Can I reserve for 1 night and use FOTL?

[joellyn23]

I'm renting a house near Disney. We're planning on going to Universal/IOA 2 days during our vacation. We already have passes.

But...I'm intrigued with the FOTL privilege. First of all -- can I use it if I only stay one night (let's say checkin on Friday/checkout on Saturday -- going to the park on Saturday). Park admission is not included in hotel room rate, correct? Would I be able to use my already purchased passes with the FOTL feature.

Room rate is $220. For a family of four -- is it worth renting a room just for FOTL?

Very new/niave to this whole program -- bear with me

Thanks!
Joellyn

 

[macraven]

I'm renting a house near Disney. We're planning on going to Universal/IOA 2 days during our vacation. We already have passes.

But...I'm intrigued with the FOTL privilege. First of all -- can I use it if I only stay one night (let's say checkin on Friday/checkout on Saturday -- going to the park on Saturday). Park admission is not included in hotel room rate, correct? Would I be able to use my already purchased passes with the FOTL feature.

Room rate is $220. For a family of four -- is it worth renting a room just for FOTL?

Very new/niave to this whole program -- bear with me



Thanks!
Joellyn

if you check in on friday, your hotel key is valid for fotl all that day.
you then check out on saturday and your hotel key is still valid for fotl for that entire day. sweet deal , eh.......

if you have AAA, you can use it for a discount. it costs me $54/year in chicago land for membership. it has more than paid for itself for me in the hotel discounts.

rph usually is the cheapest of the three hotels. their rooms are smaller also.

what are the dates you plan to be at universal? the season and dates will correspond with the room rates.

the express pass plus costs depends on the date you would be using it.
this is the other express lane availability but it only allows you one ride/attraction each. no repeats as the fotl does.

the EPP ranges in price from $15 to 30 per person.
say you are going in the summer and the rate would be $30 a person for the epp. that would be $120 for your family of four. that is half of the room costs right there.

check the thread of "your rate and date" over here and see what some of the people are paying per night for an on site hotel room.

oh yea, the answer to your question, yes, the room is worth it for the fotl !!

the rate my room is for october is $229 per night. i am using the AAA for a discount and booked my room for $183.20 per night. $46. savings per night

 

[gschmerl]

Whether it's worth it depends on when you are going. If it's during a slow time you won't need FOTL. That being said...my nephew has stayed in an apartment and booked one night at the Royal Pacific. They don't move their things over to the hotel at all. They go early in the AM, get their room key for FOTL and go to the parks. They always bring bathing suits and a change of clothes. In the after noon they go back to the RPR and enjoy the pool. Then then may go back to the parks. They sometimes will stay at the RPR..other times they just go back to their apartment. The next morning, they go back to US using their room keys for FOTL once again.
If you book one night on site, you get two full days worth of FOTL. So if you check in Friday, you can use it all day Friday and then again on Saturday.
Yes, park admission has nothing to do with the hotel. Park tickets are a separate item.

 

[joellyn23]

We're going Apr28-May 6th. We were planning to separate our Universal Days since they will likely be the longest days (won't take breaks like we will while at Disney parks). We were planning on going Monday and then Thursday.

So, I'm not sure if we need FOTL during that time. We've gone then several times and the lines aren't horrible, but we did use the express pass system on our first trip.

I didn't realize you get FOTL for both days -- that is sweet!!

Thanks so much for your help!

Joellyn (also from Chicago burbs!)

 

[macraven]

joellen, hey, hi neighbor.......


you can wait and buy the epp at the park if you find out it is too crowded.
you don't have to buy the epp in advance. this is if you are staying off site.

only problem of waiting to the park day to buy the epp is only a limited number is sold per day.

i went to the website and put in may 4, a thursday, to check the rates at rph.
it is $183.20 per night. that is using the AAA code.
without using a code it is $229 per night.

if you bought the AAA for $54 / year, and booked for rph for that date, you would be saving $46/night.

if the epp costs $25 pp on that date (don't know how much it is then), that would be $100 for the 4 of you. 183 - 100 = 83.20, cost of the room overall. might be worth it to crunch some numbers and stay on site.
you would have thursday and friday with fotl. that second day would be costing you another 100...........you definetly would come out waaaaayyy ahead then.

2 days of fotl ($200)
i night at rph ($183)


either way you do it,
have a great vacation !!

go to the website and play around with the dates to determine the best economical date to stay on site.

going at that time of the year, i don't imagine huge crowds at all.
but with the new promo of kids free, i don't know how full the parks will become.

 

[joellyn23]

THANK YOU so much for your help! OK...just a few more questions. With a AAA membership, how many rooms can I book each night? We'll have 3 families -- so if I can save on each ressie, it would be worth the membership.

How early can you check in? Can you check in before the parks open for the day so you're getting a full day with FOTL?

Now if only I can convince my sisters that this is the best way to go to Universal!!!

Joellyn

 

[macraven]

joellyn:

i check in around 7 to 7:30 in the morning. no wait at the front desk coming in at that time.

i take a car service from disney and check in at the universal hotel to get a head start.

once i check in, my luggage is stored for me at the hotel. i get the room key and go to the parks around 8:30. i call around noon time to find out my room number.

when i return to the hotel, i go straight to my room and call and have my luggage brought up to the room.

when you call from the park, and receive your room number, it is keyed into your card at that time.

any park employee or guest servces can make the call for you if you request it.


about AAA, i used it for booking 2 rooms before. myself and a friend.
i am not aware of limitations on the # of rooms allowed for the AAA booking. i do remember a post some time back that a AAA holder booked 3 rooms at one hotel. if i am saving $46 a day on the room with AAA, just think of the savings you can get.


you can check in anytime in the morning. your belongings will be stored for you.
the hotel room key is valid from the moment you check in even if you do not have a room assignment at the time.
the room key for fotl perks is valid the day you check out. you can use it until the park closes that day.

 

[DisneyWisher]

FOTL is one of the reasons I fell in love with UO. The Mummy being the other. Just can't get enough of that ride. My first trip to UO was July'05. We wanted a change from Disney. After finding all there was to know about FOTL we got into our first line, Shrek. It was a 80 min standby line. We walked right into the preshow area because of FOTL. One day when going back to our room I looked up the temp outside and was surprised when it said 96 with a heat index of 104. I was surprised because we didn't feel that hot. I think it was because we never waited more than 10 mins for a ride. One morning (about 11am) DD12 was able to ride the Hulk 5 times within 45 mins. Oh and when we were there in July the EPP was $40 per person.

My DD22 just had a baby and we are thinking about leaving him with his other grandmother and going to the night. My daughters are 22, 20, and 12. I really miss taking all my girls on vacation but because of work, college, and family they just can't go when I can. So cherish your time with family because its not long before they say "aww, Mom I have to work this weekend". Ok a little off topic but good advice for all.