Do we NEED to stay on sight?

[EnduringWone]

you are correct, that is true.
my rate at the motherland value resort is $127 plus tax on the weekend nights. (fall trip)
if staying onsite at rph for 5 nights or more with stay more save more general promotion rate, is $177 plus tax.

depending on the dates you are checking out room rates, could flexuate.
weekdays are cheaper than weekends.

one is looking at $50 more per night at the darkside then.
if you have a car, that is another $18 to cover per night.


my original point was not the money but the convenience for staying onsite.
no down time for commuting, or having to allow extra time for getting into the park.

if a person's priorities are to save money, then offsite dwellings are best.

i know it hurts to pay for a hotel room and not use it for a few nights in order to book nights at an onsite hotel.

maybe you would consider staying one night only onsite and the next two nights offsite.

that way you could have the hotel perks of early entry to ioa and unlimited usage of the express lines for two full days.

the third day, you would not have the hotel benefits.

when you stay onsite, you receive the hotel perks for the day you check in and for the day you check out.

for a one night stay, you receive two days of perks.
you come out ahead by saving some hotel money and still have park perks.

you could move into the offsite hotel once you are done with the parks on day 2.

I have been thinking of that.

We want three days at Universal, so I could book for two days and use our free (hotel points) days for the rest of the vacation. I have always wanted to stay on-site at one of the Universal hotels so this would be our chance. We are already saving massively with the rest of the stay being free as far as accommodations, so why not splurge two days? Plus I did not realize that when one stayed on property you were able to get like the equivalent of fast passes right? In addition to getting in earlier? We plan on being at US on a Sunday, Monday and Tuesday but if it would be better to be there on all weekdays we could possibly do Busch Gardens on Sunday.

Thank you again.

Plus, my daughter is special needs and I took into consideration what you wrote on the thread with the woman in the wheelchair.

 

[macraven]

I have been thinking of that.

We want three days at Universal, so I could book for two days and use our free (hotel points) days for the rest of the vacation. I have always wanted to stay on-site at one of the Universal hotels so this would be our chance. We are already saving massively with the rest of the stay being free as far as accommodations, so why not splurge two days? Plus I did not realize that when one stayed on property you were able to get like the equivalent of fast passes right? In addition to getting in earlier? We plan on being at US on a Sunday, Monday and Tuesday but if it would be better to be there on all weekdays we could possibly do Busch Gardens on Sunday.

Thank you again.

Plus, my daughter is special needs and I took into consideration what you wrote on the thread with the woman in the wheelchair.

yes, you will be able to use your hotel express pass on all days and check out day from the hotel.

when you check in, each person in your group receives a hotel card key with their name on it.
you take that hotel key to the kiosk in the hotel lobby and use it to make your express pass.
the kiosk instructions are simple and easy to follow.
you put your room key in the machine, have a picture made, and your tyvek express pass comes out.

the express pass can be reissued if you lose them.

the express pass allows you unlimited usage on rides and shows that have express line signage.
you have no restrictions on the amount of times you can use the express lines in the parks.

early entry is also a perk for onsite hotel guests.
you show your room key and use the entrance line into the park that is marked, "hotel guests".
you are allowed to enter one hour prior to the official park opening.

sometimes i go at 7:50, or go later around 8:30 to the park.

many times the TM's get the all clear and guests are allowed in 10 minutes prior to this time period. it varies on the morning.


if a saturday/sunday is a great weather day, it can bring out the locals to the parks.
when that happens, the park can become crowded.
that is why many of us say to avoid the saturday period.
in the summer time, many of us also say sundays will be crowded too.

during the time period you are going, saturday could get crowds depending on the weather.

the week before christmas the parks will have growing crowds up thru NYE.

i have stayed at all 3 of the hotels.
i prefer RPH.
it has a beautiful lobby for one thing.

you can get free wifi in all 3 of the hotel lobbies.

 

[damo]

We won't be buying APs. We live in South Carolina, the Upstate.

We have never stayed on-site, so why not for three days, right?

Did I mention the free hotel we would be staying at also has free hot breakfast?

So how nice is the Polynesian style hotel at Universal?

Off to look at the hotel thread.

Thank you!!

We live in Canada and have APs because it saves us money. If the amount of money you will save in hotel and food and merchandise discounts is higher than the amount you will pay for the difference in price between your normal tickets and the annual pass, then it is just good value to get the annual pass. You can often save $100/night with an ap in hotel discounts plus 10% off food and merchandise. Sometimes, even for a one night it stay can be worth it.

It is always something to check into because aps are so cheap at Universal compared to Disney.

The unlimited express pass that you get at Universal is different than what you get at Disney. There are no return times and you can use them as often as you like. The guest assistant pass may get you the same experience if the lines are low.

The setup at Universal is similar to the setup at Disneyland with 3 luxury hotels onsite and then many value hotels in close proximity offsite.