The Hard Rock Hotel Orlando has some nice onsite ammenities. I've stayed there a few times and the rooms are pretty decent. Occupancy rates at the HRH have been running pretty high as of late so I don't know what kinda rates you'll be able to get.

I haven't been to the Royal Pacific yet, but I hear it's really nice, like the other two ... make sure to check rates at all three hotels and ask for Annual Pass and Entertainment Rates at all three ...

In order of amenities the Royal Pacific is the lowest of the three, the Hard Rock the middle, and the Portofino the top of the line, but sometimes pricing can be out of whack from that. The Hard Rock's big advantage is that it is much closer to the parks than the other two hotels.

One warning though, I don't think the Power Pass qualifies for Annual Pass rates, you might want to check that ...

PremEx ~ I'm just giving you the job, you know that ... my big beef with Disney is everything is so darn far apart ... of course that's partly because there is so much stuff, but still ...

you are right. I went back and read the restrictions. To get the Annual Pass rate you need the standard AP which costs $149.95.

There were no AP rates at the Hard Rock. Rates started at $229

Portofino Bay AP rates for that weekend were starting at $169.

I only listed the Royal Pacific rates because they were the cheapest AP Rates. ($129)

[This message has been edited by prncess674 (edited 04-08-2003).]

IIRC there is a water ferry that will transport you from the hotels to Universal Citywalk.

I'd pay the $40 more for the Portofino over Royal Pacific unless you're on a tight budget.

For May 9-11 you can get the Portofino for $149/night and the Hard Rock for $137/night on Hotwire (the 5 star and 4-1/2 star on Hotwire, respectively). The 4 star they show *might* be the Royal Pacific, though the price seems awfully low. The Royal Pacific does come up as a 4 star on Hotwire.

Personally I think the Hard Rock is super convenient because it is such a short walk to everything and you can park your car in their lot and go offsite so easily from the hotel or parks ... but that's my personal preference.

Transportation from Portofino is by bus or boat if you don't want to walk (about a 15 minute walk) ... I'm not sure about Royal Pacific, not having stayed there yet.

You can get transportation by boat from Hard Rock, but it's really not worth it ... the walk is so short anyway.

The highest star rating I see for that weekend is 3 and 1/2 stars. What am I doing wrong?

We need to pick a weekend before the kiddies get out of school and go! I need a theme park fix! Who's in? What weekend?

I checked again and they're still there ... May 9-11, right? Did you select the right zone, "Universal Orlando - Wet 'n Wild"?

Two conflicting DOs for May 9-11.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

Oh well....

Looks like they're aimed at two different crowds though.

I checked to see if the Hotwire 5* was available Memorial Day and it is! I think this would be great weekend to do this this DO. Monday would be a holiday for most so there would no need to rush back to work.

Any takers for Memorial Day weekend (May23-26) at USF/IOA? If you buy the 2 Park Power Annual Pass and get a room through Hotwire it could be a very enjoyable weekend and f. Also Emeril's latest Orlando restaurant is at the Pacific Royal hotel in Universal (Tchoup Chop ). If there is enough interest I will start a new thread.

I went to Emeril's Tchoup Chop and it was great. It's very reasonably priced too. Reservations are essential. You can walk to Emeril's Tchoup Chop from UCW. I'm guessing it's a 15 minute walk, but it's not bad at all.

so you have given us all great info kluau88. Are you going to come and be our personal tour guide?

I would say that I would beg to differ knowing some of the posters here vs. there. In fact, there is definite overlap....

Unfortunately, I need a tad more notice and with a couple of pending trips, my hands are sorta tied. Surprisingly I've been to MCO quite often yet haven't gone to WDW yet http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

Never fear. I am looking to put together a more organized weekend for Disney in September but right now I have a bee in my bonnet to go to USF/IOA soon since Beckles mentioned it. Especially since I could be a season pass and stay at the Portofino.