Common Orlando Resort has shared a primary take a look at Loews Helios Grand Lodge, a 500-room luxurious in-park resort overlooking Epic Universe, their third theme park in Florida that opens in 2025. This sneak peek shares idea artwork & data about visitor rooms, eating places, retail and every part else within the upcoming lodging–together with how perks and tiers are altering with the arrival of this new property.
Epic Universe is Common Orlando Resort’s third theme park, simply down the highway from Common Studios Florida and Islands of Journey, in addition to Volcano Bay Water Park. As soon as totally constructed out, the brand new theme park campus would basically double Common Orlando Resort’s current footprint. It gained’t be that massive in 2025–that construct out is years, if not many years, down the highway.
Epic Universe will transport company to expansive worlds that includes greater than 50 experiences that embrace sights, leisure, eating and buying to create an unforgettable journey situated at Common Orlando Resort. For an enormous image overview of the whole park, see our Common’s Epic Universe Preview, which unveiled the entire lands and way more. In opposition to that backdrop, let’s introduce Common Helios Grand Lodge, a Loews Lodge…
Helios Grand Lodge is dropped at life by the award-winning Common Inventive staff and co-owned and operated by Loews Resorts & Co. The brand new luxurious resort is an imposing Mediterranean-inspired escape rising above the plush gardens and scenic waters of Celestial Park at Epic Universe.
Designed to mix immersion and rest to create a lodge keep like no different, this palatial resort options tranquil sleeping lodging, entertaining facilities for the entire household to get pleasure from, divine eating choices, a shocking rooftop bar and the lodge’s very personal devoted entrance to the brand new theme park.
Bringing Common Orlando’s resort portfolio to a complete of 11 lodges and 11,000 visitor rooms, Common Helios Grand Lodge builds upon Common’s greater than three many years of experience in world-class leisure and inventive theming – mixed with Loews Resorts’ hospitality and repair excellence – to set a brand new normal in immersive lodge experiences.
Solely at Common Helios Grand Lodge can company unwind within the serenity of a sunlit retreat in a single second after which inside minutes discover themselves within the coronary heart of exhilarating theme park adventures. Common Helios Grand Lodge is a lot greater than only a place to remain; it’s the crown jewel of Epic Universe and the top of Common Orlando’s lodge experiences.
As quickly as company step into this radiant sanctuary, they are going to be transported to a fantastical world throughout the palace of Helios, the Greek god of the solar, adorned with lovely particulars of celestial patterns, dazzling constellations and chic but informal Mediterranean design components.
Via the foyer’s magnificent floor-to-ceiling home windows is a wide ranging vista of Celestial Park – boasting among the finest views of Epic Universe in the whole lodge and immersing company within the park’s brilliance by day and night time.
From the fantastically appointed sleeping rooms to the polished public areas to the distinctive facilities, Common Helios Grand Lodge provides:
Serene Visitor Rooms and Spacious Suites – Shiny, inviting and heat, the visitor rooms and suites of Common Helios Grand Lodge evoke the tranquility of a blissful backyard – with most of the rooms providing implausible views of Epic Universe. And distinctive to Common Helios Grand Lodge are the imaginative Tips on how to Prepare Your Dragon Youngsters’ Suites, the place little ones can take to the skies and relaxation amongst dragons in a colourful room impressed by the Viking village of Berk.
Devoted Entrance to Common Epic Universe – Situated off the foyer is the lodge’s devoted entrance into Epic Universe – an unparalleled amenity for company of Common Helios Grand Lodge that gives direct, handy entry to and from the theme park (legitimate theme park admission required).
Bar Helios – A glowing and classy rooftop lounge, Bar Helios at Common Helios Grand Lodge provides a tasty menu of inventive tapas and acquainted favorites, thoughtfully-handcrafted specialty cocktails, and unmatched 360-degree views of Epic Universe and past – making this the right spot for company to sit back within the night after a busy day within the parks.
Resort-style Pool – The oasis of the zero-entry pool is the last word spot for relaxation and rest – full with underwater audio system, poolside cabanas out there for lease, a scorching tub, poolside films, leisure actions and extra.
Company of Common Helios Grand Lodge can even get pleasure from:
- a complimentary state-of-the-art health heart that includes a wide range of power and cardio gear;
- a recreation room for company to blast, zap and race their manner via a group of arcade video games with the acquisition of a recreation card;
- a Common Orlando Resort Retailer for company to buy every part from sundries and requirements to Common Orlando merchandise; and a lot extra.
