reservation room only vs package

Which is better, room only or a package deal? Any pros or cons? Thank you for your input.

I book room only
One deposit is all that is required
Pay in full when you check out of the room

I can cancel 6 days out with no penalty and get a full refund

Before I had the AP, I still did room only bookings

I could buy my park tickets from 3 rd party vendors cheaper

Booking a package requires booking must be paid in full in advance before arrival date
You pay the one night deposit when booking and the rest later

Any changes you make to that reservation will have a $50 fee

macraven said:

I book room only
One deposit is all that is required
Pay in full when you check out of the room

I can cancel 6 days out with no penalty and get a full refund

Before I had the AP, I still did room only bookings

I could buy my park tickets from 3 rd party vendors cheaper

Booking a package requires booking must be paid in full in advance before arrival date
You pay the one night deposit when booking and the rest later

Any changes you make to that reservation will have a $50 fee

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Thank you, where do you buy your third party tickets from. Also, if you book at hard rock do you still get head of the line without a package. Thank you

Hard Rock, Portofino and Royal Pacific have the express pass as a perk for anyone who stays on site no matter how they book their rooms.

Lots of people get their tickets directly through the universal site. A cheaper alternative is undercovertourist.com

Best of Orlando is another 3rd party site that is legit
So is Mapleleaf

parksavers.com is one that the WDW side of the Dis has been talking about for months now. With WDW tickets they are beating UCT. Not sure about Universal.

Check out: https://uo.loewshotels.com/en/booking/uo?hotel=UEPBH,UEHRH,UERPR

That's where you can see all of the Universal resorts at a time. For Portofino, Hard Rock, and Royal Pacific you'll see that unlimited Express Pass (there is no such thing as head, or front, of the line at Universal Orlando unless you're on a WISH trip) is included with those. It's a hotel perk, not a way-of-booking perk.

Check out the packages. IN the last year I've seen people mention that packages are less money. But you have to make sure you're looking at the exact same aspects of the trip. There is no need to book a package to have breakfast at Three Broomsticks or the restaurant in Diagon Alley. There is no need to book a package for EP or for early entry (all onsite hotels give Early Entrance to one or another (and sometimes both) Wizarding World and a bit beyond). Sometimes a package will give you something extra. Like when each Wizarding World opened, the Harry Potter packages gave a fancy keepsake ticket and I believe one sent you a plush Hedwig. Of course, you can buy a plush Hedwig.

But normally it's best to buy the room-only room and then get tickets at the authorized seller or reseller of your choice!