Fort Lauderdale's best new hotels

Set on 32 acres, peerless Pier Sixty-Six has been injected with more than a billion in capital, creating a 325-room resort and 12 restaurants. Pier Sixty-Six

While Miami and Palm Beach gobble up the best hotel brands, benefiting from a seemingly never-ceasing bevy of five-star openings, Fort Lauderdale often felt like an afterthought.

Yes, there’s already a Ritz-Carlton and a W Hotel, and in 2022 an oceanfront Four Season debuted. But for the so-called “yachting capital of the world” these were relatively slim pickings, compared to its neighbors north and south.

Now, finally, the city is splashing out with fresh rooms that will tempt the world’s wealthiest. Even JSX, the charter air carrier that sells individual seats and has become a popular way for tony New Yorkers to zip from Westch