Company seeking to have a meal or seize a fast snack in between visits to the parks can select from a wide range of distinctive eating choices, together with:
- Flora Taverna – a full-service restaurant providing breakfast, lunch and dinner and foyer bar with a light-weight and ethereal environment – that includes an open-style kitchen with stay cooking, Mediterranean consolation meals, pizza ovens, and al fresco seating overlooking the gorgeous surroundings of Celestial Park;
- Aurora Market – a recent espresso store and market providing freshly-roasted coffees, pleasant grab-and-go meals objects and attractive snack and dessert choices from morning to nighttime;
- Lotus Lagoon – a poolside bar and grill the place company can cool off with refreshing cocktails or non-alcoholic drinks and revel in informal fare choices like burgers, salads, sandwiches and extra.
Staying at any Common Orlando lodge is the easiest way to expertise all that the vacation spot has to supply and comes with unique theme park advantages. Company staying at Common Helios Grand Lodge, or any of the opposite Common Orlando lodges, obtain Early Park Admission to get pleasure from choose sights on the theme parks, which is able to broaden to incorporate Common Epic Universe with the park’s opening in 2025. Early Park Admission will provide as much as one hour of precedence entry earlier than the park opens with legitimate theme park admission.
Common Orlando lodge company can even benefit from complimentary shuttle bus transportation to the theme parks and Common CityWalk, resort-wide charging privileges, complimentary merchandise supply and extra.
The addition of Common Helios Grand Lodge additionally brings three reimagined lodge classes to Common Orlando – designed to make it even simpler for company to decide on the lodge that most closely fits their most popular model and funds:
Signature Assortment – Providing full-service facilities, distinguished service, distinctive eating and extra:
- Common Helios Grand Lodge
- Loews Portofino Bay Lodge
- Arduous Rock Lodge
- Loews Royal Pacific Resort
- Loews Sapphire Falls Resort
Prime Worth Resorts – Providing a mixture of providers and facilities made for consolation
- Common Aventura Lodge
- Common Stella Nova Resort (opening January 21, 2025)
- Common Terra Luna Resort (opening February 25, 2025)
Worth Inns and Suites – Providing enjoyable, inexpensive choices providing normal rooms and spacious suites with kitchenettes.
- Common Cabana Bay Seaside Resort
- Common Limitless Summer season Resort – Surfside Inn and Suites
- Common Limitless Summer season Resort – Dockside Inn and Suites
Turning to commentary, let’s begin with the perks and adjustments to lodge tiers. Followers could be shocked to be taught that Common Helios Grand Lodge gained’t provide Limitless Specific Go. Common readers of this web site gained’t be, although. We’ve speculated for some time that Helios Grand Lodge wouldn’t provide it or that Epic Universe wouldn’t…or each.
As I’ve been saying for some time, I don’t know why Common first opted to supply Limitless Specific Go to its Premier Resorts, however my shot-in-the-dark guess is a cope with Loews to get that hotelier on board. Accordingly, I’d additionally guess that the one theme parks topic to such a contractual settlement could be those in existence on the time.
Likewise, I’ve warned that Common wouldn’t make the identical deal within the 2020s that it did within the late Nineties, which is exactly why Sapphire Falls doesn’t provide Specific Go. Common Orlando was already established as a bona fide theme park heavy hitter, and there was no want to dangle such a park to get a dedication from Loews.
The error followers proceed to make is assuming that Common is any completely different than Disney as a enterprise. It feels essential to reiterate this, as a result of there’s this misguided notion that Common is extra guest-focused than Walt Disney World. The concept that Comcast, of all firms, cares about shoppers and provides higher worth, perks, or no matter out of the kindness of its coronary heart is ludicrous.
Truthfully, I’m pleasantly shocked right here that Early Park Admission is being expanded to Epic Universe. I wouldn’t essentially have guess on that (Helios Grand getting the perk on the current parks appeared like a given), and anticipated that Common Orlando would as an alternative attempt to monetize early entry in the identical manner they do at Tremendous Nintendo World in Hollywood. So that could be a small victory on the very least.
