Renaissance at the Marina

[bsbcgirl]

Read some very negative reviews. Definitely a little dated and worn, but overall a good experience and quite clean. The shuttle ($8 pp) was well organized. Sign up ahead. Elevator situation a little problematic. Walking distance to The Boatyard which is a favorite of mine.

Would book elsewhere for a vacation, but absolutely fine for one night pre cruise

[lx200gps]

2 hours ago, bsbcgirl said:

Read some very negative reviews. Definitely a little dated and worn, but overall a good experience and quite clean. The shuttle ($8 pp) was well organized. Sign up ahead. Elevator situation a little problematic. Walking distance to The Boatyard which is a favorite of mine.

Would book elsewhere for a vacation, but absolutely fine for one night pre cruise

I assume this is the Renaissance on 17th near Port Everglades? It's our preferred pre-cruise hotel as well. Great location and you can't beat waking up on embarkation morning, throwing open the curtains and seeing the fleet of cruise ships right next door ;o)  What was the issue with the elevators, we've never had a problem with them, were they out of order? Love the Boatyard as well.

[bsbcgirl]

Yes that’s the one. One of the 2 main elevators is not working. They let you use the service elevator. However on cruise boarding mornings, the elevator wait was quite lengthy. Plan for this.

[lx200gps]

10 hours ago, bsbcgirl said:

Yes that’s the one. One of the 2 main elevators is not working. They let you use the service elevator. However on cruise boarding mornings, the elevator wait was quite lengthy. Plan for this.

Thanks for the heads up. Our next trip out of PE is not until October, and sadly we aren't able to stay at the Renaissance this time. Seems a young lady named Taylor Swift is holding concerts in the area on the exact date we need to stay, and hotel prices in the area are astronomically over priced. Last time I looked the Renaissance was well north of $US500 (far more in our Canadian $$$s) and the Hyatt Place was just as bad. Fortunately, I managed to snag the Riverside for a surprisingly good price, but we will be back at the Renaissance next February.

[nhraformula00]

We are going on Icon out of Miami that same weekend. Were wanting to stay in Ft. Lauderdale that same weekend until I seen the prices. We are staying at Yotel downtown Miami near Bayside for $200. Miami is typically higher than Lauderdale, but not this weekend. Have been to Rennasiance but it was many years ago. It was nice.

[lx200gps]

1 hour ago, nhraformula00 said:

We are going on Icon out of Miami that same weekend. Were wanting to stay in Ft. Lauderdale that same weekend until I seen the prices. We are staying at Yotel downtown Miami near Bayside for $200. Miami is typically higher than Lauderdale, but not this weekend. Have been to Rennasiance but it was many years ago. It was nice.

The real game changer around the Port Everglades is going to be the new Omni when it opens at the end of next year. It will surpass the Renaissance and the Hilton Marina as the closest hotel to the port, but I imagine the prices will be through the roof when it opens.

 

https://www.omnihotels.com/hotels/fort-lauderdale

[fantavet]

I'll be staying at the end of June for a Disney Cruise. You mentioned the shuttle service. I was a little nervous about trying to meet the Disney port arrival time. I heard the hotel shuttle will make multiple stops? Does this add a lot of time to travel to your terminal?

[lx200gps]

2 hours ago, fantavet said:

I'll be staying at the end of June for a Disney Cruise. You mentioned the shuttle service. I was a little nervous about trying to meet the Disney port arrival time. I heard the hotel shuttle will make multiple stops? Does this add a lot of time to travel to your terminal?

We've used the Renaissance shuttle service a few times, but have lately started to simply Uber over to our Terminal (which admittedly is usually T2, about 5 feet from the hotel ;o) The shuttle is OK, but yes, it will stop at every PE terminal that has passengers needing to go there from the hotel. If your terminal is the first the shuttle stops at, the trip will be quick, but if your terminal happens to be the last one, the trip can drag on as passengers and their bags are disgorged at each stop. You mention the "...Disney port arrival time" What does that entail? For every trip we have ever been on out of PE, we have been able to arrive anytime between the start of check-in to a bit before sail away, an arrival window of many hours. Bottom line for us is that it is far easier to check out of the hotel, stand outside by the Valet station, dial up an Uber and watch his progress as he arrives within a few minutes. It's not much more $$$$s than the hotel shuttle and you're not sharing a cramped minivan with a dozen other people, many of whom will get off before you do.

[fantavet]

1 hour ago, lx200gps said:

We've used the Renaissance shuttle service a few times, but have lately started to simply Uber over to our Terminal (which admittedly is usually T2, about 5 feet from the hotel ;o) The shuttle is OK, but yes, it will stop at every PE terminal that has passengers needing to go there from the hotel. If your terminal is the first the shuttle stops at, the trip will be quick, but if your terminal happens to be the last one, the trip can drag on as passengers and their bags are disgorged at each stop. You mention the "...Disney port arrival time" What does that entail? For every trip we have ever been on out of PE, we have been able to arrive anytime between the start of check-in to a bit before sail away, an arrival window of many hours. Bottom line for us is that it is far easier to check out of the hotel, stand outside by the Valet station, dial up an Uber and watch his progress as he arrives within a few minutes. It's not much more $$$$s than the hotel shuttle and you're not sharing a cramped minivan with a dozen other people, many of whom will get off before you do.

