9 Days in Orlando - How to split time at WDW and UO

[zpannell]

I'm in the very early planning stages of a trip from Thursday January 27, 2022 - Sunday February 6, 2022 for two people in their 30s. Right now the plan is to go to Universal for 2 days and WDW for 7 days (maybe 6 plus a full day of rest). I've been to WDW probably a dozen times in my life and can't get enough of it, but my travelling partner hasn't ever been so there will be plenty for us to do. Both of us have been to Universal once, but I haven't seen the WWoHP. We're trying to decide how to split the trip up and if it's worth switching hotels during the trip.

Do you think I should plan for 2 nights at a Universal area hotel (one of the Endless Summer hotels most likely) or stay at WDW (Pop Century most likely) and Uber/Lyft to Universal on the two days we decide to go? It should be noted that if we stay at two locations over the course of the trip, that means that the Universal visit will fall on a Friday and Saturday - we'll either do it before or after Disney World. I'm trying to weigh the benefit of going during the week when it's likely less crowded (like we'd be able to if we stayed at the Disney resort the whole time) vs. early park hours, staying near the park, ~$150 in savings (due to not having to Uber from WDW twice round-trip and the hotel at Endless Summer being slightly cheaper), but having to go on a Friday and Saturday (when I assume it will be more crowded than mid-week). I assume the dates we're going will keep the crowds away compared to the summer, but who knows what travel will look like by then. I don't plan to get an Express pass or stay anywhere that will give me one.

Decisions, decisions. Looking for any thoughts and opinions that could help guide me. Much appreciated.

 

[bchbetha]

I’d do at least 3 Universal days. And I would stay at one of the hotels that include Express Passes (Hard Rock, Portofino or Royal Pacific). I would not stay at Endless Summer. And put your Universal days at the end of your trip so you end on a relaxing note. Definitely don’t shortchange Universal. It needs more than 2 days.

 

[cfoxga]

Agreed on 3 days at the end of your trip, staying onsite. The cost of annual passes for UO is not much more than 2-day park-to-park tickets, and they open up the APH rates. That should get RPR in the $200-250 range. Having the EPs and being within walking distance of the parks/CityWalk is a fantastic way to end your trip...

 

[RamblingMad]

You need three days for Universal. I'd stay on property at Universal.

 

[nkereina]

We are also two adults in our 30s. We always do a split stay between Universal and WDW. We have done it where we've just Ubered from WDW, and do not enjoy it as much. Staying on-site at Universal gives you the benefit of EE and the split stay makes it feel like two vacations in one. Plus, the Universal resorts are gorgeous and are just as nice (or nicer) than WDW resorts. We always choose to stay at one of the premier properties that includes EPs, which ends up being a great value for us and helps us to enjoy the Universal portion of our trip at a relaxed pace. For this reason, we always do Universal at the end of our trip which is a nice reprieve from the go-go-go of WDW.

I agree with PPs that 3 days would be ideal to do everything at Universal at a slower pace, and possibly allowing some pool time as well - some of the Universal resorts have awesome pools! But, I know that I always like to have 5-6 days for WDW since there is more to do there, and I always enjoy a rest day mid-trip. So, I could go either way on it, but I would agree that 3 days at Universal is ideal for essentially first time visitors.

 

[shawthorne44]

The advantage of getting an AP is that you can do half days at Universal and skip the rest day. You won't feel like you are wasting park time.

You'd be going at a traditionally low crowd time. In fact, we did then in 2020 for that reason. Of course, I suspect that all of 2022 will be very crowded.

 

[angryduck71]

So, I'm 49 and I'm going with my son, who is 14, for 9 days. Spending 4 days at Disney as my son loves Universal more, but I insisted on at least 4 days. (we are staying one night at AK villa and three nights at Boardwalk villas). Have a Universal AP and doing 5 days there. Staying at Royal Pacific with AP discount. An, of course, Universal last as more relaxing.

 

[puffkin]

In July/August we did 4 nights at HRH and 6 nights at AKV. We did arrive late our first night (Thursday) and leave early our last day, which wasn't necessarily the best use of our dollars/points. However with COVID we were very concerned about easy and stress free and wanted to minimize our exposure by staying in as few places as possible. It was WONDERFUL! We had 3 full day at Universal, which was perfect as it is so much more relaxed there and we were learning all the COVID ropes. Our check out day, we hit the parks for a few hours in the morning and let the kids pick their last favorite rides and had a leisurely lunch. We had upgraded our tickets to AP's so we didn't have to worry about using park days. Then we headed over to AKV once we got the text our room was ready. I cannot stand waiting around for a room so this was perfect for us! The family settled into the resort and hit the pool while I ran to grab groceries and curbside dinner. That was our "rest" day. The rest of the week we did Disney parks (1 day at each park, 2 at MK). We left early Sunday morning for our flight home.

