Jimbo
6 AM and already the boy ain't right.<br><font col
- Joined
- Aug 18, 1999
- Messages
- 2,362
If you haven't read the intro, DW and I (both 55) took our granddaughters (13 and 9) to Universal for the first time. We stayed at HRH, and this post will describe what we thought of the place.
We stayed in a club room. We got a AAA rate of $279 per night (pre tax). We usually stay at DVC, and you don't have to pay taxes on those rooms. So there was a little sticker shock when I realized that I had to pay an extra $35 per day in taxes. Florida had better watch out, or they'll kill the goose that lays the golden egg.
We drove up and dropped the car off at valet parking. Valet is $19.17 (with tax), but self parking isn't a lot cheaper. I personally think it's unfair for USF resorts to charge their guests that much. I'd expect it when I'm in Chicago or NYC, where parking spaces are at a premium, but not in Orlando. Anyway... a big
to the valets and bellmen. These were some of the nicest people we dealt with on our entire trip. And it was 95 degrees every single day, and these guys are running around outside. I don't know how they do it! They were the first and last HRH employees we talked to, and they left a great impression.
Checkin was pretty painless (it was about 10:00 on a Friday). Our room wasn't ready so we went to the parks. They called my cell phone with our room number at 3:30. I thought that was a nice touch (Disney has you call them).
Our room was pretty nice. It had kind of a hip vibe to it. (Do the kids say hip any more? Or vibe for that matter? I can't believe how old I'm getting!!!) It had enough room for the four of us, with dual sinks in the bathroom. We had a two bedroom unit at BCV to spread out in, but we still didn't find ourselves cramped in our room at HRH.
Having access to the club lounge was a real plus. We weren't obsessive about eating as much free grub as we could (unlike some families I saw), but we made sure to get a decent breakfast every morning before we left for the parks. And once again, to the staff on the club level. It's kind of a thankless job, I think. They basically spend all their time refilling the fridge with water and soda, and rushing out more food. Yet when you asked them for any help they were gracious and would give you their full attention. I don't know how they do it.
We hit the pool every afternoon after the park. Unfortunately, it takes us forever to get going in the morning, so it'd be late afternoon. Then around 5:00 every day a typical Florida storm would roll in, and they'd clear the pool. But we got in enough time to form opinions.
DW and I thought the pool was OK, but not as great as we'd hoped. I wish there was at least one deep area. Our 13YO prefers a quieter pool, and HRH's pool was pretty crowded. OTOH, she's hitting her "boy crazy" stage, and HRH's pool was a great for her to see and be seen, if you know what I mean. The 9YO never met a pool she didn't like so she was happy. Both of them liked the slide a lot.
We rented a cabana on Sunday, getting the Musiquarium one (#10). Because of the weather it didn't turn out that well, sad to say. We spent a couple hours there in the morning, then went to USF. The daily storm rolled in early, though, and we never got back to the cabana. So that was kind of a lot of money for the time we spent there. With our club room discount it was $140, and they knocked off another $20 because our TV didn't work. I'd classify this as a disappointment. I made a little video of the cabana, and when I get my camcorder unpacked I'll put it on YouTube.
We checked out movies from the club lounge on two nights because we were rained in. They had a pretty nice selection we thought, and it was free.
We checked out on Monday, and used our Loews First card to score a late checkout. I asked for 3:00 (we had a 7:00 PM flight) and was told it was no problem. So we went to IOA, and came back at 2:30 and packed. That was pretty sweet.
We took our luggage down, and the ever helpful staff out front loaded it into our car while we went to the pool bar. We finished up our stay with nachos and smoothies in the bar area. Our waitress there overheard us say that our little DGD was turning 10 in about 30 minutes. So at the end of the meal she brought over a really nice cake, then several of the wait staff sang happy birthday to her. They even gave her a birthday card that they had signed. It was a really nice way to end the trip.
Our overall impression of the HRH was very positive. It's expensive, especially since DVC members are used to staying for "free" in Orlando, but we felt like we got good value. The club level is great and worth the extra money. We'll stay here again for sure.
HRH is a big contrast to Disney, but they actually sort of "complete" each other. You never see a tattoo on a Disney employee, but I think it may be mandatory at HRH, at least around the pool bar. Disney wished DGD a magical birthday, and our HRH waitress told her to "party like a rock star" on her birthday. It proves that good service comes in all flavors.
