Newbie needs help with first trip

[dandave]

Hi to all! My children (9 and 11) want to give Universal a try. I have looked at these Universal boards several times, but I always end up feeling overwhelmed. Just before I start to hyperventilate, I click back over to the Disney boards... I love Disney. I love Disney in very large part because I understand Disney. Please help me to understand enough about Universal to book a first trip there.
I think we would like to give it a try in May. School gets out here around the 18th of May. I think we would like to stay at one of the onsite resorts, so that we could get FOTL access. (FOTL is like a permanent fastpass, right?) I have no idea what sort of tickets that we would need. I don't want to rush too much, but I would like to be able to get a fairly good idea of what Universal has to offer. We could do a Universal/Disney split.
Some info about us: We are FL residents, have AAA, and DH is military as well as DOD. We love a nice resort, but can't stand a stuffy one. The boys are crazy about a good pool slide. We like a combination of counter service food and casual sit down meals. We have never done a package. We like to have a pretty good idea of what we want to do, but don't want to stress over an itinerary.

Any suggestions or help? I know I'm asking for a ton of help. Thanks in advance!

 

[tricky1]

I know how you feel, I'm the same way but its with disney. universal I understand, staying on site is must for us , its makes it so much easier
to enjoy the parks and fotl is GREAT!!!
The 3 resorts portifino, hard rock(kids favorite) and royal pacific(my personal favorite)all are great with their own feel to them.
no matter which one you choose you can enjoy the pools and such at the other ones(pool hopping). all the boats converge at citywalk then you walk to ethier of the parks or hop the boat going to one of the other hotels to swim or dine or just explore .
We usally go to the parks in the morning , hit somes rides and shows and head back to the hotel(s) for a swim then later head back to the parks.
Its so relaxing not to worry about lines and a touring plan .
with AAA you should be able to get a good rate, if booking on line just type AAA in the promo box.
tickets I'm not real sure (we have aps) they have buy an adult ticket and get a child(3-9) ticket free , 2 days -3 days free may be someone else could help on this.

 

[WillCAD]

No reason to feel overwhelmed at Uni - it's a lot smaller than Disney and, I think, it's easier to see everything at Uni in just 2-3 days.

Universal Orlando consists of two theme parks, Universal Studios Florida, and Islands of Adventure; three resorts, Hard Rock Hotel, Portafino Hotel, and Royal Pacific Resort; and the dining and entertainment area called CityWalk. Uni is so much smaller than Dsney that the parks, resorts, and CityWalk are all litterally within walking distance of each other! But there are also very nice water taxis from the resorts to CityWalk, and the park entrances are on either side of CityWalk, only about 500 yards apart.

USF is all about the movies. Rides and shows there are all based on Universal movies - the ET Adventure, Back to the Future, Men in Black: Alien Attack, Jaws, Earthquake: The Big One, and the Mummy's Revenge, to name a few. USF has no full-on roller coasters, but some of the rides, like the Mummy and Back to the Future, are thrill rides (Mummy is a sort of indoor roller coaster with simulator stuff thrown in - very thrilling!)

IOA is all about fantasy. It's six "islands" are arranged around a lagoon, very similar to World Showcase, and each has a unique and distinctive theme, such as Marvel Superhero Island, Toon Lagoon, and Jurassic Park. There are more thrill rides here than USF, including several traditional outdoor steel roller coasters (Hulk and Dueling Dragons), and a wonderful kiddie coaster called the Flying Unicorn (tip: Flying Unicorn gives some of the best views of the park and is slow enough to get some pics while aloft). But there are also some great kid-friendly attractions, some truly DRENCHING water rides, and a couple of fantastic shows (DO NOT MISS Posiedon's Fury!)

CityWalk is for dining, shopping, and entertainment. It functions like Downtown Disney, with shops, restaurants, night clubs (which have music groups), and a movie theater. Because of where it is, you walk through CityWalk to get from teh Uni parking garages to the park entrances.

Unlike Disney, most of the sit-down restaurants at Uni are in the resorts instead of the parks. Places like Hard Rock Cafe, Nascar Cafe, and Jimmy Buffets Margaritaville can be found in CityWalk, and others like Emeril's Tchop Tchop can be found in the resorts. The parks do have some excellent counter-service places, such as the Enchanted Oak Tavern in IOA. The best sit-down place in the parks is Mythos in IOA, which is open only for lunch (don't miss it, it's fabulous and not terribly expensive).

