Ft. Lauderdale, for years Florida's most famous beach town for high school and college students, has matured. Instead of drinking on the beach, visitors now spend their time playing on golf courses, dining at a variety of restaurants, walking the long beaches, or dancing the night away at trendy nightclubs.

A college student from the 1970s or '80s returning to Ft. Lauderdale for a vacation today wouldn't recognize the place.