I’ll admit it—I had Fort Lauderdale all wrong.
Before my trip, my mental image was MTV Spring Break circa 1989, drunk college kids, and overpriced beachfront hotels. You know, the kind of place you’d avoid if you’re over 25 and looking for something real. But here’s the thing about travel: sometimes the places you underestimate end up surprising you the most.
And Fort Lauderdale? It absolutely blindsided me in the best way possible.
The First Morning Changed Everything
My Uber driver from the airport was a retired New Yorker named Frank who’d been living in Fort Lauderdale for fifteen years. “You stayin’ near the beach?” he asked as we crawled through morning traffic on I-95.
“Yeah, Las Olas area,” I said, scrolling through my phone.
He laughed. “Good. You picked the right spot. Forget what you’ve heard—this isn’t that Spring Break place anymore. Well, maybe one week a year,” he added with a wink. “But the rest of the time? This is where people actually live and love being here.”
I checked into my hotel around 10 AM, way too early for my room to be ready. The receptionist suggested I grab breakfast and walk Las Olas Boulevard. “You can’t really understand Fort Lauderdale until you walk Las Olas,” she said matter-of-factly.
She wasn’t kidding.
Las Olas Boulevard: The Heartbeat I Didn’t Expect
Las Olas stretches from the beach all the way downtown, and walking it feels like someone took the best parts of European boulevards and gave them a Florida tan. Palm trees line both sides, art galleries sit next to quirky boutiques, and every third storefront is either a café with outdoor seating or a restaurant that smells so good you’ll want to eat there immediately.
I grabbed an espresso at this tiny spot called Ann’s Florist—yes, a florist that also serves coffee, because why not?—and just watched Fort Lauderdale wake up. Locals on bikes. Couples walking their dogs. A guy in business casual reading the paper at a sidewalk table. No crowds. No tourist chaos. Just… life happening.
That’s when it hit me: Fort Lauderdale isn’t trying to be Miami Beach. It’s doing its own thing.
The Beaches Actually Have Room to Breathe
Okay, let’s talk about the real reason people come here—the beach. Fort Lauderdale has seven miles of coastline, and unlike some Florida beaches where you’re practically sitting in someone else’s lap, there’s actual space here.
I spent my first afternoon at Fort Lauderdale Beach near Sunrise Boulevard. The sand is that perfect golden color, not too white, not too dark, and it’s surprisingly clean. There’s a wide promenade that runs along the beach—locals call it the “Beach Walk”—where people jog, bike, and rollerblade.
What I loved most? The lack of hustle. Nobody’s trying to sell you anything every five seconds. There are no aggressive timeshare pitches. Just families building sandcastles, couples reading under umbrellas, and the occasional vendor selling cold drinks from a cooler.
I sat there for three hours. Just sat. Watched the waves. Read half a book. Let my brain finally shut off.
When’s the last time you actually did that on vacation?
Venice of America Isn’t Just a Catchy Nickname
Here’s something I didn’t know before visiting: Fort Lauderdale has 165 miles of canals and waterways winding through the city. The nickname “Venice of America” isn’t tourism board nonsense—it’s literally accurate.
I took the Water Taxi the next day, which might’ve been my favorite thing I did the entire trip. It’s a hop-on-hop-off boat service that cruises through the canals, stopping at different restaurants, shops, and attractions. But honestly? I mostly just rode it for the views.
The houses along the Intracoastal Waterway are absolutely insane. We’re talking multi-million dollar mansions with yachts that cost more than most people’s homes parked in the backyard. Our captain—a guy named Marcus who clearly loved his job—pointed out celebrity homes and told stories about Fort Lauderdale’s history while we cruised past.
“See that one?” He gestured to a massive white estate. “That’s where they filmed part of Scarface. And that one over there? Belongs to a guy who invented something you use every day, but I can’t say what.”
The whole experience felt less like a tourist activity and more like getting a private tour from a friend who knows all the good gossip.
The Hidden Gem That Stole My Heart
You know those travel moments that you weren’t expecting but end up being the highlight of your trip? For me, it was Hugh Taylor Birch State Park.
I’d read about it in passing—some state park near the beach—but didn’t think much of it until a woman at a coffee shop overheard me asking about quiet places to explore. “Go to Hugh Taylor Birch,” she said immediately. “It’s like Fort Lauderdale’s secret garden.”
This park is ridiculously close to all the beach hotels, yet it feels like you’ve been transported to a completely different ecosystem. Winding trails through tropical hammocks, a freshwater lagoon where you can kayak, and trees so thick overhead that it creates this natural cathedral feeling.
I rented a kayak and paddled through the mangroves. The water was perfectly still, reflecting the trees above like a mirror. Every few minutes I’d spot something—a heron wading nearby, a turtle sunbathing on a log, fish darting beneath my kayak.
And then I saw it: a manatee.
I’m not exaggerating when I say I almost tipped my kayak trying to get a better look. This gentle giant just floated past me, maybe ten feet away, completely unbothered by my presence. It surfaced, took a breath, and kept swimming.
I sat there frozen for a solid minute after it passed, just processing what had happened.
That’s the thing about Fort Lauderdale—the surprises are real.
Where the Locals Actually Eat
Forget those chain restaurants lining the beach. The real food scene is tucked away in unexpected places.
