I need help... I'm a Newbie.

[Sunnydaze68]

We are planning a Disney/Universal trip for May. We got a great WDW rate. My questions are as follows:

1) should we stay our entire stay at the WDW resort or book a few nights at a UO resort. (Rate at WDW is cheaper)

2) Can you do both Universal parks in 2 days? This will help with my planning as far as what tickets to buy.

We have never done Universal, but have been to Disney several times. I'm confused on how to book my accommodations.

Scenario 1: (5 days/6 nights) Book 2 nights at WDW and hit the highlights of what we love at WDW, then check in a U/O resort for the "stay 4 play for free" and enjoy Universal.

Scenario 2: Entire lenght of stay at the WDW resort and commute to Universal for 2 days.

I am trying to pick the most cost effective route.

Any comments and/or suggestions will be appreciated.

Thank you.

 

[phamton]

I would pick Scenario 1: (5 days/6 nights) Book 2 nights at WDW and hit the highlights of what we love at WDW, then check in a U/O resort for the "stay 4 play for free" and enjoy Universal.

If you have never been to Universal/IoA before you will need more than 2 days. It can be done but not enjoyably. You will love staying onsite at Universal as you will have front of the line privileges for all the rides. Think of it as a never ending fast pass. You will feel like a VIP.

 

[powellrj]

Scenario 1 would be my pick. You just can't beat FOTL!

 

[ATAfamily]

I have to agree with scenario 1 also. With FOTL, you will be able to see so much more because you won't be wasting valuable time waiting in line.

You are going to love Universal.

Deanne (mom to 3 black belts)

 

[Sunnydaze68]

Thanks everyone. I appreciate your input.

 

[ksdave]

Sunnydaze68 said:

(Rate at WDW is cheaper)

The problem is that you are comparing apples to oranges. Or Volkswagons to BMWs. Alot of folks see the rates for the All-Stars or CBR/PO/Coronado at WDW and compare their rates to HRH or PBH at UO. But, there is no comparison to what you are getting for your money at UO. I have stayed at virtually all of the resorts at WDW, and I can tell you that PBH is on a par, or slightly better, than Grand Floridian (GF), while HRH is at least as good as Poly and Contemporary (CR), maybe better. When you compare prices of PBH to GF, and HRH to Poly and CR, you can see you are getting a much better deal at the Universal resorts. PLUS, at WDW it does not matter how much $$$ you pay, you do not get FOTL like you do at UO. And this perk to me is worth a bunch if you go during a busy time.

 

[phamton]

KSDave, I loved your pictures on your website of Universal/IoA. Looks like you had a great time.

 

[disney4us2002]

I'm unfamiliar with this stay 4 play for free but if it is 4 nights, I don't think you'll need it. We did Univ/IoA over Christmas and we expected it to be very crowded. It wasn't. We arrived and entered about 5 minutes after opening and hardly had any wait at all for the biggies. We drove from the Poly and it took maybe 30 minutes. We did not have front of the line nor did we buy the express pass but we did use the free express pass in the parks (similar to Disney's fastpass). We really enjoyed Univ and thought IoA was so-so. I anticipated it being the other way around. Our IoA day was not a great day weatherwise as it was cold and rainy and they cancelled the Whobillation with the Grinch show. How many are in your party and what about kids? Our boys are a bit older (8, 11, 15) so the little kid area was uninteresting and the youngest wasn't quite tall enough for the big roller coasters at IoA, although the older two and I rode them. The absolute best ride at all the parks (Disney too) in our opinion is Revenge of the Mummy. The most disappointing ride was Back to the Future which gave two of us terrible headaches - way too jerky! We've done Disney plenty and thought we'd give Univ a try this time around but honestly, we didn't see the need to do more than two days. We had purchased the mastercard deal so we had 5 consecutive days available to go but noone voted to return.

I realize this is the Univ board and the people here love Univ but I wanted to share another opinion. Incidentally, all of us noticed that the Univ cm's (for lack of a better term - what are univ cm's called?) were soooooo much friendlier and 'in character' than at Disney. That is an area I think Disney could drastically improve. My dh made an observation that held true our whole visit at Disney - the young, energetic, go-getters are great cm's and the retired and loving life & Disney cm's are terrific. It's that whole middle-aged area of 30's-45's that were grumpy and miserable and rude cm's. We didn't encounter a single rude cm at Univ, IoA, or any of the restaurants & shops we visited.

One last note since you're going in May - a) Univ is unlikely to be crowded then and b) Disney is kicking off a new celebration so there'll be new parades, and a few new attractions opening in May. In other words, 2 days at Disney may not cut it. If some unexpected money falls into our laps, we'll be there in May for sure!

