It looks like a Royal Pacific Parlor Suite with connecting standard king and 2 queen room has opened up for your dates which is cheaper than the one at Portofino Bay. We have requested connecting rooms and received them several times, the one time we were assigned adjoining instead of connecting was when we checked in on a Sunday instead of Saturday and all connecting rooms were gone. There's definitely some risk of not getting connecting, especially during busy weeks (ours was Spring Break). We usually book connecting rooms instead of a suite because the APH discount makes 2 rooms cheaper than a suite. For your week 2 rooms is barely cheaper than a suite so I wouldn't hesitate to pay a little more to have guaranteed connecting. If price is a concern, Universal sells tickets bundled with express (cheaper than buying tickets and express separately) which would give you the freedom to stay anywhere. Connecting rooms or suites at Cabana Bay with express tickets would be $2500 cheaper than the Royal Pacific suite + tix. But again there's the risk of not getting connecting. If you're really looking to save money but still be assured of being altogether I would look offsite at something like a Vista Cay 3 bdr townhouse and buy the tix bundled with express, that would save you about $4000 over the RP suite + tix. If you really want to be onsite, which makes sense during such a busy week for easy downtime, I would probably just book a deluxe suite so you don't have to worry about the connecting issue. Good luck!
