Conrad Orlando at Evermore — Hotel in Dr. Phillips

My husband and I stayed for two nights at the Conrad and we felt it fell far-below expectations. To be transparent, I was with a large group and thankfully I can give this review solely based on an experience fully paid for as a gift. I had the freedom to “go nuts” but when the value isn’t there, it was tough to defend the spend…

Atmosphere: The lagoon is beautiful, but, the areas to actually swim in it are sparse. There are only a few areas to splash around in… not deep enough to do any sort of swimming; the deeper areas are reserved for paddle boarding and kayaking…seriously?? Yes- throw on a required vest and kayak or paddle board in 90 degree heat….why would anyone really want to do that? I didn’t see many…people want to swim!! The hammocks surrounding were awesome though and I’m happy when I wanted to lay-out one was available so that was nice, but, overall, I wanted to swim and there just wasn’t enough comfortable space for that with all of the small areas taken by families with large floats. Plenty of room though if the paddle boards and kayaking is taken away…

Service: The hotel staff was FANTASTIC & Cieba has a true asset in Henry. He really saved our weekend with his recommendations, service, his outgoing personality, and expediting our drinks- the bar staff really needed help that evening because it was taking 30mins+ for drinks. Other than Henry and the staff at the Little Spoon, no. The service wasn’t good. We were seated at the Papaya- it was nearly empty at 230pm and we weren’t greeted by a server for about 25mins. Same thing happened at around the same time the day-before but at the bar. At Sofia’s that Sunday at our 1030am reservation our waiter (Tad?) was VERY rude and really tried to sell us on the overpriced breakfast buffet - $45/person- when I knew full well there was a menu to look at and asked for one politely. He then brought ONE menu for us to look at- why only 1?? I have no idea but his attitude was apparent. I get people have bad days but that was something I hadn’t seen. And about the overpriced food…

Food/Drinks/Restaurants: We dined at every offering. While the staff at the Little Spoon were so kind and their recommendations were pretty good, as you can see from the empanada photo below…food was exorbitantly overpriced. 1 empanada, 1 nitro cold brew, 1 latte, and a sausage cheese and egg sandwich..$45. The drinks, while tasty, were extremely overpriced at the cheapest coming in at $16 for around 4oz (see the big ice cubes to throw you off?). Cieba had a great selection of appetizers and by far the best bang for your buck so if you are feeling like a treat, that corn-chocolate confection, plus maybe 3 appetizers won’t set you back too much and you won’t be disappointed…& ask for Henry!

Parking: For a valet-only establishment, be sure to bring a car visor… there is absolutely NO covered parking. $50/night.

Spa: I had the pleasure of visiting with the staff while I looked around the lobby at the items for sale which were excellent! I wanted to get a service but I was very shocked to find out that their cheapest service was $281+ for a facial…not including the 20% additional and mandatory gratuity.

Room: Beautiful? Yes. But you have to ask for a mini fridge because the one provided is stocked with items that are weighted…you touch it/move it, you buy it. The shower was amazing- spacious with great pressure. The lighting in there as well was gorgeous because you could dim the lights quite a bit. The bed- yuck. I’m sorry but IKEA-esque flat pillows, and bedding I wasn’t prepared for in a “five star” resort.

Surroundings: If you didn’t want to splash around in the lagoon, visit the pool or the slide… there wasn’t anything to do. You pay a whooping +$500/night but what are you really getting?? There’s nothing around other than the theme parks…for a couple, it was boring.

Bottom line: Disappointed. We had such high hopes! Maybe after the next expansion planned the value will be there but I don’t think it’s there yet. If my weekend wasn’t paid for, I wouldn’t have spent the...

What a huge let down Conrad Orlando!!

