Universal, Disney or a combo?

[alkc71]

I am in the earliest stages of planning our august 2015 vacation. Disney makes things VERY convenient , bus from airport to resort and back, transportation between nice resorts and parks, tickets to parks and of course water parks ( our fav), dining included even if overpriced it is convenient (at a certain point over $7000 i really stop thinking about oop food cost vs any dining plan lol) it takes planning, yes, but there are really no major hassles for us
However i think we are missing out, in 2011 my DD and i did a quick afternoon to Universal to see the Harry Potter buildings, seriously she just looked at the buildings! now that everyone is older, DD 14 DS 11 universal might be great. In 2013 we did a day at SeaWorld loved loved it! Think i would like to try Discovery Cove and Busch Gardens.
I guess i am looking for the best of all worlds packed into a 12 night vacation!
I need some advice... should i do an orlando vacation with out Disney? Gasp! Or maybe reserve a few days for non disney and suck up the extra transportation cost from a disney resort?

 

[macraven]

suck it up and venture to the darkside for a couple of days.

once you do that, you can decide if any future trips would be good for you.



i can't imagine going to Orlando and not stay at both of the theme park resort hotels.

i've done split stays all these past years.

 

[Bluer101]

Yes, you can do without Disney and stay onsite at Universal. All you need is room, tickets, and no other plans. Just relax and enjoy a real vacation. Enough said.

 

[alkc71]

suck it up and venture to the darkside for a couple of days.

once you do that, you can decide if any future trips would be good for you.



i can't imagine going to Orlando and not stay at both of the theme park resort hotels.

i've done split stays all these past years.

Thanks!
Split stay might be a great option, what about transport to/from airport. Disney first or last?

 

[Bluer101]

Thanks!
Split stay might be a great option, what about transport to/from airport. Disney first or last?

Most people do Disney first because it's hard not waiting in lines at Universal then moving to Disney to waiting. There is really no planning when staying onsite at Universal. It's nice to get up when you wish and enjoy the day how you want without months of planning.

 

[alkc71]

Yes, you can do without Disney and stay onsite at Universal. All you need is room, tickets, and no other plans. Just relax and enjoy a real vacation. Enough said.

But the fear of the unknown ... No fire works or water parks not sure how that would go over.... But relax, on a vacation?? Is that even possible lol

 

[alkc71]

Most people do Disney first because it's hard not waiting in lines at Universal then moving to Disney to waiting. There is really no planning when staying onsite at Universal. It's nice to get up when you wish and enjoy the day how you want without months of planning.

this sounds like a great plan! Is there a shuttle from the resorts the the airport?

 

[Bluer101]

But the fear of the unknown ... No fire works or water parks not sure how that would go over.... But relax, on a vacation?? Is that even possible lol

Hit up wet and wild, aquatica, and seaworld again. Just spend some time pool side relaxing and being waited on.

We will be there this weekend. We were there 10 days ago. We will be there in 3 weeks too. I'm not crazy, we enjoy relaxing, no thought, or worries. Just smoth sailing.

I do understand the feeling of unknown but you will see once you are there. Just don't try so hard. Universal (onsite deluxe) goes again all conventional vacation planning.

 

[Bluer101]

this sounds like a great plan! Is there a shuttle from the resorts the the airport?

I believe you would have a town car service to hire. That is out of my area as we drive from our house, we live 2 hours away. But others that fly in will answer that for you.

 

[Bluer101]

One thing is required, don't go to Universal and try to compare everything. Just treat Disney and Universal as both special places.

 

[alkc71]

Hit up wet and wild, aquatica, and seaworld again. Just spend some time pool side relaxing and being waited on.

We will be there this weekend. We were there 10 days ago. We will be there in 3 weeks too. I'm not crazy, we enjoy relaxing, no thought, or worries. Just smoth sailing.

I do understand the feeling of unknown but you will see once you are there. Just don't try so hard. Universal (onsite deluxe) goes again all conventional vacation planning.

Thanks for that, it really does sound amazing good thing i started planning early

 

[Bluer101]

Thanks for that, it really does sound amazing good thing i started planning early

Oh, also at Universal resort pool hopping is allowed. So enjoy all the pools and eateries. The other nice thing about being onsite is how close everything is compared to Disney.

