One of our favorite vacations to take is to Universal Studios Orlando theme parks!☀️🎢 It seems like there’s always something new going on every few months. This year alone they’ve opened the new Fast and Furious — Supercharged ride and the Universal Orlando’s Cinematic Celebration laser show.🎇 The latest addition to Universal Orlando Resorts is Universal’s Aventura Hotel. Standing at 17 stories high, Aventura is completely geared towards millennials and is marketed as “ sleek, stylish, and perfectly priced”.  Rooms were ready for check in on August 16th, 2018! And of course, we were excited to check it out!

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📍 6725 Adventure Way, Orlando, FL 32819
⏰ check in: 4pm | check out: 11am
💲 Pricing starts at $116

When you first pull up, to your right is where you can park while you check-in. And to the left is the self-parking garage where you can park for the length of your stay.

Lobby

As soon as we walked in, we noticed the free flowing floor plan of the lobby. Everything is really modern yet simplistic. It has a clean, bright and airy feel from all the natural light that was brought in from the floor to ceiling windows on the right side. We also noticed there were so many options for seating and lounging around after a day of thrills from the parks! Overall, the decor of the lobby is minimalistic and totally has the cool vibes they were aiming for.

We arrived at the Aventura around check-in time (which is 4 pm). The lines were pretty long, but as soon as we got to the desk our front desk agent was very friendly, answered any of our questions, and gave us a lot of great info about the hotel and the theme parks.

Vacation Planning

To the right of the front desk is the Vacation Planning desk, which is a convenient way to get tickets and information. This is also a great place to ask any questions about the parks and CityWalk. Don’t forget to grab a map before heading out toward your adventure!🗺

Car Rental

Universal Orlando Resorts partnered with Avis Car Rental as their official rental company to provide cars for anyone that is looking to explore more of Orlando. This is located right across from the Universal Studios Store, by the restrooms! 

Universal Studios Store

Inside of the Universal Store you can find all sorts of gear to get you pumped for visiting the theme parks! They have everything from Harry Potter capes and wands, to minion shirts, and donut mugs from the Simpsons. You can also pick up things like sunscreen, tylenol, towels, and toiletries.

The gift shops around the parks can have longer lines, so you’ll save yourself a lot of time. Definitely stop in here if you’re looking for a gift or souvenir to take the adventure home with you! 

Room

As soon as we walked into the room the first thing we noticed was how bright and light the room was, and the simplistic yet refined design. And of course the amazing skyline views of Orlando from the floor to ceiling windows!😍 On our side of the hotel we could see Islands of Adventure, Universal’s CityWalk, Loews Sapphire Falls Resort, and even downtown Orlando off in the distance!🏙

In our room we had two queen size beds that are lined with a glowing light, which gives a nice ambiance to the room. The bedding is a thin quilted style blanket, probably the best choice for the hot and humid Florida weather.😅 But there’s an extra blanket in the closet if needed!

Besides the natural lighting from the floor to ceiling windows, there are three lamps in the room as well as bedside lamps, and the lighting from the bathroom vanity which is visible because of a frosted glass divider that separates the room from the bathroom. 

Ipad

One really cool feature of the room is the iPad. An iPad is included in every room right on the nightstand, and is the main controller of the room. It can be used to turn the lights on and off in the room, adjust the thermostat, as well as be a remote for the flat screen TV. The TV includes most channels as well as Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube for guests that have accounts! (The iPad will be reset after checkout so all of your info gets deleted.)

In case you need to request anything from the front desk or have any questions, there’s an area to talk to a concierge and get detailed information about the hotel. You can also look up food options from the restaurants in the hotel and parks, as well as lists of things to do at Universal’s CityWalk. It’s basically your virtual guide to Universal!

