Radisson Resort at the Port
Radisson Resort at the Port is a very popular hotel for people cruising out of Port Canaveral. It has a very nice pool and Tiki Bar area, a shuttle to the port, and a good selection of restaurants nearby. There is also a brewery within walking distance. The price was on the lower end of the range for nice hotels in this area.
Location
This hotel is just a short shuttle, taxi, or uber/lyft ride from Port Canaveral.
Radisson is close to quite a few restaurants. There are two Italian restaurants with Kelsey’s next door and Zarrella’s a block away. Then there’s a Thai and Japanese restaurant across the street from the hotel
For regular American food you have Zachary’s Restaurant next door and Southern Charm Cafe a block away. Zachary’s is only open from 8am-3pm and they are closed on Monday. For fast food you have a Subway right next to the hotel.
The Caribe Brewery is across the street from Zarrella’s . The brewery doesn’t have a kitchen but they did have a food truck. I drank at Caribe and ate at Zarrella’s and it was great. Everything at Zarrella’s is made from scratch.
Lobby
The lobby has plenty of hand sanitizer dispensers and is currently highly recommending face coverings. They have an ATM as well if you need some cash the trip.
This astronaut suit makes for a good photo op in the lobby.
As you can see there was not much of a line. I was able to get checked in pretty quick. My room was ready immediately upon arrival.
This is the documentation they give you at check-in.
They also give you a map of the hotel area. My room was in the far upper right corner. It was about as far away as they could put me without actually having me in a different hotel. Actually I believe people in the hotel next door were closer to our lobby than I was. You can see the large pool area and tennis court on the map.
They also had maps of the local area available by the front desk.
Room
It’s never a good sign when you’re at a hotel with the room 420 sign missing. As luck would have it, that was my room.
Well I got a view of the water.
This is a pretty small sink and mirror area. It’s fine for just me but I have a feeling it wouldn’t be fine for women. I didn’t see a blow dryer either.
I had to get up in the middle of the night when I realized the toilet was running. I had to fix it in the morning as well.
The room layout was a little odd with this long area right by the door. I did make use of the microwave and coffee pot.
The closet is walk-in. It has an iron/board, extra blankets, and a luggage stand.
The view improves during sunrise.
There was a soda machine and an ice machine right next door to my room. It was convenient but it sounded like someone was filling up an ice chest at midnight.
These didn’t work at my building. You could just open the door.
One building I walked past didn’t even have a card reader.
When I returned to my building late at night the door was open. It actually won’t close unless you pull/push it closed.
Pool
This is the nicest area of the hotel and it’s biggest selling point in my opinion.
Tiki Bar
I really wanted to try the Tiki Bar out but my flight got in later than I anticipated and I chose the Caribe brewery instead. Unfortunately I missed out on the Tiki Bar.
Restaurant
They do have a restaurant in the lobby area. I ate dinner at a local Italian place and had leftovers for breakfast so I did not try the restaurant myself. Here is their breakfast menu though.
Tennis Court
they have a nice tennis area in the back courtyard. If you happen to have a racket and balls with you, this would be a good spot to utilize them.
Fitness center
The fitness center has free weights, treadmills, ellipticals and several TVs.
Meeting rooms
Radisson has over 30,000 square feet of meeting room space. They can accommodate up to 1,200 people for a wedding reception in their Grande Ballroom.
Port Shuttle
I had a 10:30 arrival time at the port. At check-in I purchased a seat on the 10am shuttle for $5.
Fast forward to the next morning. I did not actually take the shuttle. They said you needed to be in the lobby at 9:45 for the 10am shuttle. I was there. I took this picture at 9:49. The crowd got much worse by 10am. I heard the shuttle coordinator say we wouldn’t be able to leave the hotel until everyone had disembarked from the ship.
At 10: 05 I stepped outside to find a bunch of people waiting out in front of the hotel as well. There didn’t seem to be any plan or progress towards loading luggage. I think they probably had a trailer for luggage.
With the number of people I saw waiting in the lobby, I think this was going to require multiple shuttles or multiple shuttle trips. I checked Uber and it was only $7.59 for a ride to the port and the driver would be here in 5 minutes. I ordered it and was dropped off at the port at 10:21am.
Cruise Parking
The hotel does have park and cruise packages. This is your cruise parking area for those.
Conclusion
The big draw at this hotel is the nice pool and Tiki Bar area. I can see this being a popular hotel for a family that wants to be close to the port and have a nice pool area. I don’t think the shuttle is worth it unless Uber/Lyft prices skyrocket as the number of cruisers increases. I do like the nearby restaurants and the brewery.
I didn’t make use of the pool area or the shuttle which are two of the main reasons people book this hotel. When I come back I will likely try one of the other hotels in this area or on the beach.
