Best Disney resort for WDW & Universal Touring

[MTMom]

We are planning a summer trip to Orlando, and are interested in staying in a Disney resort that is also convenient to the Universal theme parks. We have previously stayed at the Polynesian and the Wilderness Lodge. Any suggestions?

 

[calgarygary]

If you are going in the summer than please reconsider staying onsite at Disney when you visit Universal. That plan is almost guaranteed to lead to a disappointing Universal experience. Most people will tell you that the single best perk of an onsite hotel is Universal's Front of the Line (fotl) that allows people who are staying at any of the 3 Universal hotels (Portofino, Hard Rock & Royal Pacific) to have unlimited front of the line access to almost all attractions at the 2 Universal parks from their arrival day through the night of their check-out day (ie. 2 night stay gives 3 days fotl). As you mentioned that your onsite at Disney have been at the Polynesian & WL you should be quite comfortable with the rates, locations & theming of the Universal resorts.

Bottom Line - stay onsite when at WDW and move to Universal and stay onsite there when visiting Universal.

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

I agree!

 

[Lucky'sMom]

I absolutley echo what the others have said. Stay on-site at Universal! That FOTL perk will be SO important during the busy summer months, and besides that, the resorts are beautiful! It will feel more like a separate vacation, and you won't feel like an "outsider" when you're there and watch all the other guests going through the express pass lane. Any WDW resort will be at least 20 minutes from there anyway.

 

[dalt01]

you can however purchase FOL for about 35.00 in the summer less in the off season. it is good for "one time" through the resort line for each ride.

 

[MTMom]

Thanks for your replies. Our original plans were to sandwich a Disney Cruise between a stay at Universal and a stay at WDW. After a suggestion from a co-worker, I thought I'd look into the possibility of "killing two parks with with hotel", but after reading your comments, I think I want to go back to my original plan. Can you help me decide on the itinerary and locations? The cruise that we want to take is a 4-nighter embarking on a Sunday. If we leave home on a Friday morning, that will give us 2 nights at Universal (but which Univ. hotel?), then the 4 night cruise which arrives back on a Thursday, then we want to stay 3 nights at WDW, going home on a Sunday. Our kids are 14 and 11 and we've always stayed at a MK/monorail resort, but we thought we might try the Beach/Yacht Club for something different. Also, I need some information on transportation to and from airport/resorts/cruise pier, etc). Sorry for such a long post.

 

[calgarygary]

The rooms at the Royal Pacific are the smallest at Universal so you may want to go with the larger rooms of the Hard Rock or Portofino. Visit Universal Resorts and Hotels to learn about your options while at Universal. Unfortunately, one of the downsides of those hotels is that no transportation to and from the airport is provided.

Should you choose to stay onsite at Universal, you will be amazed at what a difference fotl makes. Visiting WDW in the summer often requires a lot of planning to get the most out of your day. Choosing the correct park to visit, arriving at the right time, proper use of Fastpass all must be done to get the most out of your visit. FOTL eliminates all of that! It's like an unlimited supply of FP's for all of the rides. Arrive when you want, go where you want and you will still get a lot out of your day.

Also, be sure to visit loewshotels.com to sign up for Loews First, their loyalty program which includes benefits with your first stay.

 

[dandave]

I cannot agree more with those who said to stay onsite at Universal, if you're planning to do Universal in any detail. FOTL is the best perk since... ever! It's almost like an out of body experience...

 

[ROBIN4NY]

1st of all can I just say Im jealous!!! What a great dilema to have That being said, I suggest the Hard Rock Hotel. My family did this a few years ago. As for transportation, we used Mears transportation to get from the Airport to the Hard Rock, a taxi from the Hard Rock to WL, and Mears from WL to the Airport. My kids are about the same age and LOVED the hard rock. IMO it makes a big difference being on site at universal and that FOTL was a very huge perk. I remember just walking past lines all the time to get on a ride. It was great.
As far as which Disney resort I would go with what parks you are going to spend the most time at. Since your kids are a little older you might not spend all your time at MK but rather EPCOT and MGM and it that is the case BC or YC would be a great choice. Besides the great location, your kids will love the pool there as well.
Good Luck with your planning and enjoy your trip!!

 

[LovintheLodge]

I agree with the other posters regarding the FOTL access perk. However if you go the end of August, you could actually stay off-site since it's not as busy as the rest of the summer. My family stayed onsite at WDW in late August 2005 (free dining package) and spent 2 days at US/IOA. So that worked for us then. But if I was to go to WDW and visit US/IOA again, I think I would stay onsite for 1 or 2 nights. I've heard the hotels are really nice, and not having to deal with the parking and long walk to the entrance of CityWalk, along with FOTL is enough to make me try it next time. Have a great time!

 

[ps17]

We are veterans of WDW/Universal Studios touring because we do that once annually during the holidays. I would suggest the split stay as others have alluded. I don't know what your entire vacation budget is as far as days go, but you'll want 3 or 4 days at WDW and 2 or 3 days at UO. When staying at a UO resort, you get "front of the line" access to the rides which is worth gold.

Therefore the following would be the best a split stay with the following:

1) WDW your hotel of choice.
2) US - your hotel of choice: Hard Rock is our favorite: Closest walk to the parks. Our kids love the theming. Coolest pool. If you are visiting during the winter, they REALLY keep the water nice and warm during that time. Nice rooms, good service. The other hotels are good choices as well - RPR a little cheaper but longer walk. Portofino, differrent atmosphere, longer walk as well (but with boat shuttles).

Either way, do your research, split your stay. You'll enjoy BOTH WDW and UO much more with access to each park.

 

[ps17]

Let me add that to "save" a day and recieve UO (Front of The Line) FOTL benefits on a transition day, you can check out of your WDW hotel at say 9:00AM. Be at your UO resort and have checked in by say 10:00AM. Walk to the UO parks (while your room is being readied) and have FOTL access to the rides....