Are onsite hotels worth it?

[oregondisneyfans]

The front of the line pass looks very enticing especially since it is our first trip to Universal and we are only going to be there 2 days in the parks. Is it similar to fastpass lines at Disney? 15-20 minute wait times??? Any advice on packages versus room + tickets is greatly appreciated. We are planning for August 2011

 

[Ethan's dad]

Express is definitely a huge benefit, at least during busier periods. Much shorter lines. Although it is more expensive, it also is nice being onsite and being able to get to/from the parks easily. I recommend it, if you can swing it financially (depending on when you go I've found prices often aren't terribly much more than other decent hotels nearby).

Can't say much on packages, other than that they rarely save much money overall - especially when you can get cheaper ticket packages elsewhere through AAA or discounters (like mapleleaf) it usually makes more sense to book room and tickets separately.

 

[damo]

Staying onsite changes the experience. With one night's stay, you get two full days of express access. I recommend it to everyone.

 

[mjohnson96]

We now have 2 kids and with small children the benefits of the hotel are well worth any price difference imo. Our last trip was during opening week of WWOHP and at one point we went to ride Spider Man, the wait was 90 minutes but we were on in 5.

Right now the extra hour in the morning you get at WWOHP can be a huge plus so you can get that first ride and Olivanders out of the way before the day crowds hit. We did that one morning and when we left the area the line to get in started at Cat in the Hat and wrapped all the way around the park. (4 hour wait)

We also take advantage of the fact that we can head over to the hotel for naps and some pool time without having to travel that far. They encourage pool hopping so if you stay at one resort you can use the pools at all 3, so we usually will take at least a half day to just pool hop and have fun.

If you can get a AAA, FL Res, or AP rate that are pretty good for short stays. The Stay More Save More can get you a really good rate for longer stays.

 

[thumbalyna]

we love staying onsite - i just couldnt afford it this year so we are staying at my moms timeshare it was either that or not make HHN at all and since i missed it last year i was making sure that didnt happen again

 

[oregondisneyfans]

I think I will look at doing room and tickets separate then. This is probably the only time we will be coming to Florida so I want to get to Universal and get the most of it. On site it is as the rest of our time we will be at Disney World. I am sure over the next few months I will be on here to ask many more questions. Thanks for the quick input from everyone!

 

[beccamarie]

I absolutely think the hotels are worth it! We were on all the rides in five minutes or less. The public wait times were over an hour the day we were there. We got to ride Forbidden Journey twice before the public came in at 9:00. Also, you can ride as many times as you want with Express Pass on each ride (you can only ride once if you buy it). The hotels are amazingly beautiful and it is really fun to take the boat taxis to the parks. City Walk is a great place to eat at, too. I am very happy with my experience there!

 

[ZYanksRule]

Here's another thing to think about.

I stayed offsite last week for 5 nights and bought a 3-day VIP pass. That ended up being cheaper than staying on-site. It was about a $100 difference. I stayed at the Hyatt, which is across the street from the Universal parking garage.

I think if you went during the cheaper times it would be more cost efficient to stay onsite, but it may be cheaper to stay offsite and buy a VIP pass (which is the ticket you get with an onsite hotel)

 

[lamb616]

i wish they had less expensive hotel options. I'm planning our Orlando trip for Feb. and am staying at WDW for the first part of the trip and wanted to spend the last 2-3 nts. at a Universal resort. I'm paying $245-$275/nt. for a suite at WDW. A suite at Universal for those dates................... 539-$559. I cannot bring myself to pay $300 extra per night!! Come on, Universal, give us something we can work with!

 

[schumigirl]

We love the onsite experience.

We had 2 weeks in RPR last year and loved it so much we had booked for this year within 2 weeks of coming home.

The unlimited express pass is a fantastic perk of staying in one of the hotels, but the hotels themselves are beautiful. The restaurants are wonderful and we just love every minute we spend in the hotel, very relaxing and friendly.

Not stayed at the others but had a wander round them.

Only trouble is now we don`t want to stay anywhere else.....and counting the minutes till October this year

So yes the Universal hotels are worth every penny...or cent

 

[jpeppers]

I see you are in oregon, I go to orlando from Washington and can't emphasize enough how great the on site perks are. It is so great to not have to wait in line. It is much better than Disney's fast pass. I have taken the red eye quite a few times and hit Orlando around 7:30 am and I'm checked into the hotel and in the parks by 9 am with no waiting in line for rides.......awesome. The hotels are also fantastic, great pools, great transportation and a very short walk to the parks. If you only plan to go once, do it right and stay on site!

 

[vettegirl]

We visited for the first time in May and stayed at the HRH and it was worth every single penny. It was so nice to stroll over to Citiwalk and the parks and the hotel itself was amazing. The room was huge and the I loved the whole rock n roll vibe of the hotel. Also the FOTL pass was well worth it!

 

[Lewisc]

i wish they had less expensive hotel options. I'm planning our Orlando trip for Feb. and am staying at WDW for the first part of the trip and wanted to spend the last 2-3 nts. at a Universal resort. I'm paying $245-$275/nt. for a suite at WDW. A suite at Universal for those dates................... 539-$559. I cannot bring myself to pay $300 extra per night!! Come on, Universal, give us something we can work with!

