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My family recently went on a vacation in Orlando, Florida, and we tried a new hotel we’d never stayed in before. This was a hotel I had been wanting to stay in for years now but the timing had never been quite right. And that hotel was Avanti Palms Resort and Conference Center.
This is a hotel that’s close to Universal Orlando. We wanted to attend the theme park’s annual Mardi Gras event since this is a favorite of ours.
And we got a good deal on this hotel. In fact, part of the reason this hotel got on our radar to begin with is because of the great deal for the hotel you can find here.
Hotel Structure
How the hotel is structured is that there is a main building with the lobby and conference center. Then to the side there is a tower with additional rooms and its own parking lot. This is where we stayed.
A nice part of the tower is that there is a beautiful courtyard on the ground level. Then all the floors overlook it. There is plenty of seating in this courtyard, too, so you can sit and relax. It has a very relaxing atmosphere.
Guest Rooms
So probably my favorite part of staying here was the guest room. It was one of the most spacious guest rooms I’ve ever stayed in. There was an abundance of space for all our luggage with lots of room leftover. You could easily walk around the room.
We also had a great view of Volcano Bay (Universal Orlando’s waterpark) from our room.
They also had a nice TV.
Of course speaking of the TV, here was one problem I had with the room. The TV didn’t get ABC! It was the most bizarre thing. I am not sure if I have ever had that at a hotel. I really wanted to watch a Warriors/Lakers basketball game that was coming on ABC. We even went to the front desk to talk about it but they were unhelpful. i couldn’t even get my laptop to hook up to the TV. It was very frustrating.
But other than that, the TV was fine. Every other station worked.
Dining
The dining at this hotel was top notch. I had my dinner and lunch at the theme parks during my stay here so I can’t say about those meals. But the breakfast I had here was one of the best at a hotel restaurant I’ve ever had.
We went to breakfast at the hotel’s Cafe & Marketplace.
You can find it right by the pool. There is seating inside or outside near the pool. You can also get there from the lobby.
It is a quick service restaurant where you order at the counter and then they call out your order number when it is ready.
But as I said, the breakfast was delicious. The American breakfast with eggs and pancakes was so good.
As was the buttermilk pancake order.
It was some of the best buttermilk pancakes I have ever had at a hotel restaurant. And the bacon was so crisp and good (especially the first day).
But that’s not the only dining options available at the hotel. If you are staying in the Tower you can also just walk downstairs or take an elevator and go to the Tower Barista.
It is open in the morning and you can get Starbucks coffee and grab-n-go snacks if you are in a hurry. It is also open later in the day starting at 4:00 PM and you can get freshly baked pizza, flatbreads, and wraps.
You can also get drinks and light food at the Poolside Bar & Grill.
There’s also The Palms Bar And Games, a bar with drinks, food, multiple screens playing sports, and games like pool and foosball.
This is a really great place to relax at the end of the day.
You are also within walking distance of a lot of restaurants, including chains you may be familiar with such as Chili’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Pizza Hut.
Pool
One of the crown jewels of the hotel so to speak would have to be the pool. It really is a wonderful pool complex. It is a wonderful zero-entry pool with beautiful tropical landscaping. there’s even a children’s water playscape as part of the pool. Oh, and you can even see views of Volcano Bay waterpark at Universal Orlando while you swim! There’s also plenty of chairs around the pool so you can relax while your kids swim.
Arcade
There is also a great arcade with plenty of video games.
Transportation to the Theme Parks
Universal Orlando
So as I said, this theme park is close to Universal Orlando, but not close enough where you could walk comfortably to the park.
Hotel Shuttle
But the hotel does offer a bus to the park.
You can catch the bus right outside the lobby.
You will need to go to the desk in the lobby specifically for bus transportation in order to reserve your place on the bus. I recommend going earlier rather than later for the bus. This is not just to make sure the bus doesn’t fill up (though that is a consideration, certainly). But when the bus is ready to go, the bus driver will call the names of everyone who has signed up for the bus ride in order of when you signed up. And you get to board the bus based on this list. So if you want to sit rather than stand, sign up early (like, say, first thing after you get dressed, before breakfast).
While you have to sign up for a bus ride to the park, you don’t have to sign up for a ride on the way home. So anyone can ride then. There are two different busses home at the end of the day and you can pick the one that works best for your schedule.
But here’s the thing. Those buses back to the hotel almost always fill up. And if it fills up, you could find yourself at Universal Orlando without a way home.
Lynx Bus
Now, you could always get an Uber or Lyft. But my family decided on the way home instead to take a Lynx bus.
There are Lynx buses coming every twenty minutes or so which isn’t bad at all. And it’s not complicated at all getting to the bus stop. You literally just have to go where you would normally catch a bus to your hotel and then walk across a sidewalk to across the street and then you have the Lynx bus stop. They even have a bench so it’s a bit more comfortable than the last time I waited for a Surfside Inn bus from Universal, and that is an official Universal hotel.
Now, a Lynx ride does cost a couple of dollars, so in that sense the free shuttle provided by the hotel is better. But the Lynx bus does have more comfortable seats.
And it is convenient for Avanti because there are actually multiple Lynx bus stops close to the hotel.
We chose the stop right in front of Rosen Inn since it was close to Avanti’s tower building where we were staying. All we had to do was pull a cord to let the driver know we wanted to get off at that stop.
We took the Lynx 38 bus. To find out up to date info on which bus to go on and what times the bus is coming, check out Lynx information here.
SeaWorld Orlando
Avanti Palms Resort and Conference Center also offers bus transportation to SeaWorld, though it’s a bit more complicated because it is the same bus as Universal. You have to go to Universal first and then on to SeaWorld.
You could of course also drive to SeaWorld, and if you get a SeaWorld annual pass you get free parking.
But another good way I like getting to SeaWorld is with the I-Ride Trolley. There is an I-Ride Trolley right by Avanti (so a very short walk). It will take you to SeaWorld. This of course isn’t a super fast way to get there as there are stops along the way. But it means you can go to the park and leave the park when you wish and don’t have to worry about only a few designed times. It does cost extra unlike the shuttle at the hotel. But it’s pretty cheap, and even cheaper still if you purchase discounted i-Ride trolley tickets here.
Hotel Security
Okay, so here is a real negative of this hotel for me that I thought I should mention. The hotel is not gated and while I did not feel unsafe during my stay, on my last day I was going to walk down the stairs in the tower and opened the door and there was a guy asleep on the stairs. That was a bit alarming to me so I would caution to lock your doors during your stay (though I always advise that, truthfully).
Conclusion
Despite some issues I had with the hotel (like the questions about security and the TV not working right) I would still say the positives outweighed the negative. There is plenty of transportation to multiple theme parks and you can walk to some attractions. And the hotel has great features like good onsite dining, a wonderful pool, and incredibly spacious guest rooms.
And it is especially a great idea for your hotel if you take advantage of this deal.