FLL Embassy Suites - Current Condition?

[Roz]

Next month I'm looking to book the Embassy Suites in Ft. Lauderdale for my March 2022 cruise.  I was wondering if the hotel has used the pause in cruising to update and refresh the rooms?  Anyone have current information?

[BlueHerons]

6 hours ago, Roz said:

Next month I'm looking to book the Embassy Suites in Ft. Lauderdale for my March 2022 cruise.  I was wondering if the hotel has used the pause in cruising to update and refresh the rooms?  Anyone have current information?

No, it has been completely packed through the pandemic.  

 

Don't forget Fort Lauderdale is the yachting capitol of the world and many of the crews furloughed there.  Both flight and yacht crews along with medical professionals.

 

And don't forget, finding construction crews in South Florida right now is next to impossible.

Edited April 28, 2021 by BlueHerons

[Roz]

 @BlueHerons, thanks for the info.  I know nothing about the construction industry in South Florida.  I don't know anything about yachting either. 😉

[BlueHerons]

15 minutes ago, Roz said:

 @BlueHerons, thanks for the info.  I know nothing about the construction industry in South Florida.  I don't know anything about yachting either. 😉

Except for inside dining, bars, nightclubs, gyms, hair salons, and beaches, South Florida never really shut down.

[Roz]

If I'm to believe what's on the news, South Florida is out of rental cars.  Most of FL, for that matter.

Edited April 29, 2021 by Roz

[CruiserBruce]

10 minutes ago, Roz said:

If I'm to believe what's on the news, South Florida is out of rental cars.  Most of FL, for that matter.

Like many popular vacation areas this summer. Rental companies liquidated huge portions of their fleets to save money during Covid, now due to other issues with car manufacturing, they can't quickly buy cars.

[bschoon60]

My husband and I just spent a week at the Embassy Suites in Fort Lauderdale.  The hotel has not been refurbished and is in need of some TLC.  I'm not sure what the status will be when you get there in a year, but nothing was so horrible that we wouldn't stay there again.  We've  been staying at this hotel for about 15 years and there are definitely differences.  I'm not sure if the differences are due to COVID or other reasons.

 

Gone are the cooked to order omelets, everything is a buffet and the quality was very poor.  We ended up going to Joe's Cafe every morning but one.  The food was cold, our friend broke a plastic knife trying to cut his pancakes, and everything is sectioned off.  The Manager's reception is now a ticketed affair - 2 drink tickets a night.  They serve you the snacks in a paper bowl.  The gift shop is closed and a corner of the lobby has a supply of snacks, drinks & ice cream that they will charge to your room.  The concierge company has been changed and the people manning the desk are definitely not the same caliber as the women who used to be there.  They just started with a new valet company while we were there.  There was not the fleet of white shuttles that they used to have,  but I few black shuttles.

 

You have to request housekeeping if you want it on a daily basis.  They asked us what time we wanted housekeeping to clean our room and 50% of the time they did not clean the room around the requested time.  There was definitely a lack of staff.

 

If you have any specific questions, just let me know.  

[rkacruiser]

22 hours ago, bschoon60 said:

My husband and I just spent a week at the Embassy Suites in Fort Lauderdale.

 

I appreciate learning of your experience.  Embassy Suites has never been very high on my radar for a hotel stay in Fort Lauderdale.  It's definitely now on the "don't even think about it" list.  

[Ashland]

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

 

I appreciate learning of your experience.  Embassy Suites has never been very high on my radar for a hotel stay in Fort Lauderdale.  It's definitely now on the "don't even think about it" list.  

It was on my list of favorites years ago...that changed in the last few years.

[rkacruiser]

3 hours ago, Ashland said:

It was on my list of favorites years ago...that changed in the last few years.

 

It's difficult for me to understand since this hotel is under the Hilton umbrella why corporate would allow the franchise owner to get away without updating the hotel.  For me, such reports do not encourage me to book a Hilton affiliated hotel.

[Suzanne123]

They “can get away with it” because cruisers keep booking it.  The location is great, near shopping and a couple good restaurants, and they have a really nice pool.  However, I can’t think of a reason to go back, and we’ve stayed there probably 15 times in the last 20 years. The furnishings are old and worn, the elevator takes forever, and the breakfast is a crowded zoo with people wandering around trying to find a clean table or sitting in the hallway with plates on laps. 
With all that said, I just priced a room for our cruise next February.  Embassy Suites is $379.  The much nicer Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach, where we last stayed, is $735. Ai yi yi 
 

Edited May 25, 2021 by Suzanne123

[iancal]

ES was in dire need of a refresh ten years ago.  The lobby was done but the rooms were not.  Dark and dingy.

 

From our perspective it was never a good deal.  We only stayed there is we had an inexpensive win on Priceline or Hotwire.

 

There are much better places to stay IMHO.    ES FLL always struck us as a hotel that we milking it's customers, delaying any room updates as long as possibe., until such time as they could sell the property.  Not to mention the elevators.

 

Like others, this surprises me.  We have stayed in a number of ES properties over the years.  This is by far the worst.  I believe that if this was someone's first experience with ES it would probably discourage them from booking ES in other locations.

Edited May 25, 2021 by iancal

[Suzanne123]

I agree.  The FLL Embassy Suites has to be the worst one.  The ES in Anchorage, OTOH, is amazing.😊

[rkacruiser]

6 hours ago, Suzanne123 said:

They “can get away with it” because cruisers keep booking it.  

 

Doesn't Hilton corporate understand that such properties detract from the Company's impression/reputation in the minds of those of us who travel?

 

7 hours ago, Suzanne123 said:

The much nicer Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach, where we last stayed, is $735. Ai yi yi 

 

Ai yi yi! indeed!  If I have a "concern" about the Hilton brand, I most certainly would not pay that kind of money for a hotel where I have never stayed.  

