Split stay WDW/US/IOA NEED ADVICE

[princesskimberella]

Hi All !

We are planning a 10 day trip to WDW this winter, we would like to take 2 days to visit US/IOA. We cant decide if we should stay the 1st 3 nights at one of the US resort or stay the whole time at WDW and take the shuttles over.

How has your family toured both parks ? What worked best for you ?

We are a family of 5, kids are 12, 13 and 15

THANKS !

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

We stayed at Disney and drove over to IOA.

If staying on site is a feasible option for you, since you wish to do 2 park days anyway, I would suggest staying over there. Especially if the room rates are pretty close to one another.

We were a family if 6 and using DVC points. So on site was not a good option for us.

 

[princesskimberella]

I forgot to add we are flying in.. I just checked and the shuttles are 18 pp per day round trip so that is $180.00 if we stayed at WDW. Although I guess either way we will have to pay for a cab from the airport to US since I don't think they offer anything like the Magical Express then the cab ride from US to WDW for the rest of our stay.

 

[Planogirl]

You can't beat staying at Universal. If you stay deluxe you get free express plus you get early entry no matter which resort you stay at. Plus it's great to just walk or take a boat to all of the attractions and restaurants.

 

[ArwenMarie]

For a ten-day trip I would definitely stay at Universal for a few nights and really enjoy it. Not just for the Express Passes that you get at the three deluxe hotels (HRH, RPH, PBH), but it is so relaxing and immersive when you stay onsite. I think it feels like way more of a "bubble" than WDW at this point. It's just a whole different experience staying onsite there versus doing for the day. Happy planning

 

[Hootch]

Stay at Universal at least two nights. The early entry is pretty valuable since the hotel capacity is lower. Staying at the three higher level hotels gives you the Express Pass. It is beneficial for riding everything. Some lines were a little long with Express pass, but many were 10-15 minute waits in the heavy summer months when we went. On our first day a couple of years ago, we did almost all of the attractions in both parks in one day without much trouble.

 

[Disneyglobegirl]

We did a split trip in June...started with 3 nights at Hard Rock club level ( LOVED IT) and then stayed at AKL for 5 nights. We hired a towncar... they picked us up at the airport and took us to Universal then came and picked us up at Universal and took us to AKL then we opted to use them to go back to the airport instead of Magical Express. Enjoyed our trip very much and would definately do it again!!

 

[buzzrelly]

We are planning on visiting UO/IOA for the first time this April. We have booked 3 nights at RPR and the we move over to BLT for 8 nights. We hired Tony Hinds to pick us up at the airport, bring us to UO and then he will pick us up at UO and bring us to BLT, with a grocery stop on the way. I will let you know how this all turns out for us.

 

[sharona]

I woukd do US/IOA after WDW if only because it would annoy me to wait in line AFTER having express pass. Definitely move to a Universal deluxe resort to get EXpres and Early Entry. Renting a car from the place over by the Boardwalk and using it to get to Universal then to the airport a few days later may be cheaper than a car service, shuttle or taxI - be sure to factor in the parking charge from the resort.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

We're our first WDW/US split stay in June. We're going to take the ME from MCO to BWI, rent a car from the Car Care Center near MK (they have a shuttle that will pick you up), and then drive to Universal ourselves. We'll return the car to MCO. I was able to use my company rate for the car so it's only $36/day, but with parking, I think it will be a wash cost-wise vs. taking a cab or hiring a car. For us, it's more about having control over our own schedule than anything. We just don't want to be reliant on others for our transportation, especially back to MCO.

 

[Missyrose]

If you're planning more than one day at Universal, then staying onsite there is a no-brainer. I like Disney's Resort Airline Check-In at the end of trips, so I've been starting trips with a night at Universal.

 

[princesskimberella]

THANK YOU !! We are going to look at staying at Universal 1st since it is less expensive at the beginning of our trip, as it gets closer to Christmas is doubles ! We were hoping to catch a free dining promo like we did last tie we went mid-December but after some thought we figure if it works out that we get dining great if not we can pay OOP since last time we had quite a few meals left at the end of our trip since we are not huge eaters. Plus my husband wants to try and do less character meals and grab something quick on the go so we get more park time.

