ORD-TGU

I am thinking of travelling to FLL and redeeming my free night certificate at wither the Conrad or the Hilton. I see both have a $35 Resort Fee. I read up thread about the Conrad and the 20/pp up to two credit per day for breakfast. But no Lounge, but free wine for Gold/Diamond. I will not be driving, so parking is not an issue.

Overall, what is the general sentiment here, the Conrad or Hilton? I have to check the Hilton Thread to see if there is an EL or what breakfast benefit is offered!

Thanks!

Hawkeyefan

storewanderer

I have stayed at the Hilton. I strongly suggest the Conrad just on the grounds that I am sure it is at least equal to the Hilton. I would not return to the Hilton. The room was muggy/humid and bedding was too hot, and I was there in April. As petty as it is, that would be enough to keep me from going back.

Also there is parking at some motel looking facility behind the Conrad, on an as available basis. I think it cost about $12/day and they wanted cash. They did provide a parking permit, and a few minutes sales pitch why I should stay in their facility next time I go to FLL. Assuming I still have Gold on a return visit I would hope to stay at the Conrad to try it out.

ORD-TGU

Based on your recommendation, I booked the Conrad. I am surprised that I could use the certificate for a JR Suite Oceanview. I called hotel and told as Gold free Continental Breakfast, Resort fee not waived.

arpiuk

well, we just returned from a 5 night stay there. The Conrad is an all-suite hotel, so JR Suite is the lowest category room. I think the history behind this hotel is that a developer built it for residential apartments, but went bust, so Conrad bought the shell and tried their best to turn it into a hotel. We were upgraded to a One Bedroom Suite, which is one higher than JR. It means it has a separate bedroom, whilst the JR is one big room. They all have a decent size kitchenette.

It says clearly on the Hilton website, that points redemption do not attract the resort fees, not sure about the Certificate. There is no breakfast included, but you get a 20 bucks per person voucher. It doesn't go very far. Instead we bought some cereals from Walgreens, and used the voucher for lunch.

There is no lounge, but there is commentary wine and cheeses between 6pm - 8pm. There is a big sign outside the "lounge" that this is for Gold and Platinum.

Having said all this, we were not impressed. There were several problems with billing throughout our stay, I'd suggest taking a photo of your minibar. The Reception staff were very courteous and nice. Service at the pool restaurant was less so. Having been built as a residential complex, all the communal areas are dark and no windows. (except the restaurants). Rooms were very good quality. The pool is on the 6th floor, which is not ideal, as it can get windy and chilly there. The restaurant service is the one that lets the place down.

We moved onto Kimpton Surfcomber in SB, which was much better, but rooms were not that great. However, the high quality of the pool area and direct beach access makes up for it. I guess very few places are almost perfect, so depends what you value most.

Hope this helps.

Buster CT1K

How is the airconditioning at the Conrad Fort Lauderdale? We like to sleep cold (64 deg F or lower). Especially in humid climates. We would visit in early August.

JLSocks

When I stayed there in January, the A/C worked really well. I also like to sleep in cold rooms. Overall it was a very pleasant stay, and I look forward to going back.

sMk_

ShaynaLeahK

Have a conference stay coming up in July at this property. The rate allows us to opt out of the $35/day resort fee, which covers (per the registration site):  Wi-Fi  1-800/local calls  2 Bottles of Spring Water in room per day  2 Beach Chairs  1 Beach Umbrella  Sunrise Yoga  2-2 Hour Bike Rentals (18+)  20% Off Spa Services  2 Bottles of Spring Water on the pool deck

I'm assuming it likely is not worthwhile, but wondering which, if any, of the above would be covered by my Hilton Gold status. Any other Gold status perks would be good to be aware of as well.

storewanderer

Depends how many days... and if you plan to use beach chairs/beach umbrellas multiple days, you may find there is some value in this fee...

sallyerd

on the Hilton app you can see the floor plan of the hotel

SHLTP

Stayed here last night - nothing spectacular but not bad. I have no status with Hilton/ Conrad and was here on business rather than vacation.

Did not find much around the hotel to walk to which is something I like to do. Hotel recommended I go to W or Hilton for dinner. Found a decent Mexican restaurant at the W.

The breakfast was quite nice at the buffet spot. The check in guy nicely gave me a $20 coupon which I used for the $35 USD or so breakfast. It was quite good for North American standards.

Gym had up to 70 lbs of dumbbells which I liked as too many hotels stop at 40 lbs.

They called my room a suite but it seemed more like a junior suite. Reasonably well appointed and spacious but it did not seem luxurious to me. Seemed more like a minor step above a Sheraton. I don't know Conrad very well - have only stayed at Conrad Hong Kong and Singapore which both seemed several notches above Ft. Lauderdale in terms of hardware. Not sure how that would compare to other Conrads.

Service was great. Better than most NA Luxury hotels, I found, so that was quite nice. Offered a cold bottle of water at checkin from bell hop, coupon from check in staff, and friendly main restaurant staff.

Only thing I did not like was the lights in the closet remain open for several minutes after you close them. Took me a while and a call to guest services to figure this out -- I spent a while thinking that I had not shut the closet door properly.

I also did not like the views - was staring into concrete.

Overall this place is ok but I don't see it as a real luxurious beach getaway. I would not mind staying here again but I certainly would not go out of my way to stay here for a week beach vacation

aphilly02

Stayed here 6/30 - 7/4. Absolutely gorgeous place. We had a 2 bedroom residence. Spacious and had a panoramic view. They give up to 2 $20 credits per day if you have 2 guests. The restaurants and bars are pricey but you get great service and most drinks are worth it in my opinion. Daily free yoga on the beach at 7:30am too. Pool deck is great. Tons of chairs and plenty of towels. The staff is very accommodating. They will do just about anything if you give them a call downstairs. Bike rentals are free and are great... A1A is perfect to bike down. The beach is right across the street and traffic is never too bad. Free chairs and umbrellas are great for those extremely hot days.

I am Diamond status but I did not see much benefit. It was a holiday so the place was booked, so I was not upgraded to a full ocean front that I talked to the concierge about. Plenty of bottled water. It is obviously a young hotel so they may find some creative ways to please status members a little more.

I will be staying here again. They treat you like royalty, which makes anyone feel good.

writerguyfl

FYI: I walked past the Four Seasons site this morning and noticed lots of construction equipment on the site. It was before 7am, so there weren't any workers there. It was hard to see through the construction fence, but it appeared to be concrete equipment used to lay the foundation. By the time you arrive in October, I'd guess that they would be starting the vertical construction.

It's probably worth calling the hotel and asking about your options for avoiding construction noise.

sfgiants13

We had a good stay here early in the week. We got an upgrade from a jr suite to a 1br and the service at checkin and the lounge was great. However, a valet parking charge was added to my account and I noticed it in my emailed receipt on the way home. After a couple of calls I'm not getting anywhere except that they're investigating. They've already confirmed that it was my name and room number on the valet ticket (which is concerning in its own right that someone had that information). They kept saying that a couple did valet for an Audi and that it was confirmed to be my information. Considering we took uber to and from the hotel to the airport it's getting a little frustrating that a charge so trivial is being fought over. I've contacted the HH rep here so hopefully she can help.

edit: I got a call from the same girl who checked us in and was great throughout our stay and the charge was removed. She apologized that it took so long and said it should've been removed right away which I do appreciate. So all is well.