Last two nights at Poly or go over to Universal?

[A1A1]

Hello.

DD and I have a reservation at Poly GV for the last two nights of our nine day trip to WDW. The previous week will be at BWV.

Would you recommend staying at one of the Universal resorts: Hard Rock or other, or do you think we should stay at Poly and drive over there?

I have never been to Universal, and don't know if I will even like it, but wanted to try it. Have heard so much about the front of line option for Universal resort guests, and thought we may have quite a wait in lines on a weekend in August if we didn't stay right there.

Also have never stayed at Poly before.

 

[bjakmom]

Before making your decision be sure and read the posts on the USF/IOA boards. We're staying at RPR in late August for only 109.00 pool view (ent rate)- brand new hotel- I'm sure they have a lot of rooms to sell. They also have Club Level service. The express access was a huge consideration in staying on site at Universal- posters rave about it and I know the lines can get long - looking forward to doing rides without waiting and then taking the short hop back to the pool in that Aug heat! Have seen how nice the hotels and pools are on the travel channel and note that posters overwhelmingly enjoyed their stays at HRH and PBH. I would not want to be driving back and forth if I were through doing WDW,IMHO.

 

[cottontail]

Hi:

I am in the same delema for our april trip, never been to universal, and I do not even know if I would go on any rides, as I love slow rides, pirates of car, peter pan, splash mountain is my wildest, and I get migraines from any dizzy type rides. Actually we are going to seaworld first time this year and wdw and I don't know even know if I have the energy for all this activity. lol.

The poly is so beautiful and relaxing, and they have their new pool as well. We love it there.

On the other hand if you were definitely going to universal I would grab one of those l09.00 rooms now, at their new hotel, and keep the poly for another couple of months, do a little research til you make your decision, then cancel one of them, that way you have a decent price for the universal hotel.

Deb.

 

[Disneydenise]

Hi I stayed at the HRH last year for FOTL access. I don't think I would ever go to UIOA again and not stay on the property. We had a lovely room and the FOTL is the best. It is not the Poly but Universal isn't WDW either. I am not a thrill ride lover but my children and husband are. There are a few other things you may enjoy aat the hotel. The pool area is great. IiiiYou didn't say how old your DD is. If she is younger there is DR.Suess land that I loved. I am a Suess freak. The Cat in the Hat is a real cute and enjoyable ride. Some of the rides are not too bad. I would stay away from anything that has a big drop. They have a thrill rating on the pamphlet they give you when you enter the park. I personally felt they were too modest in the ratings. I am not a real lover of being wet for a day in the park either and after going on Dudley Doo Rights log flume I was drenched and I think I may have permanently injured the poor young man who sat behind me in the log. I would purchase a 2 day pass at Universal and then hop from IOA to the Studios. There are more attrations that I enjoy in that park. Sspideramn however is not to be missed at IOA. You will love it. It iss a 3-D attration that is very well done. I don't have problems as long as I know that I am not really falling 6 feet.

 

[Bstanley]

First $0.01 worth: Visiting Universal versus not visiting Universal.

Universal Studios Florida (USF) has some really great attractions: T2-3D is REALLY loud - but it's excellent, MIB REALLY spins (watch out for those aliens!) - but it's excellent, and of course there is Twister, Kong (is this still operating?), ET, Jaws, Earthquake - all of which are very good and not "Thrill Rides" ("Roller Coasters"). The only ride that bothers me based on the physical motion is Back to the Future (hurts my neck). USF also has several good shows (Wild West Stunts and Animal), and lots of 'walk around' entertainment.

Islands of Adventure (IoA) does have several "Thrill Rides" - The Hulk and Dueling Dragons Coasters and Dr. Doom's FearFall for example, but it also has a number of other attractions. Spider Man is somewhat 'physical' (the ride vehicle moves pretty dramatically) - but is an excellent ride, the Juraissic Park flume ride is similar to Splash Mountain (now the one in Hollywood is a THRILL ride...) and is good, and there are a number of other attractions that are not "Thrill" rides but very good. The park itself is marvelous, and the shows are excellent. The Sinbad show is great for example.

I definitely recommend giving both Universal parks a try.

Second $0.01 worth: If you are going to be visiting the Universal parks the last two days, and are already planning on moving out of a hotel I would recommend going ahead and staying at one of the Loew's hotels at Universal. The convenience of location and the FOTL privilege is absolutely fantastic.

