HARD ROCK HOTEL INFO, FAQ and more........

[Minnie1222]

If I am needing to book 2 rooms at the HRH with only 1 over 21. I have "children" 20,18,15 and 8 (2 boys and 2 girls - not related so not sleeping in the same bed)., will get a roll a way for 1 room. Could I request connecting rooms? Or do I have to get a suite to accomodate everyone.

I had a similar situation last month. I called HRH and was told that it's fine to have two rooms with only 1 adult as long as it's listed in the reservation as a "guaranteed connecting rooms". We did get two connecting rooms without an issue. Just make sure to call when making the reservation.

 

[Dakota731]

You can book connecting rooms as a request and no balconies at HRH.

Portofino Bay and Sapphire falls both have some balconies but not many. At Sapphire both Hospitality and Presidential Suites have them.

Can you book a balcony room ahead of time at Portofino?

 

[Minnie1222]

at Hard Rock.

 

[nherbert]

I just want to report on our recent stay. We stayed at HRH the last few days of December, we had a deluxe queen room which has two queen beds and a pull out sofa bed. I can report the sofa bed was in very good condition and our 17 year old found it comfortable to sleep on. The other beds were also very comfortable. The room was an extremely good size so we didn’t feel cramped at all. There were two quite comfortable sitting chairs, so we didn’t have to sit on beds all the time. The dressing area with wardrobe was quite large, and made a good changing area. The bathroom area was good, with a sink in the toilet/bath area as well as a larger sink and bench in the alcove - so getting everyone ready was easier. Overall I would strongly recommend this type of room - even with a dreaded sofa bed.
HRH is an easy walk to both parks with largely its own security entrance so quick. HRH gives early entry to IOA.
We especially enjoyed the unlimited express pass that comes with the room, and having this enabled us to do pretty much everything we wanted to do at universal in 3 days. We loved the hulk and velicoaster - this was new since last trip -and the rip ride rocket (this was the first time it was ever working for us on our many visits). Our DS is now old enough to do these scary roller coasters - though I am now too old and scared of dying ! Still we all went on them lots of times. I would suggest that the express pass was essential for December/xmas when we went but suspect you don’t really need it at other times. For those that don’t know, you can’t use the express pass on Hagrids bike ride, you have to queue, but if you use early entry you can normally get hagrids done within an hour (has a very long queue as everyone rushes to that ride first thing).
Our only real issue with HRH was lack of cheap quick food - couldn’t get a loaf of bread to make cheap sandwiches for example - had to rely on fast food from the market or go to a restaurant. Still this meant we ate quite a few times in Harry Potter land which is something we wouldn’t normally do, so that was fun.
HRH was busy, but after a couple of nights we left for the cheaper dockside, and that is crazy busy! Overall I would recommend HRH, and next trip (in 4 years) we think we will just stay here for 3 nights and skip the extra 4 nights we booked this time at dockside as we didn’t really need the extra universal time after having the express pass.

 

[Jarmo]

Has anyone stayed lately and had issues with the (apparently unadvertised) construction at HRH?

I saw a discussion on Reddit about terrible noise and even having a water shutoff between 10am-3pm

 

[Clemson Bama Fan]

Has anyone stayed lately and had issues with the (apparently unadvertised) construction at HRH?

I saw a discussion on Reddit about terrible noise and even having a water shutoff between 10am-3pm

We were there Dec 6 - 14 and never saw or heard anything. At check in they do give you a letter/document that states there is construction going on and to please pardon the noise. They are renovating 1 floor at a time. We were on the 1st floor and they were working on either the 6th or 7th floor, I don't remember. Maybe if we were on the 5th it could have been an issue. Never had the water shut off and we made many mid-day stops in the room. It was like there was nothing going on for us. Great stay as usual.

 

[Jarmo]

We were there Dec 6 - 14 and never saw or heard anything. At check in they do give you a letter/document that states there is construction going on and to please pardon the noise. They are renovating 1 floor at a time. We were on the 1st floor and they were working on either the 6th or 7th floor, I don't remember. Maybe if we were on the 5th it could have been an issue. Never had the water shut off and we made many mid-day stops in the room. It was like there was nothing going on for us. Great stay as usual.

Appreciate the reply... Seems like there are a handful of complaints on trip advisor also but for the 5th and 7th floor specifically, which is unfortunately where our reservation is. I'll just call an ask about any planned water shutoff rather than rely on Internet rumors.

ETA: I'm a little skeptical after calling because they said there is no construction, only power washing. And that seems to go against several people's recent accounts online, regardless of the impact to guests

 

[Haley R]

Appreciate the reply... Seems like there are a handful of complaints on trip advisor also but for the 5th and 7th floor specifically, which is unfortunately where our reservation is. I'll just call an ask about any planned water shutoff rather than rely on Internet rumors.

ETA: I'm a little skeptical after calling because they said there is no construction, only power washing. And that seems to go against several people's recent accounts online, regardless of the impact to guests

I’m worried about this also. We will be there in early February staying in a club level room. There are a ton of bad reviews on google lately. We’ve never stayed here before and there’s not any notes about construction on the website which is annoying

 

[Jarmo]

Some pics of a renovated Future Rockstar Suite if anyone is interested. I don't think they changed the kid room area at all

 

[Jarmo]

I’m worried about this also. We will be there in early February staying in a club level room. There are a ton of bad reviews on google lately. We’ve never stayed here before and there’s not any notes about construction on the website which is annoying

We've heard the construction (hammering, sawing, etc) but more of a minor inconvenience where we are next to the club lounge. More like background noise... But I can imagine it would be worse if you happen to have a room right above where they are working. No problem with the water though and I'm really happy we decided to stick with Hard Rock.

 

[LadybugsMum]

We are checking in today with a garden view room. Where should I request to stay for ease of walking to/from the parks?

 

[hammie59]

Appreciate the reply... Seems like there are a handful of complaints on trip advisor also but for the 5th and 7th floor specifically, which is unfortunately where our reservation is. I'll just call an ask about any planned water shutoff rather than rely on Internet rumors.

ETA: I'm a little skeptical after calling because they said there is no construction, only power washing. And that seems to go against several people's recent accounts online, regardless of the impact to guests

How to you already know your room location?

 

[Bird003]

Any pictures of refurbished rooms?

 

[Jarmo]

How to you already know your room location?

I knew ahead of time because it was club level, which is the 7th floor. Otherwise I don't think there's any way to know

 

[Clemson Bama Fan]

Any updates on the renovations? We are going early December and have read that construction should end in autumn and then saw other reviews that say December 31. We stay on the ground floor (pet friendly) and if they are working one floor at a time and started on the 7th floor and working their way down (makes sense) that could be problematic if they don't finish prior to December. Any recent experiences or information is appreciated.