which premium is the best ??

[adznyfan]

hi all


haven't been to universal in AWHILE - want to stay at a premium - any suggestions on which is the best? leaning towards hard rock since the description says yu can walk to the parks - how is the walk ? and how does the walk compare to the transportation

thanks

cindy

 

[AaronRif]

"Best" is subjective based on your personal preferences. Hard Rock and Royal Pacific get a lot of love on the boards, and you won't go wrong with either. You'll get different answers from folks, so I'd do some research into seeing if Royal Pacific or Hard Rock looks better to you in terms of theming, pricing, etc. Portofino is also great, but it is the farthest of any of the Premier hotels. You can walk to the parks from all three hotels. I'd also do a search on the boards since there is a lot of info already out there.

 

[CAPSLOCK]

You can walk from any, nicely landscaped walkways along the canals (no cars in sight). The boats are nice relaxing rides. If they stop the boats due to weather, they will offer buses but it's probably just as easy to walk at that point,

Hard Rock is closest, 5min to Studios & under 10min to Islands of Adventure. From HRH, if the boats aren't running the bus probably takes longer than walking. Likely the case for Royal Pacific too. RP is maybe 7min to IoA & under 12min to Studios. Portofino is probably a 15min walk to Studios, under 20min to IoA, and the boat is normally faster than walking for PB unless maybe you just miss a boat. I would still walk to PB rather than bothering to go through CityWalk to the buses.

I agree to pick which one appeals to you, and/or whichever is cheaper. I wouldn't hesitate to walk or boat from any of them.

 

[lahobbs4]

We chose Portofino because the room was larger and we needed to fit 5 people. We had a TON of room. Never minded the walk or short boat ride.

 

[GoofyDad_4427]

Portofino has the largest and best rooms, and in our opinion the best pool. If i was planning more resort/pool time i would pick Portofino. Hard Rock is the closest. If we were going open to close and only using the room to sleep, i would pick Hard Rock. Note that my family does not like the Hard Rock pool because of the depth. If i was looking for a balance between the two, i would pick Royal Pacific, which also happens to usually be the cheapest.

 

[Kit Jackson]

They are all close and absolutely walking distance. If you plan to eat breakfast (either a full sit down breakfast or grab and go) at the hotel, look online and see which options appeal to you the most. If you are trying to find something to serve as a tie-breaker, look at the pools, food options, other amenities and see what appeals the most.

 

[reddog21]

We have stayed at all 3 and Portifino for us is far and away the best. The rooms are much larger, the restaurants are better(IMO) and the walk isn't that bad (11 minutes to Universal Studios).

If you plan on club level Portifino is worlds better than either Royal Pacific or Hard Rock.

 

[Lewisc]

When are you going? Portofino is currently under construction and should be avoided for the next few months

 

[reddog21]

Portofino is currently under construction and should be avoided for the next few months

We just came from there and the construction is not at all bad. The only issue we found was the west pathway to the parks is currently closed which adds probably 3-4 minutes to the walk but not ridiculous. You can here them working during the day but it was never loud or obnoxious.

We chatted with a couple of couples while we were sitting down near starbucks and they were worried about the construction but were pleasently surprised that it didn't impact there stay at all.

 

[Skywalker3]

We love them all, for different reasons, but Portofino is the one I'm least likely to choose when the others are comparable. For the most part, I pick based on whichever one is the cheapest. I love Hard Rock, but our last 2 stays at Royal Pacific reminded us why we love it too. I have it booked for a night in Oct.
I do very much like the size of the rooms at Portofino, they are bigger than the other 2, more room space, although quite a bit is allocated to this ridiculously large bathroom.
Negative for us is that the walk is at least double the others. Doable, but tiring and hot sometimes. First trip, boats were great, very quick, little wait, etc. Last trip in March, either waited for 2 boats , as they were constantly full, or we walked....Also, I was bothered quite a bit by the construction. But that should be over soon.
Portofino has a great main pool, and very nice 'quiet' one.
But Hard Rock and RP are good too, and you can pool hop if willing. we've never done it, but it's an option at Universal.
We rarely eat at any of the resort restaurants, so no opinions on the ones at the premiers. If you are at RP, it's easy to get to Sapphire Falls, or Aventura for good quick service.
Happy planning. They are all good!!!

 

[The Gatekeeper]

I my opinion, Portofino is the nicest. Royal Pacific is next and Hard Rock is our least favorite.
We stayed in a King Suite at HR and the bathroom was TINY and very worn (they were renovating at the time) and the theme of the resort isn't really appealing to us. We got a room that was at the very end of the resort, furthest from the parks. I felt a centrally located room at RPR was just as close or closer than our room at the HR, so you may want to consider that if booking HR solely in order to be a couple minutes closer to the parks. The location of your room can negate most of the benefit of the hotel location when comparing HR and RPR.

 

[DoryGirl1963]

Each of the Premiers has their own "vibe" - Hard Rock is fun & high energy, Royal Pacific is lovely relaxing tropical & Portofino...well, I'm not sure about Portofino because we only stayed one night & it just wasn't our jam, LOL! Maybe pick the one that seems to mesh with your personal preferences?

 

[adznyfan]

thanks!!!