Staying DVC and doing 2 days Universal? Any tips and ideas welcome

[ML_LovesDisney]

Hi all, we have only been to Universal once in 2017 and we did stay there at the Hard Rock. This time, we want to stay at our DVC and just get possibly a 2 day ticket to see Epic Universe and maybe one other park? (while also doing Disney the other days we are in town). We are not huge rollercoaster people, but we love the immersive part of Harry Potter and some of those rides. Whose done this and how did you plan your days? We will have a rental car and are more early birds than late night people. I'd love to hear any experiences and how you planned out your Universal days, even if it was pre-Epic.

 

[toesmom]

The drive is really easy, go early for shorter lines. We are doing same thing this year over Christmas

 

[Stargazer65]

We often go to Universal when we stay at a DVC resort since our vacations are typically about two weeks. I'm military so I often buy WDW Military Salute 4 day park hoppers, and Universal Military Freedom passes and hit up all the parks. We don't usually go to the water parks, and we haven't been to Epic Universe yet.

We do like to get there at opening time. It's about a 15-20 minute drive from DVC parking lot to Universal parking lot. As far as planning...lol...we just get in the car and go there in the morning, then leave when we feel like it.

 

[DL1WDW2]

You have not mentioned your dates but I wanted to let you know EPIC has a limited capacity . You should purchase your tickets TODAY …Also be aware of their Haunted Party dates and if you love the Grinch you will want to plan for the best part of the holiday season at UniversalOrlando.

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

You have not mentioned your dates but I wanted to let you know EPIC has a limited capacity . You should purchase your tickets TODAY …Also be aware of their Haunted Party dates and if you love the Grinch you will want to plan for the best part of the holiday season at UniversalOrlando.

We probably won't do it until our next trip, December 2025 is pretty full already with plans and 10 of us going. I'll probably do Universal on the next trip March or Nov 2026. I am an extreme planner though so 12-18 mths away to me is "very soon"

 

[DL1WDW2]

Guess I was confused with all those specific details in your opening post.
So 10 people in your group and nobody wants to go to EPIC ?
Until March 2026 .
I keep forgetting that DVC has taught us all to plan in advance Haha
Well now you can look forward to Mardi Gras awesome fun at Universal!

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

Guess I was confused with all those specific details in your opening post.
So 10 people in your group and nobody wants to go to EPIC ?
Until March 2026 .
I keep forgetting that DVC has taught us all to plan in advance Haha
Well now you can look forward to Mardi Gras awesome fun at Universal!

10 people is wayyyyyy too expensive to pay for for Universal in addition to that week at Disney (I usually pay for most if not all of everyone's, and not every trip is 10 of us; sometimes 4 or 6 of us). As much as people say Disney is expensive, I think Universal Studio tickets are absolutely insane, not to mention cost of ExpressPass. Hence why we haven't been there since 2017 I also just haven't seen many posts at all about Epic and trips by DVC members so I was curious if anyone has done it so far this year.

 

[Steelers0854]

I was debating doing an Epic trip when we go in January, but then I looked at wait time, granted i know it summer, and thought twice about it. Maybe we will go in a year or 2 when the hype has died down a bit, but im not waiting 3 hours to ride Ministry or Mario Kart.

 

[DL1WDW2]

Universal sold an extended AP for 15 months for the 12 month price.
I think that is why it is popular.
But EPIC has been a game changer and everything is more expensive .
I was just there for 2 nights staying at Sapphire Falls and got sticker shock many times!

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

I was debating doing an Epic trip when we go in January, but then I looked at wait time, granted i know it summer, and thought twice about it. Maybe we will go in a year or 2 when the hype has died down a bit, but im not waiting 3 hours to ride Ministry or Mario Kart.

Yeah, that is also a good point and why I wouldn't want to go during holiday time if it's this busy now. I am hoping to do "off season" if that's even a thing anymore lol

 

[OnThisMagicNight]

We have a DVC stay coming up in early November and are planning on visiting Epic for 1 day. I currently have 2 nights at Helios booked, with the plan being we fly in early evening, stay at Helios and wake up and do early entry at Epic for our 1 day. Then we'd check out of Helios the next morning and check into our DVC resort for the week. I'm waffling on this plan though and have a back-up DVC studio booked for our full Epic day and am debating whether I even need a night at Helios at all. I'm struggling to justify the cost of the Helios room, even for 1 night instead of 2, when I could be staying in a better room, with free parking for no out of pocket cost (well my points aren't "free", but you know what I mean.) We are mainly focused on Super Nintendo World and the How to Train your Dragon land, so Express Pass wouldn't really be worth it for us. And if I divide the cost of the hotel room for 1 night by all 5 of us, that is still less than buying Express Pass. If we stick with 1 night at Helios, we'd probably take a break after lunch during our Epic day and drive our bags over to our DVC resort and drop them there, then head back. Which I believe is 30ish mins each way, so that gets me back into thinking maybe we should just stay at Helios for the convenience after all. Anyway, that was probably not helpful, but I'm curious to follow this and see how others manage to integrate Universal into their Disney trips. This will be our first time at any Universal park.