The hotels also have shuttle service to seaworld, aquatica, and wet n wild.

 

[agavegirl1]

I am spending 15 days in Orlando. I am staying at POP for 9 of the nights, a Sea World Affiliated hotel for 2 nights and Portofino for 4 nights. I purchased my Disney hoppers as part of a package and I have the 14 day Orlando Flex Pass Plus. While at POP, we will be renting a car to go to Busch Gardens. I have done Universal ONLY vacations before. I arranged a Town Car to pick us up at the airport and I have never seen the kids so excited. There is nothing weird about going to Orlando and not doing WDW.

 

[alkc71]

Thank you everyone for these great options! I am confident now i can find a variation to suit us.

 

[macraven]

op, i do the motherland first and when i am there, i am on the run constantly.
i get up early, hit the busses, well, wait for the busses, then hit the park.

i park hop on some days so that means more bus waiting and down time for that.

but prior to that, i have to figure out what park to do on what days and where to eat. make the adr's and do the fast pass + set up.
i have to be so organized for this portion of the trip.
by hitting the motherland first, i'm in the mind set of a fast pass and live by the clock to cover everything that i planned in advance.


then i switch over to the darkside and start the relaxing vacation.
eat when i want, do the parks when i want, etc.
no extra planning when i am there.

i plan my days as they happen for the most part.

i do have plans when i am there for the HHN.
meet ups with others, a few planned meals prior to the hard ticket event, etc.

my darkside portion of the vacation is carefree and relaxing.
i have a busy life like many others do so a relaxing vacation is a necessity for me.
staying onsite will give you unlimited usage of the express lines and early entry into the parks in the morning.
i prefer that system over the fp.
less waiting and no planning in advance.

6 days at the motherland and 12 at the darkside works for me.

if you start at the motherland, you can use the ME to get to the resort there.
do a private car service round trip and it will cost $100.
pick up at disney, drop off at universal, then from UO to the airport.


came back to add that guests at UO can use the free shuttle busses to seaworld, aquatica and wet and wild.
the bus to busch gardens was $10 rt but it does have stops.

 

[Dream 2015]

We are planning a split trip for June 2015. We decided to do Universal for the first 3 days and then 5 days at Disney and stay on property at both locations to take advantage of the early and late hours offered to onsite guests. We plan to rent a car at MCO for the Universal portion then return it and take magical express to Disney. We are huge fans of the Disney transportation system and love that we don't have worry about luggage with Magical Express. We can then maximize our time at both parks plus pick up anything we need/forget before we are carless at Disney.

The last time we went we did a week at Disney at POP and did a two day rental at the Magic Kingdom car care center to do a day trip to Universal. The cost of the two day rental was more than a weekly rental in the end because of all the extras they charged at the CCC. I would not recommend doing that.

Have a great trip and remember to have fun whether you are at Universal or Disney.

 

[Planogirl]

Split stays are fabulous! I always say that I wouldn't ever go to central Florida without visiting Universal but completely skipping WDW is weird. We did so once and then decided to make sure that we at least visit a few Disney parks during each future visit. We enjoyed staying onsite at each or if we are in budget mode we find a decent place well located between the two. It's kind of nice to alternate Universal and Disney too sometimes.

Enjoy whatever you decide!

 

[kathy884]

I like mixing it up. For a mini five night/four day December trip my plans are:

Day 1 -- Titanic attraction on I-drive and resort hopping at Disney (doing a meal at the Polynesian hotel)

Day 2 -- SeaWorld

Day 3 -- Universal park hopper (a handful of thing at Universal in the morning, lunch at Citywalk, and a handful of things at IOA in the afternoon)

Day 4 -- Magic Kingdom

Day 5 -- fly home

I'll be staying in an offsite condo. Crowd predictions are low, so I have no concerns about staying offsite, not having express pass at Universal. I also see no need to do any advanced FP+ reservations, looking at the very low predicted attraction wait times.

I say do whatever you want to do.

 

[alkc71]

Thanks to everyones great advise. I am leaning towards a split stayjust curious about the flex ticket option does this offer a park to park at universal? Thinking 5-7 nights before 7-8 nights at disney. $$$