DCL cruising cheaper than WDW

[tinkerone]

They also prefer Universal over WDW and I won't even get into the cost difference there.

now this is interesting. what we historically do is wdw, dcl, wdw or some combination with both included. we booked rcl for next year and i am going to call my ta next week and discuss universal. is there bus service from the p.c. to universal? we would also love to try something new so are looking at booking a hotel and park tickets there. this is something we have never done but it now takes our wdw $$'s and moves them.

i'm only one person but if others started to pull away disney could lose a lot more than dcl dollars. it could be stays at universal with a day pass to one of the disney parks which is a flip to what most people do.

very interesting…...

 

[texas disney mom]

I know all about this agency I've got quotes from them. I just got a quote for this Dec. 7 nights at the BWI plus tickets 3700. I booked an OGT out of Galveston instead for 3200. I got a quote last year on their presidents day special. That's peak season at WDW. A standard room at WL was 2600 that did not include tickets. I ended up booked a OGT on the Magic for 3300. I got a quote from them last Sept for a week at the beach club with tickets was 2700. That was a good price, but then discounts came out on the SC cruises and I cancelled that too. When I had AP's to WDW and the discounts were 40% and I had the TIW WDW was a probably a cheaper vacation. We already had tickets and we got the 20% off on food so I see where your coming from. Now AP's for my family are well over 3k and AP discounts stink. My kids would be bored to death going to WDW three times a year to get the value out of them. They would rather cruise and see new things. They also prefer Universal over WDW and I won't even get into the cost difference there.

There's a part of me that would love to go back to WDW we have a lot of good memories there. We have been to WDW 9 times stayed club level many times when club level was 300-400 a night. I guess the value isn't there for us anymore. I can't pay 50% more to do something I've done 9 times. I feel the same way about DCL I can't pay 50% more to go back to the Caribbean. I still manage to find some deals on DCL and there's still a lot of destinations we haven't seen. I'm sure we'll eventually get tired of DCL and move on to a line with more itinerary's.

What is this agency?!!

 

[kaseyC]

now this is interesting. what we historically do is wdw, dcl, wdw or some combination with both included. we booked rcl for next year and i am going to call my ta next week and discuss universal. is there bus service from the p.c. to universal? we would also love to try something new so are looking at booking a hotel and park tickets there. this is something we have never done but it now takes our wdw $$'s and moves them.

i'm only one person but if others started to pull away disney could lose a lot more than dcl dollars. it could be stays at universal with a day pass to one of the disney parks which is a flip to what most people do.

very interesting…...

My girls love Universal too. One thing that I love about Universal is that if you stay at one of their Deluxe resorts (Hard Rock, Portofino Bay or Royal Pacific), you get not only early entry to the Harry Potter stuff at Universal but also the unlimited Front of the Line pass for the length of your stay. That makes touring the parks so much easier. I wish Disney would offer something like that especially since their deluxe resorts are a bit more expensive most of the time.

 

[ludari]

I'm a DVC owner so WDW visits are cheaper for me since I really don't have to worry about the cost of a room. Nevertheless this doesn't deter me from cruising.

 

[Ofinn]

now this is interesting. what we historically do is wdw, dcl, wdw or some combination with both included. we booked rcl for next year and i am going to call my ta next week and discuss universal. is there bus service from the p.c. to universal? we would also love to try something new so are looking at booking a hotel and park tickets there. this is something we have never done but it now takes our wdw $$'s and moves them.

i'm only one person but if others started to pull away disney could lose a lot more than dcl dollars. it could be stays at universal with a day pass to one of the disney parks which is a flip to what most people do.

very interesting…...

No bus. I believe a taxi fare would be around 50.00. We always rent a car in Orlando so it's never been an issue. Tickets, hotels, food everything is cheaper at Universal so the taxi fare wouldn't faze me a bit.

