One Week at US/IOA - need FOTL?

[maggiew]

We plan to stay a week at Universal Studios. I purchased 7 day tickets back in maybe 2007 and thought this would be a nice time to use them with Harry Potter. Right now I have Portofino Bay hotel booked for August 22 - August 29. It is $157 per night for a total of around $1200 with taxes. I also just found a TravelZoo deal for the Residence Inn on Universal Blvd for $49 per night for a total under $400 for the week. So I am wondering if having FOTL access is necessary if staying for a week? And also if early entry for Harry Potter is necessary?? Is it worth the $800 extra? I was going to rent a car anyway for a few days since we will be coming from Tampa. But I would add a few days if we stay at the Residence Inn.

Other circumstances - I have one free day for Disney thanks to the Volunteer Give a Day promotion. So we might head over there one day to do EPCOT.

I am a Marriott Rewards member, so the Residence Inn stay will help me build up points for a stay in London next year. This isn't a deal breaker though.

We could afford the extra money, but with DD starting college this fall, it might be nice to save a few $$.

Maggie

 

[Gr8t Fan]

We had RPH booked for one night (8/23) for two days of FOTL and decided to cancel and stay offsite for $40 thru Priceline. We'll take our chances with getting into HP in the evening. We have APs, so if we don't catch it this trip we'll catch it next trip.

$800 is a big chunk of change and I don't think FOTL is worth that much! Considering the time of year that you're going, I think you'll get to see and do everything you want to do in 7 days even without FOTL.

Personally, I'd book the Residence Inn to save $$ and to accumulate points.

 

[MrsJackSparrow4Life]

Maybe stay on-site for one or two days and then move to the cheaper hotel. This way you still get the perks without paying a huge amount.

 

[indimom]

We did a week at Universal at Christmas 2008. We were pretty worried about the crowds. We ended up doing what another poster mentioned. We did five nights offsite, then our final two nights on site. That way, if the lines WERE bad, we knew we'd have those last days to slam dunk the things we really liked.
If it weren't for the WWofHP being so new, I'd tell you to just stay off-site the entire time. We didn't find the lines to be too bad at all. But, I'm not sure how bad this could make things, so you could do your final night at Universal, which gives you two days of express passes. A great way to slam dunk your favorite attractions at the end of your trip.

 

[damo]

One of the things I like about being onsite in the summer is that you can just hop back to the hotel when you get too warm or after you get wet doing the water rides. I just really enjoy the convenience. Also the early entry to Wizarding World is a really nice bonus. I also find that staying onsite completely changes the feel of the vacation.

It really is a personal decision.

 

[maggiew]

One of the things I like about being onsite in the summer is that you can just hop back to the hotel when you get too warm or after you get wet doing the water rides. I just really enjoy the convenience. Also the early entry to Wizarding World is a really nice bonus. I also find that staying onsite completely changes the feel of the vacation.

It really is a personal decision.

I know. I love that part! We stayed at Portofino in 2005 and we spent every afternoon at the pools. And with FOTL, we didn't have to get up at the crack of dawn to make rope drop (of course, this was before Harry Potter).

I'm just wondering if its worth $800? This isn't our family vacation. We just did a 7 night Western Caribbean cruise in June. This Universal trip is just a getaway for DH & I because we have to be in Tampa Aug. 21st for my BIL's 40th birthday. So I thought we would head over to Universal for awhile since those tickets have been burning a hole in my pocket for a few years!!

I'm going to price it out. Adding a rental car for more than the one day drive from Tampa to Orlando might put a dent in the $800 savings. Plus parking at Universal (although the hotel says there is some sort of shuttle to Universal).

Maggie

 

[ccbb]

Hi maggiew, can you tell me more about the travelzoo discount for Renaisance? I tried to look on the Travelzoo web site but couldn't find it.

Thanks.

 

[ccbb]

Sorry, I meant the Residence Inn.

 

[Planogirl]

I'll add that the onsite hotels are really nice so maybe a split stay would work? It's nice to walk to the parks whenever you feel like and enjoy the nice amenities at the resorts.