Helios Grand Hotel is the new resort inside Epic Universe, and it offers a ton of room types from the most barebones of rooms with views of nothing to fancy ‘Celestial’ suites overlooking the park. This review covers the middle ground option, one of the cheaper family suites (that looks the part!), and whether it’s worth the cost to upgrade.
As a whole, there’s a lot to love about Helios Grand Hotel, and almost as much to dislike. The negative is that the Helios Grand is not a luxury hotel or anything approaching that. The attention to detail and themed design is mostly superficial; the fit and finishings are cheap or underwhelming. The standard rooms are only marginally better and larger than Terra Luna and Stella Nova.
When it comes to Helios Grand, location is the big selling point. It’s easy to overlook a lot when your room quite literally overlooks Epic Universe. Or when you can enter and exit through the private Epic Universe entrance, and be back in your room for a midday break or to escape the rain within minutes. This can be very valuable, and Helios Grand Hotel is often priced accordingly.
Other times, it very much is not! Helios Grand pricing is all over the place. There are times when it’s significantly more expensive than budget-tier Terra Luna and Stella Nova, which are also within walking distance of Epic Universe.
Other times, the cost difference is under $100 per night. Even that may not be “worth it” if you’re on a tight budget, as Terra Luna and Stella Nova arguably punch far above their weight, whereas Helios Grand underdelivers.
If you’re looking for more thoughts on the new hotel as a whole, check out our Universal Helios Grand Hotel Review. Suffice to say, there’s a lot of good, bad & ugly that applies to the resort as a whole; this covers only the upsides and downsides of this one booking category.
When it comes to the suites, pricing is also all over the place. A couple of months ago, we published Universal Orlando Hotels Are Cheapest We’ve Seen in Years. That discussed how, for some dates we were considering, the park view rooms were only $12 per night more expensive than the no-view rooms.
Well, it’s a similar story with some of the suites, the price of which are all over the place. There are times when they’re $200 more expensive, and other times when the surcharge is much more modest.
That’s precisely how these rooms became our top family accommodations option at Epic Universe. On the dates when they’re $50 to $100 more expensive, the extra 170 square feet in size that they offer (495 square foot rooms for these suites versus 325 square foot standard rooms) can be absolutely worth it.
King Suites at Helios Grand Hotel Overview
The family suites we’re covering here are called the “King Suite” on the Universal Orlando booking site.
Universal describes these as being perfect for a family that wants a little privacy, with both a living space and bedroom. This 495 square foot suite features a king bed, and separate bath and vanity areas.
The living space includes a sleeper sofa, dining table, and kitchenette with a microwave, small fridge, and sink. Maximum occupancy of 4 guests (3 adults maximum) with a rollaway (fees apply).
King Suite Room Amenities:
- Coffee/Tea Maker
- Hair Dryer
- Mini Refrigerator
- In-Room Safe
- Iron and Ironing Board
- Wireless Internet Access
- Television Including HD Channels
- In Room Tablet Control
Other features include Julien Farel bath products, and a wide variety of outlets and USB ports.
All rooms at Helios Grand Hotel boast 300-thread-count, 100% cotton bed linens; as opposed to a bed runner, they all have decorative duvets that cover the full length of the bed. Comfort-wise, the bedding is plush and fantastic. The sheets are quite nice. The bedding makes Helios Grand feel like a luxury-tier hotel.
Some of the other upholstery is also quite nice, and carpet beneath your feet now feels “luxurious” as the hotel industry moves away from it in favor of laminate floors that are easier to clean and supposedly more sanitary. Personally, I prefer carpet and bed runners or proper decorative duvets, so I guess I’m unhygienic. Or old school.
On the new school front, there’s a tablet for controlling the lights, temperature, TV, and learning about the hotel. There are also wall controls for all of the same, although I found them to be hit or miss. I had a very difficult time opening and closing the drapes, and I promise this wasn’t due to user error.
I have mixed feelings about the guest rooms at Helios Grand Hotel. I love the headboard, which evokes a watercolor painting with its floral brushstrokes in soft pink and blue tones. The furnishings and furniture are mostly nice, as are several accents that elevate the room.
