By Every year for Riley’s birthday, instead of a party and presents, we love surprising our little guy with a fun vacation. We typically like staying home for ski season so his October celebration is the perfect opportunity for us to escape to warmer weather before we’re surrounded by snow. This year for his 9th birthday, we surprised him with a trip to Fort Lauderdale. We chose this location for the beaches and the weather, and since we had already done a theme park trip to Legoland Florida earlier this year, we figured it would be fun to spend his birthday lounging around, swimming and soaking in the sun.
Since I was unfamiliar with the area, I googled “things to do in Ft. Lauderdale” before booking our hotel and found myself intrigued by an article on Culture Trip which listed the top things to see and do in 24 hours. I ultimately used this as a guide for our 3 day trip and here’s what I thought about our hotel, the beaches and the restaurants we went to.
While looking for accommodations, I knew I wanted a hotel on the beach and something close to the airport since we weren’t renting a car. Initially, I took my search to google and compared prices, I then went to Hotwire.com and searched the same beach side areas through Hot Rate hotels. Hot Rate hotels are the deeply discounted portion of Hotwire that hides the name of the hotel, but provides you with little information on what you may be booking. By doing a little research and comparing, I knew I was booking B Ocean Resort for $65 less than booking directly through the hotel website.
B Ocean was amazing. The location was hard to beat plus they had a private beach and a pool right next to beach access. They also had great restaurants and drinks. One of the bar’s even has a mermaid show! In addition to accessibility, the hotel was a very quick walk to other restaurants and shops. When we wanted to save money on food and drinks, it was only a 10-15 minute walk to find choices outside of our hotel. Overall, the rooms were nice, the beds were comfortable, and everyone was very friendly and accommodating. We wouldn’t hesitate to stay here again.
This little diner located in the popular area of Los Olas boulevard has been in business since the 1930’s. The historical significance makes this 24 hour diner a staple in Fort Lauderdale. Many websites I read raved about this place as a “must see”, so on our first morning, we walked the 2.3 miles from our hotel with high expectations of what our breakfast would be like.
Unfortunately, our expectations fell short. The portions were big and the servers were very friendly, but the food was awful. I ordered the fried cod and eggs while Riley ordered the chocolate chip pancakes. The potatoes on my plate tasted burnt and the cod had a very weird rubbery texture. Riley’s pancake was also very heavy and had absolutely no fluff to it. We found it difficult to finish our food even though we were tired and hungry from our walk. Overall, despite the raving reviews online, I recommend skipping this place. I felt like it was an overly hyped tourist trap.
Since our hotel was right next to Fort Lauderdale Beach, we found ourselves strolling across it whenever we needed to walk over to the shops and restaurants nearby. Prior to this trip, I would not consider myself a beach person. Although I was born in the Philippines and raised on the West Coast, I never found playing in the ocean appealing. I enjoyed looking at it, maybe dipping my toes in, but the admiration was always from afar because it was always too cold and the thought of what might lurk beneath terrified me.
All of that changed during this trip and thanks to Fort Lauderdale, I became a mermaid. The beaches were gorgeous, the sunsets were amazing, and the water was the perfect temperature. As I dug my toes into the soft sand under the ocean, I didn’t feel any seaweed! I thought I would be spending this trip hanging out in the pool, but here I was diving in and swimming around in the ocean.
So yes, not only do I recommend Fort Lauderdale beach, but I think I may have left a part of my heart there.
We discovered G & B Oyster Bar during an evening walk to pick up pizza for dinner. Initially, I had planned on dining at the neighboring Coconuts Restaurant for our final evening, but this place looked intriguing and I knew my husband would love some raw oysters during our vacation. On our final evening in Fort Lauderdale, we walk to G & B’s where we tried fun dishes like gator for an appetizer and ordered all the raw oysters we could handle. I figured this would be the best place to try raw oysters for the first time… I typically watch from the sidelines as my husband devours them, but after we ordered our first batch, I was hooked! I recommend the West Coast oysters as well as the steamers. This was definitely a memorable meal and the perfect way to end our vacation.
