Universal Hotel Questions

Isaiah4113

Earning My Ears
Joined
May 27, 2018
How does Hard Rock Hotel and Portifino Bay compare to Disney value and moderate resorts?

Any preference between those two? Why? :-)
 
I have not stayed at those two, but have stayed at Royal Pacific, which I think is in the same category. I believe Hard Rock, Portofino Bay and Royal Pacific are comparable to Disney deluxe resorts. I think Cabana Bay may be more like a value and Sapphire Falls a moderate.
 
How does Hard Rock Hotel and Portifino Bay compare to Disney value and moderate resorts?

Any preference between those two? Why? :-)

We have stayed at Disney's value, moderate, and deluxe resorts. HRH and PB are definitely comparable to Disney's deluxe resorts.

I have stayed at both HRH and PB. They are both lovely. We prefer HRH- but it's only a personal choice. The rooms at PB are larger and we loved the huge bathrooms there!

You really can't make a bad choice at any of the UO hotels. We just tried Sapphire Falls and we were so impressed- love at first sight!! I've heard so many good reviews of Cabana Bay, too!
 
How does Hard Rock Hotel and Portifino Bay compare to Disney value and moderate resorts?

A million times better than value and moderates st Disney.

I prefer portofino. Big rooms, pretty grounds. I didn’t much care for the noise at hard rock.
 


Let me put it to you this way. All the Universal resorts CRUSH the WDW resorts.

I know that's your opinion, but I personally wouldn't go that far. :duck: I have stayed at the Polynesian, Beach Club, Yacht Club and Contemporary and think those resorts are wonderful! I've only stayed at Royal Pacific at UO and it definitely was nice, but I can't say I noticed much, if any of a difference between it and any of the Disney resorts I just mentioned.
 
I know that's your opinion, but I personally wouldn't go that far. :duck: I have stayed at the Polynesian, Beach Club, Yacht Club and Contemporary and think those resorts are wonderful! I've only stayed at Royal Pacific at UO and it definitely was nice, but I can't say I noticed much, if any of a difference between it and any of the Disney resorts I just mentioned.

AllieBoo, my family loves WDW and we are staying at our favorite Disney World resort this August in the Wilderness Lodge, and we have also stayed at the Contemporary, BWI, POFQ, POR, CSR, ASMo, Pop, the cabins at FW and AofA and loved most of them. But for our money we favor the UO resorts. You can't compare Pop to Cabana Bay, and I'd take Sapphire Falls over any of the WDW mods. Contemporary and WL we love, but it would be a tough choice when compared to Portofino Bay.

I know I said that the UO resorts "crush" the WDW one's, but that was a little misleading, because we love most WDW resorts. We just like the experience at the UO resorts a little bit more.
 


Definitely agree that they would be Disney deluxe (although I personally think they are better than anything at Disney). We prefer Portofino. It’s a little more laid back. The rooms are really big and we like the theming and the opera performance by the bay every night.

Hard Rock is also VERY nice, but the mood is a little. Ore hip and fun over relaxing. Hard Rock is great for teens and early twenties. It is also right there by the parks. Portofino is also close but it’s about a 20 minute walk/10 minute water taxi compared to a 5 minute walk from Hatd Rock.

I know you didn’t ask but I would also put Cabana Bay above a value. CB would be a moderate Disney class. The rooms are nowhere near as tiny as Disney values and the poo and amenities are fantastic.
 
My daughter and I have stayed at Yacht Club twice (including once on club level), and we will be checking in at Portofino Bay this week for our first Universal trip. We LOVE Yacht Club, but I keep hearing how PB surpasses it. I'll let you know what we think once we get there, but the photos certainly look nicer!
 
My daughter and I have stayed at Yacht Club twice (including once on club level), and we will be checking in at Portofino Bay this week for our first Universal trip. We LOVE Yacht Club, but I keep hearing how PB surpasses it. I'll let you know what we think once we get there, but the photos certainly look nicer!

How exciting! PB is just lovely! Have a fun trip! Please report back about your airport transportation with Tony and all your experiences at Portofino Bay and the parks!
 
I have not stayed at those two, but have stayed at Royal Pacific, which I think is in the same category. I believe Hard Rock, Portofino Bay and Royal Pacific are comparable to Disney deluxe resorts. I think Cabana Bay may be more like a value and Sapphire Falls a moderate.

I agree with this assessment. I also agree that the Universal deluxe resorts and Disney deluxe resorts are comparable, pros and cons at both just like anything else. One isn't miles ahead, IMO.

Hard Rock Hotel is my favorite simply because its the closest proximity for walking to City Walk. Portofino Bay is pretty but its a much longer walk, and walking is our transportation of choice.
 
My daughter and I have stayed at Yacht Club twice (including once on club level), and we will be checking in at Portofino Bay this week for our first Universal trip. We LOVE Yacht Club, but I keep hearing how PB surpasses it. I'll let you know what we think once we get there, but the photos certainly look nicer!

You're going to love Tony Hinds, and you will fall in love with Portofino Bay. Two great choices.:thumbsup2
 
I know that's your opinion, but I personally wouldn't go that far. :duck: I have stayed at the Polynesian, Beach Club, Yacht Club and Contemporary and think those resorts are wonderful! I've only stayed at Royal Pacific at UO and it definitely was nice, but I can't say I noticed much, if any of a difference between it and any of the Disney resorts I just mentioned.

The biggest difference between the WDW resorts you mention and RPR (the only deluxe we've stayed at at UO) is a big one. Price. We are staying at RPR (very comparable to WDW deluxe resorts in both theming and quality IMO) for $250 a night and that includes EP. That's half to a third the cost of a Disney deluxe. So while I love the Disney resorts, I think UO resorts crush them on value.
 
