Universal Orlando announces sixth on-site resort, the Aventura Hotel

November 7, 2016, 10:56 AM · The Universal Orlando Resort this morning officially announced plans for its sixth on-site hotel, the Aventura Hotel.

Universal effectively revealed the plans months ago, when it filed them with local authorities for approval. But today's announcement makes the project official and means that Universal will begin revealing details of the new hotel's amenities before its planned opening in the summer of 2018.

The 16-story hotel will offer 600 rooms, decorated in a modern "affordable-chic" style, according to the resort. On top of the tower, visitors will find Universal's first roof-top bar. The hotel will be located between the Sapphire Falls and Cabana Bay, offering walking access to the new Volcano Bay water park and shuttle service to CityWalk and the theme parks. (Or you can take the longer walking path that connects CityWalk with the Cabana Bay.)

The Aventura Hotel will offer early admission to the Universal theme parks, but will not include Universal Express Unlimited with each reservation. That perk continues to be reserved for Universal Orlando's original three resorts: The Portofino Bay, Hard Rock, and Royal Pacific.

Reservations are not yet available for the hotel, so we don't know its exact price point, though Universal is calling it a "value" hotel, which is the same classification as the Cabana Bay. Unlike the low-slung, expansive Cabana Bay, though, as a tower hotel, all rooms at the Aventura Hotel will open into interior hallways.

This isn't it for Universal's on-site hotel plans. Planning documents filed with the city of Orlando reveal that Universal is planning a seventh on-site hotel. And it is widely expected within the local development community that Universal will use its Wet 'n' Wild water park property for additional hotels.

NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke has told analysts that the company would like to have between 10,000-15,000 hotel rooms on property at Universal Orlando. The addition of the Aventura would bring Universal Orlando's on-property hotel room count to 5,800. *Whoops. It will be 6,200, following the 400-room expansion underway now at the Cabana Bay Beach Resort.

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Replies (9)

November 7, 2016 at 12:16 PM · Wow. I can't believe how quickly UOR is growing. And there's still a long way to go until they reach their goal of 10,000-15,000 rooms.

The hotel design looks very minimalistic, clean and "grown up." I guess it'll cater to young adults and couples, while Cabana Bay caters to families. It certainly fills a gap in UOR's hotel line-up.

November 7, 2016 at 1:59 PM · They can build all the hotels they want, but sooner or later Universal's going to have to go into real expansion mode. Yes, they're adding new rides, but most have been replacements of previous offerings. New hotels means more guests and that means Universal has to add rather than replace. Any work going into the second site better start soon otherwise the parks will reach capacity issues.
November 7, 2016 at 2:10 PM · I'd prefer them to be investing in attractions and the parks themselves.
November 7, 2016 at 3:06 PM · It looks more like an office building than a hotel. Makes me think of the Disneyland Hotel and Paradise Pier Hotel, which were not designed or originally owned by Disney. With all the great things Universal has done in recent years, this seems a little underwhelming. I'm sure it will be very successful, but to me the exterior design is a lost opportunity.
November 7, 2016 at 3:16 PM · No Unlimited Express Pass, no reservation from me and mine. Rather pay the extra to get all the benefits of an onsite Universal stay than save a few bucks and wait in line.

Although Universal does still have an off-season with some very low crowds, so in those cases a cheaper hotel might work.

They still charge onsite resort guests for parking like Disneyland?

November 7, 2016 at 4:31 PM · Yup.
November 7, 2016 at 7:08 PM · Right there with you on the Unlimited Express Pass. Right up there with fire, the wheel, and Scarlet Johansson.
November 7, 2016 at 7:14 PM · I was hoping this would be an ultra chic, very swanky hotel. I am not sure the all glass, modern exterior says "value resort.
November 8, 2016 at 5:17 AM · Essentially this is like a partner hotel, but on site. A place for people to rest and recover and get back to the parks. But I'm like James, I'd rather pay the extra and get the express passes and the boat ride back and forth to the hotel. Speaking of which, I wish Sapphire Falls would include express passes with your stay. This should be an upgradable option with this hotel without paying the very expensive daily fee per person.

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