 

[phamton]

Thanks for a fair and unbiased opinion, disney4us. It is hard when you have kids with ages spread out from 8-15. If all your kids are young they can spend hours in Suess landing or the water play area at Universal. Your kids were past that age. If they are all teens they can spend hours riding and re-riding the Mummy, Men in Black, Hulk, Jurassic Park, Spiderman, and Dueling Dragons. I do agree that 2 days is enough if you just want to hit the rides. It just depends on what you are looking for in a vacation. My teenage sons liked hanging out at the Hard Rock Hotel pool also. Forget hitting the parks at the crack of dawn, they slept in and we made it to the parks by noon so 2 days was never enough for us.

I'm glad you had a good experience with the employees at Universal and IoA. They are called "team members." A few years ago, many of the TMs weren't so great but the last couple of years they have really imporved with their guest interactions. They weeded out some of the bad apples.

I do have a question about your family and the Mummy ride. I'm sure your older two loved the ride but how did your 8 year old like it. I often get asked if it is too scary for younger kids so I'd like your opinion on that. It is nice to get an unbiased opinion from a newbie to Universal.

 

[Immelman]

I realize this is the Univ board and the people here love Univ but I wanted to share another opinion. Incidentally, all of us noticed that the Univ cm's (for lack of a better term - what are univ cm's called?) were soooooo much friendlier and 'in character' than at Disney. That is an area I think Disney could drastically improve. My dh made an observation that held true our whole visit at Disney - the young, energetic, go-getters are great cm's and the retired and loving life & Disney cm's are terrific. It's that whole middle-aged area of 30's-45's that were grumpy and miserable and rude cm's. We didn't encounter a single rude cm at Univ, IoA, or any of the restaurants & shops we visited.
!

they're actually TM's...Team Members. and I wish I could forward your email to UO. you're absolutely right.

 

[disney4us2002]

First, thanks. I was almost afraid to post as I didn't want to come across as harsh or make it seem like we didn't like Univ because we really did and we were glad we went.

My 8 yr old is a breed all his own, lol. It probably stems from having two older brothers to keep up with but he has an "old soul". Not really, but he let go of "younger stuff" too early imo. Sometimes I worry that he puts on a false bravado but if you look at the photos of the rides it is clear that he is in heaven and the 11 yr old is the one a bit unsure. It's a shame he was just an inch too short for Dr. Doom and Dueling Dragons as he would've loved them!

 

[Immelman]

feel free to post your trip reports. even though it's a disney site, the UO crowd is pretty open to criticism. that's how the whole resort is evolving, IMHO. they're paying attention to their guest's concerns.

 

[Sunnydaze68]

Disney4us2002---
Thanks for your point of view. I still haven't decided for sure what we are going to do. So far I am thinking 2 nights at AKL and 4 nights at RPH so we can get FOTL and the 2 free passes, but am still not positive about that.......
My kids are, DS 8 and DD 12. DS does not care for thrill rides, so I am worried about that. My DD is a daredevil and will ride anything. Does Universal do the "child swap" so my hubby can get a chance to ride?

KSDave--
Your pictures are great.

 

[Sunnydaze68]

KSDave...
Since there are no food court type places as the UO resorts, are there reasonably priced places to eat breakfast?

Portofino Bay looks beautiful. I'm wondering if would be worth the extra $$ to book this hotel rather than RPH. Any insight? Have you visited RPH?

Also, my daughter loves animal planet. Are there shows that you can go to such as Petsburg USA? Your pics really got my kids siked.

Thanks for your help.

 

[phamton]

The child swap at universal is even better than WDW. Most of the areas are inside the ride area with air conditioning/heat. Some have t.v.s to watch.

Your child will probably love the Animal Planet Live show at Universal.

As far as eating breakfast, you can eat at the parks. Pastamore (in citywalk) has a great express breakfast(eggs, bacon, etc.) for around $7. Cinnabon (in Citywalk and also IoA) has great cinnamon rolls, etc. Croissant Moon Bakery (in IoA) also has come great pastries. There is also a Starbucks in Citywalk that sells muffins, etc. In the San Franscisco area of Universal there is a pastry shop also.

 

[Sunnydaze68]

How exactly does the child swap work at Universal?

We love Cinnabon! Yay.

 

[phamton]

For child swap: you go through the queue as a family. Then when you get almost to the front of the line, one parent goes to the waiting room/child swap area room with the child, then the other parent goes on the ride with the other children. When the parent gets off the ride, he goes back to the child swap area which is near where he disembarked. Then he stays with the child and the other parent goes into the express line with the other kids and rides. So the other kids get to ride twice and no waiting in line again. The child swap area is a room with glass so you can watch the ride and has chairs and sometimes a tv.