We love the iPad, it’s makes everything great for guests that appreciate the convenience, technology, and those that are environmentally conscious because they’re using less paper! ♻️👍🏼

The bathrooms are very bright and clean. Our room had a stand up shower with a nice rain shower head.💦 They also have particular rooms with handicap accessible shower heads, and the kids suites even have bathtubs! The bathroom vanity was really nice, it had built-in shelving on the side for even more storage, equaling more counter space which is a huge plus in our book!💁🏼‍♀️💁🏻‍♀️

Opposite of the beds is the TV and dresser where you can store your belongings, and underneath they had a half trash/half recycling bin which the recycling side was actually the larger side! We love that they’re all about recycling and are very eco-friendly at Aventura.

The rooms have a lot of space for storage, including a large closet where you can find extra blankets, hangers, an iron, and the ironing board. To the right of the closet is the coffee maker, a mini fridge, and a safe to store your valuables. And right behind the door is a full length mirror!

We love how simple and clean this room is. Especially for a value friendly hotel, it seems like we should pay a lot more for a room like this!

Restaurants & Lounges

Aventura has some of the best food options, including quick and healthy food choices for when you’re on the go!

Urban Pantry

Located right on the main level is the Urban Pantry, it’s like a giant food hall! There’s so many different options to choose from. They have 4 stations that have different cuisines, so there is sure to be something for everyone! At Sushi Noodle they have customized bowls and sushi; at the Burger station you’ll find classic and unique burger styles; Roast Kitchen offers delicious homestyle meals; and at the Pizza station you’ll find a selection of gourmet pizza next to some yummy desserts. Each station also has different beers, and even wines on tap! And there’s a spot to grab drinks and healthy snacks for on the go! 

Hours: 7am-11pm

They have so many healthy snack options including our favorite RXbar protein bars!

They have plenty of seating areas next to their floor to ceiling windows, and they even have some seating outside overlooking the pool area.

Sushi Noodle

The first station on the left side is Sushi Noodle, which is the one we visited the most during our stay!🍜

They have it setup buffet style with lots to choose from, where you can build your own bowl.

• Pick your veggies
• Choose your protein and type of noodles
• Decide if you want a stir-fry or broth
• Let the chef cook it up!

Our favorite was ordering it as a stir-fry, which came tossed in a delicious teriyaki sauce!😋 The broth would also be really good with some ramen noodles. Since we had the stir-fry a few times during our stay we noticed that they do change up the veggies (probably depending on what they have that day).

Once we paid we were given a tracker device (like one you’d get if you were waiting for a table at a restaurant). Since some foods like the stir-fry need to be prepared and will take a few minutes, they give you the tracker device to take to the table while you wait. There’s a pad on each table that will let whoever is delivering the food to the table know exactly where you are. Urban Pantry is very spacious, so it’s pretty awesome that they bring the food out to you!

And of course, as you can tell from the name, they have sushi! Our favorite was the volcano roll, with salmon and jalapeño for some spice!🍣 To top it off they have different items on tap, including Sapporo (a well known Japanese beer), Pacifico, and even a couple of wines! Oh, and we can’t forget the warm sake!🍶

Burger

Who doesn’t love a good burger?🍔 At the Burger station, grab a classic cheese and bacon, or the breakfast burger with a fried egg on it! They also have a west coast turkey burger, a chicken sandwich, and a impossible burger. With all the healthy options, we were so excited to try the impossible burger! If you don’t know, an impossible burger is a veggie burger that is known for having a similar texture to real meat. And all of the burgers are served with thick cut fries, yum!

Roast Kitchen

For anyone craving a homestyle meal, we recommend giving the Roast Kitchen a try!

They have three main dishes to choose from and they come with your choice of three sides, all for $16! When we were there, the options were their Rotisserie Chicken, Paella, or baked salmon cedar plank. For sides they had mac & cheese, mashed potatoes, roasted marble potatoes, brussel sprouts, carrots, and cauliflower.

They even have heat lamps to keep everything hot while you’re checking out!

