Things to do in Fort Lauderdale
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Fort Lauderdale
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Winter peak. Dry, sunny, upper 70s to low 80s, stone crab season, Everglades and sailfishing at their best, prices highest.
Late spring sweet spot, plus late April. Warm sea, winter crowds gone, humidity not yet oppressive, prices step down.
Summer. Hot, humid, afternoon storms, cheapest rates, Everglades and golf are early morning only, hurricane season runs to November.
Autumn sweet spot. Humidity breaks, ocean stays warm, stone crab returns, and Boat Show week reprices hotels.
What's on
- Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show Oct 28-Nov 1 (2026)
World largest in water boat show, five days when the city becomes the yachting world.
- Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Boat Parade mid-December
Decorated boats along 12 miles of waterway, free from any Intracoastal vantage.
- Tortuga Music Festival April
Three days, about 50 acts, country led, on Fort Lauderdale Beach Park sand.
- Stonewall Pride Wilton Manors June
Parade and street festival, one of the biggest Pride weekends in the US.
- The Hukilau June
Tiki weekender built around the Mai-Kai, in the same month as Stonewall Pride.
- Las Olas Art Fair October
Las Olas art fair, with a winter edition in January.
- Las Olas Art Fair winter edition January
Winter edition of the Las Olas Art Fair.
- Dine Out Lauderdale August-September
Prix fixe menus at 170 plus restaurants, the best value fine dining window of the year.
- Riptide Music Festival December
Alternative and pop festival on the beach, in recent calendars. Confirm current year dates.
- Florida Panthers hockey October-April
Panthers home games at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, about 30 minutes west.
Best things to do in Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale Beach
Wide free beach with a promenade, lifeguards and space, centred on Las Olas Oceanside Park.
Bonnet House Museum & Gardens
A whimsical 1920s barrier island estate with art, orchids and wild gardens between high rises.
Las Olas Boulevard
The city main street for strolling, galleries and terraces, linking the beach to the Riverwalk.
Water Taxi Fort Lauderdale
Yellow hop on hop off boats that work as transport and show the canal city and Millionaires Row.
NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale
Serious modern museum with the largest public William Glackens collection and strong rotating shows.
Mai-Kai Restaurant
A landmark 1956 Polynesian supper club with gardens, tiki bars and the Islander Revue dinner show.
Museum of Discovery and Science
Big hands on science museum and IMAX on the Riverwalk, the top family and rainy day fixture.
Wilton Manors
Wilton Drive main street of cafes, shops and bars in South Florida LGBTQ capital.
Where to stay in Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale Beach
first trip, all-round base
Calm resort strip across A1A from the sand, with the promenade and LOOP at your door and no car needed.
Las Olas Boulevard / Downtown / Riverwalk
food, culture and Brightline trips
Sleep where the restaurants and museums are, with the beach a mile east by shuttle, taxi or bike.
Lauderdale-by-the-Sea
families, divers and a slower trip
Low rise inns around Commercial Boulevard by the reef, a clear price step below the Fort Lauderdale strip.
Harbor Beach / SE 17th Street
cruise passengers and boat people
Five minutes from Port Everglades, the charter fleet and 15th Street dining, detached from Las Olas on foot.
Wilton Manors / Victoria Park / Flagler Village
basing like a local, LGBTQ nightlife trips
Real neighbourhoods with rentals and small inns, walkable to Las Olas or downtown, beach by car or rideshare.
Think twice about
- West of I-95
Visitor proposition collapses and crime rates rise, with no walkable visitor infrastructure and heavy traffic to every beach day.
- Airport / Griffin Road / Dania Beach industrial corridor
Layover only. Big box sprawl, nothing walkable, and every day starts on I-95 or I-595.
- Downtown blocks north and west of the Brightline and bus terminal area
Streets empty late and street homelessness is visible. Stay on Las Olas, the Riverwalk or in Flagler Village proper and rideshare home late.
Best restaurants in Fort Lauderdale
Chef's Counter at MAASS
Twelve seat chefs counter that earned the city first starred table, wood fired tasting cooking.
Evelyn's
Eastern Mediterranean cooking in the Four Seasons, with ocean terrace, brunch and mille feuille.
Takato
Japanese Korean oceanfront dining in the Conrad, precise sushi plus richer Korean hot dishes.
Daniel's, A Florida Steakhouse
Classic steakhouse recentred on Florida sourcing, prime cuts and Florida seafood, acclaimed.
Heritage
Great-value Italian in Flagler Village, house pastas and wood fired touches at moderate prices.
Coconuts
Waterfront seafood staple on the Intracoastal, famous for Scoobies crab claws and sunset docking.
Louie Bossi's Ristorante Bar Pizzeria
Big buzzy all day Italian on Las Olas, house pastas, wood fired pizza and a garden patio.
