very new newbie, needs lots of suggestions!

[CarolinaMomOf3boys]

I have never been to universal...we are disney fanatics, been going all my life and up until 3 years ago, going twice a year for many years. We have not been on a vacation for 3 years and are booked for free dining at disney end of march. May have to cancel the vacation all together with that said, i am thinking of a much shorter vacation at a fraction of the cost? at Universal? I have never been and am thinking of maybe 3-4 days at Universal, instead of the 7-8 we have booked at Disney...price wise, is this smart? Or can universal be as much as disney? what about the hotels? is the park a one day thing or is it too big to do in a day? any/all details, advise, suggestions are welcome. I have about 2 weeks until i have to make a decsion re: my upcoming disney vacay......

 

[everylastbreath]

You don't mention how old your kids are, but if they are not toddlers, I think they are going to like Universal better than Disney! I have to say that I do love Disney, but Universal is a must go for us. Love CityWalk (Universal's version of "Downtown Disney") and the parks (there are 2, IOA & Universal) are not one day parks, you could easily do 2 in each park. I would def. recommend (HIGHLY) staying on site at any of the 3 hotels, (all are great) because you get "Front of the Line" which is Universal's version of "Fastpasses" only they are good all day, as many times as you want - only if you stay onsite, that is worth the price of hotel in my opinion. You don't have someone run ahead and get the fastpasses, wait for the time, etc. I love Universal, we usually do a split stay between Disney & Universal, but just make sure you do Disney first, because once your family has these "front of the line" tickets, they are not going to want to wait on line. Feel free to ask me anything you like!! Been to both Disney & Universal many times.

 

[RMulieri]

Universal CAN cost as much as Disney depending on number of people,time of year ,resort etc..If you are used to paying Disney Deluxe prices, then Unversal will seem cheaper or the same by comparison.I paid alot less for my stay at Universal than I do for a comparable amount of time at Disney.But I stay DVC on cash or Deluxe at Disney.If you are used to paying Disney value/moderate prices, then Universal resorts will give you sticker shock and your trip may come out to cost more.Onsite is definitely worth it though.The resorts are beautiful, they are extremely close to the parks and the Express Pass for resort guests is INCREDIBLE.

 

[AJA]

Staying on site at Universal can be very expensive (but so worth it!) one adult in your party getting a preferred annual pass would get you hotel discounts, just make sure they are offering pass holder discounts for your travel dates. Also Universal has a great discount called Stay More Save More, but the saving really kick in with 5 or 7 day stays.

When it's all said and done we find a 7 day Universal vacation (with hotel discount) a much better value than 7 days at a Disney deluxe hotel.

Of course staying off site can be a HUGE savings over either Disney or Universal. Some of the resorts are little mini water parks in themselves add a couple of Universal days in and you can have a great vacation for a great value.

 

[macraven]

I have never been to universal...we are disney fanatics, been going all my life and up until 3 years ago, going twice a year for many years. We have not been on a vacation for 3 years and are booked for free dining at disney end of march. May have to cancel the vacation all together with that said, i am thinking of a much shorter vacation at a fraction of the cost? at Universal? I have never been and am thinking of maybe 3-4 days at Universal, instead of the 7-8 we have booked at Disney...price wise, is this smart? Or can universal be as much as disney? what about the hotels? is the park a one day thing or is it too big to do in a day? any/all details, advise, suggestions are welcome. I have about 2 weeks until i have to make a decsion re: my upcoming disney vacay......

i do the motherland and the darkside each year on my Orlando vacations.
i think you would enjoy checking out universal.
don't think about disney when you take this trip. start out with no special expectations and go with the flow.

i looked at your past posting of a trip and it looks like your boys would be 15 and 12 now.
good ages to take them to the darkside.
they would be of the perfect height for all the rides and probably have a willingness to try new types of rides.

if you are going in 2 weeks, i guess you are looking around valentines day time period.
crowds shouldn't be an issue in the parks.
park hours will be shorter during that time period.

plan on one day per park and the third day for repeating favorite rides.
include city walk and pool hopping during your stay.
if you plan on a 4 night stay, do a partial for day 4 in the parks and time for the pool.
there are activities pool side everyday.

if you have the AAA, it qualifies for hotel discounts.
also, AAA allows you 10% discount off of food and merch in the parks and most of City Walk. be sure to show it for the discount.

call and talk to the reservationist.
ask that TM what the best rates are for your time period.
the stay more, save more would be one possible discount.
it is available to the general public.
The annual pass is another discount for hotels.

you need to figure out if you will save money by purchasing it.
it also gives the 10% discount as AAA does for food and merch, but not at City Walk in general.
room rates with the aph varies per date.

www.universalorlando.com is the website to check out what is in the parks.
go over that and you'll have a good idea of when to cover the rides.

if you stay onsite, pool hopping is encouraged.
you stay at one park and go to the other hotel pools.

if you don't get a good hotel rate that you can live with, stay 3 nights onsite and the 4th night offsite.

all onsite hotel guests are allowed the unlimited usage of the express lines and early entry to parry hotter land.

if you check out of the onsite hotel on day 3, you are still entitled to have the perks of early entry and unlimited express lines usage.

you can stow your luggage with valet when you check out, retrieve it later in the day then go to the offsite hotel.


if you are brand new to the darkside resorts and parks, check out some of the stickies. they cover a lot.
also read some of the trippies in the trip forum.


hope i haven't confused you.


i vote for the universal stay.............your boys will thank you for it !!