Newbie with general questions

[Rene23]

Hi! I'm trying to plan a 1.5 day pre-cruise visit to Universal with my family for this December. We were there 10 or so years ago, and stayed at the HRH - loved all of it.
There will be 6 of us this time, myself and DH, DD and friend, DS and friend - all in their 20's. The priority is to see the WWoHP, and a few of the other highlight rides. We really aren't on a mission to accomplish a whole lot more than that with the minimal time we have.

Questions:
We will be flying in on a Friday, mid-day. Would it be worth getting a 2 day pass and using the first day of it that late afternoon and evening? Or would we be able to hit both WWoHP and a few other highlights by just using 1-day passes on Saturday when we'd have the entire day and evening?

Aside from WWoHP, it sounds like FJ and Spiderman are other must-see rides.

I'd love to stay at HRH again, and I think the ages of our kids are perfect for that atmosphere, but since this is a bonus side-trip, and only for one night, I'm tempted to not spend that much money (or miles), and just stay at one of the less-expensive off-property hotels near Universal. I know we give up the express pass opportunity, but the great difference in hotel pricing makes me wonder if it's worth it to just buy those passes separately? Is there any way to know what the price of those would be in mid-December?

With 6 of us needing transportation from airport to hotel to parks, then eventually to Cape Canaveral for our cruise and back to airport again, I'm trying to work out the least expensive options. Any suggestions for an off-property hotel with good shuttle services between airport and the park?

I know it's a lot of questions, I have been researching but there is just so much out there! I'd appreciate any advice from the experts here.

 

[macraven]

are you going during the christmas season?
pre NYE ?
early december?

 

[Rene23]

We are looking at 12/14-12/16. I'm hoping the holiday crowds aren't too bad at that time.

are you going during the christmas season?
pre NYE ?
early december?

 

[macraven]

crowds will probably start after monday the 17th and build throughout that coming week.

usually mid december is a decent time.
low moderate crowds, nothing to be alarmed over.

the only issue is coming in on a weekend.
weekends, especially Saturdays, can be crowded.

think Magic Kingdom at the motherland.

so, go early to the park on tha saturday and wait til it opens.

i don't know about you, but i have a difficult time staying in a park past 7 pm if i have traveled that day.
if you don't have to leave the house early before dawn to make your connections, possibly staying in a park til it closes won't be an issue.

crossing my fingers for you.

do ioa /parry hotter in the last couple of hours that the park is open.
shouldn't be as crowded then.

use the single rider line for Spiderman if it is available.
less waits when you use that line.

same goes for all the rides that offer SRL.
utilize them as much as possible to avoid longer waits.

on saturday, don't eat during the normal dining hours to avoid crowds.

hope it all goes great for you at the darkside.
you'll enjoy parry hotter and spidey!

i would say the DoubleTree offsite is decent.
it is about a 15 minute walk from hotel to park.

a cab is about $5 from the park to doubletree.

you have 6 in your group so i don't know if you would have to have a van or could use a cab.

car service, Mears shuttle, taxi, one way car rental from the airport to the offsite hotel are the only options i can think of.

 

[Rene23]

Thank you for all the advice, macraven!

We would be coming in on Friday, so getting there when the park opens on Saturday and staying till close isn't a problem.

So you think staying at an off-site hotel and buying the express passes is feasible?

 

[macraven]

Thank you for all the advice, macraven!

We would be coming in on Friday, so getting there when the park opens on Saturday and staying till close isn't a problem.

So you think staying at an off-site hotel and buying the express passes is feasible?

unless some great promos or rates for the hotels come out for your dates, i would not think you will encounter the christmas season crowds.
you will have crowds on a saturday.
saturdays always have more peeps......

do not buy the express plus pass tickets until you are in the park.
you might not need them.
they are date and park designated and non refundable once you buy them.

there are no express lines for the Forbidden Journey ride.
no express of any type for the shops/ollivanders, restaurants, etc.

express is valid for Dueling dragons and hippograph rides.


you would get by cheaper by using the single rider lines though....



if you find the parks have long lines for the rides else where in ioa, then consider buying them if ride lines are extremely long.
you can only use the epp one time only per ride or show.


if you can be in the park mid afternoon on friday, that would help you cover some of the attractions.
then do a full day on saturday.


i quit staying off site for universal years back.
i preferred staying in one place the entire time.
i found i lost time by traveling from offsite to the parks and back.
i like to be situated and being able to go back to my room if i am tired and need a short break.
i couldn't do that if i stayed offsite.

i do my 8 days at the motherland resorts then transfer to the darkside resorts for 10 days.
this is what works best for me.

i do know and have friends that stay offsite and they feel ok with it.
since you have a short time period at universal, you should do it the way it will be best for all of you.

the advantage of staying onsite one night is you get 2 days of perks of unlimited usage of the express lines and early entry for Mr Pothead and Spiderman.
and, you don't have to rush in the morning to get to the parks.
you have a keurig in the room for morning coffee/tea/hot chocolate, can get breakfast muffins/food at the hotel.
just need to get dressed and go to the park....



can't help you with the cruise transportation but a few regular posters have knowledge on that.
maybe keishashadow will read your thread and help out with those questions.

 

[Rene23]

Thank you again for the information, macraven.

I'm still on the fence about whether to stay on property or off, but at least I feel more informed about both options. Glad to hear the crowds won't be too bad yet because of the holiday.

 

[macraven]

i can understand why you want to stay offsite.
there are 6 of you on the trip and you need 2 rooms for where ever you stay.
i am assuming you want to be offsite to save money.


staying onsite does have its advantages.
you check in on the friday afternoon.
chances are your rooms will be ready.

you can easily walk over to the parks for the rest of the afternoon and return back to the hotel.
you can use the water taxis to get back and forth from onsite hotel to parks/city walk.

the time you are spending on this travel from hotel to park could be less than 10 minutes in all.

if you stay offsite, it could be triple that time to commute to the parks.
(walking that is)

that saturday, you can sleep in and still get to the park for early entry if you stayed onsite.
the parks will be busy but you will be using the express lines for most rides and all shows.
you wouldn't be facing long wait lines then.

saturday evening you could have dinner at city walk or at the hotel and not need to think about your transportation back to the room.
if at city walk, you are a short walk or boat ride back to your onsite hotel.

the good part of staying on site is less down time for travel and having to rush.
you have a room that you can relax in if you want to take a break from the parks.
you also can eliminate park crowds for rides and shows.

everyone vacations differently.
some have to stay on a budget.
some don't.


one nice thing about staying on site gives you a peak of what the hotels and universal is all about.
some vacations are about having fun and trying new experiences.

if i had the itenary like you, i would want to simplify my schedule and go with what is less hectic but relaxing.


whatever you decide, i hope you all have fun!

 

[Rene23]

Well my DH says he REALLY wants to stay at the HRH again, so I guess I'll go ahead and splurge. I'm going to try and pay with miles, but it kills me to have to spend so much when it's really not supposed to be a very good use of miles. Oh well. I know we'll have a great time and it will be lot more convenient.