My stay at the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel

My mom and I have talked about taking a trip to Italy for years now. It’s one of those trips we talk about over wine, planning the sites we’d see and places we’d eat. Life has been so busy and with my brother and I working, it’s hard to get everyones schedules aligned. A month or so ago I took my mom away for the weekend to the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel, and in a way I felt like I was finally able to give her a little bit of Italy.

This is the view you walk into after getting the key to your room. One minute you’re passing a roller coaster and the next thing you know, you’re looking at this! It’s really incredible how this resort was able to make you feel so far away from all the hustle and madness Orlando can bring. We were lucky enough to have a room that overlooked the harbor, so each morning we would pull back the drapes and drink coffee while looking at the boats.

My mom and I love girls trips because we cuddle into the cozy hotel beds and sip wine while watching some chick flick most guys would hate. The room was super comfortable and even better, it came with two, big, cozy robes, which are always a hotel must, for me.

The first night of our stay we were invited to Harbor Nights at Loews Portofino Bay Hotel, which is a nighttime event held on the Harbor Piazza. The night is FILLED with wines, gourmet food samples, complimentary hand-rolled cigars (which my dad would’ve loved) and live music. The event takes place 4-5 times a year and now that I’ve attended one, I feel like I might have to go back and attend all of them! The night felt like one huge wedding, without all the tasks and obligations that come with enjoying a wedding.

The next day my mom and I were off the Universal Orlando and Universal’s Islands of Adventure. My mom hadn’t seen the new Diagon Alley, which is AMAZING if you haven’t been, so that was our first stop, well right after we hit the Starbucks in the park. The minute you walk into Diagon Alley you feel like you’ve entered a movie set. Everything looks so real! We went on the new ride Harry Potter and the Escape From Gringotts, which my mom and I loved. We were tempted to ride it again, but we were quickly distracted by butter beers. I’m not ashamed to admit that we each had two butter beers throughout the day.

After a long day of park hopping we headed to the new restaurant, located right outside of the parks, Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen at Universal Orlando CityWalk. Holy cow!! We ate so much food that night. My mom and I started with a crab and artichoke dip, then we split two flatbreads, the forest mushroom and the bbq chicken. The whole meal was really good and honestly it far exceeded my expectations. The best part of the meal was their deserts. My pictures doesn’t do the milkshake justice, but I got the salted dulce de leche and it was the perfect salty and sweet combo.

For the last day of our stay we blocked off the entire day for pool time. I’m a total book worm and nothing makes me happier than sitting in the sun with a good book and a tropical drink in my hand. The hotel has three swimming pools and one of the three is adult only. Yes, adult only. I LOVE this idea. The pool was so serene and we had two lounge chairs right up front with an umbrella and poolside food service. I ordered a margarita and a huge fruit platter and they were delivered right to the spot I was sitting in the pool. To say the least, my mom and I didn’t want to leave.