 

[NuttyDisneyDad]

Im going for 12 days next April and i am staying first 5 days at Cabana Bay and last 7 at Port Orleans Riverside....my advice is to stay a few days at Universal and finish up at Disney. It will be nice to be able to just walk to Citywalk whenever u want

 

[Cyrano]

We split our stays with 14 days on-site at Disney followed by on-site at Lowes Hotels to get the on-site benefits at Universal

 

[MomForFrozenAddicts]

Im going for 12 days next April and i am staying first 5 days at Cabana Bay and last 7 at Port Orleans Riverside....my advice is to stay a few days at Universal and finish up at Disney. It will be nice to be able to just walk to Citywalk whenever u want

Can you walk to CityWalk from Cabana Bay?? It seems pretty far when I was driving from the Universal Parking lot to Cabana Bay.

 

[WriterGina]

We saved so much money over what we usually spend to stay on Disney property by staying at Wyndham Bonnet Creek for our 8 nights, that we actually booked an "extra" room at Loews Royal Pacific for one night so that we can take advantage of the early opening hours and the express pass for 2 days at Universal/IOA. We'll keep our 2BR suite at WBC, and spend one night in the middle of our stay at LRP, arriving very early on the morning of our stay to "check in" and get express access for that day, bringing just an overnight bag. This is kind of our "sweet spot" year for an Orlando trip, with my YDD being almost 5 and at the height of her Disney Junior and princess passion, and my older 2 being mad for Star Wars and superheroes, and all three being crazy about the Minions. Between that and other big family trips we hope to take in the next few years, I'm pretty sure we won't make it back to Orlando for at least 3 years. That made it worth it to me to make sure we didn't have to wait in endless lines at Universal/IOA. Combining our total cost for the 8 nights at WBC, plus one night at LRP, we're still paying only about $150/night for the stay, which as I said is way less than we've paid previously at Bay Lake Towers, Wilderness Lodge and even Saratoga Springs.

 

[madelyn]

Have toured both parks on 3 different visits. Once in 2002 when we only had 2 kids, boys ages 4 and 1. We ended up staying at a Hawthorne Suites near Universal for 2 or 3 nights and drove to the Universal parks (drove to Florida in our own vehicle). We visited both the Universal parks for 2 days. Then moved onsite Disney for the majority of our stay, 7 nights. The next trip in 2012, 3 kids now ages 13, 10 and 5, we also had our own vehicle and stayed onsite Disney for 4 nights and visited the Disney parks, then moved over to an offsite Marriott condo for a week. During that same week, we reserved 1 night at the Hard Rock Hotel to get the FOTL (Front of the Line access) to the rides for 2 days. We visited both of the Universal parks for 2 days and 2 of us visited for 3 days. The last trip just a couple of weeks ago in 2015, kids now 16, 13 and 8. Most of us had a 1 day ticket left for both parks and ended up taking Uber transport over from the Animal Kingdom Lodge Villas. There are coupon codes out there for $30 off your first ride so with my sister paying for the first ride and my hubby paying for the second ride, with the $60 off I think they paid around $20 round trip total (had 2 different drivers so I am just estimating) for 6 people in a van and no tips are accepted. Make sure you select Uber XL which is for "more than 4 people". The night before I tried booking a Mears vehicle that held 6 people but there were none available. My sister and BIL took a taxi over to the Universal Resorts where they spent 3 nights after spending 5 Disney onsite. I believe they said their taxi was $45 plus tip one way. If you have never visited the Universal parks, I would say you need to spend at least 2 days in the parks although once you buy a one day ticket for both parks (like a hopper), it isn't much more to get a ticket for more days. If your kids are Harry Potter fans or enjoy thrill rides they may want to spend more days at Universal than Disney.

 

[Cyrano]

Folks remember for advice regarding Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure your questions can be answered by our board pals over HERE

Lowes/Universal hotel specific questions should be asked HERE

Thank you.

 

[NuttyDisneyDad]

Its about a 20 minute walk I believe from Cabana Bay to Citywalk. You dont get the express pass at Cabana Bay but Im just going to buy it seperately

 

[rwdavis2]

You can't beat staying at Universal. If you stay deluxe you get free express plus you get early entry no matter which resort you stay at. Plus it's great to just walk or take a boat to all of the attractions and restaurants.

This!

 

[Postal68]

Its about a 20 minute walk I believe from Cabana Bay to Citywalk. You dont get the express pass at Cabana Bay but Im just going to buy it seperately

If you are a family, it would probably be cheaper just to upgrade to one of the higher hotels.