One night, I ended up at 15th Street Fisheries in the Lauderdale Marina. The floor is literally made of glass so you can see into the Intracoastal Waterway below. At night, they light up the water and feed the tarpon, and you can watch these massive fish swimming beneath your feet while you eat fresh grouper.
Is it touristy? Kind of. Did I care? Absolutely not.
For breakfast, I stumbled into Lester’s Diner one morning after someone online said it was a Fort Lauderdale institution. It’s this classic ’50s-style diner that’s been around since 1955, and the vibe is pure old-school Florida. The coffee comes in a 14-ounce cup—yes, they actually measure—and the pancakes are the size of your head.
I sat at the counter next to a group of retirees who clearly came here every morning. They gave me unsolicited recommendations about where to go, what to skip, and which restaurants had gone downhill lately. Honestly? Best travel advice I got the whole trip.
The Everglades: You Have to Do It
Fort Lauderdale is only about an hour from the Everglades, and if you skip it, you’re making a huge mistake. I booked an airboat tour through Everglades Holiday Park, and it was exactly as wild as you’d imagine.
Our guide—a woman named Diane who’d been doing this for 20 years—drove that airboat like she was piloting a fighter jet. We flew across the water, cutting through sawgrass, while she pointed out alligators lounging on the banks.
“See that one there?” She slowed down near a massive gator. “That’s Big George. He’s been here longer than I have.”
Big George did not look impressed by our presence.
The best part was when Diane turned off the engine in the middle of the marsh. The silence was deafening. No cars, no planes, no people—just the sound of wind rustling through grass and birds calling in the distance.
“This is what Florida sounded like before humans showed up,” Diane said quietly.
It was one of those moments you can’t really capture in a photo. You just have to be there.
Fort Lauderdale After Dark
I’m not much of a nightlife person anymore, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy Fort Lauderdale’s evening scene. It’s not the club-till-dawn chaos you might expect—it’s more laid-back and varied.
One night, I found myself at a speakeasy called Mama Hanks in Flagler Village. You actually have to shake a brass hand on the door to get in, which felt both ridiculous and fun. Inside, it’s all dark wood, whiskey bottles lining the walls, and a vibe that makes you feel like you’ve stepped back to Prohibition-era America.
I sat at the bar, sipped an old fashioned that was genuinely perfect, and talked to the bartender about Fort Lauderdale’s transformation over the past decade. “It used to be all about the beach and boats,” he said. “Now we’ve got this whole food and arts scene that people don’t expect.”
He wasn’t wrong. The next day I wandered through FATVillage (Flagler Arts & Technology Village), a warehouse district turned arts hub with galleries, studios, and murals covering nearly every building. On the last Saturday of every month, they do an art walk where everything’s open late and the whole neighborhood turns into one big creative party.
The Unexpected Moments
Some of my favorite Fort Lauderdale memories are the small, unplanned things:
Finding sea glass on the beach at low tide, pieces of green and brown glass worn smooth by the ocean.
Getting caught in an afternoon thunderstorm and ducking into the Broward County Main Library, which has this stunning atrium with a fountain and an actual moon rock on display.
Watching boats pass under the 17th Street Causeway bridge while eating lunch at a waterfront cafe.
Talking to a street musician on Las Olas who’d been playing guitar there for 15 years and knew everyone by name.
These are the moments travel blogs don’t tell you about.
What I Wish I’d Known Before Coming
A few practical things I learned the hard way:
Summer is hot and humid. Like, truly oppressive. I visited in early May and it was perfect—high 70s to low 80s most days. Winter (December to April) is peak season, so expect higher prices and more crowds, but the weather is gorgeous.
Rent a car if you want to explore. The Sun Trolley and Water Taxi are great for certain areas, but having a car gave me the freedom to find those hidden spots beyond the tourist zones.
Las Olas isn’t just for tourists. Unlike some beachfront boulevards that feel manufactured for visitors, Las Olas is where locals actually hang out. Go in the morning for the best people-watching.
The canals are the real star. Forget the beach for a day and explore the waterways. Whether you rent a kayak, take the Water Taxi, or book a gondola tour, seeing Fort Lauderdale from the water completely changes your perspective.
Don’t skip the Everglades. I almost did because I thought it’d be too touristy. It wasn’t. It was magical.
Why Fort Lauderdale Surprised Me
I came to Fort Lauderdale with low expectations. I thought I’d get a few beach days, some decent seafood, and a sunburn. Instead, I found a city that’s figured out how to be both relaxed and vibrant, touristy and authentic, all at the same time.
It’s not trying to be South Beach’s glamorous cousin or Orlando’s beach alternative. Fort Lauderdale is just… itself. A place where locals actually want to live, where the beaches have room to breathe, where you can kayak through mangroves in the morning and sip cocktails at a speakeasy by night.
Frank, my Uber driver from that first morning, was right. This isn’t that Spring Break place anymore.
It’s better.
Getting There: Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) is super convenient, just 15 minutes from the beach areas. If you find cheaper flights to Miami (MIA) or West Palm Beach (PBI), they’re both less than an hour away.
Where I Stayed: I bounced between a mid-range hotel on Las Olas and an Airbnb near Victoria Park. Both were great. Stay near Las Olas if you want walkability, or grab something near the Intracoastal if you want waterfront views.
Best Time to Visit: December through April for perfect weather (but higher prices), or May and November for a sweet spot of good weather and fewer crowds.
Have you been to Fort Lauderdale? What surprised you most about it? Drop a comment below—I’d love to hear your hidden gems!