At the same time, there are also a lot of ways that the guest rooms at Helios Grand, like the hotel as a whole, feel cheaply-done. The fit and finishing appear hastily done and sloppy. There’s a lot that feels generic, thoughtlessly thrown together, and reminiscent of an ordinary chained-brand hotel.
It’s not exactly what you’d expect for a flagship hotel overlooking a new $7 billion theme park. Then again, Helios Grand Hotel is not priced as such, either, with rooms often in the $200 range.
Weaknesses of King Suite at Helios Grand
When it comes to the King Suite, there are even more perplexing design decisions.
The dining area seems especially cheap. The tile screams utilitarian design, and reminds me of the cookie-cutter subdivisions we toured when looking for a home in Horizon West.
In fact, some of the odd and barebones choices here make me wonder whether Universal used Pulte for Helios Grand Hotel. That would honestly explain a lot. (IYKYK.)
There are noticeably bare walls of the living and dining rooms, and this whole half is window-less. There’s only one piece of art, which is the same as that found in the standard rooms. In fact, it’s as if the decor for the standard room is the same for the King Suite, just spread out into a larger footprint.
The picnic-style table reminds me of something I had in my college dorm. The kitchenette feels like an afterthought, featuring the cheapest appliances. Calling this IKEA-caliber would be an insult to IKEA, and again, this is the hotel overlooking Epic Universe that should be a flagship.
If you’re a stickler for themed design, it would be fair to call the King Suite sad. This room is definitely not for you. On paper, this describes us. I am almost embarrassed to be recommending this room given its stylistic shortcomings, but the practical reality is that it works really well for us.
Why We Like the King Suite Despite Its Flaws
If you are a family concerned with space, the King Suite is very much for you. We have gone from a couple of sticklers for style and well-themed ones to a very “functionality-first” family when traveling with our daughter.
That’s where the King Suite is a winner. It’s larger, and my biggest problem with the standard rooms at Helios Grand Hotel is their size. My first time staying here, I stayed at Universal Terra Luna Resort the nights before switching to Universal Helios Grand Hotel.
My room at the former, a ‘Prime Value Resort’ costing less than $150 per night, was 315 square feet. My room at Helios Grand was only 325 square feet. Both rooms felt small, but the difference is you actually expect that with a budget-tier resort.
The King Suite “fixes” that, expanding to make this a 495 square foot room. That’s obviously not double the size, but it almost feels like it by virtue of having a wall and door to separate the bedroom from the living space.
When traveling as a family, this separation of space is a massive asset. This room doesn’t just have a separate bedroom, which is the obvious upside, but it also has a kitchenette area that’s distinct from the living room.
If you’re spending a lot of time in the room, it’s nice to have three separate spaces. One for sleeping, one for lounging, and one for eating. It might be “only” 170 square feet in size larger, but the way the area is divided makes a world of difference.
It’s great if you want different areas for parents and kids to sleep, or for the adults to be able to do something after toddler bedtime, or simply for getting ready in the morning. Just in general, this suite feels far less cramped than the standard room at Helios Grand Hotel.
If there’s a park view option for the King Suites, I’ve yet to see it. Our room had what a Jungle Cruise Skipper might build up as the amazing…the colossal…the stupendous…the eighth wonder of the Wizarding World…the backside of…Potter!!! (I’m here all week, folks.)
During all my other stays, I’ve always paid extra for a park view room at Helios Grand Hotel (although I am rarely one to splurge on room views, the upgrade cost has never been bad here…knock on wood).
I definitely missed the park view with this room, but at the same time, seeing the backstage goings on outside the Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic was kinda cool. Now I’m curious about the equivalent of this view on the Dark Universe side.
Beyond that, I don’t really have anything profound to say about the King Suite at Helios Grand Hotel. The photos pretty much speak for themselves, and should give you a good idea of whether this is for you.
I suspect this one is going to be polarizing, with people either loving the practicality or hating how the flagship hotel overlooking the $7 billion theme park looks so phoned-in; both thematically underdone and lacking in the luxuriousness you’d expect at such a property.
One thing I would add is that the King Suite at Helios Grand Hotel definitely gives a family space to spread out, but it doesn’t really use its footprint in the most efficient way possible. There’s a lot of dead space, which can be fine when the purpose is more breathing room, but it doesn’t optimize every inch of the space.
