Please help a novice. Hotel and other Q's

[cheap traveler]

Hello, my name is Heather and I'm a Harry Potter addict.

Glad I got that off my chest

I am planning a short solo-trip to Universal for some time later this year - maybe in 3 weeks, maybe in 6 months, not sure yet. I have NEVER been to Universal before, spending all my time at Disney instead.

My kids are 4 1/2 and 7, so I am going to leave them home so Mommy can enjoy WWoHP all alone. DD7 is not happy about this, but she is a ride chicken so I have made up my mind.

Please help me choose an off-site hotel! I am looking right now at the Econo Lodge Inn & Suites. They claim to have scheduled transportation to Universal, but I wonder if anyone has stayed there and how their transportation is. I would like to avoid renting a car, and plan to use Mears to get to the hotel from the airport.

Does universal have "value seasons" like Disney? Would I be ok crowd-wise to go late August or mid-September?

I was doing a little reading on what rides/attractions are in each park, and I think I might stay in IOA. 2 days in WWoHP would be good for me I think, plus a few hours touring the rest of that park. Should I do my normal early morning rush? I'm usually at Disney rope-drop well before they open, is that a good idea here too? And if you know about that hotel, will they get me there early?

I can use any info you can give me, or any resources you can point me to. I find this site is very Disney-oriented (which I love), but has very little info on Universal.

Thank you!!

 

[damo]

Late August and mid-September are great times. If you are going to stay off-site, try to stay in the Major Blvd area. You can walk from the Hyatt Place or Doubletree. That makes transportation time so much less!

You may also want to keep checking onsite hotels. You may be able to get a fantastic price since they do exist in off-season. Especially if you are staying for 3 or more nights.

I would not limit myself to 1 park. Both parks have great attractions.

 

[hpfan100]

Greetings fellow HP nut!!!

I went for opening last year solo and it was busy. Mostly the HP area is packed and the others were manageable. Two days is good for Potter land I used three and did both IOA and US plus did repeats.

there are no value seasons rates just vary based on holidays and such. Usually with no discount the hotels are over 200 a night. If you have AAA or an Annual pass there are discounts for rooms. Otherwise off site is good.

I don't anything about Econo lodge. I stayed at the Hampton inn on Windhover about 3/4 mile north of parks and it was good. There is a Doubletree and Holiday inn right at the entrance to the parks that many people choose since you can walk back and forth.

I would get there at rope drop and maximize your time. You might get lucky and get in sooner. They opened several rides before official opening when I was there. Hotel shuttle will be an issue as they usually get there around 9 or 10 depending. I would call them directly and ask about shuttle times.

Good luck with your trip planning!