Nekton Pilot to Cay Sal Bank - July 11th

My wife are heading out on the Nekton Pilot to Cay Sal Bank on July 11th.
We arrive around noon on 7/11, so we're going to have about five hours to kill at the "River Walk." We're thinking about checking out a couple of museums and maybe an Imax. Hoping to find a good Cuban or Cajun restaurant.

We are SO excited about this trip!!! As much as we love diving in California, we can't wait to dive in some warm water! Anyone out there going to be on the same boat?

EricJ:

My wife are heading out on the Nekton Pilot to Cay Sal Bank on July 11th.
We arrive around noon on 7/11, so we're going to have about five hours to kill at the "River Walk." We're thinking about checking out a couple of museums and maybe an Imax. Hoping to find a good Cuban or Cajun restaurant.

We are SO excited about this trip!!! As much as we love diving in California, we can't wait to dive in some warm water! Anyone out there going to be on the same boat?

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We are going about a month and a half later, but we have done Nekton before and know that 'Las Olas' area pretty well. Nothing much special there in my opinion, although the museum a couple of blocks west of the drop off street was not bad. The middle eastern restaurant that we had checked out online ahead of time was found to be not opening until it was too late for us to use it, and we didn't find much else that attracted us. We did find a strange little meat pasty shop which wasn't too bad, but the whole area didn't exactly impress me. Is this the best that Nekton could find in Fort Lauderdale? Oh well, it is reasonably close to the dockage area, and we rigged it so we would only be there a couple of hours this time. And after that, on to the Cay Sal banks! Good luck and fair weather- Woody

I'll be on that boat, one week before you. We depart tomorrow on the Medeo itinerary. My loose plans are to head to the beach first, then ugly tuna for dinner.

If Riverwalk is not appealing, hop a cab to either Ernie's (A BBQ joint that has great conch chowder and Bimini bread. It has been around since the 1950s, is a Ft. Lauderdale institution and a big Nekton crew hangout) or Dirty Harry's (inexspensive sea food and another Nekton crew hangout) for lunch and then take a cab to Beach Place (or just hang out at the beach).

cappyjon431:

If Riverwalk is not appealing, hop a cab to either Ernie's (A BBQ joint that has great conch chowder and Bimini bread. It has been around since the 1950s, is a Ft. Lauderdale institution and a big Nekton crew hangout) or Dirty Harry's (inexspensive sea food and another Nekton crew hangout) for lunch and then take a cab to Beach Place (or just hang out at the beach).

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Good advice from Jon. Just be careful on the stairs at Ernie's after a few beers.
If you must have the cajun lunch, Creolina's is the place, but they moved 15 minutes west of the airport to Davie.

Or,,,,, you could go for an afternoon dive on American Dream II docked at the Pier 66 Hotel and Marina or with Pro Dive USA at Bahia Mar Hotel and Marina.

Great tips. Sounds like we my think outside the box and venture off from the River Walk to some other Ft. Lauderdale sites. Might check out some of those local hangouts.

I checked out "Beach Place" and found Duck Tour. It looks like a fun and cheesy way to kill some time and get a general overview of Ft. Lauderdale. Checked out Creolina's online. Ernie's and Dirty Harry's both sound promising too.

@Tuner Fish: Have a GREAT trip next week!

Eric, have a great trip! I wanna see photos and videos when you get back!!!


robin

Have fun in Cay Sal, been a coons age since I've been down there. Hope you get some great diving in. Regarding the Las Olas area. You'll find the Discovery Center and IMAX on West Las Olas Blvd. It is an entertainment district that wakes up in the evening pretty much. There is the Museum of Art on East Las Olas a few blocks away. If you're into shops, there's a bunch on East Las Olas. One thing that may be of interest at Riverwalk, an area that has seen better times, is a boat tour around the canals, homes and yachts, etc. if that appeals. There is the Samba Room on East Las Olas for Cuban cuisine. Other places, Mangos more low key a bit to the east, really lots of restaurants on Las Olas. I like Ernies myself, south of 17th St. on Federal, stopped by there last night. Still it is a bit out of the way from things to look at for visitors. You could visit Lauderdale Beach, the strip area around Las Olas, several blocks north and south along the ocean. My favorite restaurant down there is Casablancas on the overlooking the beach. Lots of options in the Ft. Lauderdale area, with something over 2000 restaurants?

Have fun and put some shots up from Cay Sal!

Rick

@RickI Thanks for the GREAT tips. Sounds like we'll have plenty to do in Ft. Lauderdale. A couple of people have mentioned Ernie's, which looks good. Since we don't have any Cuban restaurants in San Luis Obispo County, CA, I like the idea of The Samba Room. I just checked out their Website...looks YUMMY! I think we're going to do a tour, and a museum, and possibly an Imax. My new worry now is that we won't be able to fit in all the great sites and activities of Ft. Lauderdale.

I'll post a trip report!