About the Ft. Lauderdale, Weston and Pembroke Pines, Florida Area 

About the Fort Lauderdale Area 

Widely known as a popular Spring Break destination for East Coast college students, Fort Lauderdale has glorious sunny weather, miles of white sandy beaches, a superb outdoor lifestyle, and an appealingly cosmopolitan outlook. Urban professionals, retirees, young couples, and new families are choosing to relocate here; something that is reflected in the city’s steadily appreciating real estate values. 

Fort Lauderdale enjoys a central location between Miami and Palm Beach. Facing the Atlantic Ocean and intersected by several scenic inland waterways, the city has much to offer its residents. Sparkling white highrises, condominiums, apartments, and historic buildings are complemented by waving palm trees, shining white sand beaches, and the sweeping green areas of the beautifully designed Riverwalk—a lovely riverside strolling area with museums, galleries, outdoor cafes, world class restaurants, great shopping, and plentiful parks. The renowned Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Complex sits on the river surrounded by boats moored at the marina, and there are several excellent tennis centers and championship golf courses throughout the city. Fort Lauderdale’s pretty Intracoastal Waterway is lined with marinas, waterfront restaurants and nightspots, and the world's largest in-water boat show is held here each year. 

The seventh largest city in Florida, Fort Lauderdale is large enough to be sophisticated, with a superb opera company, top live theater and excellent museums and art galleries. Local schools are top notch and higher education options abound; residents may take an art class at the Museum of Art or attend one of the city’s several art or career training colleges. The city has three universities and there are several additional facilities in nearby Miami and Boca Raton. 

Fort Lauderdale’s economy is thriving, based on a diverse mix of tourism, marine manufacturing, finance, insurance, real estate, high technology, avionics and aerospace, and film and television production. Job seekers and entrepreneurs alike are finding Fort Lauderdale a rewarding place to work. 

With all this and more, Fort Lauderdale locals are well placed to make the most of the long hours of sunshine they enjoy. Boating, water sports, sunbathing, golf, volleyball, tennis, shopping, soaking up culture—whatever you enjoy, you will find it in Fort Lauderdale. 

LOCATION
Fort Lauderdale is on the east coast of Florida, about 23 miles north of Miami and 42 miles south of Palm Beach. The largest municipality in Broward County, Fort Lauderdale is well served by key interstates and freeways and residents enjoy ease of access to Miami, Boca Raton and beyond. 

State Highway 1 runs down the Florida coast, passing through Fort Lauderdale on its way south to Miami and north to Boca Raton (about 17 miles away) and Palm Beach. I 95 runs parallel to Highway 1 on Fort Lauderdale’s western border, traveling south to Miami and north to Lake Worth, West Palm Beach, the state of Georgia and beyond. I 75 intersects with I 95 in south Fort Lauderdale before journeying west across Florida to Naples on the west coast (about 100 miles away). 

TRANSPORTATION/AIRPORTS
As a sophisticated city with a thriving tourist industry, Fort Lauderdale is easy to get to. The Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport is just 5 miles from downtown and bustling Miami International Airport is about 27 miles away. The City of Fort Lauderdale also has a small regional airport and operates a helistop downtown. 

A premier embarkation point for the Caribbean, Port Everglades is widely recognized to be one of the finest cruise ports in the world, bringing over 4 million visitors to Fort Lauderdale each year. The port also has a thriving cargo industry.  

There are plenty of water-taxis on the pretty Intracoastal Waterway, and the city has three large marinas for use by its boat loving citizens.  

Broward County Transit runs a comprehensive bus system throughout the county, with routes within Fort Lauderdale as well as commuter services between the city and surrounding centers like Boca Raton and Miami. 

Tri-Rail operates a reliable commuter rail between Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Palm Beach; the line also connects with Miami International Airport. 

A BRIEF HISTORY
The warm and abundant Fort Lauderdale region has been a great place to live for at least five thousand years. Originally home to the pre-historic “Glades Culture” and later the Tequesta Indians, the area was first seen by outsiders when the Spaniards arrived in the late-fifteenth century.  

Less than three centuries later the Tequesta were decimated completely and Seminoles began to arrive, driven to relocate by white settlers. The first white settlers began to arrive in the eighteen-twenties; these pioneers were largely tobacco planters, who farmed along the river and learned survival skills from the Seminole. 

In 1838 the army built a wooden fortification on the swampy banks of the New River, intending it to be a base from which to conduct war on the Seminole for their lands. They named it for Tennessee Volunteer Major William Lauderdale, who led troops against the Indians. After the Seminole were driven out, the fort was left to rot. Before long it became a hideout for army deserters and runaway slaves.  

Fort Lauderdale stayed in the swamp until the early years of the twentieth century, when Charles Green Rhodes successfully dredged the region, using the fill to create long peninsulas. Flagler's railroad followed and Fort Lauderdale was incorporated as a regional center in 1911.  

The sun, sea, and beaches of this cosmopolitan city saw increasing numbers of students arriving each year for spring break, a pattern that became entrenched in popular culture by the beach-party movie "Where The Boys Are" in the nineteen-sixties. Recent years have seen Fort Lauderdale emerge as a more sophisticated locale, and rising real estate values have lead to elegant urban development. 

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