sapphire falls or lowes portofino

[friendoffigment]

is portofinoi much better than sapphire falls. i know the extra perk of unlimited express for portofino but only staying 3 nights. 3 days in parks in mid october. is the extra $$ worth it

 

[StageTek]

I think the Unlimited is $120 per person. You should look into that. Depending on the number of people staying it could be a big savings making it very much worth the extra $$.

Sapphire Falls is a terrific, beautiful resort. But Portofino isn't that much better - but it does have a more upscale feel.

 

[CAPSLOCK]

I think the 2 resorts are right on par with each other, although different vibes/styles. Price difference is really down to the EP - if they're important to you, booking Portofino will be cheaper than booking Sapphire & adding EP separately.

I feel like Portofino is more uniquely themed & less busy. Sapphire gets traffic from Cabana Bay & Aventura guests using the Sapphire boats. Sapphire is gorgeous & well themed, it's just a much more common theme.

Either is lovely - have fun!

(Also you may consider looking at AP rates for your dates; they're out for Oct. There are no blockout dates on the cheaper Seasonal AP in Oct so upgrading one person & booking an AP rate may well save you money. An AP rate would make a split stay cheaper, letting you try both resorts & have EP for part of your trip.)

 

[AJA]

It really depends on the EP. Sapphire is beautiful but October is becoming busy at Universal. Are you traveling around the 3 day weekend? If not and you don’t mind getting up for early entry then 3 days will be plenty of time to do everything you want without EP.

With the EP at PB you would have more down time to relax and enjoy the hotel.

 

[tony67]

They are both really nice - Id pick PB if EP was worth it to you - also highly recommend the bay view rooms

That said I am a big fan of Sapphire - they have a great pool and Strong water Tavern is much better than anything at PB food wise.

Another option is one night at PB which gets you two days of EP then two nights a SF. Yeah going back and forth is a hassle but EP makes up for the hassle IMO

 

[saskdw]

We just stayed at PB last December for 11 nights. I can't didn't care for the outdated rooms and the room theme at all.
We also didn't care for the location compared to RPR where we usually stay.

The outside of the resort is very nice to look at and it has good restaurants.

For us if we are spending that kind of money we want a modern room with new technology. We really didn't care for the old Italy look and complete lack of modern tech.

SF is a much more appealing resort with the exception of EP.

 

[hhoope01]

Some things to think on between the two hotels:

1. SF base rooms are 321 sqft. PB base rooms are 450 sqft and they have deluxe rooms (non-suite) that are 490 sqft. If room size means anything to you, then PB will have significantly larger rooms.
2. SF has 1000 total rooms. PB has 750 total rooms. Note that someone already mentioned traffic from CB and Aventura hotels for the boats. Plus add in more total rooms. The one time I stayed at SF I had longer average waits for a boat than any of my stays at PB.
3. SF is newer than PB. I liked the newer feel of SF, but PB has more charm with its Italian theme.
4. SF has one pool, very large with a nice slide. PB has 3 pools with the main pool fairly comparable to SFs (though a bit smaller). It also has a quieter pool (mostly see adults at it) and also a smaller pool on the East wing of the hotel. Personally, the CB pool is my kid's favorite, but my daughter likes to layout at the quieter pool at PB.
5. PB has a Club Lounge if you get a room with access. SF does not have a Club lounge.
6. PB has a few different onsite restaurants, but most of them have an Italian theme. SF has only one decent restaurant, but it is very close (i.e. easy walking distance) to RPR and the restaurants there. I personally like having the variety between both SF and RPR. But in reality you are a quick boat ride to all the restaurants in the City Walk.
7. PB has the only onsite Spa facility inside Universal. While someone staying at SF could make a reservation at the Spa, it just isn't nearly as convenient as having the SPA at your hotel.

My personal opinion is that PB is better if you care about room size, Club Lounges and/or EPs. If you don't care for any of those, I'd probably go with one of the cheaper hotels (i.e. Endless Summer) to save the most money. Or if I wanted a nicer pool, I'd go with CB. For me, SF is kind of the "middle child" of the on-site hotels. No EPs yet costs the most of all the non-EP hotels but without any major benefit over those other non-EP hotels. Note that the other non-EP hotels have bus service to/from Universal City Walk instead of the boats/water taxis. But the hotel buses are extremely plentiful and rarely much if any waits.

 

[heidijanesmith]

We stayed at PB x1 and agree with the above poster's info. The only thing that I would add is that PB vibe is very chill. We went in July after Harry Potter Hogsmeade opened and the entire lagoon area was empty. It felt like we were alone in the hotel.

We love more of a fun vibe, Hard Rock is lovely and so is Sapphire. Just more our style.