RPR or HRH?

[kohlby]

I've searched the internet and old threads and am still not coming up with a clear winner. So, I figured I'd explain our specific family/needs and see if y'all could help me out.

The original plan was RPR. We've stayed there three times. We like it. It's the cheapest one. Then hubby brought up that he might want to try out HRH since we've never stayed there and it's a little closer. The transportation was super easy at RPR, so that's not a selling point for me, but I told hubby he could do HRH if he really wanted to. He's on the fence though since I'm not pushing for it. It will be $19 extra a day, and we're doing 5 nights so over $100 when the extra taxes are figured in on the higher price.

We're a family of 5, with two adults and three kids. The kids are 10, 7, and 4. I noticed both hotels have queen beds, so we'll be fine. We're going to start out off-site for 3 nights at a hotel where we have plenty of room to stretch out, so it will be a switch but we would rather be cramped than spend a lot more. I read one review that said that though HRH rooms are a little larger, that it's not noticeable.

We have 7 day 2-park passes so we figure we'll spend more time at the hotel than usual. We've never done IOA/US for more than 2 days before so it will be nice to take our time. We'll only be doing IOA/US during the stay at that hotel. (We have a day at Legoland while at the other hotel). We're going in the off-season so the parks will probably close by 6pm.

Crowds/noise are one concern I have. I read that HRH is the first to sell out. So I wondered if this meant the pool area would be more crowded, even in Nov. I also wondered how loud the pool music was. Can you talk over it very easily? How about the halls - does having an older group of kids/teens at the hotel make it louder? Or should that not be an issue in Nov? (We're going right before T-giving week so ideally, many kids will be in school).

 

[macraven]

I've searched the internet and old threads and am still not coming up with a clear winner. So, I figured I'd explain our specific family/needs and see if y'all could help me out.

The original plan was RPR. We've stayed there three times. We like it. It's the cheapest one. Then hubby brought up that he might want to try out HRH since we've never stayed there and it's a little closer. The transportation was super easy at RPR, so that's not a selling point for me, but I told hubby he could do HRH if he really wanted to. He's on the fence though since I'm not pushing for it. It will be $19 extra a day, and we're doing 5 nights so over $80 when the extra taxes are figured in on the higher price.

We're a family of 5, with two adults and three kids. The kids are 10, 7, and 4. I noticed both hotels have queen beds, so we'll be fine. We're going to start out off-site for 3 nights at a hotel where we have plenty of room to stretch out, so it will be a switch but we would rather be cramped than spend a lot more. I read one review that said that though HRH rooms are a little larger, that it's not noticeable.

We have 7 day 2-park passes so we figure we'll spend more time at the hotel than usual. We've never done IOA/US for more than 2 days before so it will be nice to take our time. We'll only be doing IOA/US during the stay at that hotel. (We have a day at Legoland while at the other hotel). We're going in the off-season so the parks will probably close by 6pm.

Crowds/noise are one concern I have. I read that HRH is the first to sell out. So I wondered if this meant the pool area would be more crowded, even in Nov. I also wondered how loud the pool music was. Can you talk over it very easily? How about the halls - does having an older group of kids/teens at the hotel make it louder? Or should that not be an issue in Nov? (We're going right before T-giving week so ideally, many kids will be in school).

HRH is the smallest hotel.
i believe it has 650 rooms so it does sell out before the other two hotels.
they have more rooms.

i have stayed many times at hrh (22).
the pool music is loud at times, but it does not interfer with conversing with anyone.

going the week prior to Tday is not going to be crowded.
hopefully the weather will be fine so you can spend days at the pool.
it would be horrible if the weather is not swimming weather and you decide on a hotel due to the pool.


i never chose a hotel for the pool.
pool hopping is allowed for the onsite hotels.
towels are provided at each pool so you don't have to tote any with you if you hop.


pull up the www.universalorlando.com and go to the hotel section.


you can compare the lay out of the rooms at rph vs hrh.
maybe that will help if you visualize the difference of the rooms.


i stay at rph all the time now.
i like it that it is larger, great lobby to spend time at to read, relax, etc besides the room.
there are 4 places on site at rph to eat, which is a plus for me.
just because i have a favorite hotel doesn't mean it is the best for others.
we all get a fondness for a hotel for different reasons.


the Palms at hrh is nice but pricey.
the Kitchen has a great breakfast buffet and really nice dinner menu.
they do have E & B for ice cream, snacks, etc.
if you stay at hrh, those are the choices for food.

it is all a personal choice.

try the hrh and see how you like it.
it might be the place you love.


there have been times when i stayed at hrh i did hear voices from the hallway.
mainly on the days i decided to sleep in and everyone else were up early for hitting the parks prior to the opening.

you can have that happen at any hotel.

