Are the parks better than the hotels?

[Nobody352]

As for the parks... its just a different beast.
You will love them for different reasons than you love Disney.
Most of the areas arent as immersive as Disney.
Some are MORE immersive than disney.
If you are looking for theming subversiveness you are going to love Seuss, Jurassic Park, Cartoon land, the lost continent and Harry Potter.
The rest of the areas may seem a bit out of sorts or jumbled together as compared to disney.
The majority of universal rides are going to be newer and exciting if you are ok with screens.
You will probably see a lack of character appearances.. but the ones that universal does have you will wait maybe 5 minutes tops to see... some you can walk right up to....
Another great thing is that you are going to have great dining options in city walk that is basically connected to the park vs. having to go all the way to disney spring for a decent meal.
Confisco grill etc. in the parks are IMO miles ahead of anything inside the disney parks too.
Disney is of course going to have better souvenirs and timeless characters etc., but it really saves me a ton with my kids.
they want maybe 4 or 5 things from universal each year.. a little minions.. a little e.t. etc. where as disney they want practically everything in the park.
the parades and night time shows are nowhere near disney.

BUT.. you are going to love universal.
Great rides.... and for the majority of attractions you can just move rather smoothly around the parks.
its not jammed packed with people.
Just dont go in trying to compare and contrast and just enjoy universal for what it does better than disney.
Convenience, thrills,food, and customer service.
Customer service from disney on its BEST days cannot be approached... but universal does a very good job EVERY day.
Those great customer service experiences at Disney are so few and far between now IMO.

 

[damo]

As for the parks... its just a different beast.
You will love them for different reasons than you love Disney.
Most of the areas arent as immersive as Disney.
Some are MORE immersive than disney.
If you are looking for theming subversiveness you are going to love Seuss, Jurassic Park, Cartoon land, the lost continent and Harry Potter.
The rest of the areas may seem a bit out of sorts or jumbled together as compared to disney.
The majority of universal rides are going to be newer and exciting if you are ok with screens.
You will probably see a lack of character appearances.. but the ones that universal does have you will wait maybe 5 minutes tops to see... some you can walk right up to....
Another great thing is that you are going to have great dining options in city walk that is basically connected to the park vs. having to go all the way to disney spring for a decent meal.
Confisco grill etc. in the parks are IMO miles ahead of anything inside the disney parks too.
Disney is of course going to have better souvenirs and timeless characters etc., but it really saves me a ton with my kids.
they want maybe 4 or 5 things from universal each year.. a little minions.. a little e.t. etc. where as disney they want practically everything in the park.
the parades and night time shows are nowhere near disney.

BUT.. you are going to love universal.
Great rides.... and for the majority of attractions you can just move rather smoothly around the parks.
its not jammed packed with people.
Just dont go in trying to compare and contrast and just enjoy universal for what it does better than disney.
Convenience, thrills,food, and customer service.
Customer service from disney on its BEST days cannot be approached... but universal does a very good job EVERY day.
Those great customer service experiences at Disney are so few and far between now IMO.

By disney, you mean WDW? Disneyland is wayyyyy more jumbled than Universal. I still adore it, though!

 

[keishashadow]

The OP is fixated on the term 'flagship', doubtful anyone will be able to sway him after 5 pages of discussion here. Disney used the term in promoting the GF in the past but haven't really seen it featured lately. At WDW the MK view tends to trump all. Try pricing out the cash price to rent the DVC MK view units if you really want to get sticker shock. 'premier' might be a more applicable term for both the GF & PBH.

If you're talking the best resort in the area the 4 Seasons takes the prize from all accounts if that sort of thing is of importance to you.

The GF & PBH are typically ranked high on every 'expert' list out there, both @ 4-1/2 stars. Properties are not solely judged upon their public areas. Service and room quality are just as important as to contributing to the criteria used.

To compare the CSR to either property in question is a huge stretch, other than they front a man-made body of water IMO.

Uhh... I'm not comparing hotels on lobby alone. Everything from the entrance, to the lobby, to the courtyard seemed less grand.

I don't get your point about pizza and booze. Maybe I'm missing something?
Because yes, indeed we spent $375 on pizza and drinks.

I think we may like the parks very much.
My point here was to ensure the parks wouldn't be lackluster as I found PB to be.

MG

if I felt a resort hotel (where I wasn't a guest & had a home within 3 miles ergo readily transportation to wherever) was 'lackluster, I'd cut my losses pronto and go looking for greener pastures.

sure as heck wouldn't drop that sort of $$$ somewhere I wasn't enjoying.

Op you said you were at pbh drinking and doing pizza for almost 6 hours


Now were your thoughts of the hotel before or after the booze?

Usually things look better after drinks
Lol

Tru dat! Well, at least until the lights come on @ last call