We are FL residents (Davie) and were looking for a place to stay one night to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary. We come to Fort Lauderdale beach a couple time each summer to enjoy a nice day at the ocean but have never really needed to 'lodge' there.
I booked a reservation within 24 hours of when I wanted to stay and they were able to accomodate. We stayed Thur 1/12. We checked in around 6pm and checked out Friday at 11am - so our stay was not very long.

Pool - we didn't have a need to use it so I can't comment.
Sundeck - nice & large. We used in for about 2 hours (after checkout on Fri) before we headed home. It was cold that day so we just read our books in a normal clothing. Some tiles are broken and wobbled under your feet so be careful walking around. The lounges could also use a cleaning because of the bird poop.
Checkin - Checkout - Smooth process - no issues
Location - can't beat it - walking distance to everything we needed for the short period we were here.
Parking - I high recommond the public lot next door. Its $15 for an overnight ticket. Which basically means you get a ticket when you enter the lot and it ends the next day at 11:30. Since checkout is at 11am that gives you plenty of time to get car loaded up. So depending on when you 'enter the lot', it could be $15 for a 24 hour period. We took our ticket at 6pm Thur and it lasted until 11:30am the next day. The ticket gives you ONE in/out privilage so be cautious if you are planning on taking your car out often - this would not be an option for you.
Room - we were 7th floor and booked an ocean front room since we wanted to watch the sunrise at 7am Friday morning from our bed. Room was spacious, had 2 queen beds, large bathroom, nice TV, clean carpet, plush bedding. The ocean front windows were floor to ceiling. Excellent view of ocean, You can see the roof top's of lower ocean front restuarents which are not the most attractive - but it didn't take away from the wonderful ocean view.
Only compliant (and I didn't register it with hotel since we did not have a long stay) was the bathtub water was very 'yellow'. I think they need to change the filter on their water heater system. Our home water gets rusty looking when the filter needs changed.

This room / hotel suited our immediate needs and if I had friends/family in town who were in need of a room in Fort Lauderdale I could recommond this place comfortably.

As far as January's go this one will last in memory. Breaking from New England winter, 80degF & Sunny FL was truly 'exotic'. Ft Lauderdale beach is clean, well maintained, and friendly to all.

Courtyard by Marriott Ft. Lauderdale Beach is a nice hotel. However, it's location will be the quality that anchors it in long term memory. I have no major complaints of the hotel. Some suggestions for improvement I have:

- valet parking - at $28/day not a good value with public pay lot directly next door at $15. Maybe this is a function of the season and the public lot is not an option during peak - if so, consider reduced valet charge in off peak.
- elevators are slow
- pool water did not seem to be fresh filtered and treated water. I sympathize with previous reviews citing 'salt water' pool. Frankly it tasted like a heavily urinated kiddy pool
- pool area and sun deck could use some modernizing and decor. It is rather institutional in its current state. Perhaps add some color to the floors and walls, sculpture or other artwork, potted trees and planters, and fresh and heavier furniture. Also a few of the bar area floor tiles were broken and unstable, a potential safety hazard. Oh and a umbrella and table turned over on me under a moderate gust - an anchoring solution needed there.
- room 1224 was a southwest corner with partial view of ocean and entertaining view of marina and Intercoastal waterway. Yacht watching was fun. Room was average size, average cleanliness, average decor, fixtures, and furnishings. The Ethernet cable did not work and the Wi-Fi wasnt very strong. I'd consider adding more range extenders - overkill would be worth the investment now as demand on wireless will only grow in the future. A few ants were spotted in the room, but other than that no problems.

Now a few compliments:
- staff were friendly, everyone encountered greeted me warmly. I didn't have any special needs so I didn't get to 'test' their commitment to service, but I got a good feeling about it
- conference room service staff were on the ball, quickly and quietly servicing our needs
- accessibility to parking, A1A, and beach was great. You can be in your car, on the beach, or at a wide selection of restaurants and bars quickly with no obstacle.

Overall my stay was good value. Again without the location this would have been an average experience, but again no major complaints. Bottom line: I would return.

For the price, this hotel and location cannot be beat. Clean rooms, common areas and hallways have pleasant smell, pool/patio area has plenty of chairs and towels. Pool bar serves good food and drinks. Room had a small fridge. Linens and bedding nice. Free WiFi. All staff were friendly. Beach is directly across the street. Ask for a room on a high floor for best views. I would definitely stay again. The windows in the room are very large and wonderful. Only thing that would make it better is if the windows opened.

Stayed here for 4 nights in January. We had a corner room with living area ( fold out sleeper sofa) which worked great with our 7 yr old son. This was a to be a relaxing beach vacation. Upon arrival we were told ( at 12pm) no early check in. We enjoyed an afternoon at the beach instead. The pool itself is very clean but small. The pool is shaded by afternoon. The sundeck is up the stairs from the pool and would remind you of the dated deck of a cruise ship. Maybe fitting due to the crowd at this hotel who were clearly there to pre-party & drink before departing on a cruise. I was put off by the dirty party crowd smoking all around the outside of the hotel - even smoking pot in plain view at 3 in the afternoon. Upon checking into our room on the 5th floor - the smell of pot was so obvious in the air of the hotel hall it was not even funny. By the time we got settled and came back out to go to dinner the smell was gone - thank goodness. For a non-smoking hotel I would think they'd be on top of that a little more.
The end of our stay did get better.
Pros: you could definately stay here without a rental car. The water taxi was about $20 for an all day pass. There are a lot of restaurants and even a 24 hr CVS right down the street
Rooms were clean and comfortable
Beach area was clean
Food at the pool bar was good as was breakfast buffet. Service at both were great. bubba gumps down below the pool was also good and reasonable.

cons: You have to cross a BUSY road to get to the beach. This is a challenge with a smaller child - be warned. No cross walk.
It's a public beach so while I have become used to paying $25 - $30 a day to rent 2 chairs and an umbrella - this place was outrageous. They charge $10 per chair + $5 per cushion + $20 for an umbrella - quick math = $50 for one day to rent two chairs & umbrella? Really??
The hotel is full of cruise people. Expect them to be loud and party well into the night. I heard numerous business people complaining at the desk about it during my stay. I understand the hotel can't control or descriminate who stays there - just be warned!
The pool area could use a major makeover. It was clean - no problems there. Did not feel like I was in a tropical beach setting at all.

No complaints about the staff or service here. We did score a late check out with much pleading at the front desk. I would stay here again but would hope management would make some improvements to the pool area.