Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando

I understand construction is required but the approach was not executed with guests and functions considered. An attempt with signs and arrows while construction is hidden with curtains - shut the resort down for the required construction. No information on website that hotel is under current renovation when guests are making reservations. Very disappointing. Read less

We, a family of 4, stayed for 3 nights in a room with 2 queen beds, in the west wing. Booked a garden-facing room, which initially worried me because I was concerned that I’d miss out on an incredible view of the harbour. I need not have been concerned about this, because almost all of the harbour-facing rooms are undergoing renovations on the facade. And this is where the source of my frustration lies. I made the booking directly through Universal Orlando to take advantage of the theme park package and Express passes. When I made the booking, I was not informed of the renovations. It was only when final payment was made that I was informed in the small print that there would be “the occasional bustling activity as they refresh their …village…”. The extent of the refurbishment was greatly underplayed. “Occasional”, to me at least, refers to “every now and again” or on the odd occasion. However, these renovations are not occasional. They are constant during the day. From morning to evening. We were simply not informed of the scale, impact and magnitude of the refurbishment. Had Universal and Loews been transparent about this, I would have booked at another hotel. So, we unknowingly travelled 14,000 km to a construction site. It’s noisy. It’s messy. It’s dusty. There are tractors, machinery, materials and hundreds of workers on site. Almost all facades are covered in scaffolding or dust sheets. There’s little beauty or enjoyment to be had as regards the property. The construction unfortunately takes away from the whole experience for me. Certain parts of the property are also inaccessible. It’s inconvenient. To give you an idea, you cannot enjoy a restaurant to its full advantage. You cannot sit outside and enjoy the harbour in peace. You cannot enjoy a view from your harbour room without it being impeded. I would not book a harbour facing room at this time as it’s not money well spent, in my view. Yet, I was charge the full rate despite the hotel being heavily under construction. The rate is relatively high being a luxury hotel in the park. I found this unfair given the inconveniences. When I saw the hotel on arrival, I felt I had no recourse but to complain. I asked the staff at the hotel to find me alternative accommodation, which to their credit they tried to do. But the 2 hotels with availability were not something I’d choose ordinarily, and they are also further away from the parks and did not offer express passes. PROS OF STAYING HERE: - Express passes - Location to the parks - Easy access to the parks by water taxi - Construction noise stops in the late afternoon so it’s quiet from then (sleep is not disturbed.) - Comfortable beds and rooms CONS OF STAYING HERE: - Construction - Price charged during this construction period - Noise, dust, and banging (which can be heard from inside the bedroom during the day). - Parts of hotel blocked off - Hotel can’t be enjoyed as much given the refurbishment I found I had to complain to get an apology from the hotel and Universal, who later offered me a 20% discount as a refund, which I accepted given that the alternatives were not an option for us. I’ve not yet received the refund. The Hotel has requested the refund from Universal Parks and Resorts Vacations, and it takes a while. Universal and the hotel also said they would escalate my feedback to the appropriate people. Needless to say, if you may get irritated by noise, I’d suggest finding alternative accommodation or check that the refurbishment is completed when you travel (it’s due to be completed by December 2024). If you have dust allergies, there’s quite a bit of dust. And if you have mobility issues, note that the fastest or flattest route from point A to point B may not be available because many parts of the hotel have been blocked off and are inaccessible (some of the staff at the hotel expressed to me that they find it hard to figure out how to get around). I repeatedly got lost trying to find our room because so many access points are blocked off. As an example, the pool, that is in close proximity to our room, could only be accessed after a long walk around the hotel. If you would still like to stay here, ask for a room as far from the construction as possible. We were put in the West Wing facing the pool area and it was relatively quiet inside our room. I have no doubt that the hotel is absolutely spectacular and can be thoroughly enjoyed when not scaffolded up and under construction. But right now is not that time, for me at least. Read less

Construction is an issue and prices should reflect that but they do not. Stayed in the club level, rooms were nice and big which was a plus. Food at the club level is OK at best. It seems like it would be an easy fix, it's not as good as most continental breakfasts at any run of the mill hotel. Dinner option is not much better. You have to take the boat to Universal which can be annoying if you have to wait for 2-3 boats to go before you. The beach pool is nice but sadly had an issue so two of our days we had to use the small pool and it was packed. For the money just stay at hard rock or another hotel at Universal until they get back on track. - They need to be more transparent about the construction. - Have prices reflect the construction that's taking place and maybe people would not be so frustrated. - Change the menu at club level, it wouldn't be hard or expensive, it feels like they are doing the bare minimum because they don't want you to like it and eat too much. Read less

The first room that we got was under construction. None of the trash was taken out and there was still left over food in the fridge. The second room had hair all over the toilet and beds didn't look clean. Our keys didn't work to exit the parking lot and the costumer service at the gate was horrible! There food selections was good and there buffet was closed. I will never stay here again! The only good thing is that the employees were very friendly. When I was walking in the halls, they always greeted you. Read less