Osaka Hotel Universal Port Vita Review (Universal Studios Japan)

After traveling from Tokyo to Osaka, we settled in for a few days at Universal Studios Japan. We knew we would want to stay near the actual park, so I opted for the Hotel Universal Port Vita, which was conveniently located and priced. This Hotel Universal Port Vita review will give an idea of the different amenities and features and hopefully help you decide if you want to stay here if you’re in the area.

Hotel Universal Port Vita location

The Hotel Universal Port Vita is located at 6-1-16 Shimaya, Konohana-ku, Osaka-city, Osaka Zip:554-0024 Japan. If you are looking at the map, you might think that it is directly outside the entrance to Universal Studios Japan, and in a sense that is true as you can see from this picture I took while standing at the front door of the hotel.

But there is a barrier that prevents you from getting directly from the Hotel Universal Port Vita to the entrance of Universal Studios. The Hotel Universal Port Vita is very convenient to the Universal City station on the Osaka Japan Rail line. When you exit the station, turn left (towards the Universal Studios Citywalk and all of the Universal Studios stuff). But don’t go down through the Citywalk – instead take a left out of the station and an IMMEDIATE left down this pathway

That will take you around the back of the station and you can then take a left to the Hotel Universal Port Vita. It’s still only about a 5 minute walk from the Hotel Universal Port Vita to the front gate of Universal Studios Japan, which I found to be quite reasonable. If you want something a little closer, you can consider the Park Front Hotel at Universal Studios Japan or the Hotel Kintetsu Universal City which are both inside the Citywalk area.

Hotel Universal Port Vita cost

Cash prices at the Hotel Universal Port Vita range anywhere from $150 to $200 or more, depending on what is going on. I booked my hotel through the Capital One travel portal for a total cost of US$397.48 (for 2 nights). There are no points options available but this was a good opportunity to use my $300 annual credit that I get with the Capital One Venture X card.

You can check prices for your nights at the Hotel Universal Port Vita at HotelsCombined or Hotels.com. You can also read Osaka Hotel Universal Port Vita reviews at TripAdvisor.

One other cost-related thing to mention is that despite this being a prepaid reservation, I was asked to pay JPY400 when I got to the hotel as an “accommodation tax”. I opted not to make a big deal about this at the check-in desk but I am going to check back to see if this was disclosed when I booked it. If you know me, you’ll know that I am just petty enough to argue over 3 dollars 😉

(SEE ALSO: Hotel city tax: legitimate expense or extortion attempt?)

Hotel Universal Port Vita review – room

I reserved a standard room with 2 twin beds, which is what I received. This was actually a bit larger than my previous hotel room in Tokyo (the Comfort Hotel Tokyo Kiyosumi Shirakawa) as there was a small couch and desk area in addition to the 2 twin beds. Each bed came with two pillows, and they were not paper-thin, like some of the pillows in my other Japanese hotels.

There was a separate double sink area

which also led to the bathtub / shower. The lack of a shower curtain definitely confused my son when he tried to shower in the morning.

There was a separate area with just the toilet. One feature was that the light automatically came on (and the toilet opened) when you opened the door to this area. Very convenient for regular use, but much less convenient during the middle of the night as the bright light just comes flying on.

Another room-related feature to point out was that the elevator buttons do not do anything. Instead, you just scan your room key in the elevator and your floor lights up automatically.

Universal Studios Japan Hotel Universal Port Vita wifi and amenities

The Hotel Universal Port Vita wifi was complimentary and quite fast.

As far as other Hotel Universal Port Vita amenities, there were toothbrushes, razors, hairbrushes and a few other amenities available on the 2nd floor near the check in desk.

Another nice amenity that they have is complimentary storage lockers, located on the first floor

These are intended for use after you check out, which we did use. You need a IC / Suiza / Pasmo card to use them, but if you don’t have one, you can ask for one at checkout. When we checked out, I was asking about how to use them with our Pasmo cards and apparently the worker thought that I was asking for a new card, so he just gave me one to use. You just scan your card and then turn the knob to lock. When you’re ready to retrieve your belongings, scan your card and turn to unlock. The Hotel Universal Port Vita lockers were very easy to use and quite convenient since it allowed us to check out in the morning and still hit the park for an entire day before coming back to get our luggage and move to our next hotel.

There is Hotel Universal Port Vita laundry on the 2nd floor as well – the washers and dryers are coin operated.

There is also a small smoking room.

Hotel Universal Port Vita food

Breakfast (or any other meals) are generally not included in the rate that you pay for the Hotel Universal Port Vita, though I imagine that they do sell rates that include breakfast or other meals. There is a restaurant (on the 3rd floor), and the Hotel Universal Port Vita does offer a variety of different buffets.

We opted to not eat any meals at the hotel during our stay here.

The Bottom Line – Osaka Hotel Universal Port Vita hotel review

The Hotel Universal Port Vita was a great hotel option for our stay near Universal Studios Japan and Super Nintendo World. The beds were comfortable, the wifi was fast and the location was outstanding. There are a few other hotel options within easy walking distance of Universal Studios, so take a look and compare prices to see what’s the best option for you.

Have you stayed at the Hotel Universal Port Vita? What did you think? Leave your thoughts in the comments

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