Is it worth the extra $ to stay on Site?

[ldoogie]

Speaking of staying onsite, we definitely want to and are going Oct 15-19. Is there a chance any new vacation packages will be released before then? The HP package that includes a 3rd day free has travel by 6/30, I wonder if it will be extended until end of the year for example? Scared to book bc then a better deal will come out.

 

[patster734]

Speaking of staying onsite, we definitely want to and are going Oct 15-19. Is there a chance any new vacation packages will be released before then? The HP package that includes a 3rd day free has travel by 6/30, I wonder if it will be extended until end of the year for example? Scared to book bc then a better deal will come out.

It's typically better to book everything seperate than with a package. Packages require a down payment that's usually lost should a cancellation occur. With just a hotel reservation, a full refund is issued if cancelled more than 5 days before the planned visit. If you are an AAA member, a FLA resident, an AP holder, or in the military, you can possibly find a room rate comparable, if not better, that a package rate for the room. You might also find a Stay More, Save More rate for your date. You can check rates at Loewshotels.com. However, the AAA rates usually don't display, so you might need to call to see if that rate is available for your stay.

For park tickets, check both Universalorlando.com and Undercovertourist.com (also a great place for Disney tickets) for the best price. Your local AAA office might also have competitive rates if your a member.

 

[ldoogie]

Hmm we don't have AAA but my Mom does, can I use her membership you think?

 

[Hooked On The Mouse]

It is totally worth it to stay onsite. The convenience of the universal resorts to the parks is amazing if you are used to WDW. And as others have said, the whole atmosphere is so laid back at universal that it makes a wonderful change. Even though we will always go to WDW parks as well as universal, I did try to convince dh to stay at Portofino for this entire upcoming trip, instead of just the universal portion!

 

[labfan]

Definitely worth it. We stayed at RPR 6/2-6/6 and enjoyed it. Early entry to IOA for Harry Potter was great. We all loved that ride. Then we would spend the morning doing other rides, go back to the hotel to relax a bit and then back out again. We had the park to park tickets so we could do both parks on the same day.
The hotel was a nice short walk away or nice short boat ride.
Can't wait to go back.

 

[sharon_wv]

I just wanted to give my opinion, as just back from our first Universal Stay... definitely worth staying onsite for sure! The lines were pretty tough if you didn't have them this past week; I was so thankful we did.

 

[goNDmay9]

Jumping on the proverbial pile to share my onsite love.

Would not stay there any other way!! Resorts are top notch AND you get FOTL. It truly adds a priceless value to be able to slow down and "smell the roses" or in this case the mummy dust. We are also hooked on club level so we are always back to the resort on time for beer o'clock, and have a day or two that are strict pool and enjoy the resort days.

We tour Disney this way too, but have to give up seeing a lot of attractions.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Just got back from the Portofino stay Thursday night and was, as always, thrilled with the resort. They are doing some resort renovations that take from the beauty of the outside but not so much as I was bothered, more that I noticed sine we've been there so many times. since my son was about 5 (10 yrs ago) we've been adding UNI/IOA to our trip for the last 2 days. It is substantially more expensive but since the room key gets guests fast pass privileges for the day of arrival & the day of departure the expensive 1 night worked fine given the cost of the tickets and time saved (all finished 1 park in 1 day with fast passes). On the plus side they handled my request for newly diagnosed handicapped status kindly and since it was open gave us a nice big room in an easily accessible spot. I don't love the fact they charge so much to park on property but we needed the car so that's that. Also we love the pizza by the pool and they offered free ice water with fruit in it at the pool, which is fantastic, still a favorite after all these years.

In order to balance the Portofino splurge I booked us our last night at the MCO Marriott for $83 and was very pleased. This spot also charges for parking so My husband dropped off the rental after check in and took the shuttle back to us and we not only got our $15 for the night back but Alamo gave us another $15 for early drop off. All in all the $380 +83 -45(savings) beautiful pools and time saved made things worth it for us. the shuttle the hotels offers for free was perfect and sleeping in a bit was a wonderful break, the hotel is about 5 min from the airport cutting down on wasted time & stress - the kids played in the pool for hours and we saved $ by having Pizza Hut delivered to us at the hotel.

I've been to Royal Pacific and Hard Rock too and, seriously, all are fabulous- we just happen to prefer this one.

 

[kohlby]

We love staying onsite. However, there is the extra cost factor. So we always do a split stay - part onsite and part off. It's a good way for us to save some money and still enjoy being onsite. We actually go during the off season and still find it's worth it. It would be a necessity for us during the regular season though! The transportation is so easy onsite.

 

[patster734]

Hmm we don't have AAA but my Mom does, can I use her membership you think?

If she's going too, then sure. If not, then I doubt it. They may ask to see your membership card when checking in. You can still check the AAA rate without one, and if the savings are big enough to cover the cost of an AAA membership, get a membership. Having an AAA membership will then get you 5 to 10% off of meals and non-alcohol drinks at most restaurants, and the same percent off of souveniers. The card typically pays for itself, especially if your not an AP holder, which also has food/drink/souvenier discounts.

 

[ldoogie]

Okay thanks. One more question, and thanks for all your help. Just to verify if we stay onsite but book it separately we will get Express passes AND early admission to Wwohp?

 

[Bluer101]

Okay thanks. One more question, and thanks for all your help. Just to verify if we stay onsite but book it separately we will get Express passes AND early admission to Wwohp?

Anyone that stays at the 3 onsite hotels get unlisted express and early entry. This is the hotel perk its up to you to purchase a way into the park, tickets or annual passes.

