Opinion Questions about planning Universal into our WDW vacation

[cmaee]

I am currently planning our trip to Orlando next spring. Our dates of travel will be March 29 - April 5. My DS (9) is a HUGE Harry Potter fan and desperately wants to go to Universal. I am not sure what our best option will be and am trying to figure out a few different scenarios. Which option do you think would be the best? Or do you think a different option would work best?

Our travel party will be me along with my three kids. At the time of the trip, my kids will be 11, 10, and 7. My youngest is pretty adventuresome, but I think she will only be around 50" next spring. She's 48" on the dot right now. I know there are some rides she will be too short to experience. I have let my boys go through the FastPass entrance at Disney with minimal worries on my part on the rides she was too short to ride (Rockin Roller Coaster and Space Mtn - she didn't like how jerky it was), but would not be comfortable with them waiting in the regular line if the wait time was more than 15 minutes. So, I know we will want the Express Pass so they can bypass the lines. So...here are the options I came up with...Oh, I will also have my own car with me so I don't have to worry about cabs, etc.

Option 1:
March 29 - check in a Deluxe Universal Hotel
March 30 - check out/Islands of Adventure/check in at Disney hotel
March 31 thru April 5 - WDW vacation

Option 2:
March 29 - check-in Disney hotel
March 30 thru April 3 - WDW vacation
April 4 - check in a Deluxe Universal Hotel/Islands of Adventure
April 5 - Departure Day

Option 3:
March 29 - check-in Disney Hotel
March 30 - April 3 - WDW vacation
April 4 - Island of Adventure
April 5 - check out Disney Hotel/Departure Day

I, of course, would like to spend the least amount as possible, but I am hoping for the best advice to get the most out of my money. I don't mind spending a bit more if it is worth it. I was originally not going to take the kids to Universal until my youngest hit the height requirements for the big rides, but I don't want my DS (9) to grow out of his Harry Potter stage and miss the opportunity for him to really get into it while there.

Any thoughts? I appreciate any advice/ideas you can share. My biggest concern was that if I just bought the Express Pass and went there without staying at the Universal hotel, then the boys would want to ride the rides more than once and if I read it correctly, the Express Pass is just good for one time through the Express line. But then again, perhaps the extra cost for the Unlimited Pass would not be worth it if we were only going to be at IOA for one day only. Would they have enough time to ride the rides more than once and still see everything? Am I naïve in thinking one day at IOA would be enough? Thanks.

 

[Metro West]

I think you should definitely stay onsite at Universal if you can swing it. You are going to be travelling during the busy Spring Break period so having unlimited Express access with certainly help with wait times.

I would recommend doing Disney first...then Universal. Once you get used to not having to stand in lines with Express, you won't be able to stand the lines at Disney.

I also think you should allow two full days for the parks. Even with Express, going during a busy period will be taxing. It's nice to be able to go back to the room and rest or swim then go back to the parks in the evenings.

 

[cmaee]

Can you buy the Unlimited Express Pass or is that only a perk for staying at the deluxe resort?

 

[Bluer101]

Can you buy the Unlimited Express Pass or is that only a perk for staying at the deluxe resort?

You can buy it but its normally cheaper to stay onsite for one night. One night gives you 2 days of benefits.

 

[cmaee]

Thanks for the replies. Decisions, decisions. I can find a vacation package price right now for Universal, but I can't find out the price of just the unlimited ticket beyond Dec. 31. And, of course, Disney hasn't put out their package prices for 2014 yet either.

I think we will do 2 days at Universal and keep the option open for them to do a 3rd day on April 5 and push back our return home to Sunday instead of Saturday. Who needs a day at home to catch up with laundry/sleep/ect. before going back to work/school?

 

[bumbershoot]

There is no great benefit to a universal package unless you are booking an offsite package. If stating onsite, go to loewshotels.com and check out prices. You can buy tickets anywhere you like. I'm not sure if I've heard yet of an onsite package costing less than buying a la carte.

One night's stay gets you two days worth of hotel guest benefits (that's the early entrance to WW, unlimited EP, pool privileges and so on).

 

[cmaee]

Sorry to resurrect this old thread, but I had more questions.

Due to the all of the snow day/extreme cold weather day cancelations at my kids schools, their spring break will most likely become make-up weather days. After reading about Diagon Alley opening this summer, I am now pushing our vacation back to December.

I have priced out a 2 night package with park-to-park tickets through Universal at Royal Pacific resort. I went ahead and called Loews directly and priced out what it would cost for the room only.

For my dates, the price through Universal is $1153.25. If I go a la carte, the hotel is $537.76 and a 2 day park-to-park ticket through Universal is $469.65 for a total of $1007.41. That gives me a savings of $143.84. Is there any benefit to going with the Universal package? If there isn't, then I am going the a al carte path and save the $143.84.

Also, is the table service or quick service dining plan worth it? I saw where I could add a dining plan onto the tickets when I was pricing things out.

Now, another question not price related. I am traveling with my kids who will be 12, 10, and 8 in December. I know that my 8 year old will not be able to handle the Forbidden Journey (we watched a youtube video of it yesterday). Is there an age restriction on if a child can ride the ride without an adult? I plan on walking through the line with my older two kids, but exiting at the last minute with my youngest.

Thanks for your help! We are really excited about adding Universal to our trip...especially after reading about the Diagon Alley.

