?'s with teens

[Beth1026]

We are planning to arrive on Friday Aug 3 & leave Monday Aug 6.
This is our first time. My DD is 18 & DS is 16.
I'm a NOVICE!! We have never been to ANY park.
I need ideas/advise on where to stay & how to go about getting the best deals. I just paid college tuition..ugh
Is it better to pay the extra money for onsite with the express pass these dates??
Help this momma!!

 

[Rench20]

We are planning to arrive on Friday Aug 3 & leave Monday Aug 6.
This is our first time. My DD is 18 & DS is 16.
I'm a NOVICE!! We have never been to ANY park.
I need ideas/advise on where to stay & how to go about getting the best deals. I just paid college tuition..ugh
Is it better to pay the extra money for onsite with the express pass these dates??
Help this momma!!

I would definantly consider staying onsite, the express pass is well worth it, with it you can move through the parks pretty quickly. And not to mention you get an hour early entrance into Harry Potter as a resort guest as well.

I have stayed in all 3 of the resorts, I enjoyed Hard Rock Hotel the most out of the three, however I think Royal Pacific tends to run the cheapest of the three, atleast the times that I have looked at prices. But all the hotels are amazing, and honestly you can't go wrong with any of the three.

 

[macraven]

the parks will have its crowds on the dates you will be there.


better to stay onsite for the hotel perks.
(early entrance and unlimited usage of the express lines)

 

[glocon]

Besides the fotl perks, staying onsite just makes the vacation more luxurious and special. So easy to get everywhere without getting back in the car too! You feel so spoiled..

 

[damo]

I have to agree with the others. You will be there at peak time for heat and crowds. Staying onsite gives you many advantages.

You will have early entry to both parks. This is a huge bonus as not only is it cooler but the lines are MUCH lower.

You will have unlimited express pass access to all rides except Rip Ride Rockit, FOrbidden Journey and Pteranadon Flyers. This saves you hours in line and allows to to reride things that you like. With teenagers, this is a huge bonus. If you purchase the other express pass plus, you only get one chance for each ride.

In the heat of the afternoon, you can walk back to your hotel and spend a few hours in the pool cooling down. Then you can walk back to the parks and grab some dinner and enjoy the extra hours when, again, it is cooler and crowds are lower.

The hotels are beautiful. You'll be happy to paid the extra to stay there.

 

[tricia]

I would also vote for onsite. Cause at that age, I would have no problem letting them go to and from the parks on their own too. That way they could sleep later or not take a break when you want one etc.

 

[francie57]

Agree with the others, can't beat staying on-site. We love the Hard Rock and will returning in Aug. If you are a member of AAA you may still be able to get a room discount (AAA website is showing availability at all 3 and is cheaper than the Universal site). With AAA you can also get a discount at the restaurants in the parks, the stores, and most of the restaurants in City Walk - can also get a discount on park admission. We book using AAA every trip. We book things separately since a package as always been more expensive and doesn't contain anything special to justify the extra money. Your DD would love the Hard Rock and with their age they would be able to explore on their own and even go to the parks together.

 

[2Monkeys]

We went on our first Universal trip a couple of weeks ago. We stayed at Royal Pacific and really enjoyed it. The unlimited express pass made it more than worth the higher than normal (for us) pricetag. I would NEVER go to Universal any other way that to stay onsite.

Royal Pacific was a great place to stay. Staff was very friendly and helpful, and the hotel itself was very nice. We would definitely go back there!!

 

[Northstar]

Yep, I'd spring for onsite if it's not going to break the budget. The perks are really good.

One nice thing about Universal in the heat, there are a ton of rides that get you soaking wet!

Also, do you have AAA? You get a teeny discount at a lot of restaurants and stores at Universal... show your card and ask whenever you are buying something.

 

[Northstar]

Oh, and while doing your budget don't forget to factor in parking fees if you're going to have a car. No free parking at Universal.

 

[deeluvsdisney]

I just returned with my 18 year old son celebrating his graduation. I agree with staying onsite, we stayed at HRH, pricey but some free thing to do there also, free live music, dive in movies, ping pong, pool tables. Just a real cool place for teenagers. I too used AAA for food discounts, not much but every little bit helps.

 

[pixeegrl]

When we went they also had Guitar Hero to play poolside!

 

[Beth1026]

Ok, I'm SOLD on onsite. Now to pick which one

 

[JessicaR]

Ok, I'm SOLD on onsite. Now to pick which one

With teens - hard rock would be my first pick. But, truly any of the three are awesome!

 

[heidijanesmith]

Ok, I'm SOLD on onsite. Now to pick which one

My teens are excited about staying at the Hard Rock this time around. We stayed at Portofino Bay last time, lovely hotel...but the teens thought it was too stuffy.

We will be there about the same time as you, Aug 4-7th. The last time we went July 2010, the crowds were enormous, but with the unlimited express pass, we walked right on all of the rides that take the pass. We took advantage of early entry into WWoHP, get those teens up early! So worth it

 

[AJA]

Ok, I'm SOLD on onsite. Now to pick which one

Def stay on site. You will not regret it!

My vote is for either Hard Rock or Royal Pacific.

Both are gorgeous and remember you can pool hop, so if you would really rather stay in the lush beauty of the RPR the teens can always use the pool at Hard Rock.

 

[Clemson Bama Fan]

Definitely HRH. Great for teens and adults alike. Very cool.

 

[tlinus]

Definitely Hard Rock. It is a great place and the shortest walk to the parks