We both got the baked salmon with carrots, roasted potatoes, and brussel sprouts with their chimichurri sauce. It was absolutely delicious, it taste just like a home cooked meal! For the price you really can’t beat it. It’s a great value, especially when you compare it to the prices at restaurants around the theme parks!

Pizza

Right in the middle of Urban Pantry is the Pizza station. Their pizzas are cooked in a wood fire oven, and boy do they smell good!🍕 They had the original pizzas like Margherita and Vegetarian, but they also had a few really interesting ones like their smoked salmon pizza with mascarpone, fried capers, and pecorino cheese. And they even have their own Aventura pizza boxes!

Gelato

For dessert, they have gelato and Italian ice.🍧 They have the classics like strawberry and mint chocolate chip but we love that they also offer unique flavors too! We tried some samples of the Nutella pistachio, bubblegum, and honey peach mascarpone. We loved the Nutella pistachio and honey peach mascarpone the best! The bubblegum taste exactly like its name. For us it was too sweet to eat a whole scoop of it, but we could see kids loving it!

Breakfast at Urban Pantry

In the mornings, they serve breakfast at the Urban Pantry for anyone that needs energy before heading out for a long day! At Sushi Noodle, they have so many kinds of fresh and dried fruits, nuts and granola to create the perfect yogurt bowl.🍓

The Burger station had breakfast sandwiches, egg wraps, and omelettes served with home fries and fruit. They also had pastries, doughnuts, and croissants!

For a classic American Breakfast, the Roast Kitchen had items like French toast, pancakes and waffles, and even hot foods like bacon, sausage, and ham.

The Pizza station had calzones and flatbreads, avocado toast, and even skirt steak with eggs!🍳😋

Starbucks

Having a Starbucks on premise is definitely a plus in our book! They have plenty of seating with tables that have built-in electrical outlets for charging. We loved stopping by for our favorite afternoon pick-me-ups!☕️

At one point we were sitting down there working on our laptops and one of the workers came over with free samples of their Maple Pecan Frappuccino, so good!

barVentura

BarVentura is the contemporary lobby bar. It’s a great place to lounge and relax, where you can grab a cocktail or a glass of wine from one of their friendly bartenders. And how gorgeous and unique is their modern light display?!🤩 Obsessed!

Hours: 5pm-12am

Bar Sol

Another bar to hang out at is Bar Sol, outside by the pool area. They have a big wrap around bar with 3 flat screen TVs, so it’s a great space to watch a game! If the bar is full, they also have a huge outdoor couch and a few tables. We even caught a few people taking naps out there! It’s the ultimate chill zone!

Hours: 7am-11pm

If anyone’s phone is low on battery, ask the bartender here for a free to use portable charger! They’ve really thought of it all when it comes to catering to millennials!📱

They had some healthy take on drinks! We decided to try “The Green Matcha-Ine” which was a frozen Rum drink with matcha and lime, it was so delicious. And they even had a “Pineapple Tumeric Lemonade” for the non-alcoholic drinks!

They also have these cool 20 oz. refillable souvenir mugs that you can purchase at the Urban Pantry or Bar Sol. These refillable mugs have a hidden chip in the bottom of the cup so that you can use the Coca-Cola freestyle machine to get unlimited refills for however many days you want to! This is a great way to save money on drinks as well as lessen the number of plastic bottles that don’t get recycled every day. **They are only refillable at Aventura Hotel, not the theme parks or other Universal Resorts.

• 1 Day: $9
• 2 Day: $12
• 3 Day: $15
• Length of Stay: $18

Bar 17 Bistro

Starting at 4:00pm guests can head up to Bar 17 bistro, Aventura’s trendy rooftop bar. The decor is so chic and modern with tropical plants, it gives off total Miami vibes.🌴 With the 360-degree views of Universal, this is definitely where you’ll find the best views of Orlando!

Hours: 4pm-2am (Food served until 10pm)

To get up to the rooftop there is an express elevator that goes only to the lobby and the roof. So if you’re not staying at Aventura but would like to come check out the rooftop you don’t have to deal with all the people checking in and going to their rooms (it gets super busy).

