Family of 5--First Visit to Universal--Questions

[mumto3girls]

My family of 5 has been to Disney many, many times, but has never been to Universal. We are considering a November trip when the kids have a few days off. We would arrive Saturday, November 1 and leave Wednesday , November 5. My daughters will be 14, 11 and 8 at that time. Middle child is obsessed with Harry Potter. The other 2 not so much. Husband and I also are interested in Harry Potter.

My questions are about where to stay and tickets. We want to be on site, but are considering Cabana Bay due to price and space. The other on site hotels say they can accommodate 5 in a room, but appears to be 2 queen beds. Where does the 5th person sleep? I know at cabana bay we would get the early entry, but not the front of the line pass. Normally I'm not sure if that would matter in November, but with the new HP section opening, maybe it would be a good idea?

Also, 3 days or 4? We will want to explore the resort a bit and the kids love a pool. I know Citiwalk has things to do also. We don't have flights yet, but I could see not having tickets for either arrival day, departure day or both. Is 3 days enough time to do everything and then revisit the highlights?

Any other tips/advice would be appreciated.

 

[RMulieri]

Crowds should be relatively lower, they wont be dead( especially in the Harry Potter areas), but they arent going to be crazy at that time .express pass is a wonderful thing to have ( and we wont go without it even in slower times), but you should be ok without it those dates..It hasnt been said yet whether or not the new HP attractions will offer express pass, but the current attraction ( Forbidden Journey and Ollivanders wands) do not accept it.I am kind of doubting the Hogwarts express or The Escape from Gringotts rides in the new section will have it either , but it is possible.Early entry will likely be the most beneficial, and that Cabana Bay guests do get.
As for tickets, we always do 4 ( 2 for each park ), but we are a family that likes to tour leisurely and enjoy downtime at the resort.Whichever you decide , you will need PARK TO PARK tickets if you are interested in the Hogwarts Express ( it will be required to ride it).

 

[JillyBean1899]

My questions are about where to stay and tickets. We want to be on site, but are considering Cabana Bay due to price and space. The other on site hotels say they can accommodate 5 in a room, but appears to be 2 queen beds. Where does the 5th person sleep? I know at cabana bay we would get the early entry, but not the front of the line pass. Normally I'm not sure if that would matter in November, but with the new HP section opening, maybe it would be a good idea?

Also, 3 days or 4? We will want to explore the resort a bit and the kids love a pool. I know Citiwalk has things to do also. We don't have flights yet, but I could see not having tickets for either arrival day, departure day or both. Is 3 days enough time to do everything and then revisit the highlights?

Any other tips/advice would be appreciated.

The 5th would be on a rollaway bed. But honestly, check prices for the Unlimited Express Passes for 5 people the dates you'll be there. If it's cheaper to book at one of the 3 "premium" resorts instead of the Cabana Bay + cost of Express, I'd stay at one of the other resorts. Just remember that the Express probably won't be good for the new HP ride, just as it can't be used on Forbidden Journey at IoA right now. But early park entry (assuming they'll expand it to cover both HP areas) means you can ride it at least once without a huge wait. We got to the park at 8:20 and had about a 20 min wait for FJ in October.

Citywalk will have restaurants for you to eat at and lots of shopping, but it's not really a hangout place for teens (unless The Groove is doing a teen night). There is a movie theater, and 2 mini golf courses, but that's pretty much it for "entertainment" for the under 18 crowd. If your 14 year old is responsible enough, and the 11 and 8 year olds will listen to her, Citywalk might make for a good "date night" option for you and DH. Pat O'Brien's usually has dueling pianos, Bob Marley usually has live reggae, and Margaritaville usually has live island music.

Three days should be plenty to see everything you want to see and hit the highlights again. If you can do the 4 days, that would give you more time, obviously, but I don't think it would be really necessary unless the HP area just makes it ridiculously crowded and you want to do those rides more than once or twice.

 

[mumto3girls]

Crowds should be relatively lower, they wont be dead( especially in the Harry Potter areas), but they arent going to be crazy at that time .express pass is a wonderful thing to have ( and we wont go without it even in slower times), but you should be ok without it those dates..It hasnt been said yet whether or not the new HP attractions will offer express pass, but the current attraction ( Forbidden Journey and Ollivanders wands) do not accept it.I am kind of doubting the Hogwarts express or The Escape from Gringotts rides in the new section will have it either , but it is possible.Early entry will likely be the most beneficial, and that Cabana Bay guests do get. As for tickets, we always do 4 ( 2 for each park ), but we are a family that likes to tour leisurely and enjoy downtime at the resort.Whichever you decide , you will need PARK TO PARK tickets if you are interested in the Hogwarts Express ( it will be required to ride it).

