FL Ft Lauderdale Hyatt Bonaventure

[LoneStar]

As expected, this was an "interesting" stay. The Bonaventure is a famous golf resort in W. Broward that management neglected for too long. They're now spending tens of millions of dollars on an overhaul, but in the meantime . . .

First, I tried to "sweet talk" my way at the front desk into a renovated room, but no dice. What I got was probably something somewhat below 3 star quality (the hotel's current priceline rating) but not horrible. The carpet was severely worn in places, there were a few strange discolorations on the walls, the finish on the writing desk was coming off, some rust in the bathroom, the bed springs seemed a little old, etc. But by no means terrible, unless you're VERY picky. I did have a nice view of the golf course. :) The 4 story buildings that comprise the "resort" come across as a mid-priced but aging garden apartment rental complex. On the other hand, the lobby and pool area (with waterfall) are in more reasonable shape for a "resort." They seem to be trying to convert at least some of the units into "condo/hotels", so there's a big sales office on site. (Why anyone would want to buy them I have no idea).

Which gets to the annoying resort fee. It's $12.95, even though most of the spa is closed and there are really no other included "resort amenities" (you have to pay regular price for golf, and the services in the spa -- really just a fancy salon right now -- are quite expensive). They even charge 95 cents for toll free phone access. I printed out a page from a travel website saying the resort fee was being waived from the middle of January due to the spa closure, but when I checked in the front desk supervisor insisted that I pay it. Given how generally dumpy the property was, this annoyed me, and I again asked it to be waived when I checked out. This time, the (different) front desk employee said she'd take it off my bill (we'll see if it shows up on my credit card).

I only paid $50 for my room on priceline and, without a resort fee, this was a fair price. If you can't get anything affordable closer to the beach (or if you want to stay on a golf course) this place is OK for that money. I wouldn't pay anything more for it. This will change, of course, as more of the property gets renovated and improved.

[gplank]

We had no idea what property this would be. Actually, not true - I had hoped it would be the Rennaissance Plantation and was rather concerned when I found out it was this property (which is not listed). The reviews I had read left me with a sense of dis-ease. HOWEVER, we were pleasantly surprised. The front entrance to the newly renovated Hyatt Regency Bonaventure Conference Center and Spa was welcoming and very spa like. The front desk staff did not comment on our Hotwire reservation, and our request for a King N/S was honoured. The front desk manager even looked up our Hyatt Gold Passport number and registered it on the reservation without our needing to request that they do so.

Our room was in building one on the third floor. It was a large room, beautifully decorated, really comfortable bed with a lot of space to work comfortably (desk, 2 tables) or store our stuff in the wardrobe. The bathroom was really well appointed, with beautiful marble floors and separate shower stall, and a stand alone tub. There was even a bidet in the washroom! The bathroom amenities were all Portico products and smelled absolutely heavenly!

Once you venture further into the property, it is quite beautiful. We didn't have a chance to partake of the Spa services or the restaurants, but they looked like they were very extensive and I would definitely give them a try if I had more time. We were there with shopping on the brain.

The Spa is not within walking distance of any restaurants or shopping, but if you have a car, it is very convenient (within 10 minutes drive) of many fabulous dining and shopping opportunities. There is no charge for parking.

Would definitely return to this property at this rate.