:confused3 Meal deal or not?

[jaff87]

Is the Meal Deal worth it if I am a AAA member and will be showing my card every where I go as per suggestions on these boards? This will be the first trip to Universal and I have no idea as to cost for food, etc.

Travelers are myself, DH, DS who is 11 - so he counts as an adult and DD who is 9.

Also, is there a direct number to call and speak to a reservation person with knowledge of all 3 hotels on site or is it best to call the hotel directly? In this case, am leaning toward HRH, but can't find a direct number...

Thanks!

 

[dsmom]

If you are going to spend a lot of time in the parks it is worth it. We used it one day on our last trip. My son definately made it worthwhile. We ate at Mel's - they had surprisingly good food- the reviews I read had me worried- and at Louie's- the pizza and salads were very good. There are so many great places to eat at the hotel and Citywalk that we just use the Meal deal one day. This last trip we ate at Bice, Trattoria, Nba City and Nascar - they were all great!

 

[jaff87]

Thank you!

 

[bubba's mom]

Fran... AAA card gets you discounts at restaurants and shopping at UO. Just have to ask! Also, if you go to allears.net site, on the left at the bottom is Universal. In the Universal section, there are menus you can see what they have and how much...to get an idea anyway! Good luck! (You'll be pleasantly surprised that most eating places are reasonable)

 

[jaff87]

Bubba's Mom:
Thanks for the info. I also took your advice and called HRH today to make my ressies for next August. They told me that AAA rates are trickling down to their machines as we speak and she indicated rates for August would probably be out within a week or so.

 

[bubba's mom]

No....thank YOU! Nice to know it's soon....

Bubba's Mom:
Thanks for the info. I also took your advice and called HRH today to make my ressies for next August. They told me that AAA rates are trickling down to their machines as we speak and she indicated rates for August would probably be out within a week or so.

 

[LakeAriel]

Is the Meal Deal worth it if I am a AAA member and will be showing my card every where I go as per suggestions on these boards? This will be the first trip to Universal and I have no idea as to cost for food, etc.

Travelers are myself, DH, DS who is 11 - so he counts as an adult and DD who is 9.

Also, is there a direct number to call and speak to a reservation person with knowledge of all 3 hotels on site or is it best to call the hotel directly? In this case, am leaning toward HRH, but can't find a direct number...

Thanks!

Next time I will get the plan at least for one day...This was my first trip too and we wanted the breakfast with Spiderman, Bubba Gumps (which we didn't make due to a storm, went yesterday in Times square and wasn't impressed) so didn't purchase it. So here we are in Suess landing getting lunch for the 4 of us that cost 40 plus dollars and the lady behind me says .."You didn't buy the meal plan?" On the spot I realized, too late, I should have done it. My advice if you will be there a few days get the plan for a least one of those days, use AAA everywhere else!

PS Have fun, you will love the front of the line access..

 

[jaff87]

Next time I will get the plan at least for one day...This was my first trip too and we wanted the breakfast with Spiderman, Bubba Gumps (which we didn't make due to a storm, went yesterday in Times square and wasn't impressed) so didn't purchase it. So here we are in Suess landing getting lunch for the 4 of us that cost 40 plus dollars and the lady behind me says .."You didn't buy the meal plan?" On the spot I realized, too late, I should have done it. My advice if you will be there a few days get the plan for a least one of those days, use AAA everywhere else!

PS Have fun, you will love the front of the line access..

Thanks for the advice. So let me make sure I understand - the meal plan is used only in the Parks??? Everywhere else including Citywalk & hotel, we can use AAA discount? Is the plan something that I purchase when I am there?

 

[calgarygary]

Thanks for the advice. So let me make sure I understand - the meal plan is used only in the Parks??? Everywhere else including Citywalk & hotel, we can use AAA discount? Is the plan something that I purchase when I am there?

The regular meal plan is valid in only onepark or you can purchase a 2 park/1 day meal plan. In my opinion, this is the one major area where US/IOA falls far short of WDW. The plan is counter service only, forces at least 2 visits to a CS restaurant to at least break even, does not include a beverage, includes only cheap desserts (ie cookie/cake) and does not include US/IOA's best counter service restaurants.(IMO) I may be in the minority, but I would rather pay more for a much improved plan. However, if you live on fast food, and can eat plenty of it, the plan is a great deal. There is often a deal at the universal website offering a discount on the plan.

 

[jaff87]

The regular meal plan is valid in only onepark or you can purchase a 2 park/1 day meal plan. In my opinion, this is the one major area where US/IOA falls far short of WDW. The plan is counter service only, forces at least 2 visits to a CS restaurant to at least break even, does not include a beverage, includes only cheap desserts (ie cookie/cake) and does not include US/IOA's best counter service restaurants.(IMO) I may be in the minority, but I would rather pay more for a much improved plan. However, if you live on fast food, and can eat plenty of it, the plan is a great deal. There is often a deal at the universal website offering a discount on the plan.

Thanks for the reply. Full of good info. and provides me with a better idea of how everything works. We do enjoy table service meals OR at the very least, decent counter service spots. Is there a link to see the areas/menus covered under the plan?

 

[LakeAriel]

Thanks for the advice. So let me make sure I understand - the meal plan is used only in the Parks??? Everywhere else including Citywalk & hotel, we can use AAA discount? Is the plan something that I purchase when I am there?

You can use AAA in the parks as well. You can purchase the meal plan in the parks..I believe you also get one TS meal included, anyone have the link?

I think the extra TS must have been a promotion..I wish I had taken them up on it.

Here is the link..
http://www.universalorlando.com/tic_meal_deal.html