There is a lot of seating, they have the comfiest green chairs to lounge in that are kind of like bean bag chairs but better! We love that some of the tables are large and have room for big parties.

They have the menus and utensils set on the table ready for you to sit down and take a look at what they offer. And since we’re on the roof the wind blew consistently, so they have these clips to hold the menus together so nothing flies away. Smart!

Bar 17 Bistro serves Asian inspired dishes. On the menu they have an assortment of bao buns, meat & cheese board ($18), a summer beet & fig salad ($10), wagyu beef sliders ($18) and more!

We decided to try the bao buns, which are fluffy Chinese steamed rolls. They come 3 for $12 so we got the Firecracker Shrimp, Grilled Grouper, and Tempura Baby Vegetables to share. We both agreed the Firecracker Shrimp was the best! It had an orange chili glaze, green onions, cucumbers, basil lemon aioli, and radish. Yum!😋

Of course we had to try a few of their signature cocktails! Nikki got the “Almost Sangria” (pictured left) made of Rosé, peach liqueur, dry vermouth, thyme, and strawberry. And Kristina tried the “Firebird” (pictured right) which had Patrón silver tequila, triple sec, lime juice, strawberry, jalapeño, and cilantro. We both loved our drinks, they were sooo good and fresh!!🍹

Nothing beats the views on top of Aventura!🤩 And they even have a DJ that plays on the rooftop every Thursday-Saturday! This is definitely a spot you’ll want to bring all of your friends!💃🏼

Rooftop

On the other side of the rooftop there is an open area with floor to ceiling glass panels for sightseeing all of the panoramic views of Universal Orlando. 😍🎢

On the left side you could see Cabana Bay Beach Resort, Volcano Bay Waterpark, and even far out we could see the Orlando Icon!🎡

On the right side you could see all of the theme parks! Islands of Adventure, Universal Studios, the Hogwarts castle, Loews Sapphire Falls Resort, Universal’s CityWalk, and far out we noticed Downtown Orlando’s skyline! It’s seriously an epic and breathtaking view!

Pool Area

Another great spot to hang out is out by the pool!☀️💦 The pool wraps around the hotel so there are multiple entrances to access the pool area. And they do have lifeguards on duty!

Hours: 8:00am – 10:00pm

Swimming Pool

We noticed that there aren’t any private cabanas or fun slides like we found at the other Universal Orlando Resorts but there are plenty of pool lounge chairs. The pool reminds of us of similar pool area at a luxury resort we’ve stayed at in Las Vegas. It’s very contemporary and goes well with the overall modern theme of the hotel. We could hang out by this pool all day, especially with one of the cocktails from Bar Sol!🍹

Spa

There is also a hot tub to relax in!

Hours: 8:00am – 10:00pm

Kid’s Splash Pad

And they even have a splash pad where kids can play!💦

Fireplace

One of our favorite amenities was the fireplace. It was really relaxing to be able to sit around the fireplace with a glass of wine after a long day of walking around the parks. It overlooks the pool and is super cozy!

Garden Walkway

Right by the hot tub they have the Garden Walkway to Volcano Bay Waterpark. It takes about 5 minutes to walk to the waterpark, or if you’d prefer, catch a free shuttle bus!

Other Amenities

Virtual Reality

Located on the 2nd floor is Virtual Reality Room!🎮 Which is a bit different from the arcades that are found at the other Universal Resorts and Hotels. Maybe to continue their theme of being up to date with technology? It’s pretty cool to see a whole room dedicated to VR. If you haven’t tried it, you basically wear a helmet that has headphones attached along with virtual reality googles, so it’s as if you’re completely immersed into a virtual world!🌎

Hours: 2pm-10pm daily

Kids ages 7 & up can play! It’s $10 per play ($10.65 for 5 mins). And they have 3 booths so multiple people can play at once!