Thank you. I hadn't really considered that the new Harry Potter attractions may not take the front of the line pass. That is good to keep in mind. I do like the idea of minimal wait times on everything else though. I did know we needed park to park tickets for the train as I am certain that is a ride that the whole family will enjoy. I am sure whatever we decide will be fine, but it is great to have other perspectives in making those decisions.

 

[mumto3girls]

Date night! I like how you think! Last year we stayed at AKL and got the kids dinner at Mara one night to eat in the room and we went to Sanaa. It was one of the best nights of the trip. Up until then vacations had been all kids all the time. I am enjoying this new parenting phase.

The undercover tourist website has the crowd level at 5 the day we arrive and 4 the other days. I am even thinking it may be best to stay at one of the three hotels that offer the front of the line pass and do 3 days instead of 4. Arrival and departure can just be resort/pool days.

 

[RMulieri]

Date night! I like how you think! Last year we stayed at AKL and got the kids dinner at Mara one night to eat in the room and we went to Sanaa. It was one of the best nights of the trip. Up until then vacations had been all kids all the time. I am enjoying this new parenting phase.

The undercover tourist website has the crowd level at 5 the day we arrive and 4 the other days. I am even thinking it may be best to stay at one of the three hotels that offer the front of the line pass and do 3 days instead of 4. Arrival and departure can just be resort/pool days.

Personally I think that is the way to go..We are spoiled by the express pass , even on slow days it was beneficial.Especially for our family that hates hates hates lines and likes to re-ride our favorites.We like spending alot of time at the resorts too.You can pool hop at Universal to any of the other pools too, so downtime is fun

 

[wiigirl]

Date night! I like how you think! Last year we stayed at AKL and got the kids dinner at Mara one night to eat in the room and we went to Sanaa. It was one of the best nights of the trip. Up until then vacations had been all kids all the time. I am enjoying this new parenting phase.

The undercover tourist website has the crowd level at 5 the day we arrive and 4 the other days. I am even thinking it may be best to stay at one of the three hotels that offer the front of the line pass and do 3 days instead of 4. Arrival and departure can just be resort/pool days.

 

[glocon]

I would definitely choose 4 days over 3. You can explore parks and resorts at your leisure. You might want to look into an AP for one of you to see if it would save you significantly on your room. And you can bring an blow up mattress with you for the 5th person if you wanted to.

 

[mumto3girls]

I would definitely choose 4 days over 3. You can explore parks and resorts at your leisure. You might want to look into an AP for one of you to see if it would save you significantly on your room. And you can bring an blow up mattress with you for the 5th person if you wanted to.

Thanks! I will check into the AP to see if that makes a difference. We do have AAA so I am planning to see what kind of discount we have with that. We did talk about maybe an air mattress. We don't have one, but with kids who hate sleeping together we would use it a lot when we travel.

 

[damo]

If you choose a cot for the 5th person, it is an extra $25/night. So that is something else to figure into your costs.

 

[glocon]

My 16yo son brought a friend with us last time we came to UO, and they definitely did not want to share a bed. We brought a blow up mattress which was very easy to lean up against the wall between the bed farthest from the window and the bathroom wall. It tucked out of the way easily, and the HRH folks had no problem bringing us extra pillows, sheets and blankets. We set it up in the entryway to the room so people could still easily access the bathroom without stepping on my son. We brought a twin size that cost about $25 at Walmart. Saved a small bundle, and it was easier to get out of the way when we got up than a cot would be.

 

[Threeboysandachickie]

my kids are close in age to yours. our older two sleep in a queen bed and my 8 yest old sleeps in a very comfy arm chair with ottoman at the hard rock

 

[mumto3girls]

My 16yo son brought a friend with us last time we came to UO, and they definitely did not want to share a bed. We brought a blow up mattress which was very easy to lean up against the wall between the bed farthest from the window and the bathroom wall. It tucked out of the way easily, and the HRH folks had no problem bringing us extra pillows, sheets and blankets. We set it up in the entryway to the room so people could still easily access the bathroom without stepping on my son. We brought a twin size that cost about $25 at Walmart. Saved a small bundle, and it was easier to get out of the way when we got up than a cot would be.

Thanks. Good to know it is easy to store. We have been thinking about getting one anyway and this might be just the time to do it.

 

[mumto3girls]

my kids are close in age to yours. our older two sleep in a queen bed and my 8 yest old sleeps in a very comfy arm chair with ottoman at the hard rock

I could see my little one wanting to do that too. She is a VERY restless sleeper and no one likes to sleep with her.