Do you think....

[avic77]

Do you think Universal is pulling more vacationers away from Disney do to their camparably cheaper admission tickets?

I know that is the reason we picked to to Universal. Our original plan was to vacation in our home state (Alabama) or maybe Gatlinburg Tn (skipping theme parks all together) after canceling the Disney package I had booked last year. But after crunching numbers I discovered we could spend 5 nights in Orlando in an off site condo and 4 days (with the 7 day passes) in USO/IOA for less. That is really what swayed us to return to Orlando this year and visit Universal. Disney's park ticket being more then twice as expensive as Universal kept us from splurging with them this year. We feel very lucky to even be able to take a vacation.

 

[Metro West]

I think it's helping some but Disney is trying it's best with the 4/3 deal and the free dining. Despite what the "experts" on the DIS seem to think, Disney doesn't spend too much time worrying about Universal...they have their own problems to deal with. Unless you live here and are constantly bombarded with theme park stuff, it's really hard to get a good idea. I think more people are going to jump ship...at least for a day or two when HP opens next year. I think Disney will be hurting from that for a while. I know they were upset when they lost the "robotic arm" technology to Universal in the HP deal. Disney was working on a ride themed after The Incredibles using the robotic arm technology and when Universal won the deal, they had to stop.

If you look the rumours board and see what people are posting about the closing of Pleasure Island, possibly closing of some resorts and other assorted tidbits, you can see Disney has a lot to deal with w/o worrying about Universal.

Frankly...Universal and Sea World are WAY ahead of Disney in terms of adding new attractions. Just compare...this year, Sea World will get Manta and Universal will open the HR3 and next year Universal opens HP. Disney added American Idol (which a lot of people already hate), some new Stitch show and possibly a new Little Mermaid attraction. That's not much in terms of making people want to come to Disney.

 

[southernbelle5672]

Well, it definitely pulled me away last year. We went to US/IOA for 7 days and didn't go to Disney at all. US is just so much cheaper, and we had a blast. It was a great vacation that we could take without having to save for a year.

ETA: I live in Alabama too!

 

[Bluer101]

One of the main reasons we have AP passes for years with Universal. I can go to Universal more times a year than if I went to Disney. Besides, I went to Disney (all parks) this past summer after not being there for maybe 5-6 years and it was not impressive. Yes, Disney is Disney for that Disney feeling but was still the same with nothing really new.

 

[Canadamom]

The lower ticket prices were definitely a factor in where we are choosing to spend our money this year.

 

[christophfam]

I guess I must be in the minority here. I find Disney to be cheaper, but I think that is because I want to stay onsite wherever I end up. I am going to Disney next fall with free dining, staying at a mod, and it is cheaper than the deal Universal if offering right now staying at RPR. I looked at it. Of course, I realize the hotels are not in the same category.

I haven't been to Universal in three years and the kids were much younger so it will be interesting to see what we think of it this go around. I think we will still want to go back to Disney in Sept., but I guess time will tell. I do think Disney's free dining is hard to beat. We LOVE the free dining. Food can be so expensive and it is so nice to get down there and not have to worry about how much we are spending on food. The kids can order whatever they want and it is all covered.

 

[petrymom]

I have been thinking about Universal for a while now. We are going for the first time in 9 Days!!!!!

I would have to say that the ticket prices were not really the catcher for us. For us, it was the fact that we have been to Disney 3 times in the past three years and were ready for a change.

Actually, Disney was cheaper and I like the idea of the all inclusiveness of the Dining plan.

That being said, I am totally excited about trying Universal!!!!!