Good Location but no safes...

This was our third trip to the Homewood Suites but first in the new property, having stayed twice before in the Homewood I Drive.

On comparison, the rooms were nicer, the pool was much better and gets sun all day, and the location was great, just across from Wet & Wild.

My main problem and the reason I may not return is that the rooms have no safes ( The Homewood I drive has an in-room safe) and the hotel instead offers approx 16 complimentary safety deposit boxes at the front desk, between all the rooms - nowhere near enough. It took days and continual pestering before one became available and no alternative was offered meantime to store our valuables. We had to then take money & valuables out of the box in front of anyone who was passing at the front desk and had no real privacy.

This really let down what was an otherwise good stay. I also felt that a lot of the service was offhand and not as good as Homewood I Drive.

Very good hotel

We arrived at 1pm, check in no problem. nice room quite would suit 3 people, New hotel with good standereds

A good stay for the day!

Really I give this 3.5 stars. Used some HH points to stay a night for free to go to the parks. Overall, this was a nice, newer, clean property in very close proximity to Universal/Islands of Adventure. The free hot breakfast was certainly better than your average continental breakfast, although the hot only consisted of eggs, bacon, and sausage which were not the greatest. I belive the hotel wanted $200 a night which was fairly high given the number of surrounding hotels. It was a holiday weekend, but again, this was a free stay and it worked great for us, I'm just not so sure I could pay top dollar to stay at really nothing more than an upscale hampton inn.

Overall good stay

The room was great - spacious enough for the three of us with ultra-comfy beds. The housekeeping staff was nice and cordial. The location was great - right off of International Drive and the interstate as well as Universal. The hot breakfast was a little disappointing because

I expected a bit more variety, but we didn't have to buy breakfast so it was not all bad. Plus, the kitchen staff were very, very nice. Thanks to them! The front desk was very accommodating (with one exception and fortunately I don't know the young lady's name but she was not professional at all) - Peter really helped us out when I requested a room with a pool view. Thanks to Peter! The night manager was also very nice (I think her name is Petra?). I think this hotel is a great family-oriented hotel with a good staff. However, I pray you never have to be served by the one unprofessional young lady at the front desk (you'll know her if you ever have to meet her). There were some issues with my credit card, and I felt that she treated me with quite a bit of disrespect even though the bill was settled. I say aways treat customers with respect! You never know who you might be serving!

Can't Wait to go Back!!!

Our family of 5 stayed 6 days in this hotel...loved everything they had to offer! Front desk was extremely helpful and we won't bother looking into other accomodations next time!

Great service - incredible accomodations

I was here during Spring Break- the accomodations were wonderful. The staff was extremely good - esp. the night manager Petra!

Breakfast buffet was good, and had a nice variety. Pool/hot tub are nice, basketball court for the kiddoes - even a game room! The fitness center is first rate. My room was spotless! The business center is easy to find and very convenient.

My only problem (lack of hard wired network connections on first floor) was easily fixed by the management. They couldn't do enough to make sure I was satisfied.

This hotel is my first pick next time I come back!

Wonderful Property, Great Value

We were in Orlando from February 28th to March 7th and stayed at the Homewood Suites Orlando Universal for the duration of our holiday. We would return in a heartbeat! The rooms in this fairly new porperty were quiet, spacious, clean and well-appointed. We had a suite with two queen beds and a pull-out sofa. The hot breakfast saved our family of five a ton of money during our stay. The pool and hot tub were clean, the staff friendly and accommodating. There was a free shuttle to Universal, which was less than five minutes away, and a shuttle to Disney that cost $9 per person. All the theme parks, shopping and restuarants were within easy access of this hotel. There was also a nightly manager's reception (Monday to Thursday), well-equipped fitness room, games room and business center with free internet access. The only negative comments I have is that the hot breakfast got a bit monotonous by the end of the week, and the wine served at the manager's reception was not the best, but now I am just quibbling over insignificant things. We had a great time at this property and would definitely recommend it.

A gem!! Made our vaca great!!

Clean, large rooms had plenty of space for 5 of us! Room includes a well-stocked kitchen, free HUGE breakfast and complimentary managers reception weekday eves. We only had to buy lunches during our stay, which $aved a bunch!!! Kids loved that they had their own TV (complete w/game system and microwave popcorn!). Great value, beautiful place. We travel often, and this has been our best find thus far!!

Fantastic Hotel, Great Choice!

Stayed here for 8 nights over the Forth of July holiday. We checked in a couple hours early, no problem. The room was roomy, clean, bright, etc. Everything we wanted and more. Everyone working here was helpful and friendly. The pool was nice, as was the hot tub. The breakfast and manager's reception was a very nice added bonus, saved us money and time. The game room was a hit with my son. Great location, too. Only about 10-15 minutes to the Disney parks right down I-4. And maybe 1-2 minutes to Universal Studios, which is right on the other side of I-4 from the hotel. Overall I feel that this is a great choice for any family that wants a nice hotel room but can live without a gift shop, spa, lounge, & restaurants that you get at full service resorts.

One of Orlando's Best

As a regular visitor to Orlando (10 trips since 1992) I have stayed in a number of different hotels in the area. Happily all of them provided good value and a high standard of cleanliness, but the Homewood Suites topped them all. It is comparatively new and the rooms - although compact - are very well maintained. There is a large self-service breakfasting lounge on the ground floor for residents who prefer Continental as opposed to cooked breakfasts (there is no formal dining room).The pool is fairly small and is in a courtyard, therefore shaded from the sun for much of the day.Staff are all friendly (especially Bob on the door) and smartly turned out. We will be delighted to return anytime.