We had an overnight here and booked based on reviews from this website and other travel guides. It was a fast car ride from the airport and we stayed in a tower room with a balcony and a great view of the riverwalk. The room was clean and it had a spacious bathroom. The bar was lively with a mix of business travelers and locals. There were plenty of dining options right outside the door on Las Olas Blvd. We wished we could have stayed longer.

This hotel is perfect location if you want to be amongst a lively or relaxing setting. The choice is yours. The journey from Miami airport takes 40 - 50mins and cost around $80 with tip. The people staying in the hotel varied from our age range (late 30s) up to retired. The main stay was probably business customers, but this was due to a big conference on going in Fort Lauderdale at the time of our stay.

This hotel is one of the oldest in Fort Lauderdale and provides a lavish interior with very smart decoration. The tiled floor sets the tone as it is in pristine condition. I am not going to say much about the hotel as it is going to be extended dramatically with a further 200 rooms from September 2008 which will take about 18 months. When completed they are aiming for 5 star status. We stayed in a tower room over looking the city towards the Atlantic. Originally we had a room looking over the city (back of tower block) which was not so nice so go for an upgrade with balcony facing Atlantic which cost an extra $20 a night. The pool is located across the street by the river which is about a minutes walk from the rear of the hotel. Nice pool with shaded areas, loungers, tables and supplied towels. Food/drinks can be ordered from the pool and delivered between 12pm - 4pm. At times we had the pool to our selves. The shallowest point was 3ft 6 so if you have yound kids who can not swim this might be too deep for paddling.

The older part of the hotel had smaller rooms which seemed ok for business use or a short stay, where the tower block had spacious rooms which I would recommend if you are staying more than a couple of days or you want good views.

Basically the hotel is on the E Las Olas Blvd which provides individual designer shops and good restaurants. The Cheese Cake Factory is attached to the hotel and provides enormous meals and found this to be the norm with most restaurants we visited. We ended our holiday sharing starters and main courses as normally one plate could feed two easily. The shops are quite expensive being designer, but having a strong pound against the dollar made some purchases good value. If you are looking for the ultimate shopping experience locally then a short taxi ride (20-30mins $30) will take you to Sawmills. It took us from 10 am - 7pm to walk around and that was not visiting every shop. If you are looking to fill up a suitcase with clothes, goods, etc then this is the place to go.

The i trolley (Small yellow air conditioned bus) was the way to travel as it cost $0 - 1$ a trip per person, no matter how far or short the journey was. You could stay on it all day if you wanted. It sort of did a circuit of main Fort Lauderdale travelling up to the Beach front and back to Broward Centre of performing arts. Basically it stopped when you wanted to get off and most times you could stick your hand up like calling a taxi and it would let you on. The river taxi was another good way to travel and see Fort Lauderdale from another angle. It has 11 stops and a round trip will take about 3 hours. A all day pass cost 12$ per adult. If you like boats and properties then it is just worth taking the taxi for that as they are stunning. Most stops are at a restaurant or shops. They stop near the Gallery shopping centre which was ok, but nothing compared to the previously mention Sawmills.

All in all we had a great time for our week stay in Fort Lauderdale and coming back to the hotel made our stay even more enjoyable. The staff where friendly (even though the conciege did not seem that knowledgable, they did try to help).

If you you just want a beach holiday then you probably would be better to stay on the seafront, as the journey from the Riverhotel is about 10 mins by i trolley. None of the hotels we saw were actually on the beach and you had to cross a busy road to get from the hotels to the beaches.

All in all there is plenty to do in Fort Lauderdale and we even came across a trip to fly you to the Bahamas for the day for $80 per person which if we had time we may of done.

You will not be dissapointed by this hotel.

This was our second stay at the Riverside. Previously stayed at the hotel during for a conference three years ago.

Returned for one night during the last leg of a Florida vacation in late April. Got a very good deal online through Expedia. We stayed in the new part of the hotel. Our room was bigger than some of the suites we had stayed in the past. It had a king size bed, flat screen TV, etc. The view was of the river and nearby high end condos. After checking in, we spent a few hours by the pool.

Service was also well above average. The lobby was spacious and staff where always available to help with luggage. directions, etc. Walking out, you immediately arrived on the trendy Los Olas Blv and its trendy restaurants and shops. After walking a bit, decided to eat in the onsite restaurant, while people watching on Los Olas Blvd. Only regret is we only stayed there one night. Would--and will--return to this wonderful property.

I just returned from a three night stay here with two girlfriends and I loved it! We had a room in the newer tower section with two double beds. The room was quite large and the bathroom was spacious as well. We pulled a chair over by the closet's full length mirror so two people could do makeup at one time. The pool scene cannot be beat. The pool is across the street from the hotel - take your room key to get in - and directly on the New River. You can watch the yacht and water taxi traffic go by while you are lounging in the sun. There are two on site restaurants that look very nice but we did not try either. There are so many options on Las Olas that we just didn't get the chance. Lots of fun shopping within walking distance. Cheescake Factory is practically on site so it is a great place for dessert. Be aware that this downtown location has no parking options other than the self-park garage ($18.02 per night inc taxes) or valet for well over $20.00 per night. We chose self-park and never once felt nervous. The garage is well lit and there is an elevator that will take you directly into the hotel. You could probably walk to the beach within 15-20 minutes but we drove and parked. We found a lot where you could park all day for $8.00. The beach is wide and clean with lifeguards on site. Lots of dining options across the street. We rented beach chairs for $10.00 per day. Water taxis depart from a point that is just about a 5 minute walk from the hotel. Close to airport and rental car pick up/drop off as well. You can be in Miami in about 30 minutes - we drove there to catch an airboat tour with Gator Park. Look for coupons on their website. Key West is about 3.5 hrs away. Cannot wait to bring my husband back here!