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

We have a DVC stay coming up in early November and are planning on visiting Epic for 1 day. I currently have 2 nights at Helios booked, with the plan being we fly in early evening, stay at Helios and wake up and do early entry at Epic for our 1 day. Then we'd check out of Helios the next morning and check into our DVC resort for the week. I'm waffling on this plan though and have a back-up DVC studio booked for our full Epic day and am debating whether I even need a night at Helios at all. I'm struggling to justify the cost of the Helios room, even for 1 night instead of 2, when I could be staying in a better room, with free parking for no out of pocket cost (well my points aren't "free", but you know what I mean.) We are mainly focused on Super Nintendo World and the How to Train your Dragon land, so Express Pass wouldn't really be worth it for us. And if I divide the cost of the hotel room for 1 night by all 5 of us, that is still less than buying Express Pass. If we stick with 1 night at Helios, we'd probably take a break after lunch during our Epic day and drive our bags over to our DVC resort and drop them there, then head back. Which I believe is 30ish mins each way, so that gets me back into thinking maybe we should just stay at Helios for the convenience after all. Anyway, that was probably not helpful, but I'm curious to follow this and see how others manage to integrate Universal into their Disney trips. This will be our first time at any Universal park.

I can’t wait to hear what you end up doing! I have the exact same back and forth and I’ve done analysis for Universal hotel stay and express pass at the older resorts, but I believe those express passes won’t cover Epic (I think? Correct me if I’m wrong) so I’d have to do Helios to get Epic Express Pass. My only issue with that is if i want to also do one day at the other parks, then needing ANOTHER type of express pass. Express pass is mind boggling expensive, but like someone stated above, the wait times are also insane.

 

[CarolynFH]

All I can say is, twice in the past we have booked UOR deluxe hotels, because it was cheaper than buying the EPs and paying for parking, but slept elsewhere.

Re parking: if you book the hotel, you get two days of parking for the cost of one night’s parking fee.

 

[Skywalker3]

We're big Universal fans here, and DVC owners. Hopefully this weekend, I can our HHN trip figured out. I've procrastinated way too long, But it wont' include Disney/ DVC this time.
We haven't' been to Epic, so I'm not sure how to advise on planning that day, but there are FABULOUS threads, great advice, trip reports, etc. over on the Univeral forums. I'd definitely check those out. I do think a lot can change with Epic planning over the next year though, if they decide to add APs, or the time of the year, or how they open/close. Hotel guests do get in earlier than regular guests, but have read several threads on how it's not much advantage, plus what attractions open early seem to keep changing. Also seems to favor staying late, but again, lots can change.
Last several DVC trips have included 2-3 Universal days, but we prefer to stay there onsite, in that bubble. That makes midday breaks easier, and I don't want to drive even back to BWV after a long Universal day.We often drive over early in the morning to check in, and traffic is great then...coming back in late afternoon....not so great. We usually add the days before/after the Disney part, although I've also just stayed 1 night at Universal while keeping the DVC room, just to have a room there. But I totally get wanting to use DVC points/not pay those prices. We've stayed at all the older Universal properties, except Dockside, and have enjoyed them all. They're all unique/great in their own ways, depending on what you're looking for. If we want the express pass, for the older parks, we book a premier hotel. I've never paid for that separately. I do plan to buy it for HHN though, and maybe for Epic. So pricey though!!
Happy planning!!!

 

[OnThisMagicNight]

I can’t wait to hear what you end up doing! I have the exact same back and forth and I’ve done analysis for Universal hotel stay and express pass at the older resorts, but I believe those express passes won’t cover Epic (I think? Correct me if I’m wrong) so I’d have to do Helios to get Epic Express Pass. My only issue with that is if i want to also do one day at the other parks, then needing ANOTHER type of express pass. Express pass is mind boggling expensive, but like someone stated above, the wait times are also insane.

That is correct, the older signature hotels don't include express pass for Epic and Helios gives you no advantage at all except to be close to the park. For our date, Express passes would be $190 per person .

All I can say is, twice in the past we have booked UOR deluxe hotels, because it was cheaper than buying the EPs and paying for parking, but slept elsewhere.

