Need Help....First trip to Universal! Where to start?

[Mastiff]

Hello All,

Planning our first trip to Universal and I am not sure where to start. We would like to stay on site. Husband, myself, DS(13), DD(9). We will be visiting Sept. or Oct. Which hotel would we all love. We typically stay in Disney deluxe, Poly or GF. Any help there is appreciated!

Also, do I make hotel reservations separate from ticket purchase? Or, do I buy them as a package? What seems to be the best deal?

Thanks for your help!

 

[RMulieri]

Most people book their Universal trips separately since the packages aren;t that great of a value, but occasionally can be.You would need to price them out.For us it was cheaper to book the hotel separately and get our tickets from Undercover tourist.As for which resort, all 3 are on par with Disney Deluxe.We stayed Portofino Bay and felt it was "more" deluxe then Disney, and we stay deluxe or DVC at disney all the time.We also looked at Royal Pacific and HArd rock.You can't go wrong with any of them. BE aware that only PBH has balconies, and even then only on a few more expensive rooms.NONE of the other 2 have balconies.I thought this would be an issue since we love to sit on a balcony on vacation,but it didn't bother us at all.Also of note is September/october is Universals Halloween Horror nights ,so the studios close earlier on those nights.

 

[buckeev]

Take your pick! All three are awesome!
Our kids prefer the Hard Rock, but only because "it's cool"...I like the quite atmosphere of Royal Pacific, plus Emeril's tchoup place is right there!

 

[JessicaR]

Hello All,

Planning our first trip to Universal and I am not sure where to start. We would like to stay on site. Husband, myself, DS(13), DD(9). We will be visiting Sept. or Oct. Which hotel would we all love. We typically stay in Disney deluxe, Poly or GF. Any help there is appreciated!

Also, do I make hotel reservations separate from ticket purchase? Or, do I buy them as a package? What seems to be the best deal?

Thanks for your help!

Do it all separate.
As far as where to stay as was mentioned they are all great and they are all deluxe.

The larger standard rooms are at Portofino Bay and the smallest at Royal pacific. My kids have been on a Hard Rock kick for a few years now but will stay at Portofino also. They do not care for Royal Pacific and it's all about the pool and smaller rooms. They love the slides and Hard Rocks atmosphere and we do too.

Have a look at some pictures to see what theme appeals to all of you.

 

[Mastiff]

Thank you for the great information about the hotels and park hours! That is really helpful.

I am going to check out PBH and HRH. I think those would be fun for our families.

Off topic here but JessicaR love your mastiff pick in your signature! We had a beautiful apricot mastiff for close to 11 years! Miss her every day.

Thanks again for all the great info. I will keep reading away for more advice!

 

[JessicaR]

Thank you for the great information about the hotels and park hours! That is really helpful.

I am going to check out PBH and HRH. I think those would be fun for our families.

Off topic here but JessicaR love your mastiff pick in your signature! We had a beautiful apricot mastiff for close to 11 years! Miss her every day.

Thanks again for all the great info. I will keep reading away for more advice!

I know how you feel, Mastiff's are a very special breed.

Let us know what you pick for a hotel and then we can give you more info! The on-site hotels make the park experience that much greater.