Have not sailed on Disney in a LONG time. But when you check in you get to pick a port arrival time. I THINK it is in half hour slots. So if you get the slot 11:30-noon then you need to be at the port at that time. If you miss it they bump you down.

 

Traveling with a group of 6, includes 2 kids, wheel chair so Uber is probably not a option. Its either hotel shuttle or shell out extra for a private car service so which would give me greater control over arrival times.

[lx200gps]

1 hour ago, fantavet said:

Have not sailed on Disney in a LONG time. But when you check in you get to pick a port arrival time. I THINK it is in half hour slots. So if you get the slot 11:30-noon then you need to be at the port at that time. If you miss it they bump you down.

 

Traveling with a group of 6, includes 2 kids, wheel chair so Uber is probably not a option. Its either hotel shuttle or shell out extra for a private car service so which would give me greater control over arrival times.

Fair enough, we have no experience with Disney. We usually sail Princess, who only "suggest" an arrival time but in practice now pretty much allow you to show up whenever you want.

 

Re the transport issue from the Renaissance, a group of six would be a challenge. I personally wouldn't want to do it with a shuttle service, as you may not even be able to load your entire party onto the same van. It's quite probable that those shuttles have limited hours and the schedule may not even work for you if your arrival time is too late. Even with 6 people and logistical challenges, you might still find Uber will work. On 17th St they are as thick as flies on cruise ship embarkation mornings and we never have to worry about finding one as they arrive in less than 5 minutes. In your case, I'm quite sure you could have two XLs arrive with in a few minutes of each other. You could possibly also pre-order them for arrival at the hotel at a certain time. I say probably as we never bother to pre-order them, we just call them in after check-out. Best of luck, have a great cruise.

[capriccio]

22 hours ago, fantavet said:

I'll be staying at the end of June for a Disney Cruise. You mentioned the shuttle service. I was a little nervous about trying to meet the Disney port arrival time. I heard the hotel shuttle will make multiple stops? Does this add a lot of time to travel to your terminal?

If the shuttle makes multiple stops, the Disney terminal (#4) is closest to the Renaissance. It and terminal 2 (Princess) share a driveway from Eisenhower Blvd.  It is also before the security check point so I am 99% sure you would be the first stop.

 

 

[lx200gps]

2 hours ago, capriccio said:

If the shuttle makes multiple stops, the Disney terminal (#4) is closest to the Renaissance. It and terminal 2 (Princess) share a driveway from Eisenhower Blvd.  It is also before the security check point so I am 99% sure you would be the first stop.

 

 

 

I would have thought that T2 would be the first stop, as it is the first terminal off the driveway, the first one a driver would come to after turning off Eisenhower. That should mean that the Princess passengers, if any, would be disgorged slightly before the T4 passengers, thereby adding an intolerable 5 minute delay for the Disney passengers ;o) And this presupposes that the van driver doesn't decide to head straight down Eisenhower to the farthest terminals first, then double back to drop off the the T2/T4 passengers last.  That did happen to us once, hence our love for Uber.

[capriccio]

6 minutes ago, lx200gps said:

I would have thought that T2 would be the first stop, as it is the first terminal off the driveway, the first one a driver would come to after turning off Eisenhower. That should mean that the Princess passengers, if any, would be disgorged slightly before the T4 passengers, thereby adding an intolerable 5 minute delay for the Disney passengers ;o) And this presupposes that the van driver doesn't decide to head straight down Eisenhower to the farthest terminals first, then double back to drop off the the T2/T4 passengers last.  That did happen to us once, hence our love for Uber.

In the 15 years we've sailed out of Port Everglades (most recently in July 2023) T4 is the first stop because the road from Eisenhower Blvd. is one way entering the terminal area.  It passes the garage,turns right for the drop off for T4 and then curves around to left for T2 and back out to Eisenhower Blvd. 

 

Now in many of those years T4 was only used very sporadically (we embarked Princess ships once and disembarked on another Princess ship once and I'd occasionally see a Celebrity ship docked there) but now T4 had a major makeover is and is dedicated to Disney that home ports one of their ships in Port Everglades.

[fantavet]

Thanks all a lot of good info. Yeah wish Disney did not have that crazy arrival time window, and I'm probably reading too much into it. I can't even get a arrival time unti end of May from them.

[lx200gps]

3 hours ago, capriccio said:

In the 15 years we've sailed out of Port Everglades (most recently in July 2023) T4 is the first stop because the road from Eisenhower Blvd. is one way entering the terminal area.  It passes the garage,turns right for the drop off for T4 and then curves around to left for T2 and back out to Eisenhower Blvd. 

 

Now in many of those years T4 was only used very sporadically (we embarked Princess ships once and disembarked on another Princess ship once and I'd occasionally see a Celebrity ship docked there) but now T4 had a major makeover is and is dedicated to Disney that home ports one of their ships in Port Everglades.

