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Area for Fort Lauderdale pre-cruise hotel

raven22355

By raven22355,
in Princess Cruises

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merela

merela

Posted
Posted

It was a crazy weekend (and we also booked late) and we were unable to book a 4* downtown hotel for less than $100. We did end up with Renaissance Hotel. Other cruisers booking 6 months before us got this hotel for $70 on Priceline. We can see the ship anchored across the street (it seems like it). The taxi fare from FLL airport to the hotel was about $8, but our taxi driver pretended he didn't know where he was going and turned off a side street before reaching the hotel. I had a printout of the hotel photo and address--there was no way he wouldn't know it. The taxi fare ended up to be $11. I think the cabbie did this because there was no traffic and the taxi fare was going to be less than $8 and he wasn't satisfied with that, so he did the detour. We knew what he was doing and tipped him accordingly.

 

Do check http://www.biddingfortravel.com before you bid on a hotel via Priceline.

 

BTW, we did think of bidding on the beach area, but since our flights arrived late in the evening, we didn't think we need to stay in a hotel by the beach. Having a pool was good enough for us.

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sueandkent

sueandkent

Posted
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I am interested in using priceline for our pre-cruise. What area is closest to the port? Any suggestions on areas to chose would be helpful.

 

Thanks,

 

You didn't give a date for your travel but we just got Bahia Mar on Priceline for Nov. 13 for $70. I bid on 3* Beach Area. I hear things are significantly more expensive and harder to find in the new year.

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Daniel1313

Daniel1313

Posted
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We have stayed at the Best Western Marina Inn. They pick you up at the airport and they also take you to the ship, free of charge. We are crusing in March again and we are staying there again. They are also 1/2 block from the water taxi which is awesome.

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tutak

tutak

Posted
Posted
We have stayed at the Best Western Marina Inn. They pick you up at the airport and they also take you to the ship, free of charge. We are crusing in March again and we are staying there again. They are also 1/2 block from the water taxi which is awesome.

 

Could you please give a review of this hotel? This hotel is the most maligned hotel in Fort Lauderdale by locals and previous guests. Since you are staying there again, you must have been pleased. It would be nice to see an opposite viewpoint.

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parody

parody

Posted
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Trip Advisor has a user rating of 2 out of 5 stars for this hotel. One 2 star review says this:

 

this is the third time i've been to this hotel.

 

the hotel is old and free breakfast is a coupon for a doughnut and coffee.

 

but the staff was very friendly and there is a pool side bar with live music on friday night. also the free shuttle to and from the airport and cruise port is nice. the outback is a 3dollar taxi drive or a good walk over the bridge and about 4blocks past that. or just walk past the blimps and across the road to the water taxi stop and go to beach place for some nice restrants and shoping.

 

the pool is fine and open until late and the hot tub is open late also but the bar closes around 10;30 or 11pm. the restrant staff was friendly. but i thought the food price were high for what you get. i will stay there again

 

To read other reviews, go to http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g34227-d80500-Reviews-Best_Western_Marina_Inn_and_Yacht_Harbor-Fort_Lauderdale_Florida.html

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tutak

tutak

Posted
Posted
Trip Advisor has a user rating of 2 out of 5 stars for this hotel. One 2 star review says this:

 

this is the third time i've been to this hotel.

 

the hotel is old and free breakfast is a coupon for a doughnut and coffee.

 

but the staff was very friendly and there is a pool side bar with live music on friday night. also the free shuttle to and from the airport and cruise port is nice. the outback is a 3dollar taxi drive or a good walk over the bridge and about 4blocks past that. or just walk past the blimps and across the road to the water taxi stop and go to beach place for some nice restrants and shoping.

 

the pool is fine and open until late and the hot tub is open late also but the bar closes around 10;30 or 11pm. the restrant staff was friendly. but i thought the food price were high for what you get. i will stay there again

 

To read other reviews, go to http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g34227-d80500-Reviews-Best_Western_Marina_Inn_and_Yacht_Harbor-Fort_Lauderdale_Florida.html

 

But many Trip Advisor reviews are suspected of being sent in by the hotel's owner, etc. I wanted to here about it from a cruiser.

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MHS4

MHS4

Posted
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the hotel is old Best_Western_Marina_Inn_and_Yacht_Harbor-Fort_Lauderdale_Florida.html[/url]

 

Is this the Best Western Marina Inn & Yacht Harbor at 2150 Southeast 17th Street Causeway? The lobby virtual tour shows a very contemporary lobby -- certainly doesn't appear old and dingy. My TA books all her pre-cruise FL clients here & she wouldn't do that if she had any complaints about it.

 

Where is the grocery store located in relation to this Best Western? I would like to pick up a bottle of CA wine pre-cruise for the room. What are the liquor sale times for a Sat -- does anyone know? 8pm?

 

Thanks

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parody

parody

Posted
Posted
But many Trip Advisor reviews are suspected of being sent in by the hotel's owner, etc.

 

A good point to note, but I find it even more useful to note that 11 of the 14 reviews on this site are only 1 or 2 stars out of 5 for this hotel. N.B. what sunnyv says.

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S.S.Oceanlover

S.S.Oceanlover

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A good point to note, but I find it even more useful to note that 11 of the 14 reviews on this site are only 1 or 2 stars out of 5 for this hotel. N.B. what sunnyv says.

 

I agree. If I am reading tripadvisor.com and the majority are good with 1 or 2 not so good I tend to give them the benefit of the doubt.

