Just HOW cramped are the standards with 5?

[mommymanda]

I'm looking into my options. Up until recently my heart was set on a family suite at Cabana Bay, or even the endless summer. Fit budget, and my family of two adults and three teens could sleep comfortably.
Except now I'm wondering if an express pass resort would be beneficial, possibly even club level.

Plan will be a late August trip, four or five park days. We are NOT gate open park goers. More like 9-10am arrival. Rooms are for showers and sleep.

In 2019 we all squished into a basic cruise ship room. We survived...kids were two years smaller though. Before that we fit into a standard room at Disney's CBR.

So if we get a standard two room and bring an air mattress. How cramped is cramped?
Do I splurge on luxury and sacrfice space, or focus on space and skip the higher resort perks?

In the end it will also come down to funds...but so far the price differences are not extreme enough to shut down the idea.

 

[TommyJK]

I've responded in your Canadian thread but now that you're more porentially considering a Deluxe I'll say this.

Here are the standard room sizes for the 3 Hotels:

Royal Pacific - 335 sq feet
Hardrock - 375 sq feet
Portofino - 450 sq feet

Having stayed at Royal Pacific, 5 is "do-able" but would be quite cramped. With 3 teens if you are going this potential route I would definitely recommend Portofino as 450 sq feet would be much more spacious. But Portofino is more expensive.

Personally, for when you are going, I would say you're still probably ok with your previous 2 bedroom at Cabana Bay plan. BUT with that I would say you should take advantage of the early entry perk that all of the hotels. But I know in the other thread you said you guys aren't rope droppers.

So in the end, if the budget works out I would go with Portofino. But I think you'd still be fine with Canabana Bay.

Edit: For comparison sake, it says that Disney CBR Standard rooms are 314 sq feet, so slightly smaller than Royal Pacific. But that might at least give you an idea of size comparison

 

[Gr8t Fan]

PBH has the largest rooms of all the express pass resorts, at 450 sq. feet. RPR has the smallest with 335 sq. feet. HRH is in the middle. Not sure if you have an AP or not, but the AP rates at PBH have been surprisingly lower than the other two resorts in August.

Maybe you could book 2-3 nights at an express pass resort at the beginning or your trip and the others at Cabana Bay near the end of the trip (when everyone is tired of the togetherness)?

We are like you guys, the room is to shower and sleep only, so we book the lowest rate and make do.

 

[cfoxga]

We stayed at RPR when our kids were small and it was quite tight for the 4 of us. The larger rooms at PBH would definitely be a plus. We're not fans of Club Level, as we like to try all of the different eating options, but it would certainly be a cost effective option for 5 people. At PBH, I think that gets you in a 490 sq ft deluxe room, with a very spacious bathroom that might come in handy...

 

[georgina]

With 4 or 5 park days, look into getting at least one AP for the room discount. Agree the bigger room at PBH would be most comfortable of the EP resorts. I know you said rooms are for showers and sleep, but August is hot, you can get so much more done with the EP and spend time cooling off mid-afternoon.

With our family together in one room we found club level to be worth it for breakfast and evening snacks. That's going to depend on your eating habits.

 

[Magical2017]

I would recommend upgrading one of your tickets to an AP and trying to get an AP discount at PB. We stayed in a standard garden with 2 queens and there would have been more than enough room for a rollaway or air mattress.

 

[AuroraluvsPhillip]

2 Queen Deluxe room at HRH is 500 sq. ft. for a bit more than a standard size room, but you get 2 Queen beds and a pull out sofa, plus room for an air mattress.

 

[houseofthrees]

We are a family with 3 teens and debate this every trip. We almost always decide on PB club level. The benefits almost always win out over space. Bringing an air mattress works well for us.

 

[Explore]

We stayed 5 to a room: 2 teen boys, 3 women at HRH in a standard 2 queen room in November. We have stayed 4 to a room at RPR and I don’t think we would consider putting a fifth in there. We paid for the rollaway with the five of us and it fit fine. I would gladly do that for the EP and being close to the park over having more room.

 

[MomOTwins]

We stayed at PBH with a rollaway and it was totally comfy.

 

[starry_solo]

Since you are not rope droppers and it sounds like you're unlikely to take advantage of the extra hour for resort guests, spring for one of the hotels that has Express Pass included. Think of it as a $100 per person savings (at least) per day, especially if you like the big rides. Plus, August when it's hot, do you really want to spend that much time standing in line.

 

[mvansear]

I have stayed HRH with family of 5 it was fine.. Highly recommend the queen deluxe room as it is bigger and has a pull out couch… they have those rooms club level but you cannot book them outright so when we went in May booked club 2 queen brought an air mattress and asked at check in if they had any deluxe club rooms…. They did!!! We love the club and wouldn’t stay w/o it!!! See my post about club https://www.disboards.com/threads/universal-hard-rock-club-level-food-covid.3821892/post-62781099
There are pics of the food in that thread as well

 

[kimili8]

I have stayed HRH with family of 5 it was fine.. Highly recommend the queen deluxe room as it is bigger and has a pull out couch… they have those rooms club level but you cannot book them outright so when we went in May booked club 2 queen brought an air mattress and asked at check in if they had any deluxe club rooms…. They did!!! We love the club and wouldn’t stay w/o it!!! See my post about club https://www.disboards.com/threads/universal-hard-rock-club-level-food-covid.3821892/post-62781099
There are pics of the food in that thread as well

May I ask how much it was to upgrade to club level? We have the deluxe room, and would LOVE to be able to upgrade to club!

 

[Cuchman]

Keep in mind that the prices go up per person as well - and are in proportion to the overall cost, I believe.
Make sure you have a full count so you can compare apples to apples.
Also, for my fam, having the extra facilities to get ready in a suite (at CB, usually) - i.e. more sink/vanity areas and a separate toilet - are very helpful.

 

[macraven]

May I ask how much it was to upgrade to club level? We have the deluxe room, and would LOVE to be able to upgrade to club!

You can find the room rates on the booking sites

 

[mvansear]

May I ask how much it was to upgrade to club level? We have the deluxe room, and would LOVE to be able to upgrade to club!

I’m sorry I missed this post. We did not upgrade to club. i booked club ap rate to begin with. I think it is about 100.00 more but we find that we eat and drink at least to that in the club. see this post for food offerings https://www.disboards.com/posts/63065527/ The upgrade we got was to queen delux on the club level, there was no charge for the upgrade

 

[kimili8]

I’m sorry I missed this post. We did not upgrade to club. i booked club ap rate to begin with. I think it is about 100.00 more but we find that we eat and drink at least to that in the club. see this post for food offerings https://www.disboards.com/posts/63065527/ The upgrade we got was to queen delux on the club level, there was no charge for the upgrade

Ah, gotcha. I misunderstood, thought you were in the deluxe and upgraded to club. I guess we can see if there is a deluxe club room available for the APH rate when we check in.
Thanks for responding!

 

[mvansear]

Yeah for the club level I have not seen where you can book them outright. You can do that on other non club floors.

 

[DL1WDW2]

I stayed n standard room at Hard Rock this recent holidays and needed to reserve a rollaway. Place a request with your reservation in advance.
The rollaway fit comfortably when I rolled it alongside the windows. They are the type of rollaway that stand (like a movers dolley) )to be rolledinto position and then lowered. So, very simple and comfortable. I think there was a minimal daily fee ($15…).

 

[macraven]

Roll away bed is $35 plus 12.5 taxes per night
was what it was last time I was there at HR