The Universal hotels are generally considered to be a step above Disney deluxe resorts (including the GF). A suite at a deluxe Disney hotel starts at $700.

I'm not sure what kind of suite you're getting at Disney for $250 per night but i's' probably not comparable to a suite in a Universal hotel. The price you're paying sounds like rack rate at an All-Star family suite. Universal has a limited amount of land (compared to Disney) and doesn't offer value or moderate hotels.

 

[spima3]

I know everybody who "stays" on-site recommends doing so . But that is one crazy price even for one night and not a budget friendly experience.

IF you're going in the busy season I can see you would pretty much have to do so or not bother going to US/IOA to begin with.

However, if it's not a busy time, say Sept or Oct, what is the benefit of spending so much money? (to me, $100/night is the absolute top price I ever want to pay for a hotel room)
I don't care about the pools or how nice the hotel is, not interested in the terrific restaurants either.

So the only benefit I see is the FOTL. Is it really that busy during this time period that you NEED FOTL?

 

[lamb616]

The Universal hotels are generally considered to be a step above Disney deluxe resorts (including the GF). A suite at a deluxe Disney hotel starts at $700.

I'm not sure what kind of suite you're getting at Disney for $250 per night but i's' probably not comparable to a suite in a Universal hotel. The price you're paying sounds like rack rate at an All-Star family suite. Universal has a limited amount of land (compared to Disney) and doesn't offer value or moderate hotels.

yes, it's the All Star suite. I'm hoping (expecting) a good deal will come out and we'll pay even less than the $250/nt. so that's another reason I couldn't justify paying that much more for Universal. We don't really care how fancy the hotel is; it will just be sleeping. we just like a separate sleeping area for the kids. Maybe someday Universal will come out with less expensive options.

 

[Lewisc]

I understand some people don't want to pay more then $100 /night for a hotel room. Some for budget reasons. Some aren't looking for more then a clean place to sleep.

The difference between the All-Star hotels and the Universal Hotels is greater then the difference between the All-Star hotels and the GF. You'd never expect to get the GF for the same price as the All-Stars. It's not realistic to compare the All-Stars with the Universal hotels.

Universal Vacations offer packages which include a variety of offsite hotels. Those hotels are closer to the Universal theme parks then the All-Stars is to the MK. Some of the partner hotels offer free breakfast.

edited to add at least some of the on site hotels will sleep 5. Some families might normally get two value rooms (or a value suite) at Disney but settle for one room at Universal for a night or two.

 

[linnylu]

Our family will be going to Universal in March of 2011. I would like to stay onsite. We will have a family of 7. Which hotel is going to be the least expensive? Will we have to get 2 rooms? The ages will be 8, 12, 14, 16, 18, and 2 adults.

 

[tfoster]

Our family will be going to Universal in March of 2011. I would like to stay onsite. We will have a family of 7. Which hotel is going to be the least expensive? Will we have to get 2 rooms? The ages will be 8, 12, 14, 16, 18, and 2 adults.

Yes, you will need 2 rooms. The Royal Pacific will be the least expensive. We are a family of 6 and needed to get two rooms (though I still think it's ridiculous that the 800 sq ft kid's suite at Hard Rock can't legitimately accommodate 6!). We ended up at Portofino Bay with the stay more save more rate of $182 per night per room.

I keep wondering if we should switch to Royal Pacific for $149 per night per room to save $350 or so, but so far we haven't. That $350 would basically be a trip to the Blue Man Group, so I've been debating whether it's best to have that money go towards a nicer hotel to enjoy for 5 nights or to go towards one evening's entertainment.

 

[Lewisc]

I keep wondering if we should switch to Royal Pacific for $149 per night per room to save $350 or so, but so far we haven't. That $350 would basically be a trip to the Blue Man Group, so I've been debating whether it's best to have that money go towards a nicer hotel to enjoy for 5 nights or to go towards one evening's entertainment.

The pool at PBH has a slide and the PBH has a spa. I'd stick with the PBH if you're planning on having spa services while your family is enjoying the pool. Otherwise I'd save the money and stay the the RPH. Both are deluxe hotels. Both provide excellent service.

 

[mjohnson96]

Yes, you will need 2 rooms. The Royal Pacific will be the least expensive. We are a family of 6 and needed to get two rooms (though I still think it's ridiculous that the 800 sq ft kid's suite at Hard Rock can't legitimately accommodate 6!). We ended up at Portofino Bay with the stay more save more rate of $182 per night per room.

I keep wondering if we should switch to Royal Pacific for $149 per night per room to save $350 or so, but so far we haven't. That $350 would basically be a trip to the Blue Man Group, so I've been debating whether it's best to have that money go towards a nicer hotel to enjoy for 5 nights or to go towards one evening's entertainment.

Some things to consider would be the space, PBH has larger rooms so if you have a larger family then there is more space to spread out. PBH also has balconies if you are lucky to get one, but lately we have heard of the famous ant problem .

You can always pool hop so if you are wanting to slide you can always take the shuttle, boat, or walk over to the other hotel pools that have a slide.

Distance to park, RPR would be closest to IOA and the WWOHP

Now, in our case we usually stay at RPR but when we go in February we will be getting 2 rooms at PBH instead because my mom would like to try for a room with a balcony.