Feeling weary from the pandemic, I took a socially distant holiday trip to Florida to ring in the new year. I skipped the crowds of Miami Beach and went north to the Las Olas area of Ft. Lauderdale instead, which includes a stretch of beach with plenty of high-end hotels and resorts. Still, during my stay, I had large chunks of the beach all to myself, which made it the perfect escape from the polar vortex back home in Minnesota. I chose to stay at the Ritz-Carlton, so here’s a look at that hotel.
Booking
I chose to stay at the Ritz-Carlton Ft. Lauderdale after a decent amount of research on South Florida beach resort options. I knew I didn’t want to stay directly in Miami, so I began to look at the choices like Bal Harbour, Ft. Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach.
I was hoping to find a property where I could use some of my large collection of Marriott Suite Night Awards that I had acquired thanks to status extensions and less travel during the pandemic. With that in mind, I looked at options such as the W and Westin in the area. But ultimately, I chose the Ritz-Carlton even though SNAs are not eligible to be used at that brand. I chose it because one amenity I was hoping to use (a hot tub) was reportedly still closed at the Westin, and I find the W brand to be not really my scene. I also scored an excellent rate of about $200 per night.
The Ritz-Carlton Ft. Lauderdale, of course, participates in Marriott Bonvoy, and is a Category 7 property, which means that free nights range from 50-70,000 points per night. If you’re able to find an off-peak night for 50,000 points that works with your schedule, that may be a very good redemption at this property, as paid rates are typically closer to $400 or more rather than the $200 I paid. This is a great use of the Bonvoy Brilliant free night certificate.
Location
The Ritz-Carlton Ft. Lauderdale sits approximately in the middle of a long row of resorts against Ft. Lauderdale beach. The Ritz has a private skyway from the hotel building to the actual beach and there’s even a hotel bar and service on the sand, so this really is about as “on the beach” as you can get in Ft. Lauderdale.
The entire Las Olas area is made up of small keys, or islands and peninsulas extending into the water like fingers. These many long keys are home to multi-million dollar mansions complete with yachts in the canals and expensive cars in the garage. As you can imagine, other than going to the beach or other resorts, the area isn’t particularly walkable so if you’re looking to wander farther from the resort, plan on splurging for an Uber or renting a car.
Check-in and Lobby
The Ritz-Carlton featured a large particularly tall lobby with a bar and restaurant entrance to the left, a seating area straight ahead, and the front desk to the right.
A downside of the Ritz-Carlton brand for Marriott elites is that, in addition to being unable to use SNAs, the only way to access Ritz club lounges is by either paying for access or by having a room on the designated club lounge floors. While I haven’t been inside of a Ritz club lounge, my understanding is that they are particularly high-end and offer lavish amenities, which is why they remain elusively exclusive.
My check-in process was quick. Although I wasn’t able to use an SNA at the Ritz, I did receive an upgrade to a junior suite. I asked if it was possible to upgrade to the club lounge level, and I was told that hotel does not use the club lounge level concept that other Ritzes follow and instead only offers access to the lounge for $100 per day, which I declined.
Room
From there, I headed up to my room on the 19th floor. My room was away from the elevator, but there were a few corners in the hallway so it didn’t feel like an egregiously far walk. Of course, the downside is that it’s easier to get lost when there’s more than one hallway.
Entering the room, the first thing I noticed was the view through the floor-to-ceiling windows. The relaxing ocean sounds coming through the window were one reason I chose this hotel, and it didn’t disappoint. Although at ground level there was actually a highway between the hotel and the beach, it was impossible to tell from the angle of the window, which appeared to open directly onto the ocean.
The room felt large and spacious. Upon entering, to the right was a massive master bathroom featuring a deep bathtub, double vanity, rainfall shower, and toilet.
The main room included a king-sized bed and a sitting area. This room had been recently renovated and the furniture was surprisingly comfortable, even if it can look a bit stiff in the pictures.
I enjoyed the whimsical nautical decor, but I did notice that the TV was mounted slightly off balance.
My favorite part of the room was the large balcony outside where I was able to sit and look either directly down at the resort pool or off into the distance at the beach. It was a fantastic place to watch the sunrise, which I woke up early to see one morning.
The room also included a Keurig coffeemaker with disposable cups and the minibar was emptied in light of the pandemic.
Amenities
The highlight of the Ritz was the 14th floor pool deck. It featured the pool itself along with shaded tables and poolside full bar service. The seating was limited and spaced apart to promote social distancing. The hot tub was officially closed (due to the pandemic) but the pool was actually a great substitute because it was incredibly warm…it was above 90 degrees warm.
