Explore Fort Lauderdale by Water W

ith more than twenty-four miles of golden sandy coastline and over 300 miles of inland waterways, one of the best ways to explore Fort Lauderdale is by boat. Known as the “Yachting Capital of the World”, this beach town logs over 3,000 hours of sunshine per year, making it an excellent place to be on the water. For visitors, a budget-friendly way to explore the waterways of Fort Lauderdale is by water taxi. During your ride, along the rivers, canals and intracoastal waterway, live commentary informs you about all the sights, history, and ecosystem of the area you are visiting. The “hop on, hop off” feature lets you jump off and visit anything that piques your curiosity along the way.

Water taxis operate seven days a week from 10am to 10pm. There are eleven stops on the main route plus an optional Hollywood Express Route that runs every two hours from the Hilton Hotel and Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale to the Margaritaville Beach Resort in Hollywood. There is also a water trolley

By Tina Walsh

that runs from the Riverside Hotel in the Las Olas area along the Riverwalk in downtown Fort Lauderdale. All these routes are included in the unlimited rides price of $35 for adults with discounts for children, seniors, and military. There is an after 5:00pm price of $20 which is great for viewing holiday lights if you visit Fort Lauderdale in December. Visit watertaxi.com to purchase tickets and plan your adventure, making sure you check the list of “Cruise and Save” partners. These restaurants, attractions and shops offer discounts to patrons that show their water taxi ticket.

The intracoastal waterway is directly connected to the Everglades through a series of canals. It is part of the fragile ecosystem that acts as a birthing ground and nursery for porpoises, manatees, sea turtles, sting rays and multiple species of fish. On days when the boat traffic is quiet, you may see some of these creatures on your voyage. The Everglades provides most of the drinking water for South Florida, thus extra care is taken to protect this natural resource.