Re parking: if you book the hotel, you get two days of parking for the cost of one night’s parking fee.

Ohh this is giving me food for thought now. Not for Express Pass purposes (because we can't get them for Epic with any hotel stay) but in booking a cheaper Universal room at one of the non Epic resorts just for early entry - and sleeping at a DVC resort instead. There are 5 of us so we couldn't do Stella Luna or Terra Nova. I'll need to think through some other possibilities now...

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

That is correct, the older signature hotels don't include express pass for Epic and Helios gives you no advantage at all except to be close to the park. For our date, Express passes would be $190 per person .

It is WILD. If we went during our new years week trip, it would be around $2400 for tickets for just 4 people (my immediate family) and $1500 for 2 days of express pass (regular parks, not epic, listed at $375pp). It doesn’t look like I can't even see prices for March 2026 right now.

 

[Maleficent's Dad]

All I can say is, twice in the past we have booked UOR deluxe hotels, because it was cheaper than buying the EPs and paying for parking, but slept elsewhere.

Re parking: if you book the hotel, you get two days of parking for the cost of one night’s parking fee.

Is this new re parking???
We’ve stayed at Hard Rock, Royal Pacific, and Portofino to get the unlimited express pass and we’ve ALWAYS had to pay to park - $36 per night!
https://hotel.hardrock.com/orlando/info-policies.aspx

 

[Keladry84]

Is this new re parking???
We’ve stayed at Hard Rock, Royal Pacific, and Portofino to get the unlimited express pass and we’ve ALWAYS had to pay to park - $36 per night!
https://hotel.hardrock.com/orlando/info-policies.aspx

I think that person is saying that your $36 dollars for hotel parking essentially covers the two days there (arrival day, 1 overnight, and leaving day), as opposed to if you you don’t stay overnight you pay twice for both park days at the Citiwalk garage instead. So by staying you have only 1 parking charge instead of 2 (granted you leave the car parked at the hotel the full time).

 

[CarolynFH]

I think that person is saying that your $36 dollars for hotel parking essentially covers the two days there (arrival day, 1 overnight, and leaving day), as opposed to if you you don’t stay overnight you pay twice for both park days at the Citiwalk garage instead. So by staying you have only 1 parking charge instead of 2 (granted you leave the car parked at the hotel the full time).

Exactly!

When we did this, resort parking included in-and-out privileges. So we arrived the first day and parked to check in, drove out in the evening after finishing at the parks, drove back and parked the next morning for our second day at the parks, and drove out after finishing the second day. All for one night’s parking charge.

 

[Moonspinner]

We have a DVC stay coming up in early November and are planning on visiting Epic for 1 day. I currently have 2 nights at Helios booked, with the plan being we fly in early evening, stay at Helios and wake up and do early entry at Epic for our 1 day. Then we'd check out of Helios the next morning and check into our DVC resort for the week. I'm waffling on this plan though and have a back-up DVC studio booked for our full Epic day and am debating whether I even need a night at Helios at all. I'm struggling to justify the cost of the Helios room, even for 1 night instead of 2, when I could be staying in a better room, with free parking for no out of pocket cost (well my points aren't "free", but you know what I mean.) We are mainly focused on Super Nintendo World and the How to Train your Dragon land, so Express Pass wouldn't really be worth it for us. And if I divide the cost of the hotel room for 1 night by all 5 of us, that is still less than buying Express Pass. If we stick with 1 night at Helios, we'd probably take a break after lunch during our Epic day and drive our bags over to our DVC resort and drop them there, then head back. Which I believe is 30ish mins each way, so that gets me back into thinking maybe we should just stay at Helios for the convenience after all. Anyway, that was probably not helpful, but I'm curious to follow this and see how others manage to integrate Universal into their Disney trips. This will be our first time at any Universal park.

We were in your exact situation a month ago. In the end we did cancel the Helios reservation and go with dvc. If you do this you will have to pay to park at epic, but we really wanted the onsite hotel for the extra morning hour. In the end we just wanted the comfort of dvc instead of a single hotel room. It all worked out really well, and we didn’t miss the extra hour. We were plenty exhausted by the end of the day because it was a hot day! The lines were manageable. We only had two “long” waits. We waited at ministry for about 45 min. And the donkey Kong ride was over an hour. The Ministry wait is not bad at all because the line is mostly inside and the line itself is almost a ride, really cool. When I see what they did I am shocked at how relatively spartan the theming is for the lines for “new” Disney headliners like Ratatouille, Tron, and guardians. The DK line was rough though because it was outside and was a typical snake line. Overall though we were very pleased with wait times and are going again next month for a day while staying at dvc.