Overall, it was an experience worth repeating. A wonderfully designed approach to this resort makes one feel as though h/she were on a boat floating near the romantic Portofino, Italy (complete with a nicely created "Medeteranian" and fishing boats). The staff is friendly and all greet guests with standard Italian catch phrases. Our bell person was very thorough and welcoming.

It is a convenient location for the Universal Parks with free shuttle by bus or boat. And although it does not compare very favorably to Downtown Disney, Universal City is also available by hotel transport. Disney is available by rental car, reasonable charge but lengthy shuttle or by expensive cab.

We were in one of the hotel's "elite" guest rooms (it was very fine but not much of a big deal). It did offer a club access key where a substantial continental breakfast, afternoon tea and evening happy hour are included with the room rate. One night, we ate in the highly rated Italian themed, Baci Restaurant. It was adequate.

We were lucky to get a tour of one of the "Governor's Suites". If we had money to burn, at a reported $2200 per night, it might have been worth it....fabulous and spacious with views of "the Med!!"

My boyfriend and I stayed at this hotel last November (2006). I would have written a review sooner, but I am relatively new to the Trip Advisor Community.

This hotel is one of 3 options at the Universal Studios resorts and to us seemed to be the best pick! The staff was super friendly and catered to our every need. The concierge service was very convenient and allowed us to really maximize our time there by providing the information and tickets to some of the attractions we wanted to see.

The hotel itself was gorgeous! The boat docking area made you feel like you were in an entirely different country (as it mimicked the layout of Portofino, Italy), and was a convenient way to get to and from the theme parks. Alternatively, you could walk over on the trails, which was a longer way to get there but beautifully landscaped.

Our room was beautiful, romantic, comfortable, practical... just about everything you could ask for! The mini-bar was stocked well, with options from sodas to waters to liqour, as well as all sorts of snacks and candy. It was wonderful!

I can't say enough about this hotel-- the experience was superior, from the exterior to the interior of the hotel, the staff, and the way that we were treated as if we were the only guests there. We have stayed at other hotels since, but we always walk away saying "that sure wasn't the Portofino!" We are already planning another trip to the Portofino, not only because we enjoyed Universal Studios but also because the Portofino is just one of those places that you can't wait to get back to. This hotel is very HIGHLY recommended!!!

My wife and I wanted to get away from our careers and
stay here in the off season. We booked a club level room.
Thanks to reading on here that the club rooms are a great
value. They really are. The club room provides snacks and
cokes daily. And they have good hours to boot. Although it
really confused this traveler why the clubroom was located
next to the lobby. The furthest place from the 5 and 6 floors.
(Which are the club level floors)

When we arrived we were wowed by the attention to detail of the
place. We loved the colors and shapes of the various buildings.
Every day we loved the overall beauty of the place. It is a huge resort to behold as well. The lights of the hotel at night were wonderful as well. I also liked the little touches like the boats in the harbor.

But Beauty aside the real test for me is the hotel's staff. We had a
bellman that checked us in and went far and above what
a typical bellman does. He even made us dinner reservations and gave us the skinny on what restaurants were good. Don't worry I gave him a good tip. The manager of the club room similarly was very helpful in his advice. He even waited for us to finish our breakfast before closing the room. We were right at the end of the breakfast service. Club members get a free continental breakfast of which the regular guests have to pay.
It's not bad for a continental although I might be hesitant to pay for it if it did not come with the room. The clubroom was also one of the first places I saw inconsistencies. I had come in for a snack the second day and their were empty cups and plates littered through the club room. I do realize that this room is not a huge priority to the staff. But it really reflects on the hotel as a whole. Especially since we were limited by where we could sit.

Our big gripe came a couple of days later. We decided to do the actual breakfast which was pretty pricey. All the individual items were x amount of dollars but the buffet was $16 a person. Which was pretty overpriced for the food. They had an omelet chef that was pretty decent and some decent biscuits and gravy. I don' t know if that was worth $16 though. The big deal came though as my wife went outside and put out a plate of bread. Since all the service was inside and the tables were outside. She then went in. When she came back to the table. The plate was gone and there was a waiter with an annoyed face. The waiter told her in a sarcastic tone: “Don't leave your bread out, the birds get it. Now we have to go in and get you more bread.” My wife didn't say anything she just fumed and told me about it. We've stayed in a lot of different places over the years, Hotels, Motels, and Inns. This was the first time my wife got dressed down in a $320+ a night hotel! I at the same breakfast had my hands full with
my plate. It was overflowing with the different food. I also had a bowl of the biscuits and gravy and also an OJ to drink. Then I turn to go outside. The doors at the Portofino all have the tension on the door rods up very high. So I brace myself for pushing the door as I walk by three different waiters talking amongst themselves. Not one raised any concern or offered to push open the door for me! The final thing which we would've paid any attention to normally was before the meal began the wind took her menu and sent it flying a couple of tables over. One of the waiters STEPPED over it! So she went and picked up her own menu.

Now I want to give some good observations. The Portofino is connected by boat to the other areas of Universal and City Walk as well as the other hotels. The ferry ride happens every 20 minutes and it works pretty flawlessly. The proximity to the other areas is really an asset. I also liked Sal's Restaurant. Pretty decent pizzas and good service. I did not get a chance to try the other restaurants at Portofino. The three pools were excellent. The villa pool being my favorite.

One thing I did not like was the fact that the valet was $18 a night. The self parking was $15 and it was really a pain to do. The parking lot really is not setup well for people coming and going. I don't know why they charge for valet though since with many hotels in this price range it is included. A lot of reviews mention this and I think it is a valid point.

The coupe de grace of our vacation though was the final departure. We called the star service to send a bellman up to our room and bring our car around. We meet the bellman and he tells me to fill out a form for the valet. I fill it out. We do a quick check of our room to make sure everything is in order
and we haven't forgotten anything. We then proceed to go downstairs. On the way there I drop off the checkout form and the bellman tells me the truck is out front and loaded. I go outside they help me into the truck and we take off. I can't believe how easy and painless it is. We stop at a fast food stop and I go
to check how the back is packed. Then terror. There are no bags! We drive back to the hotel to see our luggage sitting on a brass bellman's cart. Between the Bellman and the valet someone had a miscommunication and had it not been for me we would be back home with no luggage! Oh yeah and my ticket to give to the valet for my luggage was in my pocket. No one even asked me for it. I love this hotel but I wish the corporate culture was a bit better. The service was okay but if it were excellent this
hotel would quickly dominate all of their competitors. I've stayed at smaller hotels and I think that I've become spoiled by them. Outside of two great employees (Who I'm sure won't be there long.) I really didn't feel like anyone gave a damn.

My girlfriend and I stayed at the Portofino Bay Hotel for one night last October and had a great experience. We decided to stay at this property since it was only a boat ride to the parks and the Express Pass.

Our room was great and comfortable view a view of the piazza. We had concierge lounge access and had breakfast – nice spread of all the normal items (pastries, fruit, cereals, and beverages). Our goal was to knock out both parks in one day. We did Universal first, then went back to the hotel for lunch (don’t remember the name) – food was good but services was slow. Then back on the boat to Island of Adventure.

The express pass was worth every dollar of the hotel room – we did anything and everything we wanted to do as many times as we wanted.

We came back to the hotel at the end of the day to catch our ride to our next hotel.

We only had 2 issues with the hotel:
1 -- Had a few ants in the bathroom – nothing too bad, but surprising.
2 – The service was good but with one flaw – if you ask a question you get a very quick answer, but it is rarely correct. This happened on a few occasions.

Overall I would highly recommend the hotel if you are headed to the Universal parks.