 

[Bree]

I know all about this agency I've got quotes from them. I just got a quote for this Dec. 7 nights at the BWI plus tickets 3700. I booked an OGT out of Galveston instead for 3200. I got a quote last year on their presidents day special. That's peak season at WDW. A standard room at WL was 2600 that did not include tickets. I ended up booked a OGT on the Magic for 3300. I got a quote from them last Sept for a week at the beach club with tickets was 2700. That was a good price, but then discounts came out on the SC cruises and I cancelled that too. When I had AP's to WDW and the discounts were 40% and I had the TIW WDW was a probably a cheaper vacation. We already had tickets and we got the 20% off on food so I see where your coming from. Now AP's for my family are well over 3k and AP discounts stink. My kids would be bored to death going to WDW three times a year to get the value out of them. They would rather cruise and see new things. They also prefer Universal over WDW and I won't even get into the cost difference there.

There's a part of me that would love to go back to WDW we have a lot of good memories there. We have been to WDW 9 times stayed club level many times when club level was 300-400 a night. I guess the value isn't there for us anymore. I can't pay 50% more to do something I've done 9 times. I feel the same way about DCL I can't pay 50% more to go back to the Caribbean. I still manage to find some deals on DCL and there's still a lot of destinations we haven't seen. I'm sure we'll eventually get tired of DCL and move on to a line with more itinerary's.

But those super deep discounts they offer are not year round nor at all resorts. I'm booked with them for the 2016 Princess Half Marathon in a standard room for 4 nights at Coronado Springs for $400 and change. That is almost 50% less than what WDW will charge for an AP rate. Will I keep it? Who knows. I prefer deluxe resorts or POFQ. I can't stand CBR or POR. I stayed at CSR once back in 2005 during my DH's convention and wasn't super thrilled with the place, but I was also 4 months pregnant and cranky. My DD and I are staying there for a long weekend next week before we go to the USA Women's Soccer exhibition game against Brasil. That will be my deciding factor. I have two back-up reservations just in case CSR is a bust.

 

[jnjhuddle]

No bus. I believe a taxi fare would be around 50.00. We always rent a car in Orlando so it's never been an issue. Tickets, hotels, food everything is cheaper at Universal so the taxi fare wouldn't faze me a bit.

This is way off topic, but when we went to Universal (Islands of Adventure) a couple of years ago, we found the food to not only be expensive, it was absolutely disgusting. The 1 day park ticket is no different in price then WDW, I guess there would be more value if you did the universal 3 or 4 day ticket, but 1 or 2 days is certainly more than enough there for us. Other than Harry Potter World being amazing, we found it to be pretty much a glorified Six Flags, which is ok to visit once in a while. Was also truly disappointed in the customer service there. After paying $24 for 2 souvenir cups of Butter beer, I asked for a cheap plastic cup so I could split it up for my kids. The answer was sorry, no. Seriously?? 1 day for 6 of us at universal cost $1000...tickets, food, taxi, and souvenirs (4 Harry Potter wands). (Not including hotel as we were staying in WDW)

In comparing theme parks to cruise lines, I would probably say Universal is comparable to Carnival cruise lines...maybe some value in there, but doesn't appeal to everyone.

 

[Ofinn]

But those super deep discounts they offer are not year round nor at all resorts. I'm booked with them for the 2016 Princess Half Marathon in a standard room for 4 nights at Coronado Springs for $400 and change. That is almost 50% less than what WDW will charge for an AP rate. Will I keep it? Who knows. I prefer deluxe resorts or POFQ. I can't stand CBR or POR. I stayed at CSR once back in 2005 during my DH's convention and wasn't super thrilled with the place, but I was also 4 months pregnant and cranky. My DD and I are staying there for a long weekend next week before we go to the USA Women's Soccer exhibition game against Brasil. That will be my deciding factor. I have two back-up reservations just in case CSR is a bust.

I'm glad we did the AP thing at WDW when AP rates were deep and plentiful. My kids were also the perfect 6-10 ages. They're 11 and 13 now. We are just so done with WDW. I completely understand how people on these boards are done with DCL. I'm not there yet, but I'm sure I will be soon. I got tired of chasing discounts at WDW and I'm getting pretty tired of chasing them on DCL. I look at the prices on RCI and I'm in Awe. No waiting to see if they release a GT rate I can just book it at a great price. I feel the same with Universal. The rack rates are tolerable, but they always have stay more save more rates, and AP rates are plentiful. Were going to do TA and a Panama on DCL. Then we will start looking at Europe at that point I'm sure I will officially be done with DCL pricing.