[iancal]

On 5/25/2021 at 2:57 PM, rkacruiser said:

 

Doesn't Hilton corporate understand that such properties detract from the Company's impression/reputation in the minds of those of us who travel?

 

 

Ai yi yi! indeed!  If I have a "concern" about the Hilton brand, I most certainly would not pay that kind of money for a hotel where I have never stayed.  

I think our favorite is/was the ES in Napa.

[LadyBerard]

Whenever we cruise, whether it be out of FLL or out of MIA, we ALWAYS now stay at the Sonesta on FLL Beach.  Fabulous location,  not busy, but plenty of places within an easy walk.  Liquor store one block, Primantis Pizza one block, Galleria Mall .7 miles up the street, across the street from the beach, fabulous and clean hotel.  All rooms are oceanview.  Staff is wonderful.  

 

 

[pawmtweez]

Thank you, bschoon, for posting your experience, though I am very saddened by and disappointed to hear it.

 

We were SO hoping they would use this opportunity to fix all the things wrong with the hotel (please leave the pool the way it is!).  We almost always stayed there pre or post cruise and when I have pictured our "first cruise after the pandemic," staying there and repeating our favorite pre cruise traditions, in particular, was part of what I was looking forward to.  I guess that is yet another (albeit minor) thing to add to the list of what the pandemic has taken away😦

[Roz]

@bschoon60, thank you for posting about your experience.  You may or may not know the answer to this, but are the changes you observed permanent or temporary due to Covid?  I've stayed at a couple of Hilton properties in the last year and a lot of the service aspects such as breakfast and housekeeping were changed or non-existent.   

[Noxequifans]

TripAdvisor has many reviews of this hotel. We usually pay more attention to reviews in the last 6 to 9 months. That said, we probably would think twice about this booking but not rule it out offhand. 

[franktown]

58 minutes ago, Roz said:

@bschoon60, thank you for posting about your experience.  You may or may not know the answer to this, but are the changes you observed permanent or temporary due to Covid?  I've stayed at a couple of Hilton properties in the last year and a lot of the service aspects such as breakfast and housekeeping were changed or non-existent.   

Not only Hilton but Marriot and Hyatt properties.  Was told at both properties that they hope to have things back to normal soon.  No date given.  Was also told that they had let almost there entire housekeeping staff go during the pandemic and are in the process of hiring and training.  

[KeepCalmBearOn]

On 5/25/2021 at 6:53 AM, Suzanne123 said:

With all that said, I just priced a room for our cruise next February.  Embassy Suites is $379.  The much nicer Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach, where we last stayed, is $735. Ai yi yi

 

February 2022 is a long ways off. You may be getting rack rates. Did you look at the Hyatt Place?

 

I'd book a cancelable rate now and keep checking as the date gets closer.

 

1 hour ago, Roz said:

You may or may not know the answer to this, but are the changes you observed permanent or temporary due to Covid?  I've stayed at a couple of Hilton properties in the last year and a lot of the service aspects such as breakfast and housekeeping were changed or non-existent.   

 

A lot of things are temporary. I am sure Embassy Suites as a brand will bring back the breakfast as it was before; it has been one of their signature features and a reason they get the business they do.

 

Also keep in mind that there are at least three kinds of hotels; hotels owned and maintained by the brand (Marriott, Hilton, etc), hotels owned by someone else who has the brand maintain and run the hotel and then hotels that merely lease the brand name, but maintain and run the hotel themselves. That can provide a lot of varying quality in the same brand, even if it is not supposed to.

[Ashland]

16 minutes ago, scottca075 said:

 

February 2022 is a long ways off. You may be getting rack rates. Did you look at the Hyatt Place?

 

I'd book a cancelable rate now and keep checking as the date gets closer.

 

 

A lot of things are temporary. I am sure Embassy Suites as a brand will bring back the breakfast as it was before; it has been one of their signature features and a reason they get the business they do.

 

Also keep in mind that there are at least three kinds of hotels; hotels owned and maintained by the brand (Marriott, Hilton, etc), hotels owned by someone else who has the brand maintain and run the hotel and then hotels that merely lease the brand name, but maintain and run the hotel themselves. That can provide a lot of varying quality in the same brand, even if it is not supposed to.

Embassy Suites has a lot of work to do to bring it back up to the standards it was years ago.

The breakfast had gone downhill long before the Covid impact....hoping they bring it back better certainly not like it was before. The managers cocktail event...extremely poor choice/lack of food options and drinks.

[rkacruiser]

2 hours ago, scottca075 said:

That can provide a lot of varying quality in the same brand, even if it is not supposed to.

 

The corporate owners of whatever brand are wise to not allow this to happen.  Negative recent experiences that replace past positive experiences have caused this traveler to change brands.

 

My best example of this is the Best Western brand.  Once, very dependable.  Then, repeated disappointing experiences have put properties carrying the Best Western brand on my "don't even think about it" list.

 

 

[Roz]

So, yesterday morning I booked the ES for my March 2022 cruise.  Then I came here and read all the recent comments.  I'm thinking of canceling and booking the Doubletree (Gallery One).  I've never stayed there.  Any thoughts one way or the other?  It's only for one night.

[rkacruiser]

7 hours ago, Roz said:

So, yesterday morning I booked the ES for my March 2022 cruise.  Then I came here and read all the recent comments.  I'm thinking of canceling and booking the Doubletree (Gallery One).  I've never stayed there.  Any thoughts one way or the other?  It's only for one night.

 

I think Doubletree is a higher quality property among the Hilton hotel brands as compared to Embassy Suites.  As I recall, the area where the Gallery One is located has many options for dining, shopping, etc.