We stayed in a club room. We got a AAA rate of $279 per night (pre tax). We usually stay at DVC, and you don't have to pay taxes on those rooms. So there was a little sticker shock when I realized that I had to pay an extra $35 per day in taxes. Florida had better watch out, or they'll kill the goose that lays the golden egg.
We drove up and dropped the car off at valet parking. Valet is $19.17 (with tax), but self parking isn't a lot cheaper. I personally think it's unfair for USF resorts to charge their guests that much. I'd expect it when I'm in Chicago or NYC, where parking spaces are at a premium, but not in Orlando. Anyway... a big
to the valets and bellmen. These were some of the nicest people we dealt with on our entire trip. And it was 95 degrees every single day, and these guys are running around outside. I don't know how they do it! They were the first and last HRH employees we talked to, and they left a great impression.Checkin was pretty painless (it was about 10:00 on a Friday). Our room wasn't ready so we went to the parks. They called my cell phone with our room number at 3:30. I thought that was a nice touch (Disney has you call them).
Our room was pretty nice. It had kind of a hip vibe to it. (Do the kids say hip any more? Or vibe for that matter? I can't believe how old I'm getting!!!) It had enough room for the four of us, with dual sinks in the bathroom. We had a two bedroom unit at BCV to spread out in, but we still didn't find ourselves cramped in our room at HRH.
Having access to the club lounge was a real plus. We weren't obsessive about eating as much free grub as we could (unlike some families I saw), but we made sure to get a decent breakfast every morning before we left for the parks. And once again,
to the staff on the club level. It's kind of a thankless job, I think. They basically spend all their time refilling the fridge with water and soda, and rushing out more food. Yet when you asked them for any help they were gracious and would give you their full attention. I don't know how they do it.We hit the pool every afternoon after the park. Unfortunately, it takes us forever to get going in the morning, so it'd be late afternoon. Then around 5:00 every day a typical Florida storm would roll in, and they'd clear the pool. But we got in enough time to form opinions.
DW and I thought the pool was OK, but not as great as we'd hoped. I wish there was at least one deep area. Our 13YO prefers a quieter pool, and HRH's pool was pretty crowded. OTOH, she's hitting her "boy crazy" stage, and HRH's pool was a great for her to see and be seen, if you know what I mean. The 9YO never met a pool she didn't like so she was happy. Both of them liked the slide a lot.
We rented a cabana on Sunday, getting the Musiquarium one (#10). Because of the weather it didn't turn out that well, sad to say. We spent a couple hours there in the morning, then went to USF. The daily storm rolled in early, though, and we never got back to the cabana. So that was kind of a lot of money for the time we spent there. With our club room discount it was $140, and they knocked off another $20 because our TV didn't work. I'd classify this as a disappointment. I made a little video of the cabana, and when I get my camcorder unpacked I'll put it on YouTube.
We checked out movies from the club lounge on two nights because we were rained in. They had a pretty nice selection we thought, and it was free.
We checked out on Monday, and used our Loews First card to score a late checkout. I asked for 3:00 (we had a 7:00 PM flight) and was told it was no problem. So we went to IOA, and came back at 2:30 and packed. That was pretty sweet.
We took our luggage down, and the ever helpful staff out front loaded it into our car while we went to the pool bar. We finished up our stay with nachos and smoothies in the bar area. Our waitress there overheard us say that our little DGD was turning 10 in about 30 minutes. So at the end of the meal she brought over a really nice cake, then several of the wait staff sang happy birthday to her. They even gave her a birthday card that they had signed. It was a really nice way to end the trip.
Our overall impression of the HRH was very positive. It's expensive, especially since DVC members are used to staying for "free" in Orlando, but we felt like we got good value. The club level is great and worth the extra money. We'll stay here again for sure.
HRH is a big contrast to Disney, but they actually sort of "complete" each other. You never see a tattoo on a Disney employee, but I think it may be mandatory at HRH, at least around the pool bar. Disney wished DGD a magical birthday, and our HRH waitress told her to "party like a rock star" on her birthday. It proves that good service comes in all flavors.
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