I was really quite disappointed in this place, mostly due to the 'glowing' reviews I read here. "The only place to stay in Fort Lauderdale"???? I don't think so. There's nothing inherently wrong here except the pool is in shade most of the day, the breakfast is adequate to be kind, the crowd when I was there was decidedly older and there was nothing fun or frisky about any one of them. It is perfectly clean, well kept and fine but in no way is it "where the boys are....now".

We stayed at the Villa Venice for one week. It was a very nice place. The room was large, private, well-kept and affordable. We liked that we had a kitchenette and private patio.

There were a lot of friendly guys staying at the resort while we were there and we made friends with a few of them.

Terry and his staff are very friendly and helpful. They provided us with good tips for restaurants, shopping, etc. And it didn't hurt that the houseboy Jason hung out at the pool and hot tub in his underwear on his day off. He is HOT!

My only complaint is that the pool doesn't get full sun all day. So, you end up going to the beach or getting out by the pool very early to jockey for one of the few lounge chairs that do get sun the majority of the day.

Compared to other gay boutique hotels we've stayed in, The Villa Venice is truly a cut above. Our room was immaculate and beautifully appointed. It was more like staying with friends as apposed to staying in a hotel. We liked the close availability to the beach and the quick car trip to excellent restaurants and entertainment. The pool and patio area is so nice, we loved the lush landscape. Finally, we appreciate the friendly helpful staff. They guided us in the right direction for food and fun. We will certainly put The Villa Venice in our future Ft. Lauderdale plans. Thanks for a most enjoyable stay!

There's nothing significantly wrong with Villa Venice. It just left me a little disappointed vs the cleverly-written and photographed website.

Althought nicely refurbished, underneath it's still basically an ordinary 1960 L-shaped 3-storey motel with exterior walkways wrapped around a courtyard (pool and hot tub) which backs onto a side street a couple of blocks away from the main road at the beach.

The work they have done is to a high standard (although it seems a shame it's been done in a "nice-hotel" style rather than as a 60s retro restoration - it looks great in the original 1960s vintage photos).

Examples of the over-selling include:

The "Torino Cafe" is just a converted guestroom with a self-service countertop and fridge. The "lavish continental breakfast" was a small selection of pre-packaged items and some tinned fruit salad in the fridge. The "cafe" only serves breakfast.

The "Guest Business Centre" is one PC with internet access. Complimentary Wi-Fi is provided but this was intermittent for all guests.

The pool area is beautifully landscaped but is quite small. It was the quiet season when I stayed but please note there are only 10 loungers and there are about 20 rooms so maybe up to 40 guests.

The rooms were nicely appointed and newly refurbished. However, the bed mattresses seemed to be covered in plastic sheeting (are their guests incontinent?!) which was noisy and uncomfortable. Other guests commented on this too.

Unlike other gay guesthouses I have stayed at, there were no complimentary drinks by the poolside, let alone evening cocktails - not even a poolside jug of water. Nothing was done to make you feel welcome as a guest. Having just come from a Key West guesthouse with the same room rate where we had made to feel so welcome by all the staff, this place felt very corporate vs the oasis I had just left.

Pool towels were not replenished and replacements are kept under lock and key in the office which closed at 4pm on the Sunday we were there. The only facilities within a 10 minute walk are a couple of cafes. Everything else is a drive away.

A microwave is provided in the room but no plates or cutlery. The office had closed by 4.30pm and they had locked the 'cafe' which might have had a spare plate.

I was not bothered by any construction noise from the numerous large hotel-building projects nearby.

For me, Fort Lauderdale was not as relaxing or convenient as Key West or as fun as South Beach and I'd give it a miss on any future trip to Florida.

This is a perfectly nice place to stay, so long as you realise it's just a motel that's been done up nicely and carefully targeted. As a consequence I think it's somewhat overpriced.

One final point, Villa Venice refused to refund for a day-early checkout (3 nights instead of 4) requested after the first night. They also would not offer the unused day as credit for a future stay. Other guests told us that during the quieter times, it is better to book a day at a time and extend day-by-day to avoid this punitive policy.