If you are a fan of Polynesian, try staying at Royal Pacific. It has a more western Pacific feel than Polynesian, but is a truly spectacular and beautiful resort. Portafino is modeled after an Itallian coastal city and is also fabulous.

For park passes, I would recommend at least a 2-day pass (one for each park), but Uni often has deals on 3-day and longer passes that make them much more attractive than a simple two-day. Check Ticketmania.com and Uni's own web site for tickets.

Uni is a terrific place. Just approach it the same as you would a Disney trip, one step at a time, and you'll be fine.

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

I called Universal 1 800 232-7827 to see what the rates are for May 22 for 4 nights. I asked for AAA, FL and military discounts. Your FL residents status is your best bet

HRH gardenview $149/night, poolview $169/night

PBH gardenview $169/night, bayview $189/night

There was no availability at the RPR for those dates. Those prices are without tax.

Even the reservationist seemed surprised that the rates were so low! If you are interested, you should book pronto. The HRH has a great pool with a slide. The pool at the PBH also has a slide. The pool at the RPR is lots of fun, but no slide.

You can get tickets from www.universalorlando.com. There is a good deal on bonus passes 5 days for $99 and you can get a free ticket for your 9 year old. I don't know if the ticket deals for Fl residents will beat this deal. Even if you don't plan to spend 5 days in the park, the bonus ticket is worthwhile if you are going to spend more than one day at the parks.

I never buy packages anymore, but you may want to check out the kids stay, play and eat free to see if the price is better than what you can do separately. If you use th above figures, you can have 4 nts/5days at Universal for about $820 (hotel and tickets, including tax) Not bad when you consider that 5 days hoppers for a family of four (FL residents) is $823! (Yes, I know WDW has 4 parks not only 2--but even at half the price...)

 

[dandave]

Thank you each so much for all the great advice!!

IMGONNABE40!, You're a dear to go to so much trouble!

I called, and we are presently booked at HRH May 22 through May 26 in a garden view room. The lady on the phone was very helpful. She tried several dates with different discounts, but those days really had the best rates with the FL Res discount. The rate was $166.14 with tax per night.

I know that with the 2-Day 2-Park Ticket - Kids FREE & 3 Days FREE, we can cover the 2 adults, 1 junior, and the kid for $299.85 plus tax for 5 days.
Or, we can try to find a Coke promo code, and get four 2-Park Annual Power Passes for about $100 more.
I'll just need to decide which is better for us. We already have Seasonal passes for WDW, so I'm not sure if that may not be theme park overload...

Anyway, thank you all again!

 

[Sylvester McBean]

the power passes are a good deal, especially compared to the disney SP's. you might like universal enough to go a second time during the year.

 

[tricky1]

Good for you , hope you truly have a "vacation from the ordinary"
we will be there the same time(21st-26th) dw, nephew(12) & friend(12)
this is our first time staying at the hardrock and we all are looking forward to it.
~ let the good times roll ~

 

[macraven]

for a 5 day stay, you can see it all and then some.

go to the parks early, do lunch around 11 ish then return to the hrh for a swim. relax for awhile then go back to the parks.

don't miss horror make up show at the US side.
catch it a few times as the 2 host/actors switch. one is much better than the other. the show is the same but the jokes change depending on the audience.

you can check out some of the menus for the parks on line.
if your kids are big eaters, you might want to buy the meal deal wristband for one day.

you can order the loewfirst card on line.
you will get a welcome gift at the hotel if you are a loews card holder.

if you have questions, please ask here.
we love to help and make new universal groupies like ourselves.........

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

Glad to hear that you are booked! I am so glad that rate at HRH was available! I think your family will have an awesome time. You will have plenty of time to relax and enjoy both the parks and the resorts. You are encouraged to pool hop at all of the Universal resorts. You can spend an afternoon at each pool if you want.

 

[dandave]

Good morning!
I signed up for the Loews card last night, thanks for the tip on that. I have a few more questions.

Is an extra admission required for CityWalk, or is it free like DD? TicketMania had some blurb about their Universal tickets including admission into CityWalk for 7 days and AAA says it's not included, so now I'm confused about that. I thought it was free, no ticket required.