If the majority are bad then that hotel has no chance of getting my money.

 

Bill

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cruiselifers

cruiselifers

Posted
Posted

We stayed there this year, and yes the lobby was nice. That was it. Really that was the only thing that was nice. The staff was rude and not helpful at all. Our room had bugs, some of which I did excpect being in Florida, but not the amount there were, the phone did not work at all, the safe did not close, the pop machine did not work, the floors were dirty, and the door leading out of the room did not have a proper lock on it and it had a two inch gap on the bottom of it (probably the reason for the bugs). We did not want anything fancy, just a one nights place to sleep. I would never stay here again. We asked for them just to fix the door or the phone for safety and they said no they were unable to do that and they could not move us becasue they were fully booked. It was awful.

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raven22355

raven22355

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Posted

Thank you everyone for your awesome input. I love these boards. If you want to know something it sure doesn't take long to get answers.

We are leaving Jan 7 - 10 day carribean on the Sun. Hopefully prices don't go up too much. We have found this time of year to be pretty good in the past. I will give priceline a try after doing some research on bidding for travel, I will post my results.

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Daniel1313

Daniel1313

Posted
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I certainly did not find any of the problems that crusielifers had. Our experience was great. We called the hotel after we received our luggage and they were at the airport in about 15 minutes. We found everyone at the hotel very friendly. The driver that took us to the port was very cordial. We spent a few hours at the Tiki bar and had a great time. We met a couple that was also sailing the same ship as us. We became friends, and actually spent quite a bit of time with them on the ship. The Tiki bar also served food that was great. The bar tender was very friendly. The room we had was great. Like I said earlier, you can walk to the taxi bus stand and ride the taxi bus all day for only $5. There is a grocery store next door to the hotel and a liquor store close to that. I would definitely give the hotel a 5 out of 5 stars. Now granted the place is not the marriot, but it is a excellent hotel. I would definitely reccommend this hotel. We are already booked for when we sail again in early March.

 

Dan

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Julia & David

Julia & David

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We stayed at the Hampton Inn Airport North in July of this year. Shuttle to and from airport and cruise terminal. Staff was excellent and very friendly. Hotel was totally clean. Nice pool. Usual continental breakfast. We would not hesitate to book this hotel again. I forgot to mention, free internet in the lobby.

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merela

merela

Posted
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the Renaissance Hotel we stayed at had a Publix grocery store about a 15-minutes walk away. It'll take you less time if you didn't have to push 2 strollers along the way. ;)

 

We ended up buying a roast chicken and some fried chickens from their deli for our pre-cruise dinner. Didn't feel like spending $30 pp for dinner at a local restaurant.

 

BTW, Walgreen's (like CVS) is across the street from the Renaissance hotel. It's actually on the way to the ship's terminal. So that's convenient if you have to pick up last minute medicine before boarding.

 

For breakfast, there was a bagel place 5 minutes away and a French boulangerie at the back of the hotel (not part of the hotel). Prices are about 20% higher than our local bagel place in LA, but it's still affordable.

 

So I would definitely stay at this hotel again if we can get it for $70 4* Downtown on Priceline.

 

But as you know, you can't always get the hotel you want on Priceline, so just check the hotel list on http://www.biddingfortravel and see if the hotels it mentioned for FLL are acceptable to you. If they are, just go ahead and make a bid. We have been happy with most of our Priceline bids which included Frankfurt, London Heathrow, Miami, Seattle, Fort Lauderdale, and LAX.

 

Oh, about bugs. There are lots of them in Fort Lauderdale, especially those little ants that look like specks of dusts that move around. Since I know ants when I saw one, even if they are miniscule, I called the front lobby of the Renaissance Hotel and complained about these little ants. They moved us up to another floor and as it turned out, it had a view of the ship as well as complimentary water and more (and likely better) toiletry. So the difference between the Priceline customer and regular customer is the view and the complimentary water and toiletry. I certainly wouldn't pay $295 per night for those things.

 

My experience with Priceline prices is that it is usually 1/2 the price of the published rates for the dates you want. So check the website of the hotels listed on biddingfortravel first before you start bidding. If you see a low successful bid on one day, go to the official hotel website (such as Marriott.com) and check their published prices for that day. And compare the published prices for the days you want and then you can bid accordingly. The worst thing you can do is to overbid in Priceline.

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Baxter

Baxter

Posted
Posted
There is a grocery store next door to the hotel and a liquor store close to that. I would definitely give the hotel a 5 out of 5 stars. Now granted the place is not the marriot, but it is a excellent hotel. I would definitely reccommend this hotel. We are already booked for when we sail again in early March.

 

Dan

 

Are there any decent seafood restaurants nearby?

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lablvr2

lablvr2

Posted
Posted

We just stayed pre & post cruise at the BW Oceanside on Seabreeze Blvd. The resort we work for also owns a BW so we qualify for the employee discount. This property is under construction in areas but I found it to be alright for the price. Staff was helpful and courteous. Right around the corner from the beach. I felt is was a safe area and I am uptight about that kind of thing. First floor lanai rooms are better than the upstairs rooms about to be remodeled. Saw NO bugs - that is a big plus! Pool was very clean. Shuttle 17.00 roundtrip per room - both from the airport and then the next day over to the port. We paid 39.00 but I have no idea what anyone else would pay. I do know that shuttle IS included with rack rate which we did not pay.

 

Susan

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