From HRH it is a 5 minute walk to the USF gate (and vvs - do not follow the sign, go to the left - you'll know what I mean when you see it and a 10 minute walk to IoA. The new Royal Polynesian(?) is the inverse and has even better rates than HRH right now. If you want to stay in a Polynesian class hotel stay at Portofino (Portobello ?) hotel, it has received excellent reviews. It's about a 10 minute walk from it to either of the parks.

The FOTL privilege not only allows you to use the 'Fast Pass' (Universal calls it the 'Express' line) entrance, but it also gives you special seating areas for the shows and they are excellent.

Just the location or the FOTL privilege would make the hotels worth consideration, but together (and add the excellent rooms/prices) they really make the choice of whether to stay at Universal a 'done-deal'...

 

[rugrat]

I'm having the same problem!

DH, DDs 4&6, and I are doing 3 day/4 night cruise in Aug. First I booked Poly. Then I thought about staying on site at US since we've never been before. So I booked RPH (the new one) for 139 club room. Great rate! Well, I started having second thoughts. It seems like IOA is for older kids...is the theming as good as WDW..would I miss the magic? So I switched back to the Poly. Now I'm wondering if it was the right thing to do. Is it worthwhile to go to IOA for just one day?

 

[A1A1]

I am laughing that we are all thinking the same thing about Poly vs. Universal. I am afraid to miss the "magic" also, and then regret not taking that relaxing room at the Poly.
When I read descriptions of the rides in other threads,etc, they do seem very scary. More for older kids. It sounds like Seuss is the only little kid stuff, and I don't want to spend two days to do just that, although dd might prefer it.

I don't know what to do.

What is the theming, if any, for that Pacific resort. Would it be compared to a moderate??? Do they just give it a Pacific name, but not theme it??

Thanks for the input so far. Not sure what to do.

 

[A1A1]

I am laughing that we are all thinking the same thing about Poly vs. Universal. I am afraid to miss the "magic" also, and then regret not taking that relaxing room at the Poly.
When I read descriptions of the rides in other threads,etc, they do seem very scary. More for older kids. It sounds like Seuss is the only little kid stuff, and I don't want to spend two days to do just that, although dd might prefer it.

I don't know what to do.

What is the theming, if any, for that Pacific resort. Would it be compared to a moderate??? Do they just give it a Pacific name, but not theme it??

Thanks for the input so far. Not sure what to do.

 

[NikkiK]

The theming at both the Universal parks is awesome, every bit as good as Disney, in fact at this point I think I prefer Universal. The atmosphere is lively and exciting. I do not have young children, but I do know there are areas at both parks specifically for them. There is much more information on this on the Universal board.

We stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel last week for three nights, then at the Dolphin for two nights. The Hard Rock was by far the nicer of the two hotels. We got a complimentary upgrade to club level, which was awesome. The pool at the Hard Rock was wonderful for small kids. My only complaint about the hotel was that there was no pool suitable for swimming laps. But for kids it is a great, shallow, zero entry pool with a great water slide. Very relaxing. I've never been at the Poly so I can't compare it, though.

 

[goofy!]

We did the Portofino / Poly last summer.

Since I have only stayed at PBH, that is the only one I can compare to the Polynesian. In that regard, the Portofino is a fabulous hotel! Gorgeous, and oh, those beds. And if you are visiting in August, the FOTL is almost a must. It was hot and crowded. Was it ever nice to be able to walk right up to the Express line, just flashing our hotel pass. The pool at the Portofino was exceptional. My kids preferred the slide at PBH to the Volcano pool at the Poly. There are also some great rates out there. Entertainment, Loew First card and Universal Fan Club rates.

As for the rides, we couldn't get the kids off Spiderman. (The adults thought it was awesome too.) Some of the other rides popular with the younger kids - Unicorn (IOA), Pteradon Flyers (IOA), Everything in DR. Suess Land (IOA), ET (USF), Nicklelodian Studios (USF), Hanna Barbera (USF), MIB (USF) and many others.

Both resorts / theme parks are different, but both are very nice. Universal is not WDW, but for our family was just as wonderful
as WDW. It is just much smaller, so you can do everything in 3-4 days. The Portofino was absolutely gorgeous, so I don't think you would miss out on much. And if you are going in August, FOTL is almost a necessity. Fast Pass is wonderful, but FOTL really spoils you.

Goofy!