Anyone skipping WDW and ONLY going to Universal this year?

[mefordis]

Well, I am crunching the numbers and I think it would be so much cheaper for us just to go to Universal and stay at the HRH for 7 nights, and take one night out to go to MNSSHP, than to do a split stay. We need 2 rooms for our family so we'd just stay in the kid's suite at HRH. They are running a 40% off special so it would be a little over $300.

Anyone else thinking of skipping WDW and just going to Universal? I think between the HRH pool and the two theme parks we'd have enough to do for 5 full days (I don't count the day traveling there or going home since we leave early). We'd take a car service to MNSSHP, I think. Not sure how much that would be, though.

Any opinions on this plan? I'm wondering if we would regret it.

 

[damo]

We figured out a long time ago that just sticking to Universal was cheaper and, for us, way more fun.

 

[mefordis]

We figured out a long time ago that just sticking to Universal was cheaper and, for us, way more fun.

No kidding cheaper. I just called and priced a 6 night / 2 room/ 3 adult 2 kid package 4 days of parks for $2690 at the HRH.

I'm thinking we could take a taxi or rent a car for a day and go over to WDW for MNSSHP for one of the days. Ever go over to WDW for a day or two while at Universal?

 

[FINFAN]

we got a PIN for RPR for 125 a night, and bought the $99 tix thru AAA a while back...so for resort and tix, 6 nights/7 days for us is under $1300 ( family of 4) for us to hit SWW over at WDW is adding ALMOST as much....we are doing both, but I keep telling myself only doing the USO part is so much more economical! Sheeeesh, airfare is over $1000 lsat time I checked!

 

[mefordis]

I'm sorry, what is SWW? When will you be going? We are going last week of Sept. I wonder how crowds are at that time.

we got a PIN for RPR for 125 a night, and bought the $99 tix thru AAA a while back...so for resort and tix, 6 nights/7 days for us is under $1300 ( family of 4) for us to hit SWW over at WDW is adding ALMOST as much....we are doing both, but I keep telling myself only doing the USO part is so much more economical! Sheeeesh, airfare is over $1000 lsat time I checked!

 

[glocon]

We are only doing WDW this year because of our free GAD tickets, and because we have enough disney visa points to pay for 2 nights at akl + food. Otherwise, we would not have gone to WDW at all. Our last trip was Universal and Seaworld, no Disney. Disney is magical, but so crowded and expensive. And the fotl passes at Universal just make our trip.

 

[vinvader]

When we go in October we're not going to be doing any Disney parks either, last year the only Disney we did was Epcot and Animal Kingdom, the year before only Animal Kingdom.

The parks we will be doing though are...
Islands of Adventure
Universal Studios
Sea World
Busch Gardens
Wet & Wild and Aquaticia

I couldn't even imagine going to Orlando without visiting the first 4!

 

[brenda1966]

Really not sure what to do. I find the room prices onsite at US prohibitive. And I don't have a history with them, so have no hopes for a pin. I can stay cheaper at a budget hotel at Disney and use magic express to get back to the airport.

We really enjoy epcot and have only been to a disney waterpark once, so are itching to go back to the water park. I had only planned on 2 days at US with one night stay, then 4 night stay at WDW, with 2 park days and 1 water park day. At the start of our trip we are going to stay at Cocoa beach and do the Kennedy Space center.

It's really so hard to know what to do! DD won't go on the big thrill rides at US, so I'm hoping two days is enough. Maybe we'll like it so much that next year we'll skip Disney or do more days at US.

 

[Nancy F]

I don't care much for Universal. We went once and that was enough for me.
Nancy

 

[Pink Flamingo]

Only did Universal last year (5 nights) & that's all we'll be doing again this year (7 nights). We could probably do/see everything we wanted in 2 or 3 days, but we enjoy taking things at leisurely & having time to relax and enjoy the resort hotel.

Love WDW, but as the kids have gotten older they have preferred Universal to WDW & the overall cost fits much better into our budget.

 

[Lucky4me]

We're staying in a six bedroom rental home in November for $900. We're going to Universal for four days and Disney for one, just for Mickeys Christmas party. The other two days are for shopping and hanging at the resort, which has some great amenities.
I'm not worried about missing Disney as much as I am worried about Harry Potter making Universal as crowded as Disney.

 

[Pink Flamingo]

I'm not worried about missing Disney as much as I am worried about Harry Potter making Universal as crowded as Disney.

I'm with you on that one. We'll be there 3 days after the grand opening of WWoHP (had no idea when we planned our vacation back in the fall). Now I'm glad we planned a 7 night stay, but I do hope that the crowds won't be too bad in the other areas of US & IOA (though I'm not holding my breath ). The smaller crowds have been one of the things I have really enjoyed about Universal.

 

[kathy884]

You could say we are (one time only most likely) switching from Disney to IOA to see Harry Potter stuff. We're going March 2011 over my son's spring break.

Our typical seven night / six day trip is usually consists of two days at Sea World, two resort days, one Disney theme park day, and one water park day. We prefer Disney to Universal and like Sea World best of all. This year, though, we are forgoing our Disney theme park day and doing IOA instead (very curious to see the HP theming -- really looks neat). To do at least do something Disney, though, for our water park, we will be doing Typhoon Lagoon.

 

[mom2aandj]

yes, we're only going to Universal in October. We did MNSSHP last Oct at Disney, so don't feel the need to go do that again this year. We'll probably wait until 2012 when most of the Fantasyland renovations are done and the new Star Tours is done to go to Disney again. I'm really excited to be going to Universal for the first time!

 

[FINFAN]

I'm sorry, what is SWW? When will you be going? We are going last week of Sept. I wonder how crowds are at that time.

sorry, SWW is for Star Wars Weekends at Disney Hollywood Studios..it is usually for 4 weekends from the last weekend in May thru 3 weekends in June.

 

[Tanzanite]

We are doing Universal this year did Disney in September .Looking forward to something different.

 

[drinkme]

We had ressies for WDW, and then I cancelled them for a Universal trip. We've never been to Universal, so this should be a fun trip. We all love HP, but I'm looking forward to the other rides. We're going in August, and staying 5 nights, so I'm planning on hanging out at the pool alot, too. This is a surprise bday trip for my ds9.

I'm just happy I won't be dealing with those WDW park buses!

 

[Metro West]

We are doing Universal this year did Disney in September .Looking forward to something different.

We had ressies for WDW, and then I cancelled them for a Universal trip. We've never been to Universal, so this should be a fun trip. We all love HP, but I'm looking forward to the other rides. We're going in August, and staying 5 nights, so I'm planning on hanging out at the pool alot, too. This is a surprise bday trip for my ds9.

I'm just happy I won't be dealing with those WDW park buses!

 

[Planogirl]

I'm just sticking to our practice of staying offsite and doing both. We generally split our park days almost evenly between Universal and WDW because WDW might have more parks but Universal is more fun and relaxing to me.

At least I hope that it stays that way! I'm all for Universal bringing in more people but I hope that WWOHP doesn't make IOA unbearably crowded, at least for a while.

 

[DCLMan]

We cancelled our Disney tickets and are just doing US/IOA and booked Discovery Cove with the money that we had saved. We got 14 days entry to Busch Gardens with the DC tickets so we are going there for the first time.