In 40 or so trips to Disney/Orlando theme parks, this was BY FAR our best trip EVER. We had an absolutely fabulous time. We are doing a similar trip next month, but splitting our time between Seaworld parks and Universal.

 

[cfoxga]

In July/August we did 4 nights at HRH and 6 nights at AKV. We did arrive late our first night (Thursday) and leave early our last day, which wasn't necessarily the best use of our dollars/points. However with COVID we were very concerned about easy and stress free and wanted to minimize our exposure by staying in as few places as possible. It was WONDERFUL! We had 3 full day at Universal, which was perfect as it is so much more relaxed there and we were learning all the COVID ropes. Our check out day, we hit the parks for a few hours in the morning and let the kids pick their last favorite rides and had a leisurely lunch. We had upgraded our tickets to AP's so we didn't have to worry about using park days. Then we headed over to AKV once we got the text our room was ready. I cannot stand waiting around for a room so this was perfect for us! The family settled into the resort and hit the pool while I ran to grab groceries and curbside dinner. That was our "rest" day. The rest of the week we did Disney parks (1 day at each park, 2 at MK). We left early Sunday morning for our flight home.

In 40 or so trips to Disney/Orlando theme parks, this was BY FAR our best trip EVER. We had an absolutely fabulous time. We are doing a similar trip next month, but splitting our time between Seaworld parks and Universal.

Looking back, would you recommend doing Disney or Universal first? I've never done both in one trip, but I find Universal more relaxing. So it seems like it is better to do last. Just curious what your experience was...

 

[zpannell]

Thanks to everyone here. You've all given me a lot to consider. Seems like at least three days is the way to go. I'll probably try to start the vacation a day earlier so that we get that time in if I had to guess. Though I will say that the thought about the annual passes not costing much more plus the benefit of the AP discount on RPR stays makes it very tempting to go for two days with express passes and then if we feel like going while staying at WDW we could always Uber that day to visit albeit without express passes.

 

[puffkin]

Looking back, would you recommend doing Disney or Universal first? I've never done both in one trip, but I find Universal more relaxing. So it seems like it is better to do last. Just curious what your experience was...

The reason we did it this way was that we were at Universal over the weekend with Express pass and Disney on weekdays, so hoping for less crowds. When we had gone, pretty much all the parks were closing by 6pm so it was pretty relaxing at both places. I'm of the opinion that the order probably doesn't matter that much though. Our next trip is a split Universal and SeaWorld/Aquatica/Discovery Cove trip and we are doing the SeaWorld stuff first and Universal last.

 

[Erica Ladd]

Thanks to everyone here. You've all given me a lot to consider. Seems like at least three days is the way to go. I'll probably try to start the vacation a day earlier so that we get that time in if I had to guess. Though I will say that the thought about the annual passes not costing much more plus the benefit of the AP discount on RPR stays makes it very tempting to go for two days with express passes and then if we feel like going while staying at WDW we could always Uber that day to visit albeit without express passes.

remember that a 2 night stay at RPR means 3 full days of EP (of course depending on when you arrive/depart)

 

[soniam]

2 full days, so probably really 3 nights is a minimum. 3 days is really better, then you could have more time to hang out by the pool, go to Citywalk, or visit a restaurant/bar at a hotel. Stay at a deluxe hotel to get the Express Pass.

 

[LolaNJoe]

Do Disney first! Especially if you stay at a USO resort with unlimited express pass and the water taxi, you will be SPOILED and Disney will feel like a drag. We have done it both ways and will never do USO first again. Going from waiting in lines and long transport times to very few lines and a water taxi is night and day. We love RPR.

 

[Kickstart]

We did a Universal/Disney split many years back (7-8 years ago?)- staying at HRH - but did Universal first, as that was suggested to us at the time.

The case for Universal first was (is?) Disney's execution and attention to detail is superior to Universal, so leaving the Disney bubble and going Universal would be disappointing.... just not as "magical".

We did HRH at Universal and Contemporary at WDW. At that time the Contemporary was refreshed only a few years before (I believe) so we didn't feel a downgrade (except the pool was far far superior at HRH). We also loved the history of it being one of the original WDW resorts, and also enjoyed renting those little motorboats - so except for the pool, we liked the Contemporary better.

I can definitely see the argument for WDW first. We haven't been back to Universal since, but recently went back to WDW (Fall 2019) - I remember feeling like it was the most stressful and the least value-for-our-money trips compared to all or our previous WDW trips. Maybe nowadays it's better to do WDW first. Something I'll have to think about as we were planning on doing another U/WDW split stay in 2022.

