Any recommendations for a hotel near Universal?

[bethnburke]

I am going to Orlando in late January for 10 days for my sons 3rd birthday. We are spending the first 6 nights at the All Star Movies (my son is a Buzz Lightyear nut) and are planning on staying the last 4 nights near Universal. We arent planning on having a car so we are looking for something close that is clean and kid friendly. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks
Beth

 

[PattiPB]

1. Check out the Universal boards---people are great!

2. Consider staying on-site. At about $109 at the Royal Pacific in January, you have FOTL for every ride, a great pool, and boat service to the parks.

3. Major Boulevard has a number of decent hotels w/ continental breakfast and shuttle service if you want it. I've stayed at Sleep Inn and Suites and Red Roof Inn. Check Hotelkingdom.com for good prices. I-drive is close, too, and has restaurants within walking distance.

4. Almost NO hotel is "walking distance" to Universal, so beware of any hotel that tell you it is (except onsite).

5. If it's just you two, and you'll have a car, I'd consider priceline in the Universal area.

Good luck!

Patti

 

[cinamin27]

If you dont want to stay onsite Universal, I really really enjoyed our stay at the Homewood Suites on Hospitality Way, about a 3 or 4 minute drive to Universal & can see IOA from your window if your room is facing I4. Here's a mini review I posted on someone else's thread, check out my glowing comments:

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=455723

 

[zaxmom]

I would really, really try to stay on site at Universal. Any of their hotels would be great. The front of the line access is awesome. I have gone there twice with it and twice without it. I will never stay off site when going there. Especially with a kid that age, it is so hard for them to wait in line. Plus, their hotels are awesome. We stayed at the Portofino one night and liked it quite a bit. Last time we stayed 4 nights at the Hard Rock with our 4 and 2 year old sons. The staff was incredible. The pool was awesome. My children were treated so well, I could not believe it. My son still talks about it. They liked the boat ride that takes you to the parks, also. Everyone was so nice and friendly, I never felt out of place with little kids there like I thought I might. They were given gifts at check-in and a toy on their pillow every night. We did not even buy any souveniers! We brought cereal bars and such for breakfast and ate at CityWalk a lot. You might be able to get a discount with an Entertainment card like we did. Check out the Universal Resorts board. It is so close and convenient to the parks, and with front of the line, it makes for a relaxing, fun time. Pay more if you have to and stay on site for the front of the line access, it is invaluable.

 

[maci]

We were just there and stayed at the radisson at the entrance to Universal. We really enjoyed it, it is the closest hotel that is not on-site. The rooms were pretty big. Huge comapred to ASmovies. We did your trip in reverse! 2 nights at universal 7 at asmovies.
Also, universal have express passes you can buy that are good for front of the line one time at each ride. We bought these and LOVED them! For being Disney nuts we realy enjoyed IOA and the Radisson. We got a good deal through expedia, couldnt spring for the onsite hotels all though they are gorgeous!!!!

Have fun!

 

[lindsey]

Did you use the shuttle to Universal from the Radisson?

 

[maci]

No, we had our own car, so we just used it. If we had not had 2 small kids with us, we probably would have walked!

 

[bethnburke]

We would love to stay on site if we can afford it. I am waiting for the ent or fan club rates to come out. Where have you seen rates of $109 for January? The lowest I have seen is $169 at hotelkingdom.

I also looked into the Radisson at Universal but the best rate I have seen is $129.

I think I probably need to wait a little longer before I book anything -- but I am a planner so it is killing me!

 

[maci]

Have you tried expedia? That is where we booked through for the Radisson...I think we got it for 69 a night.

 

[bethnburke]

I checked Expedia and they definatley have the best rates - $61 / night for my dates. I think we might just book at the Radisson - it sounds like the best option since we wont have a car.

Thanks everyone for all your help.
Beth

 

[Robinrs]

Hi, Beth:

I definitely prefer being onsite but the end of January is off season so you can deal with the off sites that time of year.

I stayed at the Radisson on my very first trip to Orlando. Great hotel! It's still a great deal as a 3 star on Priceline also.

