A landmark hotel just reopened in Fort Lauderdale. What about the rotating rooftop?

A nearly 70-year-old Fort Lauderdale landmark — once drawing the likes of Frank Sinatra and Walter Cronkite — has reopened. But you’ll need to wait a couple of months to reach the top.

Pier Sixty-Six, a luxury hotel on the eastern edge of the 17th Street Causeway, took a hit from Hurricane Irma in 2017. After a major renovation delayed by the pandemic, the resort reopened on Jan. 10.

The new and improved Pier Sixty-Six has 325 rooms and suites — most with Intracoastal, marina or ocean views, said Colm O’Callaghan, vice president and managing director. The resort will have 12 restaurants, a 13,000-square-foot spa that opens in March and a 164-slip marina for vessels up to 400 feet.

But what about the landmark rotating rooftop that has defined the resort for decades?

Yes, the popular looping lounge is coming back, too. Pier Top will open in March, serving snacks and high-end cocktails, O’Callaghan said in an interview with the Miami Herald.

“Expect champagne and caviar with a modern twist,” said the executive, referring to a bevy of signature cocktails in the works.

As before, the Pier Top lounge will fully rotate every 66 minutes.

“It’s a callback to its original design,” O’Callaghan said.

Pier Top will be open 5 p.m. to past midnight on Wednesdays through Sundays, he said.

Pier Sixty-Six renovation project

Pier Sixty-Six closed in September 2017 after Hurricane Irma. Orlando-based developer Tavistock had bought the property a year earlier.

But redevelopment was disrupted and delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, and construction didn’t start until October 2021.

The original 17-story landmark tower with the rotating lounge was renovated, and has 110 rooms. A new adjacent hotel tower, with 189 rooms, was added, as were 26 one-bedroom villas built on the harbor.

Pier Sixty-Six also has residences for sale, a growing trend among luxury hotels. The fewer total hotel rooms in the renovated resort is due to the addition of suites.

The hotel, on 32 acres along the waterfront at 2301 SE 17th St,, will eventually have a dozen dining options, and five are open so far. By the end of 2025, the resort will bring back the restaurant and bar Pelican Landing, a local favorite among boaters.

The hotel, managed by CoralTree Hospitality, is a “unique place to sail into, to dine, to visit, to stay, to live or come by for an evening,” O’Callaghan said.

In the 1950s, the site of Pier Sixty-Six was originally a fuel dock for Phillips 66 Petroleum. The hotel was built in the 1960s and helped propel Fort Lauderdale as one of the world’s yachting capitals.

But Pier Top may evoke the most nostalgia.

“As I recall, the elevator took 33 seconds to rise from the ground to the lounge ... and 33 seconds to go back down,” wrote Mike Miller in his blog Florida Backroads Travel in January 2024.

“In my prime I could enjoy three drinks per rotation,” wrote Miller, who first visited Pier Top on June 6, 1966, or 6-6-66.

He cautioned, though, that if you left to go to the restroom, you had to recognize your table.

“When you returned, the table would be in a different location.”

Pier Sixty-Six amenities

▪ Three pools including one for adults

▪ Zenova Spa & Wellness: 13,000-square-foot spa, to open in March

▪ Access to one of largest superyacht marinas on eastern seaboard

▪ 40,000 square feet of outdoor and indoor event space

▪ 3 ballrooms and 15 meeting rooms

▪ 4 1/2 miles to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport

▪ Fitness center

Open restaurants and bars

▪ Calusso: Southern European combined with South Florida coastal

▪ Sotogrande: Southern Spain and Eastern Mediterranean

▪ Elate Market Café: Lobby grab and go, with sandwiches, salads, pastries

▪ Saltbreeze: Family pool cafe, with Latin-inspired menu

▪ Windows on 66: Lobby bar with floor-to-ceiling windows serving snacks, vodka, and gin

Information and reservations

▪ Call 800-722-722-or visit https://www.piersixtysix.com/

This story was originally published January 14, 2025 at 9:39 AM.