 

[ldoogie]

Awesome thanks. Is there any way to price what a room with AAA discount is before buying the membership?

Argh I'm so freaking excited and the trip is 119 days away. I tried my hardest to convince DH we should just drive down (instead of flying and the drive is almost 25 hrs) on 4th of July weekend instead of waiting until Oct but he wasn't hearing it lol. I just can't wait!

 

[Bluer101]

Awesome thanks. Is there any way to price what a room with AAA discount is before buying the membership?

Argh I'm so freaking excited and the trip is 119 days away. I tried my hardest to convince DH we should just drive down (instead of flying and the drive is almost 25 hrs) on 4th of July weekend instead of waiting until Oct but he wasn't hearing it lol. I just can't wait!

I don't know about AAA but you could possibly call an office and ask. You can check out annual pass discount by putting in APH in the promotion box.

We leave next Saturday for 9 days but our drive is just over 2 hours. We enjoy 4th of July week every year.

 

[justanotherbelle]

If you have the means, I personally think that staying on property is absolutely magical If you are looking for a moderate resort, I highly suggest Port Orleans Riverside. The grounds are GORGEOUS, and if you ever want leave the parks midday and come back for fireworks, they have an awesome swimming pool, surrey bikes, and fishing. I can't recommend Riverside enough!

 

[ldoogie]

Thx I will call an office and ask, can't hurt. Do you go to Universal for 9 days? Or do a Disney trip too?

 

[ldoogie]

justanotherbelle, this is the Universal Studios thread but when we do Disney we always stay onsite I have done Riverside before but our room was SO far away from the bus stop and the walk with tired small children was awful lol. We did a family suite at All Star Music the next time and absolutely loved it! Next time we do Disney (in 2014 for sure) we are going to try a family suite at Art of Animation, I can't wait! I sure do wish we lived closer to FL so we could do more trips

 

[Duchie]

unlimited usage of the express lines
early entry
star service system for your room needs

This is why we love doing on our summer trips. It is a real relaxing vacation.



Nope, just like Mac and the rest that help, you will see. You will be hooked with the VIP treatment of staying onsite.

We just returned, stayed onsite at RPR for 2 nights. I'm curious what "star service" and "VIP treatment" are supposed to be because we saw none of that. We loved the location of the hotel, the convenience of the water taxi, the unlimited EP and early entry. But other than that, we saw nothing evenly remotely resembling VIP treatment. Maybe other hotels are better at this?

 

[macraven]

We just returned, stayed onsite at RPR for 2 nights. I'm curious what "star service" and "VIP treatment" are supposed to be because we saw none of that. We loved the location of the hotel, the convenience of the water taxi, the unlimited EP and early entry. But other than that, we saw nothing evenly remotely resembling VIP treatment. Maybe other hotels are better at this?

the packets and hotel information you receive when you check in explains it.
what isn't explained when you check in, is in that brochure.
the TM always mentions to me to look thru the papers i am given when i check in.
it also includes the movies for dive in night and the daily weekly schedule for the pool activities and hotel activities.

the phone in your hotel room has a button marked Star Service.
push that button and make your requests.
service is fast with them.

forgot your comb?
call SS and they will provide you one.
free.

vip, want turn down service, request it.
no robe in your room, push star service button.
need information of cab service, cinema movie times/shows, help with your luggage at check out, etc.

 

[aubriee]

Yes and she recruits another agent every time someone stays onsite.

We usually do only value hotels at Disney but hate to do anything but onsite at Universal. There is a reason why everyone recommends that if you do a split stay of Universal and WDW you do Universal last- You really will get spoiled by the convenience and the perks and dread having to go back to planning every detail of your day at WDW well in advance (and I am saying this as someone who loves WDW also). My only caution is once you stay onsite you will not want to visit any other way.

I agree! Last month (May 10th-20th) we stayed ten nights at Bonnet Creek, but then spent two nights over at Royal Pacific at Universal, using an AP discount. Since I already had those ten nights at Bonnet Creek and couldn't change any of those days, I had to think long and hard if we really wanted to pay twice for a hotel for those two nights. In the end I just couldn't stay offsite, so the condo over at Bonnet Creek just sat empty, with our stuff in it, the two nights we were at Universal. My elderly mom was with us and even though we had the condo over at WDW, staying onsite was so worth it with her. We were able to take her back to the resort for an afternoon rest and the second day she decided to just stay at the hotel. We loved not having to drive back and forth from WDW to Universal for those days, and of course early entry and express pass were invaluable. We hate lines, so loved being able to walk right on just about everything.

I'm going back down there solo in Sept, then again with my husband and mom in Dec. We are again staying at Bonnet Creek over at WDW for both trips. For the Dec trip we are again definitely spending one or two nights over at Universal and will just let the condo sit empty those nights. I know we could have just booked the condo for two less nights and then spent the last two nights over at Universal, but we like going to Universal during midweek, instead of the more crowded weekends. Using an AP discount for the Universal room and for no more than we're paying for the BC condo ($60.00 per night) it's not a big deal to leave it empty those two nights. As far as the Sept trip, I planned on just spending the whole week at Bonnet Creek and then just driving over to Universal a couple of days. However, just the last few days I have been having second thoughts. Since I'll be solo, I really, really don't want to drive back and forth those two days fighting traffic in an unfamiliar area, plus I reaaaaally love that early entry and express pass perk you get at Universal. My AP is still good, so I could get a room at Royal Pacific for just $167.00 (including taxes).