Has anyone ever stayed at that hotel between IOA and USF?

(for some reason I can't shake the feeling it was a Hard Rock Hotel... but that can't be right)

I'm wondering what the pricing is like. Is it busy?

Well one of my friends was in town for business and that's where she stayed, at the Portofino Bay Hotel to be exact. It was a very nice room, though it was a suite, so it's difficult to chart the rooms based on what was top of the line. It was extremely nice though. The regular hotel was very nice and extremely clean.
I've been in the lobby and Hallways of the Hard Rock Hotel. That hotel in particular is marketed as more of a "Universal value resort" and it is lower priced from the rates I've seen but the qualityh is probably slightl above the moderate Disney resorts or at par (depending of course which one you're comparing) I can't wait to see the Royal Pacific!!! The concept art looks fabulous.

I just stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel in April, and it was awesome. Very nice room, with a CD sound system, cordless phone, and a sitting area by the window (great view too). The coolest thing about staying onsite though is that the room key doubles as an all day front of the line pass at USF and IOA
:D
The Hard Rock Hotel is actually a bit closer to the parks than Portofino Bay.

Why do they try to compete against the Disney Resorts? The Disney Resorts are really no competition for Unniversal, because more people know Disney's level of quality.

Originally posted by Lacrosse Boy
Why do they try to compete against the Disney Resorts? The Disney Resorts are really no competition for Unniversal, because more people know Disney's level of quality.

The Portifino Bay Hotel is fantastic. Disney only has 2 hotels in the states the can compete, The Grand California and The Grand Floridian. With the declining quality of the Disney brand, and the increase in quality of USF (IOA, The Portofino Bay Hotel and Citywalk), it may not be long before WDW is playing catch up. That's what happens when you rest on your laurals. USF has been getting a lot of coverage on the Travel Channel.
IOA was even named the #1 thrill park by Travels Channels "Best of..." series. While I've seen nothing on WDW.

Blizzard was rated #2 waterpark! been to wdw 100's of time. Kids r just now old enough to go to ioa this sept. Give me some hints Please??? best place to eat. I can't stand coaster with huge drops. Is their any that r just fast ? Should I stay home and let the dad go it alone with the coaster riders ? LOL Really, is there anything for non-coaster riders to do at ioa?????HELP ME . going in 3 weeks.

There is plenty to do at IOA for kids and non-coaster riders.

I was going to give a run down but that would get very lenghty. So I suggest that you visit universalstudios.com. They have a pretty good site that shows what they have to offer.
I will suggest that you go, if only for The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman, It is quite possibly the best theme park ride in existence. It is a fully immersive 3-D simulator ride. (no drops).
If you enjoy Disney parks then I feel confident that you will enjoy IOA. They have a gret dark ride called Cat in the Hat that is on par with the best in Fantasyland. They have a live action show that is quite good called The 8th voyage of Sinbad. They have lots of great kid rides including the Flying Unicorn Coaster. There is just too much to list, it is a great park. Go you'll enjoy it.
As far as restaurants, CityWalk, their version of DTD, has quite a few great choices. My favorite being, Emeriel's.

PS. When you get back, tell us what you thought, we would love to hear.

thank you so much for your promt reply. Now I am excited to go! Ok I should have thought of the universal site on my own ( DUHHHHHHHHH) .I can only claim brain death due to newly homeschooling my 11 yr. old.thanks again. we will be there sept .9th and 10th.I will get back on here afterward I promise . thanks again!