Foxy Brown
Louie Bossi teams quieter neighbourhood American comfort spot, beloved for brunch and burgers.
Outdoor things to do in Fort Lauderdale
Shipwreck Snorkel Trail
Reef and shipwreck snorkel trail 100 to 400 feet offshore, with cannons, an fixture and reef fish.
Fort Lauderdale Boat Diving
Two tank boat dives on three reef lines and dozens of wreck sites minutes from the inlet.
Sawgrass Recreation Park
Large Everglades airboat gateway with day and night rides and reptile exhibits west of the city.
Everglades Holiday Park
Smaller boat Everglades airboat park with a more personal feel in local comparisons.
Fort Lauderdale Deep Sea Fishing
Gulf Stream fishing close to Port Everglades, from party boats to private sportfishers for sailfish and mahi.
Hugh Taylor Birch State Park
Barrier island park for kayaking the lagoon, hammock trails and its own beach by the Intracoastal.
Intracoastal Boat Charter Fort Lauderdale
Captained boat day cruising Millionaires Row, swimming at the sandbar and dock and dine lunch.
Flamingo Gardens
Sixty acre botanical garden and Everglades wildlife sanctuary with aviary and champion trees.
Best hotels in Fort Lauderdale
Four Seasons Hotel and Residences Fort Lauderdale
The city current luxury flagship on central beach, with two pools, a spa, Evelyns and MAASS.
The Ritz-Carlton, Fort Lauderdale
Classic luxury at the Las Olas junction, with beach in front and the boulevard behind.
Pier Sixty-Six
Rebuilt yachting icon on the Intracoastal with a full marina and rotating rooftop.
Pelican Grand Beach Resort
Old Florida grandeur on the sand north of the strip, with veranda rocking chairs and a lazy river.
Lago Mar Beach Resort & Club
Family owned resort on ten acres of private feeling beach south of the strip, with big suites.
Riverside Hotel
The 1936 grande dame actually on Las Olas, with a riverfront pool and the boulevard as your lobby.
The Dalmar
Design forward downtown hotel with rooftop pool and sunset river views, walkable to Brightline.
W Fort Lauderdale
Design led central beach resort with Steak 954, El Vez and two pools, luxury lite in shoulder season.
Is Fort Lauderdale expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | $120 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | $250 a person |
| Splurge | $550 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Mai-Kai Restaurant: weeks ahead
- Broward Center for the Performing Arts: weeks ahead
- The Wreck Bar: a few days ahead
- Fort Lauderdale Boat Diving: a few days ahead
- Sawgrass Recreation Park: a few days ahead
- Everglades Holiday Park: a few days ahead
- Fort Lauderdale Deep Sea Fishing: a few days ahead
- Intracoastal Boat Charter Fort Lauderdale: weeks ahead
- MAASS Chefs Counter as early as it opens. Heritage, Evelyns, Takato and Daniels one to three weeks for winter weekends.
- Book Boat Show week, Tortuga and late December to March hotels before flights, on cancellable rates.
- Mai-Kai show seatings, Wreck Bar mermaid nights, winter airboats, morning golf tee times and winter boat charters sell out.
Is Fort Lauderdale safe?
- Swim at lifeguarded beaches and heed rip current flags. Use a dive flag when snorkelling at Lauderdale by the Sea.
- Summer storms and lightning build by early afternoon. Airboats, golf and sandbar plans are morning plans June to September.
- Never feed or approach alligators. Give manatees and sea turtles distance and do not touch the reef.
- Use official taxi and rideshare pickup zones at Port Everglades and FLL.
Fort Lauderdale travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Spring break chaos is a 1980s reputation. March now brings families, snowbirds and higher prices more than a party.
- Beach chair and umbrella rentals add up fast. A hotel or inn that includes chairs pays for itself by day three.
- Jungle Queen Riverboat is corny first timer kitsch. The Water Taxi gives the same waterways with transport value.
- Some beach restaurants add an automatic gratuity around 18 percent. Check the bill before tipping twice.
- Fresh stone crab does not exist June to mid October. Offered then, it is not fresh.
Getting around Fort Lauderdale: public transport and more
- Beach to Las Olas is about a mile. Walk mornings, use Water Taxi or Circuit by day, rideshare at night.
- Circuit free electric shuttles serve downtown, Las Olas and the beach. Download the app before arrival.
- Brightline downtown station runs to Miami in 30 to 40 minutes and to Orlando and West Palm Beach.
- Rent a car only for Everglades, golf or Flamingo Gardens heavy days. Beach garages fill by 11am in winter.
- FLL airport is five miles from downtown and the beach, about 10 to 15 minutes.
Who Fort Lauderdale suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Great |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | Great |
Make Fort Lauderdale your trip
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