SHOPPING
Broward County can satisfy most shopaholics, though the only items that are particular to South Florida are T-shirts with Fort Lauderdale emblazoned on them. Las Olas Boulevard, best known for its relaxed alfresco shopping, is lined with boutiques as well as bars, restaurants and a shaded walkway for strolling. Merchants include classy thrift shops, designer fashion boutiques and several notable art galleries: Apropos Art Gallery, Call of Africa, Williamson Gallery and Shades of Light Gallery. Works range from wildlife art and one-of-a-kind lamps to Haitian and African art.
To reach the city’s malls, you’ll need a taxi or a car. (Getting to them by bus is slo w many of the routes are circuitous.) Expect to find upscale wares once you get there. At the Galleria Mall on Sunrise Boulevard, just west of the Intracoastal Waterway, such stores as Neiman Marcus, Brooks Brothers and Lord & Taylor set the retail tone (phone 954-564-1015). The important exception to the top-dollar shopping is Sawgrass Mills Mall, a huge Disneyesque discount mall on Sunrise B oulevard and Flamingo Road that includes outlets for Ann Taylor, Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue (phone 954-846-2350).
In addition to the malls, there are less traditional shopping areas known mostly to locals and in-the-know visitors. Antique buffs may want to head to Dania Antique Row, a string of shops along Highway 1 in Dania, just south of Fort Lauderdale. In Hallandale, Schmatte Row (a Yiddish word meaning rag) is a street of discount designer duds in decidedly no-frills shops. Bargain shoppers will also find plenty of action in Pompano Beach at the Festival Flea Market with more than 650 stores, an arcade and a farmers market (open Tuesday-Friday 9:30 am-5 pm, Saturday 9:30 am-6 pm; phone 954-979-4555) and the Swap Shop, America’s largest indoor/outdoor flea market with free circus shows daily (open Monday-Friday 6:30 am-6:30 pm, Saturday and Sunday 5:30 am-6:30 pm, phone 954-791-7927).
Shopping Hours: Most downtown shops and specialty stores are open Monday-Saturday 10 am-6 pm (some stay open until 11 pm), while the malls are usually open Monday-Saturday 10 am-9 pm and Sunday noon-6 pm.
BEACHES
Broward County has 23 mi/37 km of wide, sandy beaches
fronting the Atlantic Ocean (and 3,000 hours of annual sunshine to go with
them). The most famous beach is the one where spring break was born, Fort
Lauderdale Beach, which is just north of Port Everglades along the
Atlantic (between the Sheraton Yankee Clipper Beach Resort on the south and
Sunrise Boulevard to the north). It has an attractive wave-shaped pedestrian
Promenade decorated with crested gateways and patterned walkways for
beachfront jogging, in-line skating, walking and sightseeing. The public
beach is a 7-mi/11-km strip of sand that is full of street theater and lined
with outdoor restaurants and bars.
For a slower pace and a less urban setting, head to Hugh Taylor Birch State Park, north of Fort Lauderdale Beach. The well-tended and quiet park has shaded picnic areas, nature trails, fishing sites and lush vegetation that hides most of downtown Fort Lauderdale. Canoe and bicycle rentals are also available. (Admission is US$3.25 per car; canoe rentals run about US$10 for two hours; 3109 E. Sunrise Blvd., phone 954-564-4521.)