Fair enough, we haven't taken a hotel shuttle in a few years since we discovered the ease of Uber. Every time we shuttled from the Hyatt Place or the Renaissance, there was no ship at T4 so we usually headed straight for T2.

[nhraformula00]

LX200GPS, Princess does not make you wait if you come early to the ship??? We are going on Emerald Princess on May 20th. for a 10 day. Our first Princess. 

[capriccio]

8 minutes ago, nhraformula00 said:

LX200GPS, Princess does not make you wait if you come early to the ship??? We are going on Emerald Princess on May 20th. for a 10 day. Our first Princess. 

I'm not @lx200gps but I can answer that question.  Princess no longer assigns check in times and the entire process, once they open the doors (usually by 11 am) and you get through the initial security, is very quick.  Try to fill out your information on the Medallion app before arriving at the port (if you run into issues, don't panic since staff can help you at check in).  It is even a few minutes quicker if you have had the Medallion delivered to your home.  In July we (a group of 8 including 2 kids) arrived at the terminal around 11 am and waited maybe 10 minutes to get through security.  After security those with the medallion go through the green line and those who need to pick up the medallion or have other issues go through the blue line.  DH and I were in the green line and hardly slowed down.  Our kids and grandkids were in the blue line and met up with us within 10 minutes and we all boarded the ship together.  Enjoy your cruise!

[nhraformula00]

Thank you so much for the information.

[lx200gps]

53 minutes ago, capriccio said:

I'm not @lx200gps but I can answer that question.  Princess no longer assigns check in times and the entire process, once they open the doors (usually by 11 am) and you get through the initial security, is very quick.  Try to fill out your information on the Medallion app before arriving at the port (if you run into issues, don't panic since staff can help you at check in).  It is even a few minutes quicker if you have had the Medallion delivered to your home.  In July we (a group of 8 including 2 kids) arrived at the terminal around 11 am and waited maybe 10 minutes to get through security.  After security those with the medallion go through the green line and those who need to pick up the medallion or have other issues go through the blue line.  DH and I were in the green line and hardly slowed down.  Our kids and grandkids were in the blue line and met up with us within 10 minutes and we all boarded the ship together.  Enjoy your cruise!

As you say, Princess did away with the "official" check in times a year or two ago, but in practice they hadn't really applied them for years anyway. Even when our assigned check-in time was as late as 11AM, we would always arrive VERY early, usually among the very first to arrive, often as early as 9AM. There is usually a small line of diehards like us who like to arrive well before boarding starts, but the security and check-in process tends to be quick that early in the process, before the thundering herd starts to arrive by about 10AM and the lines really build up.  For at least the last half dozen trips, out of Brooklyn, PE and San Pedro, we were walking up the gangway to board by 10:30AM, and I think our record was abut 10:15. It's my understanding that for those who don't care to arrive early and want to optimize the check-in process, by about 1PM the lines have dissipated and folks pretty much walk right on board, no lines at check-in at all.

[nhraformula00]

Any idea in Port Everglades for the start of check in process? 1st. time Princess cruiser.

[lx200gps]

10 hours ago, nhraformula00 said:

Any idea in Port Everglades for the start of check in process? 1st. time Princess cruiser.

As mentioned above, we usually arrive for Princess check-in, regardless of which terminal it is, around 9AM. Check-in usually starts around then, give or take a few minutes, worst case if you arrive before check-in starts there will be a small line up outside before they open up the security lines which come before check-in. Assuming you will have your Medallion already in hand, the check-in will be very quick and you then go inside the terminal and sit in one of the waiting areas until boarding starts around 10:30 +/-

[nhraformula00]

Thanks again. The wife said we are picking up medallions at the port.

[lx200gps]

1 hour ago, nhraformula00 said:

Thanks again. The wife said we are picking up medallions at the port.

It's no big thing to pick them up at the pier, it adds just a few minutes to the process. Once checked in at the podium/desk by the CSR, instead of going to sit down in the waiting room (or go right on board if after boarding starts) you simply walk over to a big table, give them your room # and they sift through a big pile of envelopes to find your Medallions.

[STIguy]

First time cruising out of PE. We have stayed at the Renaissance numerous times though. This is our go to property on 17th street.  Publix and Winn Dixie within walking distance.  Our favorite restaurant is Southport Raw Bar.  For breakfast we go to the Marina Deli for some authentic Jewish food.  Lots of great information on this thread.  We are leaving out of terminal 21 so from what I decipher, Uber is the way to go.  Probably head over around noon.  Thanks for the insight. Cheers!

[happy42cruise]

On 4/13/2024 at 10:43 AM, fantavet said:

Have not sailed on Disney in a LONG time. But when you check in you get to pick a port arrival time. I THINK it is in half hour slots. So if you get the slot 11:30-noon then you need to be at the port at that time. If you miss it they bump you down.

 

Traveling with a group of 6, includes 2 kids, wheel chair so Uber is probably not a option. Its either hotel shuttle or shell out extra for a private car service so which would give me greater control over arrival times.

Uber has wheelchair accessible service, check to see if it's available.  There are also cabs for wheelchair users.