One other shock to me is that Sapphire Falls is transferring as much as the highest tier. We actually like Sapphire Falls, and felt that it punched above its weight with its categorization earlier than. Nevertheless, I additionally assume it’s nicely under the opposite choices in that prime tier. Extra importantly, it’s the one one of many currently-operating current lodges that doesn’t provide Limitless Specific Go at Common Studios Florida and Islands of Journey.
So there’s the query of whether or not it’s getting Limitless Specific Go, or the others are dropping it? I feel the latter situation is the extra probably of the 2–maybe phrases of Loews’ deal got here up for renewal or Common was capable of renegotiate with the addition of Epic Universe.
One other solely believable situation is that Sapphire Falls is being bumped as much as the highest tier with none adjustments–it gained’t provide Limitless Specific Go and the others gained’t lose it. For my part, that might make for an odd classification as Limitless Specific Go is the defining amenity provided by the highest tier resorts, nevertheless it additionally wouldn’t shock me if Common needs extra choices in that prime tier for the sake of promoting.
As for the themed design of Common Helios Grand Lodge, I prefer it! The outside seems to be to me just like the unusual love-child of Disney’s Riviera Resort and Gran Destino Tower at Coronado Springs, however with extra artifice and a spotlight to element so it’s not so boxy. I do assume that Walt Disney World followers nonetheless would’ve complained if this had been the looks of Riviera Resort, however not as loudly.
Common Helios Grand Lodge seems to be higher than Disney’s Riviera Resort, and there’s additionally the truth that Common and Disney are held to completely different requirements. I’ll be the primary to confess that I do that, and I do know most of you do too, judging by how a lot of a go Common will get for the issues followers would excoriate Disney over.
The pool likewise seems to be good, which isn’t an enormous shock since Common Inventive and Loews have executed a implausible job with pool complexes at most of the current resorts. It’s in all probability truthful to say that Common lodges, on common, outdo Disney from the angle of swimming pools. The swimming pools at Arduous Rock and Portofino Bay are my private favorites, however there are a number of nice ones. (Cabana Bay might be good, nevertheless it’s typically packed.)
The visitor rooms at Common Helios Grand Lodge look effective. The Tips on how to Prepare Your Dragon suites are enjoyable, and I’m positive households will love them. No criticism there.
The common rooms, although, are surprisingly bland. I don’t see a lot daylight between these and the opposite rooms that Common has executed within the final a number of years (new rooms and redone ones on the current resorts). Perhaps I’m lacking one thing, however I don’t see a lot to separate the rooms at Common Helios Grand Lodge from Sapphire Falls. Maybe that’s why the latter has moved up into the highest tier?
Identical goes for the bars, markets, eating places and different frequent areas. These look similar to what we’ve seen executed by Common Inventive within the final decade–since Cabana Bay, which does have a definite model.
That’s completely effective for the decrease tier resorts, as these frequent areas are manner higher than their counterparts at similarly-situated Walt Disney World resorts. However Common Helios Grand Lodge is presumably drawing comparisons to the Deluxe Resorts at Walt Disney World, and people aren’t practically as favorable. Even Disney’s Riviera Resort or Gran Destino Tower (the latter being a Average Resort) seems to be extra bold on the within.
In fact, these are all first impressions primarily based on idea artwork launched for Common Helios Grand Lodge. However I do assume it’s type of odd that a number of items of artwork had been showcased for bland bars and markets. These all look very same-y, and positively don’t promote me on Helios Grand Lodge. The one of many bar overlooking Epic Universe undoubtedly does…and maybe that view and site are all that’s wanted. This lodge will in all probability promote itself with its proximity to Epic Universe.
Want journey planning suggestions and complete recommendation in your go to to Central Florida? Be certain to learn our Common Orlando Planning Information for every part about Islands of Journey and Common Studios Florida. Additionally try our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Information for every part about these parks, resorts, eating places, and a lot extra. For normal updates, information & rumors, a heads up when reductions are launched, and way more, join our FREE e-mail publication!
YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you consider Common Helios Grand Lodge? Impressed by the model or substance? What do you consider the outside vs. inside? Will you guide Common Helios Grand Lodge, or stick to one of many current resorts? Suppose Epic Universe shall be a 3rd gate that’s a worthy addition to Common Orlando Resort…and doubtlessly on par with Disney’s finest lands? Agree or disagree with our evaluation that a lot of the inside seems to be too just like Common’s new lower-tier resorts? Any questions? We love listening to from readers, so please share some other ideas or questions you’ve gotten within the feedback under!