My wife and I planned a week's vacation at the Conrad Hilton to celebrate her 50th birthday and we ended up checking out the first day of our trip. We had been looking forward to our stay given the reputation of the Conrad Brand and the positive reviews. I emailed the hotel in advance to let them know that we would be celebrating my wife's 50th along with our two young boys. The Guest Experience and VIP Services Coordinator responded with basically a list of things to up charge us on. When we arrived at the hotel we were greeted at the gate by security who asked what we were doing there. We informed the guard we were checking in as guests. The guard said that they required ID to be admitted on the grounds and my wife gave the guard a digital copy of her drivers license on her phone. Security told us that was not good enough. I was forced to take several bags out of the trunk to find my license while a line of cars were waiting behind us. Not a great way to greet paying guests. At the front desk we were told our room was not ready even though we were Hilton Gold members. Given the wife's b-day they did offer to upgrade our room to a suite for an additional $300 per night. I was like wow...thank you but we will pass. We sat down on one of their couches and realized the couch and table in front of us were covered in cookie crumbs. I laughed and told my wife it looked like some little ones must have had a great time here. We decided to go upstairs to their Little Spoon snack shop and grab a coffee. When we tried to sit at one of their 3 tables they were all filthy dirty. The chairs/tables all looked like the cookie crumbling bandit was at it again. After cleaning our own table/ chairs and sitting for some time my wife went to the front desk to see about our room and found out it was ready.She was surprised given they said they would text us when it was. When we checked into the room the room was actually quite nice and had a great view of the pool. When my wife went into the bathroom the sink counter had hair on it and the shower handle door had greasy fingerprints all over it. Pretty nasty stuff! I called the front desk but no answer. I walked downstairs and the front desks response was "Thank you for letting us know". I stood there for a moment and then asked well what does that actually mean? Are you going to send someone to clean it???? The head of housekeeping came up to our room and after looking at the room apologized for the mess. He asked if we wanted to switch rooms which I said was not necessary. He then cleaned up the mess himself which we really appreciated. Thank you!! We asked him if the room had a small fridge for our son's baby formula and he said we would have to call and request one. We were both surprised that each room didn't have one already but maybe that is not the norm at all hotels. We called the maintenance people and when the person delivered the fridge he put the mini fridge in the middle of the floor, plugged it in, and left. My wife was like what the heck??? No big deal but I had to personally push the refrigerator under the counter myself. We decided to take a walk around the grounds which were quite nice. The swimming pool and the lagoon pool were beautiful. When we returned to our room and went out on the balcony to sit down we were hit with a strong smell of pot smoke (must have been coming from a nearby balcony) My wife looked at me so upset and asked if there was anyway we could leave. She had enough! I called American Express travel and they were able to get Conrad to refund our stay, check out, and find us a room at the resort we stayed at in the past. The Conrad Orlando grounds are beautiful, staff are super nice but they really drop the ball on all the little things which make a hotel special. I was told when we were checking out the hotel manager would personally reach out to me to discuss what happened but of course I never heard from him. This hotel is presented as a high end resort but not at all what we expected from the...

Conrad Orlando at Evermore (August 30, 2025 Stay)

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Driving up, the first thing you learn is there’s no self-parking. You’re forced into a $50-per-day valet, whether you want it or not. My initial valet driver literally followed me around like a stalker, hovering for a tip before I even made it inside. That set the tone.

Check-In & Service

As a Diamond member, I expected a smooth arrival, but check-in fell flat. The front desk told me no upgrades were available — yet the Hilton app clearly showed plenty of premium rooms. Only after I pushed back did Frankie at the front desk step in, move me from a standard king with a bad view to a Premium King on the 7th floor, and save the situation. The upgraded room was spotless, modern, and had a fantastic view. Frankie was the high point of service, but the hoops I had to jump through to get there shouldn’t have been necessary.

Room & Amenities

The Premium King was absolutely beautiful — spacious, spotless, and designed with a modern luxury feel. The bed was comfortable, the linens crisp, and the bathroom was sparkling clean with upscale fixtures that gave it a true “Conrad” touch. The view from the 7th floor was stunning and one of the highlights of the entire stay.

Amenities in the room were a mix of thoughtful and frustrating. There’s a minibar and a coffee machine, which is convenient, but here’s the catch: the drawer with the coffee, cream, and sugar also holds candy jars and small chip boxes. They sit on sensors, and the second you even move them, you get charged — $12 for a tiny 3-ounce jar of candy or a box of chips. That’s not just expensive, it’s almost insulting. Word to the wise: don’t even touch the drawer unless you’re ready to pay premium snack bar prices. FYI - we were not charged but just be careful!

Staff Presence

This resort is absolutely saturated with staff. You’ll never find yourself searching for someone to help, because they’re everywhere — but that’s not always a good thing. Instead of a relaxed luxury vibe, it feels like you’re constantly being monitored or approached. It’s one thing to have attentive service; it’s another to feel like someone is in your face every five steps asking if you need something.

To be fair, Frankie at the front desk was excellent and turned what could have been a total disaster into a much better stay. His professionalism, patience, and willingness to actually solve a problem stood out in sharp contrast to the indifferent attitude from the initial check-in staff. Unfortunately, most of the rest of the service fell somewhere between pushy and perfunctory, which is not what you expect at this price point.

Beyond being forced into valet, service was slow. Even with what felt like an army of valets (especially with a wedding on Sunday), it still took far too long to get my car back.

Dining & Value

Breakfast itself was delicious, with great hosts and attentive service. But pricing is steep: $800+ per night (I used 100,000 points) for what you actually get feels inflated, even for Disney-adjacent Hilton standards. They do have sit down and buffet style breakfast! A little pricy but you may use your resort credit to offset the costs!

Resort & Atmosphere

The grounds are stunning — modern, clean, and beautifully designed with a lagoon and pool. But they were jam-packed, giving the impression of more guests than the property could handle. Inside, the vibe skewed toward wealthy social scenes rather than a relaxing resort atmosphere. Families were there, but the tone was more “flashy luxury” than “family getaway.”

Final Thoughts

Conrad Orlando at Evermore looks like a world-class resort on the surface — gorgeous rooms, fantastic grounds, and standout staff like Frankie — but it’s dragged down by mandatory valet, service inconsistencies, hidden minibar traps, and overcrowding. Diamond members shouldn’t have to fight for upgrades. For the price, the polish doesn’t match the promise.

Would I return? Unlikely, unless major changes are made to how guests — especially Hilton elites —...