Universal Helios Grand Hotel

Front Desk staff was welcoming. Hailey checked us in and she was great! She was friendly, very helpful, and explained amenities/locations well. It was great to have park access directly from hotel. Hotel key is needed to enter park from hotel and to enter hotel from park. The hotel decor was very pretty and the park view was amazing! Hotel room was very clean and we were very pleasantly surprised to walk into a Park View room. Huge wow factor! Beds were very comfortable as were the pillows. Room was pretty quiet although could hear the music from outside. Nothing too annoying, but something to keep in mind if you’re a light sleeper. Dining options for late night eaters is at a minimum here. Room service is available and Bar Helios is open till late; however, reservations fill up quickly. We experienced a slight lack of communication when wanting to go and just sit at the bar or outside, which was an option we were given. We were quickly stopped by another Hostess who informed us we couldn’t. Was told if interested in dining, needed a reservation. Asked if we could then go and check out the bar area and was told no; “foot traffic was to be limited” in the restaurant. Text communication from earlier in the day said we could “try to walk in” Bar Helios, and I guess they weren’t kidding with the TRY. We were left with going to Aurora Market for pre-made sandwich options that were okay. Couldn’t use our Epic Universe refillable cups there so would have to buy another refillable cup from Helios to use. Over all, it was a pleasant stay and good experience. Not sure if we will stay here again seeing that we’re locals. The park entrance from hotel doesn’t seem to the nightly price for a stay here.