Should I jump the Disney Hotel Ship?

poohbear2

<font color=CC66CC>Disney Think Formula is:<br>HE=

Joined

Mar 16, 2002

• May 10, 2015

• #1

This will be our first Florida trip in about four years. We always stay at A Disney hotel but I have been really leaning to try a Universal hotel. I use to stay at the Polynesian but the prices are more than doubled I guess with all the construction. Is the Royal Pacific a good choice?

 

M

macraven

Proud Redhead

Moderator

Joined

Apr 21, 2003

• May 10, 2015

• #2

it is for me and my wants
it has a very unique lobby.

 

bumbershoot

DIS Veteran

Joined

Mar 5, 2007

• May 10, 2015

• #3

I think it's a great choice.

 

Tink415

DIS Veteran

Joined

Jul 18, 2006

• May 10, 2015

• #4

Yes I say the Royal Pacific is a great choice compared to the Poly. The rooms aren't as big and there aren't any balconies but the pool area and pool service are fantastic. The service in general is much better than the Poly.

 

tasha99

DIS Veteran

Joined

Aug 20, 2006

• May 11, 2015

• #5

It's quite a distance, though. I'd stay at Disney hotels at WDW and Universal ones at Universal. Proximity is our number one preference because we don't always stick together.

 

disneylove69

DIS Veteran

Joined

Oct 21, 2008

• May 25, 2015

• #6

I have been staying on Universal my last few trips and enjoy the quietness of Universal hotel. I stayed at the Cabana Bay. It was nice to walk around or grab some food and not have people pushing and shoving. Only down fall is they charge for parking unlike Disney. This trip I will be staying at POP just because it was cheaper than Universal after adding in parking.

 

kbelle8995

DIS Veteran

Joined

May 28, 2009

• May 26, 2015

• #7

I think that Universal Hotels are really great. I have stayed at Royal Pacific and Cabana Bay. If you get great rates even with the parking charge you can come out cheaper. I got CB really inexpensively in September last year where even with the parking charge it came out cheaper than Disney. I think that Royal Pacific is an excellent exchange for Polynesian.

 

N

NeedVacation81

Earning My Ears

Joined

May 27, 2015

• May 30, 2015

• #8

For years we went to WDW exclusively, but last year we tried a day at UNI and LOVED it. Now that you have to reserve every second of your life at Disney and they are going to tiered pricing with the tickets, we will be staying at UNI. (until they start gouging the same way)
The Cabana Bay looks awesome, and we will try that first, and visit the other hotels for stays in the future. Very exciting....

 

A

AtlantaDisneyDreamer

DIS Veteran

Joined

Jan 11, 2014

• May 31, 2015

• #9

Love RP. Gorgeous theming, great pool, and very clean. Only thing I would worry about is convenience to Disney. We stayed Club Level for less than we could stay at the Poly.

 

kbelle8995

DIS Veteran

Joined

May 28, 2009

• May 31, 2015

• #10

I've stayed at Cabana Bay and RP. Both are worth it in my opinion. Cabana Bay puts the Disney values to shame. I say give it shot. If you don't care for it you can always go back to Disney. Royal Pacific is a sophisticated resort. But it still has a comfortable feel. And the pool is great.

Just don't expect it to be Disney, Universal has a different feel.

 

Nohal

DIS Veteran

Joined

Sep 28, 2008

• Jun 1, 2015

• #11

I agree that Universal has a different feel. We just got back from a 3 day trip to Cabana Bay. I really liked the hotel much better than the All Star Movies where we usually stay. It is just DH & I and we are seniors who don't do the roller coasters and didn't do water rides. Two days was plenty enough time for us to see and do everything. We haven't been there in over 20 yrs, took the kids when they were younger they would love Universal. I did like the fact that I didn't need to plan FP or make ADR's. It seemed like very few people had the express pass could be because we went over a weekend and there were lots of school groups on day trips and probably locals. However, I am still a Disney girl at heart and don't plan on going back to Universal for a long time.

 

goNDmay9

DIS Veteran

Joined

Mar 31, 2005

• Jun 2, 2015

• #12

We love staying at the Royal Pacific. If you are going to Universal - I definitely think it is worth a try! We also love the Poly.

 

schumigirl

It's a bit of a roodie doodie word for lady parts

Joined

May 15, 2007

• Jun 3, 2015

• #13

Fantastic choice.........we won't stay anywhere else.....love it there and it is perfect for us.........

I'm sure you'll love it

 

lynnfitz

DIS Veteran

Joined

Dec 31, 2008

• Jun 3, 2015

• #14

I'm going through the same thing (sort of!) love Disney, rent points and stay at Bay Lake. This year we're doing a few days at Disney, then a week at RP. Went to RP a few years ago, and loved it! It's been awhile since we spent a full week at Universal-last year was 3 nights (at HR, which we didn't love) and longer at Disney. This summer we're "reversing" our stays, with Universal being longer than Disney. You can't beat staying on sight, and being able to walk to everything at Universal. Still a little apprehensive, since I really enjoy the Disney resorts, but at RP we're splurging and staying in a hospitality suite-we're use to the 1 bedrooms at Disney we rent points, so the thought of us all being in a small room might not be great for us! The one thing I do miss is at Disney we do the dining plan, which I like since the meals are paid for before going on vacation. Considering the Universal meal plan, but then we have to rebook as a vacation package if we want the full serve plan. I do like that Universal does let you choose how many days you want to do the meal plan, unlike Disney. I guess there are pros and cons to it all! Just enjoy!

 

Grumpy92

DIS Veteran

Joined

Nov 14, 2001

• Jun 3, 2015

• #15

A few years ago I felt the same way you do. I could not imagine not staying at a Disney hotel. We stayed at RPR and it was wonderful. Just a beautiful resort. We loved the pool, it was so relaxing. They even came around and gave out italian icees. TMs were fantanstic. Last year we stayed at Cabana Bay and I am now a Universal hotel convert. For the price they put Disney to shame. We find it a better value then WDW hotels. One of us got the US AP so we could get that discount.

The RPR standard room we got was on the first floor but we could see the Citywalk boats from our window and we were just a few doors from the Citywalk path. The only downside we found was no QS location at the hotel, besides the pool bar. Loved the Jakes!

NeedVacation81 I could not agree more. I hate the reserve times for everything feel at WDW now.
I definitely suggest you stay at RPR.

 

Last edited: Jun 3, 2015

nkereina

Last chance to lose your keys.

Joined

Feb 11, 2009

• Jun 4, 2015

• #16

We always do a split stay between a WDW resort and RPR. We have visited Portofino at Universal before and didn't care for the theme. Cabana Bay is out for us because we travel when express passes are necessary. HRH is nice but find it hard to justify the cost when RPR meets/exceeds all our wants. Great resort!

 

jerseygal

DIS Veteran

Joined

Jan 1, 2008

• Jun 6, 2015

• #17

"Thinking of doing" a split stay WDW trip and RP trip, August of '16!Haven't been to Universal for about 7 years, so we're overdue!

 

pcstang

Always Universal Orlando bound!

Joined

Nov 29, 2011

• Jun 6, 2015

• #18

Paying parking is a pain but....
Every single person that stays at a WDW resort pays parking. It's built into the price. I would rather Loews include it in the price so I don't have to see the charge. Nothing is free!