The shuttle was slow but the taxis were only a 3 to 4 dollar drive away. I preferred them to the shuttles anyday.

 

[bethnburke]

What is the walk from the Radisson to US like? Do you have to cross a major highway? Is there a place for pedestrians to cross?

Im not willing to try Priceline since we want to make sure we are close enough to walk and Im not sure how many hotels are within walking distance. With 2 small kids it is almost impossible for us to get anywhere at a set time!

Does $61 / night seem like a good rate? It is the best I have found by a lot.

Thanks for all your help
Beth

 

[LJP]

Hi Beth -

DH and I stayed at the Radisson 4 years ago. We took the shuttle on one occasion but got the times wrong another day and decided to walk. If you're going with kids then I wouldn't recommend it. We had to walk/ run across a major road - the countdown clock at the crossing lights did not give you long and we're both relatively fit. We just made it to the middle of the road and then had to wait for the lights to cross the rest of it. There did not seem to be any pedestrian access and infact we ended up going through the car park at the end of the day - almost got totally lost and ended up having to go down fairly steep banks at the other side!!
It was a nice hotel but I would opt for the safer option of shuttle bus/car. Have fun.

 

[bethnburke]

Thanks for the warning. Are the any hotels close enough to walk that dont require dashing across a major hwy?

 

[zaxmom]

I don't know for sure, but I don't think there is anything in walking distance really. The main road that the parks are on is a pretty big one. I would find out which hotel has the best shuttle times if I were you. I would not take my kids on that road.

 

[bethnburke]

We decided to book at t he Radisson. They do have shuttle service and it seems to get good reviews from a lot of people. Its not thr RPH but $400 can buy a lot of Spiderman and Cat in the Hat souveniors!

 

[jj1999]

You may want to consider the Fairfield Inn at Univeral which is by Marriott. Call the hotel directly and ask for the "Magicard" rate of $49.00 per night. It includes a continental breakfast is a quarter mile from Universal and has a free shuttle. Given that you're going in January, the crowds shouldn't be an issue. I'm sorry I don't have the hotel number handy but you can call 1-800-MARRIOTT to get the number. BTW, Marriott reservations can't give you this price, you need to call the hotel directly and ask for it. II think all Marriott hotels are terrific - very clean and predictable.

 

[ColUK]

Ive stayed at the Radisson 6 times now and will be there again for New Years Eve. Booked the last 2 times through Paramount Travel and got it at $69 + tax for new year. I have heard that it will be changing to a DoubleTree shortly but not sure when.
The shuttle only covers about 6 hotels around Major Blvd. Going to Universal the Radisson is the first pickup so there shouldn't be a problem getting a seat. It takes about 25 mins to get to Universal. On the way back its the first stop so you get back quickly. The early evening buses can be very busy as the parks empty so dont leave it to the last minute.
As for walking... I nearly always walk to the parks from the hotel. You have to cross Kirkman road which is a bit daunting the first time but just wait for the walk light and set off. Be warned that the walk light starts flashing within a few seconds, certainly before you get halfway. Dont worry as I think this is meant to deter people running onto the crossing. You DO have enough time to cross safely. There is a path all the way to Universal which comes out by the side of the preffered parking. Its probably just over 1 mile from the hotel to the escalators at Universal.
The hotel is also served by the I Ride so getting to I Drive is easy without a car now as well. Multi day tickets are available from the universal ticket desk in the hotel.

 

[bethnburke]

Thank you for the information. It makes me feel a lot better about my choice. I am glad that we have a real option of walking since we never seem to get out the door when we planned. My sson is used to going on hikes so the 1 mile wont be a big deal for him.

 

[stal]

Hi, we stayed at the Holiday Inn, just accross the road from the Radisson. We walked to Universal everytime. The only bad part was crossing the road because of the short time. You go up the entrance of Universal, then walk down Universal Blvd, walking opposite the Hard Rock Hotel on one side and the car park on the other. We then got to the valet parking place and went up the stairs from there and got on the moving walk ways.

I think that is right anyway....