Edited to add another question...
We are checking in Sunday, Dec 14, but plan on just spending time at the resort that day. We will be going to the parks on Monday, Dec 15 and Tues, Dec. 16. We will checkout Dec 16 and head over the WDW at the end of the day for the remainder of the trip. Since it is the week before Christmas, what kind of crowds would you expect us to find?

 

[RMulieri]

There is no real benefit getting a pkg and they often come with penalties for changing anything.
Not sure about age on riding alone.
it is just too soon to predict crowds yet.Normally they arent too bad, but with the opening of Diagon Alley, Manyof us suspect that old crowd patterns will no longer hold true.HOWEVER..you are staying onsite and it is likely that early entry will include Diagon alley when it opens.Express pass will help you with the rest of the parks, but likely the new Diagon stuff will not have express pass( Forbidden journey doesnt and it opened in 2010)

 

[damo]

Sorry to resurrect this old thread, but I had more questions.

Due to the all of the snow day/extreme cold weather day cancelations at my kids schools, their spring break will most likely become make-up weather days. After reading about Diagon Alley opening this summer, I am now pushing our vacation back to December.

I have priced out a 2 night package with park-to-park tickets through Universal at Royal Pacific resort. I went ahead and called Loews directly and priced out what it would cost for the room only.

For my dates, the price through Universal is $1153.25. If I go a la carte, the hotel is $537.76 and a 2 day park-to-park ticket through Universal is $469.65 for a total of $1007.41. That gives me a savings of $143.84. Is there any benefit to going with the Universal package? If there isn't, then I am going the a al carte path and save the $143.84.

Also, is the table service or quick service dining plan worth it? I saw where I could add a dining plan onto the tickets when I was pricing things out.

Now, another question not price related. I am traveling with my kids who will be 12, 10, and 8 in December. I know that my 8 year old will not be able to handle the Forbidden Journey (we watched a youtube video of it yesterday). Is there an age restriction on if a child can ride the ride without an adult? I plan on walking through the line with my older two kids, but exiting at the last minute with my youngest.

Thanks for your help! We are really excited about adding Universal to our trip...especially after reading about the Diagon Alley.

Edited to add another question...
We are checking in Sunday, Dec 14, but plan on just spending time at the resort that day. We will be going to the parks on Monday, Dec 15 and Tues, Dec. 16. We will checkout Dec 16 and head over the WDW at the end of the day for the remainder of the trip. Since it is the week before Christmas, what kind of crowds would you expect us to find?

Pretty sure your 12 year old counts as old enough to ride with the 10 year old alone. You all walk the queue together and then you can sit in the child swap room (which is at the loading/unloading platform) and wait for them. Then when they get off, you can ride with the 10 year old again while the 12 year old stays with the 8 year old in the childswap room. It is a great system and allows the second rider to ride immediately after the first rider finishes.

 

[cmaee]

Thanks for the replies. I am going to go the a la carte path.

The child swap room sounds like a great plan. I just intended on skipping the ride, but knowing that my kids won't be waiting out in the park, I can feel comfortable riding it too.

 

[cmaee]

I went back and looked over my numbers again. I must have only put in 3 adults tickets and left off the child ticket. I ran the numbers again and the tickets through Universal are $615.55. So the price separately is the same as the price in a package through Universal. I think I am still going to go a la carte so if I need to make changes, then I don't have to worry about incurring any fees.

If I wait to buy my tickets closer to the trip, is there a chance ticket prices will increase between now and then? I know that Disney usually raises prices in the summer and didn't know if Universal follows that same pattern or not.

 

[RMulieri]

I went back and looked over my numbers again. I must have only put in 3 adults tickets and left off the child ticket. I ran the numbers again and the tickets through Universal are $615.55. So the price separately is the same as the price in a package through Universal. I think I am still going to go a la carte so if I need to make changes, then I don't have to worry about incurring any fees.

If I wait to buy my tickets closer to the trip, is there a chance ticket prices will increase between now and then? I know that Disney usually raises prices in the summer and didn't know if Universal follows that same pattern or not.

quite possible.They increased them last time Disney did.I get mine thru undercovertourist..They are a little cheaper and if you subscribe to mousesavers.com, there is an additional discount .Not much, but every little bit helps.

 

[macraven]

even if the package vs the room only/ add on tickets were the same price, i would still not buy the package.

the package has restrictions that can not be avoided.
make any changes to it, $50 fee.
pay in full 45 days out.

room only can be cancelled 5 days out with out penalties and a full refund.


i did the dining plan for counter service this month.
it can be a money saving thing if you know the prices of the food and do the math to make it work for you.

the snack and beverage credit on that plan do not expire until the 14th day of first usage.

 

[cmaee]

If the ticket prices are increased between now and December, is there going to be chatter about that change before it happens? I wasn't having much luck with the search function trying to find when price increases were announced versus when the price increases went into effect.

 

[macraven]

If the ticket prices are increased between now and December, is there going to be chatter about that change before it happens? I wasn't having much luck with the search function trying to find when price increases were announced versus when the price increases went into effect.

if there are any tickets increase before you buy them, it might effect your vacation budget.

so, buy the tickets now at the price you like and hold onto the tickets until you need them.

when ticket prices go up, UO still honors tickets bought at the lower cost.
you'll have valid tickets no matter when you go.

i'm still holding on to valid 7 day hoppers purchased eons ago.