Just Back - My Review on HIFS, Cypress Pointe & Royal Pacific at Universal

[diane@wpg.mb]

Happy Holidays everyone. We arrived back last night around 5:30 p.m. and had a superb time. I promised I would write my reviews at the Hotels we stayed at so here goes:

HIFS - This hotel has great. We had the 2 bedroom classic suite with a small fridge and microwave. Although the room was small for 4 adults (kids are 16 and 14) we managed as we were hardly there as we spent the first 4 days (from sunrise to past sunset) at the parks. The free breakfast buffet was a great way to start the morning although after the 4th day we were getting a little tired of it. We had the seafood supper buffet one night and felt it was not worth the money. My kids comments on the hotel was that it was great but really geared for small children.

SUNTERRA CYPRESS POINTE - We spent 7 nights here and all I can say is if you have reservations here CANCEL THEM and go elsewhere. We were extremely disappointed in this property. The suite was dirty and nothing worked right. I tried to go to the front desk to bring my concerns to their attention but every time I went the line up was so bad that I didn't want to wait in line so I wrote them a list of things that needed to be fixed. 2 days later no one had replied to my note. I would have checked out of this hotel and gone elsewhere but the hotel was paid for in advance thru Hotel Kingdom.

We had decided on check-in to go to their 1 1/2 hr. presentation regarding ownership. I could hardly wait for this guy to go thru his spiel on ownership and then I was going to have a little discussion with him on maintenance fees and exactly where the money went to. The first question he asked was how were we enjoying our stay - wrong question - so he listened to me for the next 1/2 hour. We compiled a list (fridge, stove, washer, dryer, toaster, etc) and these items were all fixed that day and we got free housekeeping for a day. We were done our presentation within 45 minutes and didn't even hear his spiel. We were also told and Sunterra Cypress Pointe and Cypress Pointe were two different properties (although that's not what the sign said).

Now the appliances were working and our room had been recleaned but that could still bring it up to my standards. The carpets were worn and filthy, the furniture (couch, living room chairs and kitchen chairs) were dirty with stains all over them. We wore our sandals or socks the whole time. The kitchen needed to be totally refurbished, huge chips in the bath tub and the jaguzzi was scary. The maintenance guy told me that they keep certains suites for renters and owners get different ones that are in much better shape. On a positive note, the pool area and games area were very nice.

ROYAL PACIFIC AT UNIVERSAL - Ahhhh, the lap of luxury. We spent two nights here and it was wonderful. Restaurants here were a little pricey but City Walk was only 5 minutes way. I would definitely recommend this property.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.


Diane

[ellie&mattys mom]

How were the rooms and your service...and any other info on Universal...


thanks!!:D

[diane@wpg.mb]

Ellie & Mattys Mom:

Service at the Royal Pacific was excellent. This hotel is a 4 star resort. There was more than enough room in our room. We had 1619 which overlooked the two parks and had a great view of the fireworks both nights. The pool area is outta this world. Food was not our kind of food so eating at City Walk was great.

Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure were awesome. We had 2 days there and it wasn't enough time. The rides (especially the roller coasters) were awesome (my kid's words). Crowds were quite high as we were there on Dec 28 & 29.

How old are your children and are you looking for something specific? Glad to help just ask away.

Diane

[DianeV]

I'm sorry you were so disappointed in Cypress Pointe. We have pretty much always had no problems there except for 2 years ago when they were in the process of switching to the Homeowners Assoc. running the place..we just stayed this past summer and everything was clean and the people at the front desk were very nice.

We arent owners either, we traded through RCI so we are considered the same as renters I would think. The whole resort has recently been overhauled including the pool area and most of the units if not all so I cant understand how your unit could have been so bad..unless it was not done yet for some reason?

Anyway I wouldnt go so far as to tell people not to stay here. Like anyplace there are some people who have great stays and the next person hates it. I dont think the problems you had are consistent for the place and this is just my opinion :-)

[diane@wpg.mb]

Hi Diane V. I agreed with you that what happened to me might be just an isolated case, but in my opinion why would anyone take the chance of getting the "shoddy" room(s). Holiday money these days is hard to come by and when you're spending in Canadian dollars it's even worse. Why would anyone take the chance of having a substandard room when there are plenty of hotels out there that would never rent a room that was in the condition of our room and most of all would have addressed the concerns of the renter.

I was also told by the maintenance person that not all rooms had been refurbished. I guess it was just our luck that we got that particular room.

I would also like to clarify that I no time did I think that the "people" at the front dress were not friendly. Also, perhaps I should have made it clear that "IN MY OPINION" stay elsewhere.

Thanks.

Diane

[sammi]

Ouch Diane!:( I'm so so sorry that your stay at CP wasn't what you expected. Especially since I've been teeling all DIS'ers here that CP is a great resort.:( I know we haven't been in 2 years but all the other times we've enjoyed ourselves a bunch and always recieved great response to any concerns with our unit.

I hope this is just an isolated case as we're heading to CP in 3 months and my cousins (they are the owners there) will not stand for any "shoddy" villa or service and will soon be on the managers tail.;) I hope that you voice your concerns to management via a letter too and I do hope you get results.Which part of CP did you stay in again........I can't remember was it the Grande Villas?

Again Diane I'm so sorry that your stay at CP wasn't a pleasant one as I too know how many loonies it takes to head anywhere into the USA these days!;) Please let me know if you get any feedback from CP.

