Need Help With Hotel Pick

[Lisa10]

We're planning a trip to Universal for late January 2007. We've always went to WDW (Poly) and are going to Univ. for the first time. Three kids, 11, 9 and 7. I have no clue about which of the 3 hotels to pick. How do they compare to the Deluxe, moderates and value resorts at WDW? Which location is best for getting to the parks? How do you get to parks?

 

[macraven]

i should not have opened this thread.
i am the last person that can help here.

i have stayed at pbh, hrh over and over and trying our rph this fall.


and i am miserable about it. only doing it to join the 3 stay club, and it is cheaper this year.


my heart belongs to hard rock hotel.
pick that one, its the best.


really, you can't go wrong with the universal hotels.
none of them are what you would call value or moderate.

you can check out the room size and hotel amenities on the loews site.
that is what helped me on my first stay there.

 

[highlander447]

Hi all 3 compare as deluxe, our fave is RPR, but the rooms are a lot bigger at PBH

 

[damo]

My suggestion for you would be to stay in a deluxe room (2 queens and a pullout couch) at the Hard Rock. The hotel is being totally refurbished this fall, so the rooms should be gorgeous by your stay (definitely comparible to Disney's deluxe). The rates aren't out yet online but you can call. Make sure you ask for the AAA rate if you don't have an annual pass.

The best things about the hotels are that you can easily walk to the parks and Citywalk and you get unlimited express line access for every ride except Pteranadon Flyers. Excellent value for your money.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I agree with those suggesting HRH. As Damo suggested, a Deluxe room would be best. Of the 3, HRH has the closest walk to the parks, with RPR not being much further away. Some people walk from PBH, but my family took the boats. It was a little too far for us to walk.

Chances are good that your 11 yr. old will definitely like HRH better. I think your 9 yr. old probably will too. Your 7 yr. old may or may not prefer the pool at RPR. Basically, RPR's pool is better for younger kids. The pool at HRH attracts older kids, because of the slide & the fact that "it's the happenin' place to be." PBH also has a nice pool. They actually have 3, but the Beach pool is the one kids would enjoy.

All 3 of UO's resorts are Deluxe resorts. They're all nicer than any of WDW's mods. If you're looking for comparisons, RPR would be more similar to the Poly. The theming is similar. RRP's rooms are smaller though. RPR is newer & doesn't seem as dated as parts of the Poly, although the Poly is a very nice resort. HRH isn't themed similarly to any of WDW's resorts. If I were stretching for a comparison, I would compare it most closely with the Epcot resorts (not Swan/Dolphin). The only resort at WDW than can compare with PBH is the Grand Floridian. The rooms at PBH are larger than at the other 2 resorts. The beds & bathrooms are amazing! IMHO, PBH is a no brainer for 2 adults. However, with kids along, my vote goes to HRH.

I don't know how familiar you are with Universal, but the set up is nothing like WDW. You can easily walk from one park to the other. CityWalk connects the 2 parks. HRH is about a 5 min. walk to US. Add another 5 min. or less & you're at IOA. RPR is on the IOA side of the UO property. It takes us at least 10 minutes to walk from RPR to IOA. Again, you could be at US in another 5 min. or less of walking. We did find ourselves occasionally taking the boats to & from RPR. My health isn't good though, which doesn't help. The only way we would take the boat from HRH would be if we were looking for a change of pace. It's much faster to walk. FYI, the boats dock at the center of CW.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Oops! Double post!