Nervous...1st time at Universal

[lisareneeo]

We are thinking about a 4 night 5 day trip to Universal Mon-Fri (Jan 14-18)

We are Disney Nuts but am thinking we need to branch out. My 11 year old son has been asking about Universal for quite some time and we are really considering it.

My questions.
How does the Hard Rock Hotel compare to Disney Resorts (same category as a deluxe or mod???...I am clueless, although it looks very nice!

What should we expect with the crowds? We will be leaving Friday evening of the Martin L King weekend.

What do we do for transportation? Walk or is there internal transportation like Disney? We do not want to rent a car and will how a town car pick us up and drop us off at MCO.

How far is Hard Rock Hotel from MCO?


Any other info you think will be helpful please feel free.
Thanks in advance for your help.
Lisa
Will 4 nights/5 days be enough time (we usually stay at Disney for 10 nights)

 

[Metro West]

How does the Hard Rock Hotel compare to Disney Resorts (same category as a deluxe or mod???...I am clueless, although it looks very nice!

What should we expect with the crowds? We will be leaving Friday evening of the Martin L King weekend.

What do we do for transportation? Walk or is there internal transportation like Disney? We do not want to rent a car and will how a town car pick us up and drop us off at MCO.

How far is Hard Rock Hotel from MCO?


Any other info you think will be helpful please feel free.
Thanks in advance for your help.
Lisa
Will 4 nights/5 days be enough time (we usually stay at Disney for 10 nights)

I haven't stayed at the hotels but the other homies have rave reviews that I'm sure they will share with you.

MLK Day will be busy since school is out but otherwise, the crowds should be very manageable.

If you're staying onsite...you can either walk, take the boats or rickshaw to the parks. They are very close.

As far as transportation from Disney to Universal, I'll let the other homies respond to that one but I've heard Mears has a shuttle that's pretty reasonable and I would do something similar to get back to the airport.

You will have plenty of time to do everything you want to do in four days so don't worry about that.

The main thing to remember is this: It's NOT Disney and you don't have to spend lots of time planning your every move. Just relax and enjoy yourselves.

 

[ky07]

I agree with metro and we used mears in june and we didn't stay at Disney but we did round trip from airport to hotel.
you could always go online or call and pretty sure they could do a Disney to HRH and to airport and we used them we paid $100.00 for round trip and that was for a town car.

 

[AlexandNessa]

We are thinking about a 4 night 5 day trip to Universal Mon-Fri (Jan 14-18)

We are Disney Nuts but am thinking we need to branch out. My 11 year old son has been asking about Universal for quite some time and we are really considering it.

My questions.
How does the Hard Rock Hotel compare to Disney Resorts (same category as a deluxe or mod???...I am clueless, although it looks very nice! The HRH is awesome! It's definitely a Deluxe, although unlike Disney deluxe's no balcony.

Take a virtual tour of the HRH by clicking on this link (virtual tour button on right hand side of page):

http://www.libertytravel.com/Hotels/Preview/HotelPreview.asp?hotelcode=FLCHRD

What should we expect with the crowds? We will be leaving Friday evening of the Martin L King weekend. It won't matter what the crowds are too much because your room key acts as an Unlimited Express Pass to all the major rides.

What do we do for transportation? Walk or is there internal transportation like Disney? We do not want to rent a car and will how a town car pick us up and drop us off at MCO. Our recommendation is Sunray Transportation. (http://www.sunraytransportation.com). Mention "the mouse for less" in the how did you hear about us section. R/T is $82 + tip. They'll pick you up in a comfortable SUV. Plenty of room. Once on-site you can walk to both parks, take a bus, or boat. Or you can use those stupid rickshaw drivers who operate for a tip. IMHO, if you're going out the door by the HRH pool, it's quickest to walk. About a 4 minute walk to USF.

How far is Hard Rock Hotel from MCO? Maybe 25 minutes?


Any other info you think will be helpful please feel free. Join Loews First. Unlike Disney, the Loews hotels have a loyalty reward program. http://www.loewsfirst.com.


Thanks in advance for your help.
Lisa
Will 4 nights/5 days be enough time (we usually stay at Disney for 10 nights) That's plenty of time. If you think it's too much, they offer free transportation to Sea World and $10 pp r/t transportation to Busch Gardens Tampa.

Comments are inserted above. Have a great trip.

 

[lisareneeo]

Thanks for all of your responses.
Lisa

 

[Planogirl]

It's funny but we went for the first time because our son kept asking to go. I'll tell you now that I'm glad he did because I was smitten.

I suggest getting Kelly Monaghan's guidebook to Universal first of all. Study it to get a good idea of the layout and the 'big' attractions. You can also map out where you'd like to eat.

As for the hotels, all of the Loew's hotels are quite luxurious. You'll also get the chance to pool hop if you'd like because you're welcome to use any of the pools at the three hotels. I suggest doing so if you have time because each resort is unique. My family enjoyed the Hard Rock pool best but really liked the Royal Pacific's too. They never made it over to Portofino but it's a lovely hotel and the most luxurious. It's all within walking distance but there's also a boat shuttle.

As for dining, there's some good restaurants in the parks and many in Citywalk. I suggest having lunch in Citywalk if you like to escape the crowds like we do. Our favorite is Margaritaville but YMMV.

One more thing, do look into Mears to get from MCO to Universal. We took a taxi once and it was quite pricey!

 

[lisareneeo]

Thanks!

 

[msr709]

No one else has mentioned this but if you belong to AAA you can get a discount on the hotel and at the parks in the restaurants and stores and even in Citywalk. I'm also staying at the HRH this coming summer in August but this is my 3rd time, I just love it. I've stayed at the RPH also but I do prefer the HRH, if only for the beds! They are delightful. The location is also the best, IMO. Its a very short walk to USO and IOA is right next door. Citywalk is across the little lake but you can get there by walking over the bridge from USO. Its all very close, not like at WDW, you really don't need to take the boat unless you are extremely tired because they seem to take a long time unless you walk up and one is about to leave. I don't relish walking since I have bad knees but this is one place that I do. (I should say I ride because I usually have an ECV.) HTH. Have a wonderful time.

 

[bubba's mom]

I suggest getting Kelly Monaghan's guidebook to Universal first of all. Study it to get a good idea of the layout and the 'big' attractions.

I will 'second' that .... what the UOG is to WDW, is what Kelly's book is to UO. The actual title is "Universal Orlando The Ultimate Guide to the Ultimate Theme Park Adventure" It's an EXCELLENT book and the newest addition has pictures Any local bookstore should carry it