Where to stay and pretty much anything Port Everglades

Hi everyone!! We have a cruise booked that will be leaving from port everglades. We have never sailed from this port before and we are feeling a little lost. I have a few questions. Is it better/cheaper to stay just outside of the area or does it really matter. We always use one of the bidding sites to get our pre-cruise hotel and usually get it for a total of 90$ (including tax) ...is there anywhere close to the port that this may be possible or am I dreaming :rolleyes: WE always have nice hotels when doing this. I have also read that there is a parking area that is so much cheaper just outside the port area, I suppose it is like the one at the port in Jacksonville...we have parked there before with no problems. Does anyone know the name of this so we can make reservations? How is this port as far as ease of navigating and getting checked in? Tampa for us was INSANE!! Maybe we will try that port again...one day :rolleyes: If anyone has any tips or wants to share anything on the Freedom or Port Everglades I would LOVE IT!!!:D

THANKS EVERYONE!!!! We sail January 18th...YAY!!:D

We stayed at a Holiday Inn Express in Ft Lauderdale for our cruise. It was around $115. That was AAA rate. They had a decent free breakfast. It was a few miles from the airport and the cruise terminal. They also offer a ride to he cruise terminal through a company that is $8 each. They were very friendly and curteous also.

Thanks, I will check that hotel out. It is a long ride from our town outside of Columbia SC and we hope to just get the drive over with in one day and that is not a bad rate for being near the port :)

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Port Everglades is very nice and organized, nothing to worry about there. Park N Go is a good place to park. Book online for the low rate. I see you are cruising in January. Time of year is the key factor in hotel pricing...January tends to be on the high side. Expect to pay about $200 for a 2 star hotel near the port/airport if you purchase directly. Obviously it will cost less on a bidding site. It is cheaper to stay out of the area; I would suggest bidding on the "North" area of Fort Lauderdale...any of the 3-3.5 star hotels in that area that have been reported for Priceline on Better Bidding would be fine.

We got the Hyatt House which is not too far from the port for $78 on Priceline. This is for the end of February.

Wow... That's cheap enough... Lol:D

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We got the Hyatt House which is not too far from the port for $78 on Priceline. This is for the end of February.

That is awesome price, we also look for a stay in Feb. What was your bid strategy?

Plan on about $125 on the bidding sites for your dates.

We get such an influx of Europeans and South Americans as well as North Americans that keep hotel prices high in January.

Hyatt House is Airport FLL 3 stars. Any of the hotels in that area are good enough, but a few aren't very close to anything for those who don't have cars. If price is important, this is a good area.

Any one know if there are drugstores or a Walmart? nearby?

Any one know if there are drugstores or a Walmart? nearby?

Nearby what? Are you asking about the cruise port or airport or a specific hotel?

There are no Walmarts in Fort Lauderdale. The closest are in Hallendale or Pompano Beach, not close at all. There are CVS and Walgreens within blocks of the port entrance.

We also stay at the Holiday Inn Express on 17th St. Near port. Lots of shops and restaurants nearby- on the same side of the street.

We experienced helpful staff, good breakfast, and liked our room.

I am on your same cruise. Yay! I keep looking every day to see if any hotel rates go down or any specials. I would like to stay under $100 so the only hotels that I could find with that rate for the night of the 17th are motel 6 Fort Lauderdale for around $72.00 and Days Inn Fort Lauderdale - Oakland Park Airport North for 106.00. These are without taxes. I have reserved both of them so at least I have a backup plan. The Days Inn has free pickup from the airport and to the cruiseport. Just haven't decided which one to go with since I am traveling solo and need to stay somewhere safe. Plane doesn't land until early evening so I won't be spending too much time at the hotel anyways.

I have tried bidding with my highest bid so far being $110.00 (4, 3.5 and 3 star hotels) choosing downtown Ft. Lauderdale, Fort Lauderdale Beach and Fort Lauderdale Airport. None of them were accepted. Since I don't know the area well either, I am not sure how far to venture out from the airport and the further out you go, the more expensive the taxi cab is going to be if they do not offer transportation to the cruise port.

I am on your same cruise. Yay! I keep looking every day to see if any hotel rates go down or any specials. I would like to stay under $100 so the only hotels that I could find with that rate for the night of the 17th are motel 6 Fort Lauderdale for around $72.00 and Days Inn Fort Lauderdale - Oakland Park Airport North for 106.00. These are without taxes. I have reserved both of them so at least I have a backup plan. The Days Inn has free pickup from the airport and to the cruiseport. Just haven't decided which one to go with since I am traveling solo and need to stay somewhere safe. Plane doesn't land until early evening so I won't be spending too much time at the hotel anyways.