Overall, it was such a wonderful trip. I had no idea Fort Lauderdale was so amazing and now I want to make this destination a yearly tradition. Whenever it gets a little too chilly in Colorado, I picture myself back in the warm Atlantic Ocean and remember that feeling of never wanting to get out. Not only did I enjoy the escape, but I was thrilled to discover this other side of me that I never knew existed. Thank you, Fort Lauderdale for turning me into a mermaid. I can’t wait to get back to you again.
thevaliantlife.com 
It looks like a beautiful vacation. Why did ya’ll walk to the restaurant?
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We didn’t want to pay for an Uber LOL we were waiting to check-in and had a ton of time to kill, so we figured after being on the plane for almost 5 hours, walking around would be best for us. I don’t recommend walking since it was so humid but we were definitely in good company with all the walkers and joggers on the same street!
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I was not familiar with Fort Lauderdale. It seems really beautiful and fun. Adding to my list!
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Oh same here!!! I honestly thought it was similar to Orlando, not similar to Miami! We really enjoyed our time there.
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What a lucky little boy to have parents like you, he looks like he had a blast! Travel, memories and experiences are definitely one of the best you can give!
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Yes, definitely! Experiences over things is our motto… the memories last a lifetime and I definitely think that’s the best gift.
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We have been planning a trip to Miami for my wife’s birthday but saw flights to Ft Lauderdale were much cheaper. We’re wondering if we should drive down or stay in the area? The beach does look beautiful here.
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Max, I haven’t spent time in Miami so I can’t give my advice on which one is better or if you should drive down. I just did a quick google search “miami vs. fort lauderdale” and there seems to be a ton of articles discussing the two. I think it also depends on what you both are planning to do? I assume that Miami has a bigger night life scene. Where we stayed in Fort Lauderdale, it was very quiet! So if you think your trip will be filled with lazy days by the beach like ours was, then maybe skip Miami?
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Fort Lauderdale is such a great place. The beaches are lovely, and there’s a lot to do there! We’ve been a couple of times, and we had some amazing experiences.
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That’s awesome! I’m so happy to hear you’ve had a similar experience ☺️
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We stayed on a condo right on the beach last year. It’s nice and quiet compared to Miami, will check out B Ocean on the next trip. Nice review
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I looked into vacation rentals, but I couldn’t find anything right on the beach! I think I may have booked a bit too late. I typically enjoy hotels more and we really liked B Ocean. I think you’ll enjoy it too! Thanks for the comment.
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Looks like you had a fabulous family outing! I love taking my kids on short trips. We don’t have to spend alot and they benefit from seeing new places.
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Exactly!! People are often shocked by how often we travel and I’m like we do quick escapes which are easier and way cheaper than big, long vacations. It’s my favorite way to travel.
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This looks like the most amazing place to go and stay – I would love to be by a beach right now somewhere hot! If only I could do a weekend in Fort Lauderdale.
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I’m getting tired of Orlando. I think we’ll make this our next family vacation!
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It’s such a gorgeous place to visit. I went many years back and love dit. I hope to take the kids to visit too someday. I love beach holidays.
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Honestly I had no idea where this is and it looks gorgeous. Such a beautiful place and I cant believe those are real colours.
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Adding to my list! Lovely review.
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This looks like a great destination for our next family vacation. It is so beautiful and the food look so delicious!
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I don’t know what to say, the place is out of this world!!! I am so happy you had an amazing time, can’t wait to check it out myself.
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It looks like an amazing place to visit and you all seem to have had a great time. It looks heavenly!
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Wow, it looks like you had a wonderful weekend. It looks like an amazing place to visit. What a shame the food wasn’t great though.
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I’ve been to Fort Lauderdale a couple of times. Once about 25 years ago and a few years ago when we used it as a stop over from Orlando to the Florida Keys. Both times we didn’t see that much of it as we didn’t have time but it’s a place we really want to explore more.
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So lovely that you try to get away for a birthday break each year. A wonderful way to create lasting memories
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