AAA has what seems to be a good deal on the Seasonal pass, but I have a few questions about it, too:

15-Month 2 Park Power Pass Information
2/11/2006 - 4/22/2006
Universal announces an EXCLUSIVE new offer only available at AAA - a 15 month 2-Park Power Pass for only $104.95! This special price is available only when visiting your local branch or at aaa.com. There is no specified redemption date. Park to Park Access. Purchaser must be a AAA member and show their AAA card. Passes may be purchased for family and friends and the and the member does NOT need to be with them when the tickets are redeemed at the park. Blackout dates apply.


15-Month 2 Park Power Pass with Blackout Dates
Retail Price: AAA Member Price: AAA members save:
$119.95 $104.95 $15.00

2/11/2006 - 4/22/2006 Retail Price is for a 12-month Pass.

AAA ticket must be exchanged at Universal to receive admission pass. Also available on-line for Auto Club South members with instant print confirmation.

Blackout Dates for 2006:
April 10-15 (9 am to 5 pm on April 15)
June 26-30
July 3-7, 10-14, 17-21, 24-28; July 31 - August 4
December 23 - January 1, 2007.

Passes are NOT valid for Halloween Horror Nights or Rock the Universe. CityWalk is NOT included.

On the Universal site, the details about the AAA ticket say:
When you buy your non-transferable pass online you'll receive a ticket, which can be used for admission at the front gate of either theme park. Once inside the park, proceed to the Vacation Services Center at any time (during your first visit) to have your photo taken and receive your pass.


If I buy this pass online, I will print out some sort of voucher (ticket) like at Disney. Then, I take this voucher to Universal. So, will the pass be valid and the 15 months start ticking down from when I purchase it online, or from when I first go to the park to exchange the voucher for the pass? I do not have to exchange the voucher prior to 4/22/06, only purchase it by 4/22 correct?

Thanks!

 

[macraven]

the power pass date starts when you take the voucher in and validate the power pass.

you buy the pass today, feb 14th.

you go to universal june 1st.



activate the power pass june 1 and that is your start date.

 

[macraven]

your multiday park pass includes city walk.
or that is how it has been my experience in the past years.




i don't remember how long it took for me to get my blue loews card the first time. it has been over 4.5 years since i signed up for the program. i am now at gold, it is mailed out automatically once you quality for that level. i really am platinum but that is another story.

you can request for a temporary card to be mailed out now. it wil have your number on it.
then you wil get your permanent card. that is what i had to do when i first signed up. i only had 3 weeks before my trip when i called.

 

[dandave]

Thanks macraven!

Since we can pool hop, how close is the HRH to the Royal Pacific Resort?

This is going to sound crazy, but... We are booked at WDW for our Spring Break. I just found that I can get Royal Pacific Resort for $149 plus tax during our dates. That seems like a great deal, but the children will really want the slide. I'm thinking that we would get to ride much more at Universal with FOTL than at Disney, because of the Spring Break crowds. Any thoughts?

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

I'm thinking that we would get to ride much more at Universal with FOTL than at Disney, because of the Spring Break crowds. Any thoughts?

You are probably right.

The pool at RPR is a lot of fun an you can easily get to either the HRH or the PBH pools by taking the resort bus from your hotel. It would be about a 15 minute walk from RPR to HRH. If you took the water taxi from RPR to City Walk, you could either walk to HRH (about 5 minutes at this point) or take another water taxi.

 

[dandave]

Thanks IMGONNABE40! !

We are now staying 3 nights at the Royal Pacific, before we move over to CSR at WDW. Hopefully we will love Universal in March and want to go back in May. I kept that reservation, too.
I ordered our power passes through AAA. They have to be picked up at a kiosk out in front of the parks.
So, thanks to all of you, I think we're all set!

 

[Sylvester McBean]

you'll definately get to ride more with the FOTL. when you pick up your power passes at the kiosk, you'll get an admission pass into the park. I'd go straight to vacation services to process them and get you picture taken. it can get busy there during the day.

sounds like you're good to go.

 

[macraven]

sounds like you have all your ducks in a row now and just waiting for take off........


you wil love the parks.
pool hopping is encouraged, take advantage of it. spend some time at the hrh pool and see how that compares to rph. the slide is kewl there.


post if you have more questions. someone here will try to help.


and someday, you can be a member (just like us) of the groupies for universal........