 

I have tried bidding with my highest bid so far being $110.00 (4, 3.5 and 3 star hotels) choosing downtown Ft. Lauderdale, Fort Lauderdale Beach and Fort Lauderdale Airport. None of them were accepted. Since I don't know the area well either, I am not sure how far to venture out from the airport and the further out you go, the more expensive the taxi cab is going to be if they do not offer transportation to the cruise port.

There's a reason these hotels are cheap...you get what you pay for. The Days Inn is far from the port and airport. If anything goes wrong with the free shuttle it will cost you as much as the hotel room for those rides. Both of your choices have had bad reviews and they aren't in good neighborhoods. If you choose these, just stay in and order a pizza. If you want a hotel in a better neighborhood, you can prepay for Sleep Inn Dania for only $159 and that is considered low in January. Maybe you can get something better for a higher bid on Priceline.

The Courtyard near the Executive Airport which is North of Port Everglades but close to I-95 is a good choice whose prices are usually very reasonable. Staying there, it is about a 15-20 minute drive to the Port.

Like seafood? Old Florida Seafood House is a favorite of mine. It is not touristy, frequented mostly by locals in my experience. Plenty of parking and plentiful, delicious dinners with friendly service at reasonable prices, I think.

I prefer to park in the Port parking garages. More expensive, but so much easier as far as I am concerned.

You will enjoy sailing out of Port Everglades!

We did find a hotel but we decided not to go into ft.Lauderdale to stay...we booked a room at a hotel in Port St. Lucie. with tax and fees it ended up being 118$. I know we will have to drive around an hour to get to the port but I think it will also be nice to have a break from the drive down. I also think we will be parking at the port. The only other parking facility that I would even trust leaving my car at is 13$ a day so we may as well pay the 15 and be right there. I just know I AM READY TO GOOOOOOOO:D

I don't know how convenient this hotel is, the Comfort Inn & Suites 3551 W. Commercial Bld., is priced $119 for your night. Even less if you prepay. You can look through the website Choicehotels.com

We're staying at The Pelican Grand for a night before our cruise. Does anyone know if there's any shopping, stores, wine shops w/in walking distance of the Pelican?

We're staying at The Pelican Grand for a night before our cruise. Does anyone know if there's any shopping, stores, wine shops w/in walking distance of the Pelican?

There is nothing near the Pelican. Galleria Mall and Publix are 1.8 miles away on Sunrise Blvd. There are a few junky tourist shops about 8 blocks away past the intersection of Sunrise Blvd and N Ocean Blvd.

Thanks, Royal. Will we be passing by any wine shops from the Pelican to Port Everglades for a quick stop to "load-up" before boarding the ship?

Thanks, Royal. Will we be passing by any wine shops from the Pelican to Port Everglades for a quick stop to "load-up" before boarding the ship?

No you won't pass any wine stores. From the Pelican, you will go south on A1A about 4 miles until you get to the port entrance at Eisenhower Blvd. Just go past there and turn left into Harbor Shops a few blocks up. The entrance is next to Embassy Suites. In there you will find Total Wine and Publix.

Thanks for the directions. It looks like it's only a block off A1A on Cordova. I think we might just stop in there the day before our ship departs on our way from FLL to the Pelican to pick-up our wine since they don't open til noon on Sunday.

Thanks for the directions. It looks like it's only a block off A1A on Cordova. I think we might just stop in there the day before our ship departs on our way from FLL to the Pelican to pick-up our wine since they don't open til noon on Sunday.

That's a great plan! But if it is late afternoon or evening, it will be better to then get to the hotel via Federal Hwy to Sunrise Blvd to A1A.

There's a reason these hotels are cheap...you get what you pay for. The Days Inn is far from the port and airport. If anything goes wrong with the free shuttle it will cost you as much as the hotel room for those rides. Both of your choices have had bad reviews and they aren't in good neighborhoods. If you choose these, just stay in and order a pizza. If you want a hotel in a better neighborhood, you can prepay for Sleep Inn Dania for only $159 and that is considered low in January. Maybe you can get something better for a higher bid on Priceline.

6 of us are sailing Dec. 28th and have booked Sleep Inn (3-1/2 star) $300 taxes incl for two nights. King room with free hot breakfast, fridge and microwave in room, free WiFi, pool. Free shuttle from airport to hotel. CVS and restaurant across from hotel. Hotel can arrange transport to ship for reasonable fee.