Marina & Local Guides
Fort Lauderdale Marinas: An Owner's Guide
Fort Lauderdale calls itself the Venice of America, and the marina map is why: hundreds of miles of canals, the Intracoastal Waterway running through town, the New River winding inland, and quick ocean access through the Port Everglades inlet. Where you keep the boat shapes everything from your Saturday routine to how fast the gelcoat fades. Here's an owner's-eye tour of the major marinas — what each is known for, and the character of keeping a boat there.
Bahia Mar Yachting Center
The most famous address in Fort Lauderdale boating. Bahia Mar sits on Seabreeze Boulevard with the Intracoastal on one side and the beach on the other, attached to its beach resort hotel. It's the longtime home of the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, and literary readers know it as the home marina of Travis McGee's houseboat in John D. MacDonald's novels. For owners it's a full-service, big-boat-capable marina in the middle of the action — and a front-row seat every boat-show week.
Pier 66
Marked by its landmark tower on the Intracoastal at the 17th Street Causeway, Pier 66 has been a Fort Lauderdale icon for generations and is the city's best-known superyacht marina — deep water, big slips, and a recently redeveloped resort property around it. If your mental image of Fort Lauderdale boating includes a row of gleaming yachts under that tower, this is the place. Its location, just inside the inlet, makes ocean runs short.
Las Olas Marina
The city's own marina, on Las Olas Boulevard where the boulevard meets the Intracoastal, a short walk from the beach. Las Olas Marina was recently expanded and rebuilt with modern megayacht capacity, and it pairs that with a location no other local marina can match: step off the boat and you're on Fort Lauderdale's dining and shopping street. It draws a mix of local owners, seasonal boats, and transients working the coast.
Lauderdale Marine Center
Up the New River, Lauderdale Marine Center is a different species: one of the country's largest yacht repair and refit yards. Boats come here to be hauled, refit, repainted, and repaired rather than simply docked, and the surrounding stretch of the New River is Fort Lauderdale's working waterfront — yards, riggers, and marine trades of every kind. Owners meet LMC when a boat needs real work, and the yard's scale means most specialties are under one roof.
Harbour Towne Marina (Dania Beach)
Just south of the airport in Dania Beach, on the Dania Cut-off Canal near Port Everglades, Harbour Towne is one of the area's large full-service marinas and a practical favorite: quick access to the inlet, an easy run to the Intracoastal, and a location that's convenient from both Fort Lauderdale and Hollywood. It's a good example of why our coverage treats Dania Beach and Hollywood as part of the same boating neighborhood.
Also in the local mix: Hall of Fame Marina on the beach side of Seabreeze Boulevard, next to the International Swimming Hall of Fame, and Lauderdale Marina on 15th Street, a family-run fixture long known for its fuel dock and waterfront dining. And behind thousands of waterfront homes, of course, are the private docks of the Intracoastal and the canal neighborhoods — for many local owners, "the marina" is the backyard.
Choosing between them
Owners tend to choose on three practical axes. Access: how quickly can you be in open water — marinas near the Port Everglades inlet win on ocean days, while New River and canal locations trade a scenic, bridge-dotted ride out for quieter water at the dock. Exposure: open Intracoastal slips get more sun and spray than sheltered canals, which shows up in your maintenance schedule. Services: if the boat will need yard work, being based near the New River's working waterfront — or in a full-service marina with its own yard relationships — saves real logistics. None of these has a universally right answer; the best marina is the one whose trade-offs match how you actually use the boat.
Dockside care: what owners should know
Wherever the boat lives, a few local realities apply. Most Fort Lauderdale detailing is mobile — the pro comes to the boat — but marinas set their own rules for outside vendors: many require detailers and other contractors to check in with the dock office, carry insurance on file, or work within set hours. Before booking dockside work, confirm your marina's vendor policy so nobody gets turned away at the gate.
Exposure varies a lot by slip, too. A boat on an outer dock facing the Intracoastal takes more sun, wind, and passing wake spray than one tucked up a canal — which is why two identical boats in different marinas can need noticeably different care schedules. (Our guide to how often to detail in South Florida breaks down how storage changes the cadence.) Finally, remember that slip availability, rates, and amenities change with seasons and renovations — always confirm current details directly with a marina before planning a move.
Boat kept in Fort Lauderdale?
Whether you're at a marina or a private dock, local pros detail dockside across Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, Dania Beach, and Hollywood. Our quote partner, Lauderdale Boat Detailing, matches owners with a vetted local pro — get a quote priced by the foot.
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