For those of you who have gone to Universal (orlando)

[Dicentras]

What would be worse:
Stuffing a family of 5 (2 parents, 2 teen boys, 1 preteen girl) into a studio at Universal for 2 nights, but having walkable access to the parks
or
Staying in a 2bedroom with dvc points and commute (not having easy access and having to pay for Univ's express pass)

The long version:
We currently have 2 nights booked at Royal Pacific Dec 30-Jan 1, then plan to move to a DVC resort for the rest of the week. The more I think about stuffing my family of 5 into a studio at Univ, the more I start to doubt my decision. I am excited for the easy access to Univ parks, and the free express passes are fantastic. But... the space, ugh.
We could switch to an all dvc stay and just drive there, but I feel like that might lessen the Univ experience - but is it worth it to not be stuffed into the studio?

Another idea I had was to just stay at Univ one night (or first night), for ease of walking there in the morning and free express passes. But that means we won't have a home to crash at if we need a mid afternoon break, and 2 in my party DEFINITELY need a mid-afternoon break, lol.

Thoughts? What do you think? Should I keep my 2 nights at RP or switch to all DVC? I've never been to Universal, so it's hard to know the right choice...
THANKS!

 

[DisneyBB]

I have stayed in one room with my two adultish daughters, it was fine. TBH you will be out most of the time and the express pass at that time of year will be great. You will also be there for new year? So that will be a plus as well. It is a bed thats all the express pass for any ride as many times as you want is a huge benefit.

 

[CarolMN]

There is no way that I would want to be on the roads between WDW and Universal on NYE. That has got to be the most crowded day/night of the year in the parks. Keep the RP reservation! It's just the two nights and you al have the 2 bedroom to look forward to.

 

[Sandisw]

I agree with Carol...keep what you have.

 

[wnielsen1]

I'd live with the space issues. The express passes that come with the room are worth the hassle.

 

[Matty B13]

We just did a trip at Hard Rock with 3 kids and 2 adults for 2 nights, and then switched to VGF. The ability to walk from the Hard Rock more that made up for the tight squeeze for our family of 5 for 2 nights. The extra hour in the morning before regular guests is awesome, and much better than the measly 1/2 hour that WDW does. We got a lot of rides in during that early morning hour at all the Harry Potter rides. My 5 year old managed to ride the Hippogryph ride about 5 times in that hour and head over to Seaus Land and do 3 rides before the crowds started to build.

I forget if Royal Pacific is one of their Deluxe Hotels with the express pass for the ride lines, but it was really nice having it at the Hard Rock.

 

[Dicentras]

Thanks, everyone! You've convinced me! I'll keep the RP reservation!

 

[wnielsen1]

I forget if Royal Pacific is one of their Deluxe Hotels with the express pass for the ride lines, but it was really nice having it at the Hard Rock.

Yes, RPR is included as a deluxe

 

[Engineman02]

Just did 4 nights at Universal with 2 adults and our 3 kids (18, 16, 14). The convenience of being so close was worth it (and never really felt cramped as the rooms are decent size, even with roll-away. Also, the express pass is worth having (and cheaper to stay at one of the hotels it comes with rather than buy it for 5 people).

 

[Claudia1]

Another DVCer in total agreement with Carol! We do both parks often and the express pass is invaluable during peak seasons.

 

[gharter]

Our trip earlier this month, we stayed at Portofino Bay for our days at Universal.
I would highly recommend staying at one of their 3 Premium resorts. You get early entry, PLUS "free" express pass to every attraction except Hagrids and Velocicoaster.
That means you pass EVERY other line. We rode everything and did every show we wanted in 2 days.

 

[xtinewashere]

What would be worse:
Stuffing a family of 5 (2 parents, 2 teen boys, 1 preteen girl) into a studio at Universal for 2 nights, but having walkable access to the parks
or
Staying in a 2bedroom with dvc points and commute (not having easy access and having to pay for Univ's express pass)

The long version:
We currently have 2 nights booked at Royal Pacific Dec 30-Jan 1, then plan to move to a DVC resort for the rest of the week. The more I think about stuffing my family of 5 into a studio at Univ, the more I start to doubt my decision. I am excited for the easy access to Univ parks, and the free express passes are fantastic. But... the space, ugh.
We could switch to an all dvc stay and just drive there, but I feel like that might lessen the Univ experience - but is it worth it to not be stuffed into the studio?

Another idea I had was to just stay at Univ one night (or first night), for ease of walking there in the morning and free express passes. But that means we won't have a home to crash at if we need a mid afternoon break, and 2 in my party DEFINITELY need a mid-afternoon break, lol.

Thoughts? What do you think? Should I keep my 2 nights at RP or switch to all DVC? I've never been to Universal, so it's hard to know the right choice...
THANKS!

