Royal Pacific versus Portofino Bay

[mrsclark]

My husband and I have stayed at RPH twice - we were unlucky as on our second trip we had to skip Universal (and miss HP which we hadn't seen yet - they were still building it the first time we visited!) because my husband got sick and we decided to go home early. We really like the atmosphere of RPH and really enjoyed the food too - any reason to consider switching to PBH to try something new and different?

We are a younger couple (early 30's) and do not have any children - we both LOVE Harry Potter books, books on CD and movies.

 

[bumbershoot]

RPR was our first Universal hotel, and we remember it the least. I remember that the rooms are the smallest, but wow is the lobby pretty! We are staying there again in October, mainly to see how we feel about it now. We're a little nervous about that, though,
because since then we've stayed at Portofino twice, and have loved it there (and we actually remember our stays, LOL). The rooms are the biggest, the place is just beautiful and calm, and we love how it feels to walk around there.

I'm sure you know that they encourage pool hopping, so if you have time to visit the pools, you can check out the Portofino and Hard Rock pools if you wish to. That's a good excuse to wander around Portofino and see if you like it, have some dinner, etc.

Either way, it's hard to lose between those two resorts, because they are both so nice. HRH, in my opinion, not so much...DS loved the pool and I thought the building was lovely, but none of us actually enjoyed *staying* there. So it'll be RPR or PBH for us!

 

[macraven]

My husband and I have stayed at RPH twice - we were unlucky as on our second trip we had to skip Universal (and miss HP which we hadn't seen yet - they were still building it the first time we visited!) because my husband got sick and we decided to go home early. We really like the atmosphere of RPH and really enjoyed the food too - any reason to consider switching to PBH to try something new and different?

We are a younger couple (early 30's) and do not have any children - we both LOVE Harry Potter books, books on CD and movies.

you can not go wrong with either hotel.
my favorite hotel is rph.
i have stayed at all 3 but rph keeps calling my name......

yes, the rooms are smaller than those at pbh, but if you only have 2 or 3 in your group, you should have decent space in your room.

room size has never been a deterent for my stays, even when i take family members with me.

pbh is a lovely hotel.
it has great pools and onsite restaurants.
i only go to Sals at pbh as i am not as fond of italian flair food, with the exception of pizza......

the one draw back for me when i stayed at pbh was the distance to the parks and city walk.
yes, the boats are available but if you miss it, you wait.
for the evenings, there are more boats used by each hotel.
during the day, not so much.

i get lazy and prefer not walking. i save my feet for the parks....
really prefer the boats to go back and forth.

since you have stayed at RPH before, why not take a chance and book PBH?
it may turn out that pbh has a wow factor that you will love.

there is something unique about all the onsite hotels.
when you stay at one of them, you learn why it is popular with so many.

try a new hotel and go back to rph for a meal or pool during your stay.

 

[Akwafunk]

PBH is my favorite by a mile.

I've been by myself, and with the family (which includes 2 little boys.)

Yes, it's a longer walk, but the rooms are bigger, and the bathrooms are HUGE, the pool is my favorite (the water slide is cool) and it's a much more laid-back vibe. I prefer the food options here too. And yes, while you can go to other hotels to eat or pool hop... Taking two boat rides to swim somewhere else is not all that appealing.

RPH can get a little frantic with families and small kids, since you're kid-free, I'd go for fakey-fake Italy myself.

 

[rpbert1]

RPR is our fav resort, but have done 2 split stays with it and PBH. PBH is stunning but as we have our DD with us it was much to quiet for her and not a lot going on for her. But being you are just a couple with no Kids with you PBH would prob be my choice ,and the Villa Pool is stunning ENJOY

 

[Princessmom2]

We love thr PBH! Even the 14 yeqr old likes it the best. We were not that thrilled with RPR-just not our style. Only swam at Hard Rock-like the pool area-but we don't want to stay there. Love to sit outside at the bar on the Piazza at PBH and people watch, always try to catch the Opera singers at dusk, and like the food choices. Rooms seem bigger than the ones at RPR and much more relaxing to us. We don't mind the walk to the parks either!

 

[TheAviator]

Yes the Portifino is considered the top of the line for their resorts, although I also normally stay at the RPR. Portifino is definitely well worth trying if you don't mind spending the extra $$, It is more elegant and plush. The exterior around the lagoon thing is amazing, looks just like something out of the Italian riviera, also I do prefer the pool at the P, it has a waterfall over a castle and is just really cool, plus they have hottubs with waterfalls. The rooms are bigger, and request a balcony room, these are the best rooms on the entire property IMO. Only the P has a few rooms with balconies, none of the others do. A balcony is a great treat