I recently returned from my stay at the Holiday Inn Lauderdale by the Sea.

I read some of the previous reviews and I was a little worried what I might find, but all in all my stay was okay.

If you are looking for 3 to 5 star luxury accomodations i.e. Hyatt, Hilton or 4 Seasons, do not stay at this hotel. If you are looking to be in walking distance of Lauderdale night life and shopping, also don't stay at this hotel.

If you are looking for a peaceful and cheap getaway, this is the ideal spot. There are shops and resturants a short walk up the A1A. And there are taxis and buses to take you to all the stuff happening on Los Olas Blvd. Also there is a rental car place a block up the street from the hotel as well. So its not in a completely bad spot. Also the concierge is very helpful in giving information.

As for the hotel room, the bathroom needed to be remodeled and was outdated with a big crack in the base of the toilet, other than that my room was fine.

I liked it because it has its own private access to a private beach. There's a Denny's on the premises and I would definately recommend this for a person whose traveling on a budget but wants access to the beach.

Our room was pretty good, with a view of the ocean and a small porch looking east. The bar by the pool was okay, too, with the bartender more interested in the Yankees came than us, but that's not a big deal.

The pool was adequate and if don't want couples with small kids, don't stay at a Holiday Inn. The beach was better, across a quiet street, and the location was great, with shopping and additional food choices a block or two away.

There was free WiFi in the room and plenty to choose from on TV, along with a microwave and a medium-sized 'fridge.

Like anyone else reading this, we checked with Trip Advisor first and were not expecting a great things. The hotel met our expectations for a one night at around $100 at the beach on the night before we flew home.

Does the place need some improvement? Yes, the open air interior hallways are uncommon nowadays and the FL weather can be hard on a building and its systems. The Holiday Inn name still means something (unlike Ramada) and we got what we anticipated: thanks to this site and the brand.

This hotel, just north of Ft. Lauderdale, is a must miss. No matter the price, do not stay here. The area is NOT Ft. Lauderdale, it is a strip of seedy motel's, and although the water and sand found at the beach is nice, it still is somewhat depressing. To get to the bars, restaraunts, and shops of Las Olas, you will be spending a considerale amount on cabs (about 20$ with tip each way).

The water in the toilet is yellow, and house keeping woke us up once on the hour starting at 9am! Not to mention the front desk (the reason why we were here) allowed the timeshare office that was trying to sell us more stuff to call the room at 9 in the morning as well.

In short, fork up some extra cash, and stay somwhere nice in Ft. Lauderdale, and stay away from Lauderdale-By-The-Sea

This was the worst Holiday Inn I have ever seen in my life. It was extremely rundown, the smell in the rooms was terrible. (musty) The furniture was very dirty and rundown. The carpet was dirty, the bathroom were dirty with rust on the doors. Hair was all over the sheets under the comforter. I would not advise anyone to stay at here!