My kids sound around the same age as yours We love Universal and RP does have the express passes which IMO make it worth it if you're going to be there when it's busy. If you stick with that room, you'll probably be dragged out into the parks often while your teens and tween enjoy the novelty of express all day/night lol. If space is important to you, there are lots of family suites at Universal. Cabana Bay is one of our favourites and we stay there often. You don't get express tho.. so it's dependent on if you're going for a busy time and want to give that up. Either way, I'd say staying close to the parks is ideal. The busses Universal have aren't like Disney buses. Each route is just a short trip to the parks and normally they're not crowded and arrive often. If you're just there for 2 days it's the best way to see and do everything. Enjoy! Also try the new coasters.. they're fantastic! (Haggrid's and Velicoaster)

 

[macraven]

When you stay at one of the three premier hotels, your hotel key card is valid the day you check in and out

 

[greeneyedchick]

What would be worse:
Stuffing a family of 5 (2 parents, 2 teen boys, 1 preteen girl) into a studio at Universal for 2 nights, but having walkable access to the parks
or
Staying in a 2bedroom with dvc points and commute (not having easy access and having to pay for Univ's express pass)

The long version:
We currently have 2 nights booked at Royal Pacific Dec 30-Jan 1, then plan to move to a DVC resort for the rest of the week. The more I think about stuffing my family of 5 into a studio at Univ, the more I start to doubt my decision. I am excited for the easy access to Univ parks, and the free express passes are fantastic. But... the space, ugh.
We could switch to an all dvc stay and just drive there, but I feel like that might lessen the Univ experience - but is it worth it to not be stuffed into the studio?

Another idea I had was to just stay at Univ one night (or first night), for ease of walking there in the morning and free express passes. But that means we won't have a home to crash at if we need a mid afternoon break, and 2 in my party DEFINITELY need a mid-afternoon break, lol.

Thoughts? What do you think? Should I keep my 2 nights at RP or switch to all DVC? I've never been to Universal, so it's hard to know the right choice...
THANKS!

The 5 of us (1 adult and 4 teens) stayed in a room with 2 double beds and a roll away bed at the Portofino Bay resort. It wasn't a suite, just a regular room. There wasn't a lot of space in the room but the bathroom was large with a seperate toilet area and we were fine. The kids spent time on the balconies and common areas in the hotel or they were at the parks or pool. I think it would be fine for a night and cheaper than buying the express passes and easier than driving from Disney.

 

[GinnyBear's_mom]

If possible, you might want to switch to Portofino Bay for your Universal stay. Similar to Royal Pacific, you get free express passes and can use the boats or walking paths, but Portofino's standard 2 queen studio rooms are the largest at Universal, more than 100 square feet larger than RP. There is plenty of room at PB for a rollaway but it is a bit tight for that at RP and the bathroom setup at PB is better for a larger group. We just stayed at PB last week with our family of 5 and it was fairly roomy. Although I prefer the theming of PB to RP, the room size makes me choose PB.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

Some people also will rent a small universal room for express pass and ALSO book DVC for space. We thought about that because it was actually cheaper than buying express passes, but ultimately decided to do VIP at universal as well.

It’s also worth figuring out how much VIP costs vs express pass and all the food. At one point I priced it out for 3 of us and it was close enough that I was going to just pay up for the better day.

 

[pinkxray]

We are a family of 5. We spent 3 nights in a 2 bedroom at Copper Creek followed by 3 nights in a standard room at Hard Rock. I thought everyone would complain about the decrease in size but we were too busy having a blast in the parks to notice the room. Having express passes is awesome. We almost never go back to Disney at night anymore bc it’s so crowded and we can’t get on any rides. It’s so nice to just walk or boat over after dinner to go on a few rides since it is so easy to get on.

Portofino did have more space if you are really concerned. We had no issues at either with 5.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

One other comment on universal though, but (with VIP) we have only ever needed 1 day there. Perhaps it’s just because of the kinds of rides they have but I can’t imagine spending multiple days there even though I LOVE the HP stuff, whereas I‘m happy as a clam in Disney even once we are “finished” with rides.

 

[MonaMN]

Agree with others. We stayed at Royal Pacific in March - the location and Express Passes are well worth it. The pool was lovely for a mid-day break too.

We especially liked the early entry… did Hagris one morning and Velocicoaster (three times in a row - it is amazing!) on the other morning we had there.

 

[Gr8scott]

Thanks, everyone! You've convinced me! I'll keep the RP reservation!

That’s the right call. The express pass alone is worth it in my opinion, hopefully you’ll be able to ride so many rides to tire everyone out, crash in the room after and not even notice the tight quarters while sleeping. Royal Pacific is a nice hotel too. Think of staying at Bay Lake Tower (Walking distance to the Magic Kingdom) and unlimited Lightning Lane passes. Only at Universal you’ll have to parks to choose from, or both.