Fitness Center

The Fitness Center is located on the 2nd floor right down the hall from the VR Game Room. The gym itself isn’t too big but it has everything you would need to have an amazing workout! They have plenty of treadmills that are facing the window that look past the ‘Aventura Hotel’ sign in the front of the hotel. It’s seriously so gorgeous, the incredible view would motivate us to be in the gym even while on vacation!💪🏼

Hours: 5:00am – 10:00pm daily

They also have a very modern locker room across from the gym. The lockers all had fresh towels inside them with a combination lock to keep your belongings safe. It’s nice having your stuff close by while you’re at the gym, because the hotel itself is pretty big so it could be a long way back to the room!

The locker room also has showers and plenty of counter space to get ready for the day. This is perfect for any early risers that don’t want to disturb the rest of the family while they’re still sleeping. In the showers there’s shampoo, conditioner, and body wash dispensers on the wall so you don’t have to bring anything with you!👍🏼

Shuttle Transportation

Aventura Hotel offers complimentary shuttle buses with your stay. These shuttles will take you to Universal’s CityWalk and the theme parks.

Other Ways to Get to The Parks

Walking Path

Head next door to Sapphire Falls Resort and follow the signs to the walking path. It’ll take you to Universal Studios Florida, Universal’s Islands of Adventure, Universal’s Volcano Bay, and Universal’s CityWalk. For us, it takes about 7-10 minutes and is a great way to see the other neighboring resorts like Loews Sapphire Falls and Royal Pacific. You’ll end up near Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville, on the side near Islands of Adventure!

Water Taxi

Another fun way to get to CityWalk is by taking the Water Taxi from Loews Sapphire Falls Resort. It doesn’t cost you anything and it takes you on a nice little 5 minute cruise!

Benefits of Staying at Universal’s Aventura Hotel

• Early Park Admission

Enjoy early park admission to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and the other Universal Theme Parks one hour before the park opens to the public!

• Complimentary Transportation to the parks and CityWalk

As we mentioned before, Aventura offers complimentary shuttle buses and easy walking paths to the Universal Theme Parks and CityWalk.

• Shopping Made Simple

While shopping at the theme parks or CityWalk you can keep your hands free! They will deliver your purchases directly to your hotel, free of charge. It doesn’t get any better than that!

• Use your Room Key in More Ways Than One

At Aventura your room key can do much more than just get you into your room. Get resort-wide charging privileges using your room key card. You can also use your key card for complimentary access to select live entertainment venues at Universal CityWalk for the length of your stay! We used this to get into the Rising Star Karaoke Bar, we just showed them our room key and we didn’t have to pay the $7 cover charge. #winning

Pros

• Modern & Chic
• Affordable
• Great for grown ups
• Easy access to the parks
• Incredible views of Orlando
• Technologically advanced (iPad controller, Free phone chargers at the pool, VR Game Room)
• Super trendy rooftop bar
• Friendly staff
• Great healthy food options
• Starbucks on premise, that has everything! (From the newer seasonal drinks, sippy cup lids, and their new protein-blended cold brew)

Cons

• Spotty internet in the room (It was fine downstairs in the lobby though)

We loved our first stay at Universal’s Aventura Hotel!😍 Aventura is totally geared towards the millennial crowd, with the reasonable price point, it’s sleek Instagrammable look, and just the overall feel of the place is so modern, bright and airy. It’s definitely going to be our new go-to when we visit the theme parks, which is pretty often! Although this may not be the #1 choice for those with children, this is definitely a family friendly hotel. We can really see it being a great choice for a trip with a group of friends, a place to stay while on a work trip, a romantic escape, or for us a girl’s getaway!👯‍♀️💕 This hotel is super comfortable we felt right at home, and we already miss it! ‘Til next time Universal Orlando!✌🏼☀️

*A huge thank you to Universal Orlando Hotels for sponsoring this blog post!