 

[SwanVT2]

We are in the same predicament but DH does not want to transfer resorts mid trip. We are looking at Feb. 2022. We really like staying on Disney property and renting points at DVC. We want to stay at OKW for something new and we like going to DS for dinner. We were thinking of taking Uber to Universal on 3 different days..we did this in 2020 with Sea World while staying at SSR and it worked out well. But now everyone is talking about the ease of staying on property at Universal (I have never done Universal) so I'm torn. DD really wants to stay on Disney property, too! Decisions!

 

[Erica Ladd]

We are in the same predicament but DH does not want to transfer resorts mid trip. We are looking at Feb. 2022. We really like staying on Disney property and renting points at DVC. We want to stay at OKW for something new and we like going to DS for dinner. We were thinking of taking Uber to Universal on 3 different days..we did this in 2020 with Sea World while staying at SSR and it worked out well. But now everyone is talking about the ease of staying on property at Universal (I have never done Universal) so I'm torn. DD really wants to stay on Disney property, too! Decisions!

Make the switch! I’ve never done a split stay either at just Disney or Disney/universal but it’s a great way to get 2 vacations! When APs return to Disney and more normalcy that’s definitely what we will do... a stay at each

 

[Dano the Pirate]

We do still trips twice a year, spring just to get away and fall for Halloween Horrors and MNSSHP which looks like it will be back in some form this year.
We usually do 3 days at UO (annual 2 park premier pass) and 4 at WDW. We don’t get the WDW AP because we stay on propert. This year we will be at the Wilderness Lodge in the fall.

 

[bchbetha]

We are in the same predicament but DH does not want to transfer resorts mid trip. We are looking at Feb. 2022. We really like staying on Disney property and renting points at DVC. We want to stay at OKW for something new and we like going to DS for dinner. We were thinking of taking Uber to Universal on 3 different days..we did this in 2020 with Sea World while staying at SSR and it worked out well. But now everyone is talking about the ease of staying on property at Universal (I have never done Universal) so I'm torn. DD really wants to stay on Disney property, too! Decisions!

It s absolutely worth the small amount of time to pack up and move. Think of how much of a time waster it is to go back and forth. Plus all the onsite perks at Universal really add to a nice trip.

 

[SWDisfan]

I'm in the very early planning stages of a trip from Thursday January 27, 2022 - Sunday February 6, 2022 for two people in their 30s. Right now the plan is to go to Universal for 2 days and WDW for 7 days (maybe 6 plus a full day of rest). I've been to WDW probably a dozen times in my life and can't get enough of it, but my travelling partner hasn't ever been so there will be plenty for us to do. Both of us have been to Universal once, but I haven't seen the WWoHP. We're trying to decide how to split the trip up and if it's worth switching hotels during the trip.

Do you think I should plan for 2 nights at a Universal area hotel (one of the Endless Summer hotels most likely) or stay at WDW (Pop Century most likely) and Uber/Lyft to Universal on the two days we decide to go? It should be noted that if we stay at two locations over the course of the trip, that means that the Universal visit will fall on a Friday and Saturday - we'll either do it before or after Disney World. I'm trying to weigh the benefit of going during the week when it's likely less crowded (like we'd be able to if we stayed at the Disney resort the whole time) vs. early park hours, staying near the park, ~$150 in savings (due to not having to Uber from WDW twice round-trip and the hotel at Endless Summer being slightly cheaper), but having to go on a Friday and Saturday (when I assume it will be more crowded than mid-week). I assume the dates we're going will keep the crowds away compared to the summer, but who knows what travel will look like by then. I don't plan to get an Express pass or stay anywhere that will give me one.

Decisions, decisions. Looking for any thoughts and opinions that could help guide me. Much appreciated.

Recently did this! We normally do WDW first but switched it up this time so that UO was on the weekend and WDW was more week days. However, my number one tip is DEFINITELY stay at a deluxe UO resort. Portofino is our favorite! Like coming home to Italy every night. More importantly it gives you the express passes. With those passes you easily do UO in 2 days. We did a 4 night (4 day pass) because it was a buy 2 get 2 free...just really didn’t need. After 2 days we were ready for Disney! Although riding Hagrids every day was awesome! We just used Uber to transfer from UO to Our WDW resort. I would never rent a car and pay $40/night when Uber is fast, convenient, and a lot less!! I agree with someone who said save UO for later because going from express passes to lines is awful. It is. Until Disney brings back fast passes it’s a hard pass for me! Have a great time!!!