Advice for March of 2018 at Universal

[kitkatsmom]

We are doing a Quick Trip to Universal and will be there the week of March 5th 2018.

Any advice/help from someone who visits Universal often would be great as I have a few questions. I've been searching the forums here but I'm only finding older info or not the exact info I'm looking for so I decided to start a new post for help.

1. Is March a particularly busy time for universal? I'm hoping since its the beginning of march and NOT near Easter it won't be overly Crowded. (I've searched crowd counters online but the info varies) Just looking for opinions from others who have visited at the beginning of march in past.

2. I am thinking of staying OFFSITE at Holiday Inn since its in walking distance and I can use points to stay for free, but If I do that then I'd want to buy the ticket upgrade so I could do the fast line. BUT is it going to end up costing me the same as if I stayed onsite if I do that? (2 people for 3 days of tickets) I can't find info on what the cost will be for march of 2018 for the upgrade. but I averaged it would be about 40 per person times 3 days? Is this a good estimate? Not sure how much I would be saving doing it this way and wasting my Holiday inn points if I'm gonna pay the same as staying in park... Just curious what others have done and recommend.

3. To get from airport to hotel/park... Cost effective. Seems like with the prices right now I could get a tiny rental car for about the same price as paying 2 ways for a taxi or mears shuttle? However, I'd have to pay for parking at hotel. So again, just looking for advice on what others do. We don't need the car while there as we plan to stay onsite for the whole 4 day trip. Has anyone uber'd? I'm just nervous with shuttles or uber for the ride BACK to the airport as I don't want to take the chance on missing my flight due to long waits.

4. Is it worth it to pay more for the multi park ticket or is it better to save and just do the one park per day ticket? I do want to take the (harry potter) train between parks so would I need the multi park ticket to do that?

Thanks again to anyone/everyone who provides advice to my questions. Just trying to get the most for my money and not have regrets. I've been to universal in the past but the circumstances were different.

 

[keishashadow]

1) Spring break & Mardi Gras make it very busy, especially the first 2 weeks of March. Google Universal crowd calender. Popular bands really draw people into the parks.

2) walkable is subjective term. It'd be too far me

3) Uber most cost efffective method from MCO

4) u need multipark pass to use the train. Price out the various APH passes might find a good onsite rate with the discount even if you just purchase for one person.

Good luck planning your trip.

 

[danielocha30]

not even the Hard Rock hotel which is right next to Universal is on a "walkable" distance, do your math it might be worth to stay onsite specially now that all Harry Potter rides accepts the express pass and the only way to ride Hogwarts express is having a park to park ticket

 

[kitkatsmom]

Holiday inn is about 1/2 mile, that is walkable to us. We walk a lot. Years and years ago we stayed at the portofino bay hotel and walked that. It was long but not bad. We were in a big group then, so I didn't have to price or plan anything.

 

[bchbetha]

1. Not everyone goes on spring break at Easter time. March is busy all month long and peaks at Easter.
2. Once you add Express Passes, you're going to have spent more than if youd just booked an onsite stay at one of the hotels that offers it. I like the "bubble" too and wouldn't love staying offsite.
3. There's no problem with Uber. There will be drivers circling the area. I mean, it's wise to check the app to see how far away drivers are but odds are the wait will be insignificant. Any missed flights will be on you not getting there soon enough.
4. The ability to bounce between the parks is major for us. Being tied to one park and not able to ride the HE would not work for us.

 

[sunsetbeachgal]

If I were you I would look for a deal at Royal Pacific Resort which is the least expensive of the onsite resorts that include express pass. RP is a delightful, scenic 10 minute walk (or boat ride). We were at Universal in February of this year (not around Presidents weekend) and the Express Pass really helped, as did the one hour early park opening for on site resort guests. Also very easy to go back and forth to the resort during the day for pool time, rests, dinner at City Walk, etc. I highly recommend staying on site at Universal especially for a short visit where you want to maximize your time!!

 

[Kivara]

Also, make sure you are pricing the Express Pass that you want. Not only will the price of the Express pass vary (can increase quite a bit when the parks are crowded), but the cheapest Express Passes are for one use per ride per day. The Express pass that is pricier (or free with a hotel stay at the 3 big hotels) is the unlimited Express Pass. You can use it as many times as you want on the rides that accept it for that day.