In hopes of giving back to the board in some small way, let me share the Annual Pass strategy I used successfully last month, during a four-night stay at the Hard Rock Hotel.
1.) Four months prior to trip - I reserved two rooms at APH rate, via the loewshotels website.
2.) Three months out - I Purchased one Preferred Annual Pass via the official universal website.
3.) One month out - I Purchased three discounted 4-day park-to-park tickets at my local
AAA office. The price was very close, but slightly higher than
Undercover Tourist. I wanted to lock in my ticket prices, as I was ( justifiably, it seems
) nervous about ticket price hikes prior to my trip. We had a total of five in our party, but I deliberately left myself one to purchase in Orlando, in case HRH insisted on two APs to get the APH rate on two rooms.
4.) At check in, I was not asked for proof I had an annual pass. This was a relief, considering multiple Universal reservationists had insisted I would need one AP per room reserved at the APH rate.
5.) At the ticketing counter in the HRH lobby, I activated my Preferred Annual Pass purchased at step 2 above. It was a completely automated process through a kiosk, but there was a helpful attendant there to answer my questions as well. I now had my physical, credit-card-sized annual pass, printed on tyvek "paper".
6.) I was prepared to purchase the one remaining multi-day ticket I needed from the kiosk / ticket counter, but the the honest attendant stopped me, confiding that I would save a few more dollars by purchasing the ticket at the park ticket window, so that I could use the 15% AP discount. Nice guy! I believe tickets may be purchased at the hotel lobby for the same discount offered on the official Universal website, but I am not certain.
7.) Once our group had freshened up from our travels a bit, we made the ten minute walk to the entrance of Universal Studios. At the ticket window, I showed my newly-activated AP and purchased one 4-day park-to-park at a 15% discount. I paid with an American Express, and was told I was now eligible to use the AMEX lounge in the park. As it turned out, we never used the lounge, or even SAW it for that matter.
8.) Throughout our stay, I used the AP repeatedly for food and merch discounts. We saved $60-$70, on things we would have purchased either way, I would say. Coupled with the steep room discounts, buying a least one AP is a no-brainer.
I will confess that I entered our Universal trip with a heavy pro-Disney bias, but Universal totally won me over with it's world-class attractions, particularly the WWoHP, which definitely lived up to the hype. We mixed in a day at
Legoland, and a day at SeaWorld, and had a wonderful vacation. The Hard Rock was a true luxury experience every bit as nice as the two Disney Deluxe resorts ( AKL and WL ) that I have personally experienced. Disney can't beat the convenience of being an easy walk from the theme parks and Citywalk restaurants, not to mention the amazing perk that is Universal Express!
I can't wait to return to Universal Orlando, but I wouldn't go back until my youngest child hits the magical height of 48" and doesn't have to sit out on so many rides.
I am very grateful for the wonderful tips and advice I received from this message board, particularly from damo, macraven, and metro west. We had a wonderful time, saved a bundle, and I looked like a trip-planning genius
, all thanks to the information I gleaned here.
Thanks