While I walked along the ocean a few times, it wasn’t until the last day that I ventured down to the beach to relax for a few hours. The service here was impeccable as the Ritz attendant immediately approached me to offer a complimentary bottle of water and a towel. There were chairs already prepared in the sand, and full bar service was also available down on this level. I appreciated that the beach bar was still fully staffed even as there appeared to be only 2 or 3 other groups from the Ritz on the sand.
Back up at the hotel, I attempted to explore the spa area (I was particularly interested in the sauna) but all I could find was a convention sign outside of some guest rooms. I inquired at the front desk and was told that the spa was closed for renovation. When I mentioned that I was very disappointed and that was a specific reason I had booked this hotel, the front desk staff pushed back and informed me that the closure was listed on the hotel website, but I showed her on my phone it was actually listed as “open.” She called her manager and they eventually offered me 50,000 Bonvoy points as compensation.
One of the somewhat unique amenities the hotel offers is a complimentary bike rental. The last time I had used such a program was in Copenhagen, a city built for biking. In contrast, Ft. Lauderdale is more car-friendly and high-speed four-lane split roadways, most without separated bike lanes, prevailed along the hotel. Nonetheless, I enjoyed a quick ride down several keys lined with million-dollar homes.
Food and beverage
The hotel’s sole restaurant is called Burlock Coast. This restaurant handles catering for the entire property, even if you’re not physically within the restaurant itself.
I didn’t eat at Burlock Coast for breakfast since it wasn’t included with my rate. I did, however, visit for happy hour one evening and for dinner another.
As a Marriott Titanium, I received a free drink during Burlock Coast’s happy hour. However, it felt like a bit of a bait and switch (as these things admittedly usually are) as there wasn’t actually a choice in the drink. Still, I decided to also try an appetizer. The hummus was very good and was an extremely large portion for around $10. It was more than enough to serve as a full meal for me by myself.
For dinner, I had a steak which was cooked to a perfect medium rare. It was tender but, while fat is important for flavor, this particular cut was really overly fatty to the point where there was a lot of inedible fat left on the plate after I finished eating the meat. The service was very good throughout. I ate outdoors and, when the sun went down, it got a bit chilly. The servers ensured I was comfortable by placing a propane fire lamp next to me. During my meal, the lamp ran out of propane and the servers promptly replaced it.
I hung out at the pool for about an hour just before it closed the first day that I arrived. The bartender comped me a Coke and a banana daiquiri and even served them to me while I was in the water. The next day, a different bartender charged me for the drinks. While they didn’t have a menu with listed prices, generously sized alcoholic drinks seemed to be reasonably priced in the $7-12 range. There was no mandatory service charge. Service was fast and friendly both days.
The other best restaurants within walking distance of the hotel were all other resort restaurants. Some are reportedly quite good, including some Michelin-starred places, but none looked like they felt especially local or special.
Overall, the food and beverage offerings at the Ritz seemed to be above average quality, though not spectacular. They represented what felt to me like a very good value, especially considering the context of a luxury resort set in an expensive city amidst million-dollar mansions.
Service
All of the staff members I interacted with at the Ritz were friendly and efficient. The pool and beachside bartenders in particular were working especially hard and were extremely friendly. The front desk staff were helpful at answering questions and solving problems. I was generally pleased with the service I received.
One note: While Marriott offers guaranteed 4pm late checkout, which this hotel does participate in, I have noticed that their reservation system still typically disables room keys around noon. If you’re coming back in the afternoon on your last day, it’s typically necessary to stop at the front desk for a new key. Unfortunately this happened to me when I was returning from the beach. My room key didn’t work. I was wearing only swim trunks and didn’t have my phone or ID. It took a half hour, while shivering from the ocean, for them to get me back into my room. This was the most frustrating part of my stay by far and was frankly embarrassing walking around the non-aquatic parts of the hotel without proper clothing.
Overall Impression
The Ritz-Carlton is an interesting brand for Marriott elites. In general, I would slot this brand a half notch below St. Regis, the legacy-SPG equivalent.
However, there are a lot more Ritz-Carlton properties to choose from, including three in the general vicinity of this hotel. That made it easier to take advantage of the luxury property within my price range (Rates at the St. Regis Bal Harbour, the only St. Regis property in the Miami area, were over $1,000 per night) even without elite benefits such as SNAs or breakfast.
This particular Ritz is certainly not a 5-star resort like what you might expect to experience in Asia or even at other properties in the US. However, the room was large and comfortable, the service was generally friendly and efficient, and the beach vibes were exactly what I was looking for on this trip.
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