 

[kohlby]

Thank you for your response. We tend not to do much eating at the hotel. We bring in food from home for breakfast. Dinner may be at the parks or off-site, like Sweet Tomatoes. We will have a car, so even stopping at Publix for a rotisserie chicken and some fruit works for dinner for us.

In the past, we wouldn't have considered the pool for which hotel. But since we'll have more time, it does play a part, though not the only factor. If one hotel was too loud compared to the other from the hours of 8pm-7am, then there would be a clear winner. We're fine with noise during the day, as we don't have nappers nor anyone who sleeps in. With the exception of rain, I would think that week would be plenty warm enough. We've had several Orlando trips and only one was too cold for the pool. (End of Jan during a record cold winter in 2010. Even then, we did swim twice, though I wouldn't call it pleasant). I realize pool hopping is allowed, but with the logistics of three kids and wanting it to feel like a vacation, we're not likely to pool hop more than once.

I've seen the layouts and they're similar.

So, it sounds like based on your advice, there really isn't a clear winner for my family. But trying out HRH may be worth it since we've never stayed there.

I'll still welcome more opinions, especially those from people who have stayed with children.

 

[macraven]

if this is the one opportunity for you to explore a new hotel, go for it.

you might find out it is a perfect fit for you and your family.




how many husbands will say, i know it will cost more but i still would like to try it........

lucky ducky you are!


just posting to keep your thread at the top on the page.
hope others chime in and give their thoughts too.

 

[heidijanesmith]

I've searched the internet and old threads and am still not coming up with a clear winner. So, I figured I'd explain our specific family/needs and see if y'all could help me out.

The original plan was RPR. We've stayed there three times. We like it. It's the cheapest one. Then hubby brought up that he might want to try out HRH since we've never stayed there and it's a little closer. The transportation was super easy at RPR, so that's not a selling point for me, but I told hubby he could do HRH if he really wanted to. He's on the fence though since I'm not pushing for it. It will be $19 extra a day, and we're doing 5 nights so over $100 when the extra taxes are figured in on the higher price. We loved HRH for the location! It was so easy to walk to everything from HRH. Even in the August heat, the walk was nice and quick.

We're a family of 5, with two adults and three kids. The kids are 10, 7, and 4. I noticed both hotels have queen beds, so we'll be fine. We're going to start out off-site for 3 nights at a hotel where we have plenty of room to stretch out, so it will be a switch but we would rather be cramped than spend a lot more. I read one review that said that though HRH rooms are a little larger, that it's not noticeable. HRH has lovely rooms, plenty of space for two adults and our two teens. We even got a roll away bed, it was surprisingly comfy.

We have 7 day 2-park passes so we figure we'll spend more time at the hotel than usual. We've never done IOA/US for more than 2 days before so it will be nice to take our time. We'll only be doing IOA/US during the stay at that hotel. (We have a day at Legoland while at the other hotel). We're going in the off-season so the parks will probably close by 6pm. HRH has an awesome pool and fun activities for kids, our teens loved it. They would not leave

Crowds/noise are one concern I have. I read that HRH is the first to sell out. So I wondered if this meant the pool area would be more crowded, even in Nov. I also wondered how loud the pool music was. Can you talk over it very easily? How about the halls - does having an older group of kids/teens at the hotel make it louder? Or should that not be an issue in Nov? (We're going right before T-giving week so ideally, many kids will be in school).

We did notice that HRH was busy and the pool area was very loud and crowded. I did not feel that this was a problem in the resort area though. We take a mid-day break everyday and nap or relax in the room. I did not ever notice any noise issues during the day or in the evening.

HRH is our favorite and are heading back there in Oct 2013. I have not stayed at RPR, so I can't comment on that resort.

 

[MulanMom]

We've stayed at Portafino and RPR in the past. We have HRH scheduled for an upcoming trip. I booked an extralarge 2 Queen room which will have 500 square feet. At the time I booked, the cost for the larger room over the standard wasn't a big difference so we opted for the extralarge. You may want to check out all room categories available and see if the extra large room may be in your budget.

While we enjoyed the other two resorts, we're looking forward to our stay at HRH.