The Fantastic, the good, the bad, and the ugly at Universal...I'm still a Disneyphile

[TaylorsDad]

I think damo's point was that parking is not free at WDW resorts because it is implicitly included in their room charges, whether you have a car or not. Universal resorts charge also, but of course it is explicitly mentioned and only applies to those with cars.

Great point. We usually fly in and just take Mears or towncar service since we have all we need at the park or Citywalk. The great thing With Universal is unlike Disneys hotels with their HIDDEN parking fees this is one fee we will be able to avoid.

 

[TaylorsDad]

Actually we dont have to pay to park at US/IOA because we bought an annual pass which includes parking. We have had to pay to park at the resorts before, but we aren't driving this year. But I will say we have a room rate at HRH for $169 a night vs. Disney's Grand Floridian (same level hotel) which is $485 a night, or if you wanted to just do moderate...the Port Orleans is $189 a night. So even if you book a moderate at Disney with free parking...you are paying more than staying at the HRH plus $14 to park.

Last year we went to MNSSHP as well as Universals HHN. The price we paid for a preferred room at All Star Movies was almost the same as the Stay more Save more rate we paid for each night at Hard Rock Hotel. I could not believe we got a Universal Deluxe hotel for almost the price of a Disney Value.

 

[RMulieri]

Last year we went to MNSSHP as well as Universals HHN. The price we paid for a preferred room at All Star Movies was almost the same as the Stay more Save more rate we paid for each night at Hard Rock Hotel. I could not believe we got a Universal Deluxe hotel for almost the price of a Disney Value.

Yup...For a king suite at RPR I am paying FAR FAR LESS than what Disney charges for a suite at their "deluxe" resorts.

 

[Ima Princess]

Who knew parking would be a hot topic? (obviously, not me...)

As damo said, he prefers the way Universal handles parking at the resorts. I prefer the way Disney handles it, probably because I always have a car on site.

The parking fee at RP was something I clearly missed when I made my reservation, so it was unexpected. My bad. Truth be told, I didn't even think to ask about parking when I called as I am accustomed to the "Disney" way. (I'm not saying it's right or wrong; it's just what I'm used to.) I do not think parking at RP was an outrageous cost, nor would it prevent me from staying onsite again -- the perks are just too good.

Please don't let my parking comment detract from all the good stuff I had to say about IOA -- there was plenty to rave about! It was a memorable, wonderful trip. If I wrote a review about our Disney park visits, it would be a similar list -- lots of raves with a few minor things that missed the mark for my family.

Sorry to ruffle anyone's feathers. My intent in posting my review was to help another DISer, just as many posts on the Universal boards helped me when planning our trip. I didn't mean to start a debate, or analyze resort room costs.

I hope you all enjoy your upcoming trips, be it to Universal, Disney or both! (and I'd still love to know where Confisco's is for our next visit...)

 

[damo]

Oh gosh, no feathers are ruffled. We've been discussing this topic since the beginning of time!

 

[Planogirl]

I'm a former Disneyphile who just got back from a trip to Universal and WDW. We had better luck at Universal as far as rides go. We never saw anything go down this time and that's unusual. I do dislike that so many restaurants close at 5 though and that included Confisco's. I don't get that at all.

As for WDW, both Space Mountain and Pirates of the Caribbean were down the day we visited Magic Kingdom. It happens.

 

[macraven]

Who knew parking would be a hot topic? (obviously, not me...)

As damo said, he prefers the way Universal handles parking at the resorts. I prefer the way Disney handles it, probably because I always have a car on site.

.......
I hope you all enjoy your upcoming trips, be it to Universal, Disney or both! (and I'd still love to know where Confisco's is for our next visit...)

damo is a she.......

i had to giggle when i read that..

 

[damo]

I'm a former Disneyphile who just got back from a trip to Universal and WDW. We had better luck at Universal as far as rides go. We never saw anything go down this time and that's unusual. I do dislike that so many restaurants close at 5 though and that included Confisco's. I don't get that at all.

As for WDW, both Space Mountain and Pirates of the Caribbean were down the day we visited Magic Kingdom. It happens.

I wonder if it is because of all the restaurants on Citywalk they may just not get enough customers to be profitable?

 

[Planogirl]

I wonder if it is because of all the restaurants on Citywalk they may just not get enough customers to be profitable?

I wonder too. Are some of the restaurants in Citywalk having problems?

 

[IndyJammer]

Yep! Disney charges $14 to park at Magic Kingdom. If we wanted to park at my brother's hotel and hop the bus with them to MNSSHP we can only get a 3hour visitor pass. So that won't work. So we will be paying the $14 to park at MK for MNSSHP!

Actually, you could park at Downtown Disney and then take the Bus to the Contemporary & walk over! It depends on if you want the extra time that it takes is worth your $14!

I do think that paying for parking feels like they are "nickleing & diming you to death" - From a purely "customer servicey" aspect, I think they should just add an extra $20 on the room night & forget about it!

Back to the Original Topic -

I did want to say that FotL was AWESOME! We did not wait at all for anything!

 

[damo]

But if you chose instead to go to IOA or US, wouldn't you also pay $14? Even if you did stay onsite? Whereas at Disney, your brother won't pay for parking at all because he is staying onsite, even if he chose to drive a car to the MK from his resort.



No, I did not. Where are they located? I'll keep them in mind for the next time.

Confisco's is a table service restaurant in Port of Entry on the right when you enter the park as you round the corner to Seuss Landing. They are the second table service restaurant in the park.