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Have you stayed at a Florida hotel? Share your vacation experiences with others.| Lauderdale Beachside Hotel | Shiana (24) and Timothy (25) ~ Montreal |
My friend and I visited Florida, Lauderdale Beachside Resort (formerly Clarion) in August, for a week. We booked through Tripcentral.ca and we paid 699$ each for our flight, hotel and car.
Overview:
Planning the trip: Our agent (Elizabeth), at Tripcentral.ca, was very professional and very helpful. She booked everything and made sure that I had all of the appropriate information before we left. The only offside is that she couldn’t see the package that I wanted since the hotel changed name but their website shows the old name.
Flight: Check-in was a little slow. However, they didn’t charge us for our extra pounds, which was great. The flight was late. We boarded late and we had to wait for a passenger to pass through customs. We weren’t able to get seats together but whatever, the flight wasn’t too uncomfortable.
At Fort Lauderdale Airport: We had to wait for our luggage. Then, to get to the rental car center, we had to take a shuttle bus. This was a little interesting because the a/c was high and the driver drove fast, but the ride was fairly short. At the car rental center, we had a very nice customer service agent. She hooked us up with a beautiful Pontiac Grand Prix, leather, sunroof; the whole nine yards. She was a very nice lady.
At the hotel: As we entered the hotel, I was a little sceptical because I had read some bad reviews on the hotel. However, the staff was very nice and helpful.
Room: We got bumped to an Executive suite. Our room was in the main building and on the 2nd floor, 225. The room was spacious and clean. The view was beautiful because we had a partial view of the beach. You can relax on the balcony and enjoy the view and fresh air. We had a little problem with little ants our first night but realised it was because the balcony door couldn’t close all the way. We went across the street and bought Raid bug spray so we didn’t have that problem anymore.
The cleaning lady was nice but very pushy. When I go on vacation, I like to sleep in because I can’t do that at home, but the first two days, she would come by early and keep coming every couple of hours. The second day, I went to the front desk and asked for a “do not disturb” sign.
Pool: I didn’t have a chance to test out the pool but it was always full so I guess people liked it.
Beach: The beach was beautiful. The sand was warm, the water was perfect. There wasn’t too much seaweed. There is space for everyone to have their privacy. The last 2 days were a little different because the tides were high. This swept a lot of seaweed on the shores of the beach.
Activities: There is a volley ball net on the beach. There are usually a lot of people there so we didn’t get to take advantage of it.
Entertainment: You can go down the street to Commercial Boulevard and the restaurants there turn into bars after a certain time.
Shopping: The resort is well placed because there is a little shopping center across the street. There is a CVS Pharmacy open until 12, a Publix grocery store, a liquor store, 2 nail salons, banks, Subway, etc… Very good location.
Health factors: If you have problems breathing in hot humid weather, Florida may not be a good place for you, well at least during the afternoon. The beach can help lower your temperature.
Other: The police were on edge when we were there because there were 2 shootings that left a deputy and a sheriff in hospital with shots to the head. Everyone was on edge and their presence was seen everywhere. We got stopped by a very rude and impolite police officer. He was very disrespectful and after grilling us for 3 minutes, he told us “Go Away” and flung the drivers licence back in the car.
I suggest that you get a package that includes a car or that you rent a car while you are in Florida. You can get around easier this way.
| Staybridge Suites | Joanne ~ Bahamas |
The Staybridge Suites was a really nice quiet place to stay , very basic and central to all the malls, so perfect for us. We had a two bedroom suite with a kitchen and living room so there was lots of space for relaxing in-between shopping and breakfast was included every day. There were also several seniors staying there and not too many children, other than babies.
We had a great lunch at the Cheesecake factory. Really affordable with large quantities and great food with a really big variety on the menu , great for any meal and the best we had in Florida. Of course their are 20 different cheese cakes to try if you have room, which only our daughter did. Cheesecake is her favorite desert.
Last Updated: February 2, 2006