Nervous -- don't know what to do

[RMulieri]

We love staying onsite at Universal. It is soooo much easier to get to their parks than Disney's. Don't get me wrong, we love Disney, but being able to walk to and from your hotel in the time it takes to get to the disney bus stop or monorail is a huge plus.

The express pass is awesome. The only time we ever had to wait ( and we travel in August) was when we wanted to get on the front car at Dragon Challenge. That took about 10 mins, everything else was walk on. This August, we are travelling with family (2 different groups at different times) and they are only doing Disney. So for the ease of connecting with them we are just staying at Disney for the full 3 weeks, but we are doing Universal. Having stayed onsite at Universal our last 2 trips ( at the Hard Rock..love it) we can't go to Universal without the Express Pass, so we are opting to purchase it separately. The only rides it isn't accepted at are the Rip Ride Rocket( did it once, never again. It terrified me), the Forbidden Journey Ride in the Wizarding World ( this will be a long line, but so worth it, especially if you are Harry Potter fans) and Ollivander's ( the wand choosing experience) at the Wizarding World. There's a new Transformers ride, I'm not sure if you can use it on that one.

We are only doing 3 Universal days this trip, but I am worried that we will feel it hasn't been enough. We've always done a minimum if 4 full days and a couple of partial days before.

So, to summarize, an onsite stay at Universal is super convenient. The short trek back t the room makes midday breaks to cool off or get out if the rain super easy.

Th express pass is fantastic. I really wish Disney had an equivalent. We wouldn't do Universal without it. The rides are great. There are many with lots of different thrill levels. Ben and Jerry's ice cream at Universal Studios is a great place to take an afternoon break. It's quiet and air conditioned. We usually get ice cream for lunch. It is a vacation after all. Te water rides there are super wet and a great way to cool off and that express pass men's no wait.

Rip Ride Rocket now accepts express pass.

The ONLY rides that do not : Forbidden Journey, Ollivanders and Pteranodon Flyers.
The new Transformers also has express pass

 

[rschaen]

Rip Ride Rocket now accepts express pass.

The ONLY rides that do not : Forbidden Journey, Ollivanders and Pteranodon Flyers.
The new Transformers also has express pass

EP line for RRR was still 30-45 mins when we were there in June. Ugh!

 

[goofyfigment]

EP line for RRR was still 30-45 mins when we were there in June. Ugh!

I was there last week and both days we rode rrr the standby line was only 10 minutes

 

[TheAviator]

Yes with the express pass with the hotel, you usually almost just walk right on the rides, at very very peak times, there maybe a bit of a wait, but probably not more than 10 minutes

 

[RMulieri]

EP line for RRR was still 30-45 mins when we were there in June. Ugh!

Might have gone down due to technical issues and had a line when it came back up?

 

[MommaBearof4]

Rip Ride Rocket now accepts express pass.

The ONLY rides that do not : Forbidden Journey, Ollivanders and Pteranodon Flyers.
The new Transformers also has express pass

And that's why I love this site. Things are always changing and there is always someone who was there more recently with more up to date info. When we were at Universal last they didn't have the express pass for RRR and we were resigned to only a couple of rides after a long wait. My son was thrilled when I told him he could use his express pass. Now I need to come up with a new excuse not to ride.

 

[LaurenT]

Since you are staying at the RPR for 2 nights, you will have a vacation like you never have before. It is not like WDW, it is not like UO when staying offsite, it is unique and wonderful! The resorts are so deluxe and beautiful, and so close. The boats if you choose to use them to get to the parks are easy to access and a quick short ride to the parks. Or you can walk the pretty paths to the parks in a few short minutes. It is all so close and convenient.

And the biggies of early entry and unlimited express pass will give you a vacation like you have never imagined, because there is nothing else like it out there. You will feel so spoiled!

The hard part is once you have stayed onsite at UO once, you will want to do it again, and maybe split a stay with WDW. And that is expensive, to split stays between two theme parks (even though that is what we usually do-it just is too hard to be in Orlando and not do both for us).

I think you will have a great time and become one of us- families that love both the motherland and the darkside...

This has me so excited!
We are staying 9 nights at Jambo house and then 4 nights at RPR!
I almost always stay a week and go home feeling like it wasn't enough time - well, if this one isn't enough time, there's something wrong with me!

 

[Planogirl]

This has me so excited!
We are staying 9 nights at Jambo house and then 4 nights at RPR!
I almost always stay a week and go home feeling like it wasn't enough time - well, if this one isn't enough time, there's something wrong with me!

This to me is just about the perfect vacation. Two greats resorts IMO.

The only problem might be not enough time like you said.

 

[mlwolcott1]

We are doing our longest as well. 9 nights at WDW (3 AKL and 6 Dolphin) and then 3 at Portofino at US. End it all with a week on the gulf at Longboat Key to recover. If this doesn't make me homesick I may as well move to FL

 

[Metro West]

We are doing our longest as well. 9 nights at WDW (3 AKL and 6 Dolphin) and then 3 at Portofino at US. End it all with a week on the gulf at Longboat Key to recover. If this doesn't make me homesick I may as well move to FL

 

[fltourist]

For those of you staying for a number of consecutive days at RPR or other universal property, did you find a great deal on the boarding? We are looking at paying $294, but after taxes/fees, it comes out to $332. How are people staying at these places for more than 2 nights at that kind of rate. You could spend $2000 on just the lodging alone. Am I missing something here?

 

[goofyfigment]

I got portofino for 3 nights for 630

 

[mrsclark]

For those of you staying for a number of consecutive days at RPR or other universal property, did you find a great deal on the boarding? We are looking at paying $294, but after taxes/fees, it comes out to $332. How are people staying at these places for more than 2 nights at that kind of rate. You could spend $2000 on just the lodging alone. Am I missing something here?

In general, there is a discount if you stay three nights and more of a discount if you stay four or more, so that is a way to cut down on the cost.

 

[macraven]

that general public discount for 3 nights or more is the Stay More, Save More rate.

call UO and book directly through them.
the TM you talk with can go over all discounted rates with you on the phone.
they do have an 800 number.

 

[schumigirl]

I wonder how the OP enjoyed their trip.....wish they had come back and told us they had a wonderful time