Staying at a Universal Resort...I have questions about FOL passes

[edk35]

Are these like the Fast Passes at WDW??? Also, what are their early entry days like??? If we stayed off site can't you add the FOL perk to the regular park passes for a minimal charge per pass??

Are the resort pools nice? Our kids will be dd 19, ds 16 and ds 10. Thanks for any information.

 

[Metro West]

Are these like the Fast Passes at WDW??? Also, what are their early entry days like??? If we stayed off site can't you add the FOL perk to the regular park passes for a minimal charge per pass??

Are the resort pools nice? Our kids will be dd 19, ds 16 and ds 10. Thanks for any information.

Guests who stay onsite receive unlimited Express access...kind of like an unlimited FastPass...for everyone in the room. You can also purchase the Express Plus passes but those are good for ONE time through the Express line...not unlimited. The prices vary depending on the anticipated crowd level for that day but they generally run $19.99 and up for the one park EP. Express Plus passes are separate tickets so they can't be added to the park ticket but that's not an issue. Just keep the EP handy and you shouldn't have any problems.

I haven't stayed at the hotels so I can't help you with the pool question but from the pictures and reviews I've seen, everyone really likes the pools at the resorts and yes...you CAN pool hop.

 

[edk35]

Thanks so much.

 

[illini2002]

One of the reasons our family no longer does WDW is because of the awesome fast passes you receive for being an on-site guest at Universal. At Disney you come at your specified time and are only allowed to ride once in the fast pass line. Universal's is almost the complete opposite (if staying on-site). If you want to ride the Hulk 20 times in a row via the express line, you can! It makes it so much easier and more timely to see everything you want to with time to spare to spend relaxing by the wonderful resort pools. RPR has a large lagoon style pool with an ample amount of chairs and activities for kids. They also have water basketball and water volleyball (in addition to a sand volleyball court that is nearby). Hard Rock's pool is somewhat similar to RPR in that there are lots of children's activities, but unlike RPR, HR has a slide. Portofino's pools always seem to be much more relaxed, they do have a pool with a slide, but they also have two other pools that are much more quiet. All the pools offer beverage and food service (can be pricey, but hey you're on vacation!) and the menus are relatively similar. Pool hopping is easy and I would definitely recommend it! I would suggest staying on-site over staying off-site and buying the express passes (they can only be used once per ride) and since you are traveling with teenagers the on-site hotels are much more convenient and would allow them to easily (and safely) walk to the parks or CityWalk. Hope this helps!

 

[Pastamom]

We stayed at the Hard Rock in October. Our boys , 8 and 10 LOVED the pool there. There was a slide for them. It was big enough for us adults tat we didn't get splashed at every turn. Some nights they had "swim-up" movies. My boys thought it was very cool to watch a movie and swim at the same time. They also had some activities like shuffleboard and ping-pong in the area to do for a change of pace.

FOL pass was an awesome perk also - we could ride on any ride that had an express line with very little wait (max - 10 minutes). It spoiled us.

BTW - it was nice staying so close to the parks and City Walk- you could walk there in 10 minutes or take the boat.

At City Walk resort guests also get to move up on the wait list at restaurants.

IMO - the perks at staying at the hotels at Universal far outweigh the ones at WDW - even though the hotels are not cheap...

 

[bubba's mom]

Some nights they had "swim-up" movies.

in case it comes up elsewhere, they call these "dive in" movies