Perks of Staying On-Site at Universal Orlando Resort

Orlando has hotel options for every taste and budget. So when you visit Universal, is it worth staying on-site? In my personal opinion, absolutely, yes!!

 

Here’s why:

 

Universal Hotel Variety

Many of the Universal hotels are operated by Loew’s, but there’s something for everyone. They have several price tiers with different amenities, and all of them are worth checking out! Even the lower- tier hotels are beautiful, clean, and fun!

Value resorts include Endless Summer Dockside and Surfside- I’ve managed to get passholder rates as low as $78 a night! Both have pools, cafeterias, merch stores, Starbucks, pizza delivery to your room, and are surfy beach vibes. They don’t have hot tubs, but both offer family suites and free bus transportation to the parks. They have more of a party feel to them- lots of families, everyone is excited to hit the parks, so it can get a little loud but it’s a fun time!

Prime Value resorts include Cabana Bay and Aventura. Cabana Bay is our go-to Universal hotel. It’s huge, so you may have a bit of a walk to your room. However, there’s a pool with a lazy river, and another with a slide. Both pools have hot tubs. There is also cafeteria-style dining and pizza delivery. Aventura has more adult vibes. There is a rooftop bar and a robot which delivers items to your room!

 

The Preferred tier includes Sapphire Falls. Full disclosure- I’ve actually never stayed at Sapphire Falls because the price is usually not too far off from Royal Pacific, and if I’m splurging, I want Express Passes, so I bypass Sapphire and stay Premier.

 

Premier resorts include Hard Rock, Royal Pacific, and Portofino Bay. Portofino Bay is my absolute favorite hotel. It’s beautiful, it’s unique, and the pool (in my opinion) is awesome! Hard Rock and Royal Pacific are great too, but Portofino has my heart. With each of the Premier resorts, you can order in-room dining or choose from the on-site restaurants. And of course, the biggest perk to staying at a Premier Universal resort is that you get free express passes for every member of your party for every day of your stay, including check in and check out days.

 

Transportation

My favorite part of staying on-site at Universal is the free transportation to the parks. Each hotel has bus transportation that runs constantly. We rarely wait more than 10-15 minutes for a bus in either direction. The buses drop guests off right outside of City Walk and they are fun to ride! Jax loves to meet people on the bus and talk about their favorite rides. Sapphire Falls, Hard Rock, Royal Pacific, and Portofino also offer water taxis as well. These drop guests off at the front of City Walk, so there’s less walking. You also go through security prior to getting on the water taxi, so you avoid the security backup at the City Walk entrance, too.

The last thing I want to do at the end of a long park day is to walk all the way through the parking garage and then fight traffic to get home. Also, I love being able to travel without getting a rental car or paying for parking. Win!

 

Food

Universal hotels offer a wide variety of food options, which is great after a long day at the parks. They all offer Starbucks, gift shops, and dining options by the pool. The lower-tier hotels offer cafeterias and pizza delivery to your room, while the higher end hotels have restaurants and bars on site. Not only is there a wide variety of food to choose from, but if you’re on a budget, the cafeterias have some really reasonable options!

Early Park Admission

If you’re staying on-site, take your room key to the park for early park admission. This grants you access to the park (usually Islands of Adventure- but check the website to make sure) an hour before official park opening, which is awesome if you’ve got a lot to cover and limited time to do it.

 

Express Passes

Express passes are only offered free of charge to guests of the Premier resorts. So if you’re staying at Hard Rock, Royal Pacific, or Portofino Bay, you and every member of your party get free Express Passes for every day of your stay, including check in and check out day. What are Express Passes? They’re Universal’s skip-the-line pass. Instead of waiting in standby, you get to enter the ride queue in a separate line. This doesn’t necessarily mean there will be no Express line to wait in, but it will be significantly shorter than stand-by.

 

Vibes

One of the most underrated perks of staying on-site at Universal is the atmosphere. Everyone is there for the same reason, and it creates a great, fun vibe from the elevator to the buses.

 

So- should you stay on-site at Universal hotels? To me, I’d never visit the parks and stay anywhere else, especially with the low rates at the Endless Summer resorts!