Happy New Year!:sunny:

[diane@wpg.mb]

Hi Cindy. Happy New Year to you and your family too. Please don't feel bad about our stay at CP Cindy. We just got a bad room.

I had requested a grand villa but was told at check-in that there were none available and that the whole complex was completely booked. It is my understanding that "owners" or people who rent directly from "owners" do not get the same suites as people who rent. I was also informed that Cypress Pointe and Sunterra Cypress Pointe are two different entities and are under two different management teams. I was definitely in the Cypress Pointe part.

Also, anyone who "rents" has to pay for any refills they require such as laundry soap, dishwasher soap, toilet paper, paper towels, etc. Owners are supplied these items on a no charge basis.

I am sure that you and your cousins will have a wonderful stay at CP and will get one of the refurbished or new villas. The new pool area and games room was very nicely done.

Do you really think it would do any good to write to CP at this point? When someone did listen to my concerns, they were very prompt at fixing what they could. The suite we had was very old and in need of total refurbishment. Anyways Cindy, like I said please don't feel bad about our stay there.



Diane

[sammi]

Diane I think it wouldn't hurt to voice your opinions on CP.I know I would be really "voicing" my opinions! :p LOL!

It's strange too, that the older part of CP has just had a total refurbishment and actually it's the Grande Villas that are due next to be updated (although there is a newer section of villas that are only a couple of years old).

From what my cousin has told me...yes there are two different management teams and the older part was to have been taken over by the owners which from my understanding is what's to happen with the Grande Villas also. I do think it's terrible that owners would get better suites than renters.....I can't understand giving "potential" buyers a shoddy room.:mad:

I would love for other renters that have been down there recently to post here too and hear their experiences.:D

Wow.......I feel terrible about this as this shouldn't be happening with such a huge resort such as CP. Please try writing to them and keep in touch with me if you get anywhere.Good luck Diane!:)

I'm emailing this thread to my cousin in Scotland and maybe she'll respond as she's also a member (although very infrequent;) of these boards):)

[DianeV]

Also just to be fair I belong to Timeshare Users Group and it seems that alot of resorts not only in Orlando have some units that are not up to par..Vistana, Orange Lake, Summer Bay, Westgate and more. Its unfortunate when you get stuck in one of those units thats for sure. We have a friend who owns at Westgate Lakes but they made a mistake in her reservation and put her at the Villas for a holiday week. Now she is a Westgate family owner and they put her in a horrible unit at the Villas and wouldnt do anything about it. So it does happen to "owners" too.

I would definitely contact someone at the resort. I think the manager of the older section you stayed at is supposed to be a really nice guy although I cannot remember his name offhand. It was given to me when we stayed there this past summer in case there were any problems which there werent for us luckily. Maybe call the resort and ask the name of the manager ( I know it was a different sounding name) and either talk to him on the phone or email him or send a letter. Just let them know of your unhappiness and see what happens.

[Travelwoman]

Diane, We are staying at Royal Pacific Resort over Easter Break. Kids are 16,17,19, are there activities for them at Hotel[ beach vollyball,arcade, night movies at the pool?] How are the restaurants or are we better off going to CityWalk to eat? Did you rent out a cabana or do you know anything about them / Can we use the facilities over at HardRock if they want to hang out there ? Thanks for any help!

[beautybelle]

Hi Diane,

My family (me, hubby, mother, and son) reserved a 2br classic suite at the HIFS for May. Would you say that it would be roomy enough for us? It looked like it in the pics but I would like to hear from someone who actually stayed in one. Oh and was yours in the East Track or the West. I requested the East cause my son is or will be 6 when we get to go? Any info would be greatly appreciated. I worry about this stuff cause I cant count the times I've made reservations to resorts (from pics in brochures) that look beautiful and sound so wonderful only to get there and find out I paid through the nose for a basic, trashy, unclean tomb room. Although I must say most of the times that happened was in Myrtle Beach. But in any case Im still gun shy. LOL I look forward to hearing from you.

Bye.:Pinkbounc

[diane@wpg.mb]

Hi Travelwoman. Sorry it has taken me so long to reply but we have had lots of company and more coming tomorrow. When we stayed at the Royal Pacific we got a roll away cot for the room and this worked out fine for us. The Hotel gave us a sheet of activities that were planned and I remember seeing a beach volley tournament and a few other activities. Unfortunately we didn't have the time to do any of them. Depending on how many days you are staying at the Royal Pacific it shouldn't be too crowded with the five of you. Although I wouldn't want to stay a full week in those close quarters. We did not like the hotel food so we ate at City Walk or the Parks which suited us just fine. Sorry but I don't know about using the other hotels. You're family is going to love Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. My kids liked Disney but really enjoyed this park better. If you get the chance take the bus to Busch Gardens. They drive you there and bring you back for a $5.00 fee for person. It was great to sit back and have someone else do the driving. Anymore questions just ask away.

Diane

[diane@wpg.mb]

Hi Beautybelle. The HIFS was fine. It was really nice and clean and you should have enough room for all of you. I believe we stayed in the west track which has by the big pool not the kids pool area. There are lots of activities for children at this hotel and the staff were great. The HIFS really is a nice hotel and I'm sure you'll love it. If you need anymore info just let me know.

Diane

[beautybelle]

Thanks for letting me know.

[Travelwoman]

Diane, Thanks for the info. We have 2 rooms for the 5 of us so should have plenty of room.

[damo]

Here's a link to a website with all of Universal's restaurants (parks and resorts) with current prices. This should give you an idea of where you would like to eat.

http://www.wdisneyw.co.uk/unimenus.html