Lani Kai Island Resort — Hotel in Fort Myers Beach

Booked 5 nights online and paid for everything. Arrived at noon and got checked in then went to try to rest from the 16 hour drive. The DJ music noise in the room (217) was unreal. Could not sleep at all. Tried to switch rooms and got told no at about 3:00 pm. |Tried going to sleep about 9:00 and the bass from the music below was still making it impossible. I went to the front desk and told them they HAD to move us because there’s no way we were staying in that room. We got moved to 117 and it was better that night and the next day. On Friday their DJ turned on the speaker just below our room about 15 feet to the side because he must’ve felt that since nobody was down by him on his end that we needed to hear him better where we were. We were sitting below our room at Yo Taco when he turned ot on and the whole area we was sitting in cleared out because it was so loud now. The DJ must think louder is the only way to listen to it. |The next day (Saturday) we tried sitting on the balcony to watch the sunset and once again the music from the bar was very loud to where we couldn’t have a conversation. It was bad. I finally had enough, we went in, got our stuff together, loaded it up and checked out on Saturday at about 7:30 pm, when we were supposed to leave on Monday. I didn’t even care about the lost money at that point, we just wanted away from the Lani Kai. Our booking was done online and nonrefundable and they made sure to repeatedly tell me even though I said I did not care about the money at that point. It took them until the next day to even get us receipt, which was meseed up, but they finally fixed that. |We have been to the lani kai 5 or 6 times prior and it had always been nice but we both agreed that we will not go back again. Our vacation was completely ruined due to the extremely loud, non stop music from about 11am til 10pm.||No more volleyball net there|Parking is $20 a day|Beach chair rentals are $35 for 2 loungers, umbrella, and a table and they remove them no later than 5 pm|No coolers on the beach|No alcoholic drinks in the pool area and they have someone sitting at the gate watching you when you walk in. |2 drinks will set you back $20 with a small tip|Restaurants there are reasonable and have good food. ||The Margaritaville hotel is right next door and that is where we would stay if we ever did decide to ho back to Ft...

Frankly, I’m a little surprised by the all the five-star reviews. Land Kai does have a lot of charm, and the location - near Times Square and only steps from the ocean - is wonderful.

But, the rooms have not been updated in decades. The furniture is worn, the walls need paint, and the a/c could barely keep up (everything felt damp most of the time). To give you an idea about the lack of investment - there was no place, save for an outlet beneath one night stand, to charge your electronics. No USB ports. Not even a late 90s table lamp with an outlet.

Obviously, not every room will share this complaint, but, (see photo), my ‘ocean view’ was really ‘palm tree with a hint of ocean.’

I understand that it is, at its core, a beach motel. So it’s not a Marriott, and it is not trying to be. But, some maintenance and upkeep should be expected. I read that construction on the rooms may be starting soon (August 2021), so maybe they are planning an update. It was mostly clean, but again not Marriott or Hilton clean, just motel clean. Look closely at the corners in the bathroom to see what I mean.

They do have parking at the hotel and across the street. I visited in the off-peak summer; I suspect finding a spot may be challenging in November.

The lower level bar area (there are actually a few separate bars) is a great place to hang out, although it does have a little bit of a low-ceiling, dark basement with exposed pipes feel to it. I love that there is a lot of seating and the drinks and service were very good. And of course you can’t beat the view.

I don’t like that they charge a ‘resort fee,’ but a beach chair will set you back $8 a day. Oh, the umbrella is an additional 8 bucks. And the beach chair fee police drive around in a golf cart to enforce the fee.

The top-floor bar (see sunset photo…I’m proud of this shot!) is a cool place to hangout. The separate, top-floor, higher-class restaurant smelled great, but the food was only okay to be frank. The drinks were good. Live music was great.

Overall, this is a good option with a fun Pacific Island theme in a great location. I hope to visit Ft Myers again someday. Some investment in the basics would make it great. It has a great party atmosphere on that lower level, so I would probably stay here again assuming the price was...

WOW ! LANI KAI IS BACK AND BETTER THAN EVER BEFORE !! Amazing. The new rooms are so nice the beds are soooo comfortable and it's perfectly done. Fresh smell not a hint of mold we are hyper sensitive and not a hint. Brand new everything wow. My first trip to FMB was in 1998 when we did the limbo and this is where are now 27 years later , through all they have been through it's the best resort on the island. Had I known the rooms were like this now I wouldn't have stayed anywhere else and I won't now. Sorry EBH and Margaritaville and PE and Diamond Head sorry Gull Wing and Pink Shell but not only is Lani the funnest place to be it's now the nicest. Completely gutted after a devastating blow from Hurricane Ian this family and crew of people never gave up. They were the first to open up what they could right away. Giving everyone who calls FMB thier home or second home a place to come. Anyone who loves FMB knows the feeling we had when we watched Ian make landfall here. The most wonderful place in the world was destroyed. To see what they have done in the rebuild brings a tear to my eye of joy. They have kept the exact same small island feel here. They haven't bowed to the pressure of corporations pressure. They didn't cave in and sell the property. They stayed. They fought. They built. And woe God has showed what he can do. Yo Taco is now inside the resort. Eats at the beach has tons of food comes up so fast. Breakfast all day. The cafe inside has everything you could want. Ice cream shop downstairs. 2 bars. Music. The first class treatment they give people is second to none. The gals at the front desk phone is ringing off the hook. They are working so hard. Grace who works all day during the day is one of the coolest people I have ever met. Her name defines her attitude. The price for the room is so good. Fort Myers Beach is alive and well. This is a family place or party place. Or relaxation place. My wife just said this is way better than Margaritaville. Not being rude just honest. I'm so happy for you guys and so happy for us to be able to come here again. We missed FMB this was our second home. We love you guys. I saw a music video with this place in it online called Still On The Run By Anthony D that's so cool. Check that out....