If I could give 100 stars, I would. We were greeted with smiles and hellos everytime they saw us. They asked us every day how our stay was going and if there was anything they could do to make it better. It is walking distance to Universal theme parks/City Walk and if you don't want to walk, you can take their shuttle. They are pet friendly...very pet friendly. Everytime they saw our dog, Brunswick, they would stop and give him so much attention! He loved it! He was 11 1/2, and unfortunately, he passed away while we were here. He died peacefully in his sleep. The staff jumped in with such loving support. They were helping us make accommodations at midnight for him, calling us the next morning to check on us, fed us, shared their own pet stories with us, hugged us and gave us words of encouragement. Damian Garcia, I will forever be grateful! The staff is amazing! If you want to feel like you are with "family " when you are away from home, stay here!

PROS

- Spacious, clean and comfortable double rooms with air conditioning.
- Helpful and friendly staff, plus a range of guest services.
- Good value for money, and much more affordable than official Universal hotels.
- Small but functional gym and hotel pool.
- Free WiFi.
- On site TGI Friday restaurant connected to the hotel by a walkway.
- On site shop plus ATM.
- 10 minute walk to Orlando Premium Outlets.

CONS

- Although the hotel is located across the road from the Universal parking lot, it’s a 10-15 minute walk from the hotel to the park entrance. There is a free shuttle bus which links the Universal partner hotels to City Walk, but reservations are essential.
- The Disney Shuttle is an additional $12 return per person. Reservations are essential and may be fully booked during busy periods.
- The decor is a bit outdated. Holiday Inns in the U.K. are more modern in comparison.
- The elevators were really dark. This seems to have been flagged up in a number of other reviews, so hopefully they are planning on installing lighting.
- We regularly had to contact the front desk to ask for fresh towels. Housekeeping often only left us with a couple of flannels.

It is very rare that I write a negative review for a hotel (see my other reviews for proof), but this place deserves it. To save reading time, I will list the issues. I will also say that this was my second stay at this hotel. My first stay was average/fine. Since the room is cheap and close to the park, I figured I would stay there again. It was a mistake.

1. The front desk assigned our room to another group WHEN WE WERE OCCUPYING IT. The party had WORKING KEYS and were attempting to open our door as I was getting ready to shower. Had we not been there, access to our room and things would have been readily available to anyone. When I went to the front desk, they simply said "computer issues" with no other explanation. I then sent a facebook message to corporate (as this wasn't the first thing that had gone awry on our trip). They contacted the front desk who called me and explained it was computer issues and promised it wouldn't happen again- but it should NEVER happen in the first place. They did offer to move us to another room- which I declined. I didn't understand why their error should require me to pack up my entire room and move. Also, moving rooms wouldn't solve any kind of issue if it truly was a computer flub. I guess I don't understand how it is ever acceptable to give someone else access to my room when I am in it. It felt very unsafe.

2. Earlier in the week, we had locked ourselves out of our room. When we went to get a key, the front desk ONLY asked for our room number and gladly handed us new keys. They didn't ask for our names, I.D- nothing. That was unnerving. On day three our room keys randomly stopped working. We were told "computer issues."

3. If you are staying here, DO NOT COUNT ON THE SHUTTLE. This hotel isn't the only one that is picked up by the shuttle. We reserved a spot, but it simply did not matter. There wasn't enough room for all of the guests who had also reserved a time on that shuttle. We had to walk to the park or take an uber and take an uber back (it was dark and we are small females so we didn't want to walk). It was a bummer to have to spend the money when the hotel advertises a free shuttle.


4. The room wasn't clean. A family had obviously stayed there before us because inside the fridge was a child's medicine syringe half full of medicine, and trash. Inside the safe was some kind of smoking device. The floor was filthy. We still tipped housekeeping (as everyone should)- and we were left with no replacement towels after she took the pile of dirty ones. When we asked her for towels, we were sent to the front desk to wait in the check-in line.

At the time, We only complained about the room keys and random strangers having working keys to our room as those were safety issues and needed to be dealt with. The other issues were small, but when added to the safety issues create an overall negative experience.

I have frequently stayed at Holiday Inns, and this experience was unlike the others. I am disappointed in this stay and in the response that I got when our room was assigned to other people. Random people attempting to walk into your room when you are in a state of undress is unacceptable. I understand computer things happen, but that should never compromise the safety or sense of safety for your customers.