Bummed - No Universal for us, it's too much $

[Sparkly]

2 onsite rooms and 10 tickets is a lot of money..........

I didn't even know RPR rooms fit 5. Our standard room was quite small, but perfectly formed.

We stay offsite and have a rental car, so no moving around or expensive buses needed. Tickets are budgeted for, just like our Disney ones. RPR was lovely but very expensive.

 

[keishashadow]

That's what we're doing in May. I have APs for both WDW and Universal, but will be buying an 8 day WDW MYW ticket and a buy 2 days, get 1 day free ticket for Universal for my mom. I'll have a rental car and with my APs will get free parking at both Universal and WDW. We're staying offsite (sortof) at Bonnet Creek, where we found a fantastic deal for a one bedroom villa. Between the cheap villa, free parking at both parks, and eating most dinners off site, it helps the expense.

This past Oct/Nov we stayed offsite at Westgate Town Center, (just one mile from the WDW gates---about five minutes to AK). Then the last night stayed at RPR over at Universal and got front of the line pass for two days. It was well worth it.

OT how did you like this Westgate? Exploring options for June trip and it came up in a search with good rate.

Agree that APs certainly can help if you can plan two (or more) trips within the 12 month period.

WDW non-expiry tix used to be a really great option for those wanting to visit the parks for a day or two during other focused trips, until they changed the pricing structure over the last few years.

OP while it's not a particularly attractive thought if you're willing to deal with the timeshare sharks, you could probably give up 90 + minutes and receive 'free' Universal tix and either rent a vehicle for the day @ WDW or grab a cab (approx $30)

 

[clintswifeymomof4]

I'm in the same boat... my husband and I are going solo for a couple of days in 2 weeks. We were going to buy AP for us and then just buy the 2+1 tickets for the kids (5 kids: 2 adults, 2 kids, 1 free 2 year old) plus 6 (2-day) express passes... hubs and I are also doing 1 day Disney hopper in 2 weeks and whole family is doing 2 day WPM Disney in April... all in all with USF it would be close to $3800 expenditure JUST in tickets for our 2 trips. However, if we nix USF and just do a 4 day WPM in April (keeping our 2 week trip the same except getting the 2+1 USF/IOA tic with added Express Pass instead of the AP), we'll save almost $1000...

Is it REALLY worth $1000 for me to take my two 11 year olds, 7 year old, 4 year old and 2 year old for USF/IOA to get to Fastpass (almost) each ride ONCE... this trip? No. Kids will be disappointed but that's just craziness. The money isn't the problem... I have it in the budget as I originally planned these trips last year but seeing it in black and white (and thinking in a more practical sense than I was last year coming off of our first trip high) made me do a double take!

We'll take a USF/IOA only trip and stay on site sometime in the next few years... a split trip just is way too costly for this family of 7... $1000 would easily buy our food and souveniers for the week!

We are going to Legoland though!

 

[Metro West]

Is it REALLY worth $1000 for me to take my two 11 year olds, 7 year old, 4 year old and 2 year old for USF/IOA to get to Fastpass (almost) each ride ONCE... this trip? No. Kids will be disappointed but that's just craziness.

Express Passes should only be purchased once you are in the park and can see the wait times youself. EPs are non-refundable, park and date specific and you may not even need them. So wait until you arrive to make that decision. And you aren't going to find any discounts on single day tickets for Universal so yes...its expensive but so is Disney for a single day.

 

[macraven]

I didn't even know RPR rooms fit 5. Our standard room was quite small, but perfectly formed.

We stay offsite and have a rental car, so no moving around or expensive buses needed. Tickets are budgeted for, just like our Disney ones. RPR was lovely but very expensive.

for the 2Q standards, all 3 onsite hotels allow 5 in a room.

no surcharge unless you have more than 2 adults or a 19 + yo in the room.

 

[yaytezIOA]

For the one with 10 in your group....I suggest contacting group sales. Groups of 8 or more are considered for discounts...Just a suggestion.

 

[danceintherain]

I've had the same problem for every trip I've tried to plan since WWoHP opened. The fact that our only child is still under 3 just complicates the problem. I just have a hard time getting excited about riding things alone. (he's getting close to being able to ride the 36 inch stuff though)

This year was the golden year though. I wasn't even considering Universal, until I found out that DH gets a FREE ticket this year, since he's active duty military. We'll probably only do one day at Islands of Adventure, even though DH's ticket will be for 3 days, but it definitely takes some of the sticker shock out of buying 2-one day tickets.
Also, my little sister is coming with us, and paying for her own park tickets, so for the stuff we Rider Swap on, I shouldn't have to ride alone.

For those of you who are having a hard time figuring it out, have you considered renting a car?
We're probably only going to rent a car for a day or two out of our trip, because we won't need it for the whole time, so I expect we'll be able to keep it around $70. Disney has LOTS of places on the property where you can rent cars and some of them will even come pick you up.

Obviously, it depends on how much space you need, but I saw a Last Minute deal on Alamo the other day for a week long minivan rental for only $225.

I'm not thrilled about the idea of driving on vacation, but we'll manage, and we always take breaks from the Disney parks anyways, so it won't be a big deal to use that time to go pick up a rental car.

 

[TheAviator]

But it really turns into a great deal if you can squeeze out like a 4 day ticket and stay. Its almost not worth it to try and do just a single day not just economically but you will get so much more out of an extended stay.

 

[tstidm1]

I am actually thinking about doing a non-disney vacation because I've never done Universal more than a day before and it's cheaper for a single traveler than Disney world is by a good $250 bucks on the 4th day and 4th night deal. Will probably do Sea World for a day because I've never been there. It's something I am looking forward to as soon as I book the package tomorrow.

 

[Albytaps]

This is why I don't combine Disney with other parks. If I'm going to WDW then it's just WDW. I'll go to WDW for a few years, then make a Universal trip every few years. It's one or the other to save cash.

 

[Albytaps]

I'm not thrilled about the idea of driving on vacation, but we'll manage, and we always take breaks from the Disney parks anyways, so it won't be a big deal to use that time to go pick up a rental car.

I love having a car when I'm at WDW... UO not so much.