Patrick G.
Yelp
I stayed one night at the Fort Lauderdale Grand Hotel at the recommendation of an African American clerk who works at the 7-Eleven nearby when I told him I was looking for a room under $100. He said the place was nice and would meet my price point. On the latter, he was partially correct. The room cost me $75+ tax, but the hotel charges an extra $100 safety deposit in the event of any damages or theft from the guests. Given how seedy this hotel is, no wonder they need such a hefty security deposit. This was without a doubt the worst hotel experience of my entire life! When I checked in, a raucous party was going on in the nightclub across from the front desk, and people were passed out drunk on the couches in the lobby. Everyone there was African American except for me, and they all gave me dirty looks as I walked in as a result. The front desk staff was nice enough, checked me in, and gave me my key, then told me to park my car "wherever I could find a spot." At this point, it was past 11pm and I felt like my options were limited since I had just arrived in Fort Lauderdale and knew of no other hotel nearby after driving 3 days down from NY. Had I known how frightening and disgusting this place was, I would have driven down to the beach and just slept in my car! I feared for my life all night! Prostitutes and drug dealers were turning deals in the parking lot and back under the trees behind the property. I was afraid my car would have no wheels and smashed windows when I awoke the next day so that I had to get up several times during the night to check on it. My room had a terrible, musty smell to it. The TV didn't get a single working channel. The safe in the room was broken. The light switch for the bathroom was loose and barely operational. I couldn't find a nearby electrical outlet to plug in my cell phone because the hotel is so old that it has no plugs in the walls. The pool was dirty and unkempt. The floors and walls of the exterior hallways were so peeling and pitted that I feared the structure might collapse, and I could go on and on. I wouldn't stay in The Fort Lauderdale Grand Hotel again if the room was free! Stay away from this fleabag like your life depends on it, because it does!