dirty. Mainly, i wouldn't recommend this area at all to vacationers under the age of 30. The beaches are not nice either, so stick with the gulf side of the state.

Fort Lauderdale was so much fun - the canals, the water bus, the beach, las olas blvd, and great hotels!! We were very pleasantly surprised!!!
I expected a run down spring-break town, but expected much better weather than Chicago in February, so we stayed a couple of days after our cruise. It was so much fun!!! We didn't stay too long - just a couple of days, but we had pleanty to do in those couple of days. We took a trip to Sawgrass Park to see the Everglades, we saw the beach, saw las olas, LOVED the water bus (what a great idea!!) and loved the little narration they give about all the mansions on the canals. All in all, a great stay in Fort Lauderdale. We recommend everone stay for a couple of days after a cruise.