Is it poss. to stay offsite, not buy express passes & see everything in 2 days?

[roliepolieoliefan]

I would love to take the kids (13, 8) to Universal and IOA for their first time before our Fantasy DCL cruise the end of April.

The cruise has us tapped out and I really don't want to spend $300 a night on a Universal hotel.
If we stay offsite and don't buy express passes, do we still have a good chance of seeing everything at both parks.

Are the parks going to be crowded? We usually visit Disney in the fall. I know the crowds won't be like that, just hoping they aren't unbearable.

 

[macraven]

end of April should not be bad at all.

stay away from the weekends.
go during the week and you'll be fine w/o crowds.

hope you have loads of fun at the Darkside!

 

[damo]

Yup, the very end of April is pretty good, before that is very busy. Here is a link to crowd reports, bookmarked for mid to end of April 2011 --- lots of good recommendations for you.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2490956&page=126

 

[accumax]

You will be fine during the week at that time so 2 days would be great. If you have not picked an off site place yet, I could recommend http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...STERN_PLUS_Universal_Inn-Orlando_Florida.html

Free hot breakefest, and shuttle or its a 20-25 min walk to the parks to avoid parking fees.