jerseyboy99
Diehard Steelers fan!
- Joined
- Mar 24, 2009
- Messages
- 19
My family stayed at the Portofino 4/12/09 through 4/16/09 and we were very satisfied with our stay. The hotel grounds are beautiful, as if you were in an Italian village. All the staff we encountered were very friendly and cared about making the stay enjoyable. We would definitely stay here again.
ROOM - we stayed in room 2406 which was a Club Level room (Villa room facing the bay) with 2 queen beds and a pull-out sofa. Very clean and roomy for the four of us (DS 13, DD 11). Bathroom was huge and contained a stall shower and separate tub. We thought the "club level deluxe" room was well worth the extra fee per night but you get a lot of perks. This includes a continental breakfast (pastries, cereal, fruit etc.) in the morning. Italian water ice in the afternoon. Wine/beer/cheese/fruit in the evening. A selection of deserts (cookies, fruit, tiramisu, canolis etc.) at night. You can also pick up bottled water, soda, and juice anytime you want throughout the day which pays for itself (a bottle of water costs about $4 if you don't have the club room).
POOL AREA - there are 3 pools, but I must say, we never left the "beach pool" area. The kids absolutely loved it. There were servers around the beach pool constantly. We walked past the Villa pool, which wasnt as large as the beach pool and it seemed like a much quieter setting.
FOOD - the food we ate at the Portofino was excellent. We ate at Mama Dellas (nice atmosphere with very good food), Sals pizza market (excellent pizza, they also have wraps, paninis, and other treats), and room service (my son loved the spaghetti).
OTHER - there is a water taxi that can take you to and from the parks/city walk. They run every 10 minutes but you can also walk along the path (or take the shortcut through the Hard Rock's parking lot) or take the surrey option (you have to tip though, it is not free like the water taxi)
With staying at a Universal property you get to enter in the express lines at the park. (REMEMBER TO BRING YOUR ROOM KEY, THAT IS YOUR PASS), we never waited more than 10-15 minutes for a ride, and we were there during Easter break.
If you need internet access there are two computers in the club lounge (you must have the club deluxe package) that are available at no charge or a $9.99 fee in your room.
We took a taxi from the airport to the hotel for $45 plus tip, and on the last day of our stay I called the front desk and asked for a taxi which cost $50 plus tip.
All in all, it was a great family vacation. We would highly recommend this hotel to anyone who was considering traveling to Universal
.
ROOM - we stayed in room 2406 which was a Club Level room (Villa room facing the bay) with 2 queen beds and a pull-out sofa. Very clean and roomy for the four of us (DS 13, DD 11). Bathroom was huge and contained a stall shower and separate tub. We thought the "club level deluxe" room was well worth the extra fee per night but you get a lot of perks. This includes a continental breakfast (pastries, cereal, fruit etc.) in the morning. Italian water ice in the afternoon. Wine/beer/cheese/fruit in the evening. A selection of deserts (cookies, fruit, tiramisu, canolis etc.) at night. You can also pick up bottled water, soda, and juice anytime you want throughout the day which pays for itself (a bottle of water costs about $4 if you don't have the club room).
POOL AREA - there are 3 pools, but I must say, we never left the "beach pool" area. The kids absolutely loved it. There were servers around the beach pool constantly. We walked past the Villa pool, which wasnt as large as the beach pool and it seemed like a much quieter setting.
FOOD - the food we ate at the Portofino was excellent. We ate at Mama Dellas (nice atmosphere with very good food), Sals pizza market (excellent pizza, they also have wraps, paninis, and other treats), and room service (my son loved the spaghetti).
OTHER - there is a water taxi that can take you to and from the parks/city walk. They run every 10 minutes but you can also walk along the path (or take the shortcut through the Hard Rock's parking lot) or take the surrey option (you have to tip though, it is not free like the water taxi)
With staying at a Universal property you get to enter in the express lines at the park. (REMEMBER TO BRING YOUR ROOM KEY, THAT IS YOUR PASS), we never waited more than 10-15 minutes for a ride, and we were there during Easter break.
If you need internet access there are two computers in the club lounge (you must have the club deluxe package) that are available at no charge or a $9.99 fee in your room.
We took a taxi from the airport to the hotel for $45 plus tip, and on the last day of our stay I called the front desk and asked for a taxi which cost $50 plus tip.
All in all, it was a great family vacation. We would highly recommend this hotel to anyone who was considering traveling to Universal
.
