Hard Rock? Royal Pacific??? EXPERTS!

[chobie]

We love HRH and the price difference is usually only $20 or $30 more, but when looking to sneak in a two night trip at the end of winter break, the difference between HRH and RPR was almost $100 So I booked the RPR for the first time. I know the kids and DH are not as excited about it, but I am. I told the kids we could still go there for ice cream at Emack & Bolio's and we can swim there if the weather is good.

Personally, I'm more concerned with the front of the line pass then anything else.

 

[rpbert1]

We are staying at the RPR for the 3rd time in a row next year, and we love this resort. The pool is excellent even if it does not have a slide, always plenty going on in it to keep DD occupied. You can always visit the other pools if you want a change.
The staff are friendly and welcoming, and while we do not go to the parks everyday the FOTL is good.
Have never stayed at the HRH ,was at the PBH and all are probably similar, although the rooms at PBH where slightly larger than RPR just depends on the theming ,if it really matters to you, most stay for the FOTL benefits, and if this is why you are staying why not just book the cheapest.

 

[coffeeguy]

We just returend from a 6 night stay at RPR and I cant say enough good things about it. DD (6) loved the pool and the water feature. It was maybe a 10 minute walk to IOA/City walk if that. To be honest we mostly rode the boat just because we were being lazy and we must have timed it right because the boat was always there when we were headed over to the parks literally no wait. Great rooms, Great Service, Really good breakfast buffet at the Islands dining room. We did check out the other 2 hotels. PBR didnt really impress us and was the furthest away from the parks and city walk. HRH was really nice and the closest to the parks. HRH did have a great pool but DD enjoyed the pool at RPR much better because of the water feature. I can however see a stay at HRH in our future once DD is older. I see HRH appealing to adults into music and kids ages 13 and up. You cant really go wrong with staying onsite any of the hotels would be great.

 

[swilphil]

We stayed at RPR because of the price difference. We all LOVED it. The rooms were a little smaller than what you might find at HRH or something along the lines of Disney deluxes, but they were still very nice rooms. Our favorite part was the pool! We took the boat or walked to Citywalk and parks. I can't wait to stay RPR again!

 

[chobie]

We loved it. I could not imagine having paid $100.00 more a night for HRH. We were only supposed to stay 2 nights, but stayed a third. The room was big and comfy; it did not seem any smaller than HRH. Even though it was a bit chilly we used the jacuzzi and my son got in the pool a couple of times. We got coffee in the lounge every morning and it was quite good. DH and I had sushi and drinks at the Orchid Lounge one night and it was lovely. The kids still say they prefer HRH, but would not complain if we stayed here again. I would definitely stay there again.

We did not eat at any of the restaurants at RPR, but they looked good. We ate at Bubba Gumps one night at the kids' request and had a great time. Went to Downtown Disney for Earl of Sandwich and then saw a late move at City Walk another night, and the last night we went to a Chinese Restaurant on International Drive, The Ming Court, which was fabulous.

Except for the quick trip to DTD, this was the first Universal only trip we have done and we had a great time.

 

[kdudley3]

We've stayed RPR 3 times now. We stayed off-property 3 times.

Nothing will stop me from staying onsite again. I'm a stay at home mom with 3 kids (one in college). So that means money isn't flowing like a fountain, but we're not destitute either.

I asked my kids 11, 14 and 19 if we went back, where would they like to go...and all 3 three said RPR !!! I was going for HRH (we pool hopped last time). Especially since our kids have Guitar Hero II & III and they love music and guitars...they still want RPR!!!

I wanted to experience different resorts, but they all love RPR.

But...DO POOL HOP to HRH!!!!! The pool and slide is great (underwater music)and the shower rooms (or whatever they call them) are great !!! Shampoo, razors, soap, hair dryers etc. were great (my husband and 2 sons wondered why it took my daughter and me an hour to come out after showering after a swim)!!!

 

[apparition]

I've stayed at Royal Pacific twice and Hard Rock once. I was not impressed with Hard Rock. Maybe I had higher expectations because I'm obsessed with music but it didn't do anything for me. The only thing I really liked about the hotel was the music they played through out and outside. I wasn't impressed with the pool and when I was there, it was actually dirty on the bottom. When I checked in, the white bed spreads on our beds were dirty and the shower was plugged up. We also couldn't get the air conditioner to work properly. They also put charges on my credit card that were already paid for which was a whole other hassle to get fixed.

I haven't had any major problems at Royal Pacific. The last time I stayed, they had given us the wrong room. We were suppose to have a view of the pool but they stuck is in the corner and we couldn't see anything but a tree. They changed our room after we said something and from then on, we didn't have any problems.

I like Royal Pacific's atmosphere and pool. I like that it's so close to Citywalk and the parks. The Islands Dining room had a very good breakfast buffet. The service has always been excellent every time I've stayed there. And remember, you can always go to the other resorts to swim and eat.