Honestly, I don’t think the King Suite at Helios Grand Hotel is anything special. The carpet and the bed are nice, and are two ways that this room feels upmarket from something like Gran Destino Tower at Walt Disney World. In every other regard, it’s inferior.
Every criticism levied at Disney rooms (and then some) could be made here. The room is just underbaked, with the living room especially feeling a bit claustrophobic as a result of its tight space and bare, windowless walls. If someone were to assert that the All Star Music Family Suites are nicer than this, I would not argue otherwise.
The one selling point the King Suite at Helios Grand Hotel has is its size and layout. While I wouldn’t book this room category for myself (I’d much rather have a park view standard room), it’s almost a must as a party of 3 given the cramped quarters of the regular rooms. So this isn’t really anything even remotely special…it’s just more spacious. That’s it. That’s the selling point.
Family Suites at Helios vs. Disney
For us, the gold standard for this type of room is the Art of Animation Family Suites. Those rooms are larger still at 565 square feet, also have a wall and door separating the living room and main bedroom, but also add another bathroom and bed via convertible table to the mix. I’m actually a big fan of the Art of Animation Family Suite layout. It’s my favorite larger, budget-friendly room option. (Cars Suites are the best.)
Like the King Suite at Helios Grand Hotel, prices for Art of Animation Family Suites are all over the place. They’re frequently part of the Disney+ deep discount for subscribers, which brings them down to $249 per night. That’s lower than the lowest price we’ve ever seen for the King Suites at Helios Grand, but not by much.
Obviously, an apples to oranges comparison given that this is a quasi flagship hotel overlooking Epic Universe. Both are great picks if you want to spread out, but I would put the Art of Animation Family Suites over the King Suites at Helios Grand Hotel if rating or ranking the rooms.
‘Warning’ About Universal’s Dynamic Pricing
If you want assistance in finding the best rates on Universal Orlando hotels (as it can be very tricky!), we’d recommend requesting a FREE no obligation quote from Be Our Guest Vacations, an Authorized Universal and Disney Vacation Planner and having them book for you. They will be happy to assist you with the planning process, help you choose the most economical dates, best add-ons, and so forth.
One final, more generalized word of ‘warning’ is that Universal Orlando and Loews Hotels use dynamic pricing for their resorts and vacation packages. This differs from date-based pricing, which is what Walt Disney World utilizes for its park tickets, resort rates, and more.
We sort of touched on this above when talking about the rooms being prone to wild price swings, but we didn’t really explain the why of that. In short, it’s because Universal’s dynamic model is similar to airlines, rideshare, hotels, or other travel industry offerings.
What this should mean is that prices increase or decrease as dictated by demand. Prices can fluctuate on a day-to-day or even hour-to-hour basis as bookings are made.
In practice, we’ve seen pricing at Universal is more, ahem, imprecise. It can be like a veritable roller coaster ride, with spikes and sharp drops that I cannot imagine have anything to do with underlying occupancy metrics.
In other words, Universal hotel pricing is all over the place, and that’s just the base prices before special offers. Accordingly, the best practice is always booking early at Universal and rebooking later if prices do drop for some reason.
We’ve heard from countless readers who were watching prices at Universal Orlando hotels, waiting to book for whatever reason, and then saw prices come close to doubling overnight. Universal’s dynamic pricing system does not seem finely-tuned; sharp spikes and deep drops are not uncommon.
Given this, the optimal approach is to lock-in something at Universal as soon as you know travel dates. There’s little to no point in waiting; booking early is all upside. We’ve mentioned this several times in passing elsewhere, but we keep seeing it trip up vacation planners, especially those more accustomed to Walt Disney World reservations, where it can make sense to wait for discounts to be released before booking. That’s the wrong approach with Universal.
Need trip planning tips and comprehensive advice for your visit to Central Florida? Make sure to read our Universal Orlando Planning Guide for everything about Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida. Also check out our Walt Disney World Vacation Planning Guide for everything about those parks, resorts, restaurants, and so much more. For regular updates, news & rumors, a heads up when discounts are released, and much more, sign up for our FREE email newsletter!
Your Thoughts
What do you think of the King Suite at Helios Grand Hotel? Does this room look befitting of the flagship hotel overlooking a brand-new $7 billion theme park? Does it look nicer than the Art of Animation Family Suites or even All Star Music? Do you agree or disagree with our review? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