 

[Ofinn]

This is way off topic, but when we went to Universal (Islands of Adventure) a couple of years ago, we found the food to not only be expensive, it was absolutely disgusting. The 1 day park ticket is no different in price then WDW, I guess there would be more value if you did the universal 3 or 4 day ticket, but 1 or 2 days is certainly more than enough there for us. Other than Harry Potter World being amazing, we found it to be pretty much a glorified Six Flags, which is ok to visit once in a while. Was also truly disappointed in the customer service there. After paying $24 for 2 souvenir cups of Butter beer, I asked for a cheap plastic cup so I could split it up for my kids. The answer was sorry, no. Seriously?? 1 day for 6 of us at universal cost $1000...tickets, food, taxi, and souvenirs (4 Harry Potter wands). (Not including hotel as we were staying in WDW)

In comparing theme parks to cruise lines, I would probably say Universal is comparable to Carnival cruise lines...maybe some value in there, but doesn't appeal to everyone.

I guess that's your opinion. We got AP's in 2014 for 200.00 each. We went 3 times each time for about 4 days each. We love the deluxe resorts at Universal. Love the Club levels. We like being able to walk from the hotels to the parks. Never had a problem with the food at WDW or Universal. We like Hard Rock and Margaritavile in city walk. They are always building new attractions. It seemed liked every time we go there is new ride. Transformers, despicable me , the new harry potter section have all opened in the last 2 years. King kong is opening next year. Love the express passes you get when you stay at their hotels. Most importantly my kids prefer the Universal parks. They are more geared for kids over 10. To each their own, but I find their deluxe resorts to be very nice.

 

[jnjhuddle]

I guess that's your opinion. We got AP's in 2014 for 200.00 each. We went 3 times each time for about 4 days each. We love the deluxe resorts at Universal. Love the Club levels. We like being able to walk from the hotels to the parks. Never had a problem with the food at WDW or Universal. We like Hard Rock and Margaritavile in city walk. They are always building new attractions. It seemed liked every time we go there is new ride. Transformers, despicable me , the new harry potter section have all opened in the last 2 years. King kong is opening next year. Love the express passes you get when you stay at their hotels. Most importantly my kids prefer the Universal parks. They are more geared for kids over 10. To each their own, but I find their deluxe resorts to be very nice.

Will definitely try Universal again some day, perhaps after King Kong opens. My kids are 14,12,(almost) 10 and 8. I understand your appeal with walking to the parks, as we loved this aspect of Disneyland, just not sure we would stay on site with universal since we have DVC. Margaritaville and Hard Rock, although not unique to City Walk (since they are chain restaurants we've been to in other cities), would definitely be safer alternatives to the quick service we tried in Islands of Adventure. We honestly did not pre plan the food there when we went and that was a big mistake on my part. Live and learn!!

 

[southerngirl528]

is there bus service from the p.c. to universal?

No bus. I believe a taxi fare would be around 50.00.

There is no way in God's green earth one could get a taxi from Port Canaveral (I assume that's what "p.c." means??) to Universal for $50. It is a good hour's drive from Port Canaveral to either WDW or Universal. It might be a tad less distance on the 528 from PC to Universal than to WDW on 528 to the 417. It is probably possible to get a SHUTTLE at a per person price for around $50.

 

[southerngirl528]

Oh and Rogillio, thanks for the thread! I have found reading it to be very entertaining and even informative. Most interesting is everyone's take on what is "value", "Moderate", "Deluxe", etc.

 

[Ofinn]

There is no way in God's green earth one could get a taxi from Port Canaveral (I assume that's what "p.c." means??) to Universal for $50. It is a good hour's drive from Port Canaveral to either WDW or Universal. It might be a tad less distance on the 528 from PC to Universal than to WDW on 528 to the 417. It is probably possible to get a SHUTTLE at a per person price for around $50.

I thought she meant from the airport to Universal. I would assume PC to Universal would be around 150.00. It would cost 140.00 for family of four to take the DCL bus so not a big difference. Limo and shuttle services are generally less than what DCL charges. Uber is another option. Renting a car is the cheapest. Anyway there are lots of ways to get to PC.