The biggest difference between the WDW resorts you mention and RPR (the only deluxe we've stayed at at UO) is a big one. Price. We are staying at RPR (very comparable to WDW deluxe resorts in both theming and quality IMO) for $250 a night and that includes EP. That's half to a third the cost of a Disney deluxe. So while I love the Disney resorts, I think UO resorts crush them on value.

Yes- we are AP holders at both Disney and UO. We get much better AP discounts at UO hotels. And when we stay deluxe we get free unlimited express passes. Also, at Universal, we just upgraded our AP's to Premier and we now get after 4pm one time use per ride express passes!
 
I know that's your opinion, but I personally wouldn't go that far. :duck: I have stayed at the Polynesian, Beach Club, Yacht Club and Contemporary and think those resorts are wonderful! I've only stayed at Royal Pacific at UO and it definitely was nice, but I can't say I noticed much, if any of a difference between it and any of the Disney resorts I just mentioned.

Stay at Portofino and see if your assessment changes. :)

I love staying at GF Villas and definitely like BWV and Bay Lake, but Portofino is something else. If they turned Portofino into some sort of timeshare (or made an offshoot) I'd be sorely tempted to snag it.


And as was said, even if you're not noticing much if any of a difference at the resort, check out the VALUE of it for what you're paying in comparison.
 
The only deluxes that are on par, IMHO at Disney with the Universal deluxes are Yacht/Beach and Grand Floridian.

Our Poly room stunk of mold and our Contemporary room had a carpet that was visually filthy and there were brown wall smears outside the bathroom and mold growing on the bathroom ceiling. Those items were not of one time missed housekeeping but years of neglect. Our Wilderness Lodge room was dark and tiny and reminded me of a simple motel room. Animal Kingdom was fine but expensive.
 
The only WDW room I found better was a Deluxe Club room at BWI. Balcony over the boardwalk was icing on the cake.
 
We stayed at the Contemporary and the Beach Club last summer and both rooms were fantastic. They were clean, spacious and we had a patio at the Contemporary, which we loved. At the Beach Club, we had a full balcony. That is one of the main things I didn't like about RPR - no balcony.
 
Hard Rock, Portofino, and Royal Pacific are Deluxe (or better than Deluxe). Amazing pools, great rooms, and free unlimited express pass. At Disney Deluxe hotels, you get the same 3 Fast Passes per day as everyone else, unless you stay Club Level and pay extra in addition to that to get another 3 FPs per day.

Saphire Falls is Universal's "moderate" but it's above the Disney Moderates, might even be closer to a deluxe. Pools with waterslide, sand beach, hot tub, and caribbean theming. Has grab-and-go and table service restaurants, with character breakfasts on Saturdays. Park access via bus, water taxi, or walking trail.

Cabana Bay is somewhere between a value and moderate. The standard rooms are closer in size to a moderate (Cabana Bay 300 square feet, Port Orleans Riverside 314 square feet), but the suites are smaller than those at Art of Animation (Disney Value). Pools are above moderate with two pool courtyards, one with a slide and the other with a lazy river. I don't think ANY of the Disney resorts have lazy rivers, but Cabana Bay lacks some of the theming that defines the Disney Deluxe, and to an extent moderate, pool areas. Has a food court and bowling alley, but no fine dining options.

Although not open yet, I think the Aventura will be the closest to a Disney Value, as its rooms are the smallest (238 square feet for Aventura vs. 260 square feet for Pop), and it's pool looks to be fairly basic. I don't think there's a waterslide.

At Disney, the location is often key to appeal of Deluxes. At Universal, you can walk or take a water taxi from Portofino, Hard Rock, Royal Pacific, and Sapphire falls to the parks. Also, you can easily walk to Volcano Bay from both Cabana Bay and Aventura. It's also quite easy to cross the street between Cabana Bay and Sapphire falls to use the water taxis to the park or the walking trail. You can't do that from any of Disney's Value or Moderate hotels.
 
Hard Rock, Portofino, and Royal Pacific are Deluxe (or better than Deluxe). Amazing pools, great rooms, and free unlimited express pass. At Disney Deluxe hotels, you get the same 3 Fast Passes per day as everyone else, unless you stay Club Level and pay extra in addition to that to get another 3 FPs per day.

Saphire Falls is Universal's "moderate" but it's above the Disney Moderates, might even be closer to a deluxe. Pools with waterslide, sand beach, hot tub, and caribbean theming. Has grab-and-go and table service restaurants, with character breakfasts on Saturdays. Park access via bus, water taxi, or walking trail.

Cabana Bay is somewhere between a value and moderate. The standard rooms are closer in size to a moderate (Cabana Bay 300 square feet, Port Orleans Riverside 314 square feet), but the suites are smaller than those at Art of Animation (Disney Value). Pools are above moderate with two pool courtyards, one with a slide and the other with a lazy river. I don't think ANY of the Disney resorts have lazy rivers, but Cabana Bay lacks some of the theming that defines the Disney Deluxe, and to an extent moderate, pool areas. Has a food court and bowling alley, but no fine dining options.

Although not open yet, I think the Aventura will be the closest to a Disney Value, as its rooms are the smallest (238 square feet for Aventura vs. 260 square feet for Pop), and it's pool looks to be fairly basic. I don't think there's a waterslide.

At Disney, the location is often key to appeal of Deluxes. At Universal, you can walk or take a water taxi from Portofino, Hard Rock, Royal Pacific, and Sapphire falls to the parks. Also, you can easily walk to Volcano Bay from both Cabana Bay and Aventura. It's also quite easy to cross the street between Cabana Bay and Sapphire falls to use the water taxis to the park or the walking trail. You can't do that from any of Disney's Value or Moderate hotels.

Great post!
 

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