Will we regret it if we DON'T book a night on site?

[pixeegrl]

If it's now or never then go for it of course people say you don't miss what you don't know. That said, when you see the same group of people going through the Express Line two or 3 times while you're still waiting in the regular line you might think back on the advice given over here on The DIS. We did get some nasty looks one time on MIB when we were on our 7th ride

 

[christophfam]

ANYWAY....You're misinterpreting me a little bit I think. I am sure we'll enjoy the parks...DS loves rides so these will all be new for us...it is the $225 hotel room that we won't have time to enjoy that is grinding on me!! I guess I have to look at it that what we're really paying for is the express pass thing & 1 hour early admission to the HP stuff. I thought when we bought DVC we'd never have to pay to stay in Orlando again. At this point with only 2 days for the 2 parks I was assuming that we'd hit them commando style and not take any time to actually BE at the resort. Maybe if it's 95 degrees & we're boiling hot I'll change my mind about taking a break in the afternoon for a swim. (I was also trying to pack super light for this 1 night & wasn't going to bring bathing suits.) Do you think the express pass thing will give us enough extra time to do everything AND have a couple of hours to chill by the pool??

I had sorta started thinking that we would just use taxis to go back & forth and that we could come in a backpack for 1 night & then just stash it in a locker at the parks for the day. Do you know if we decided to park hop if we rent a locker at one park can we then get a deal on a locker at the other park? Disney allows you to show your receipt at the 2nd park so that you don't have to pay to re-rent.

Universal is this trip or it's never. I already built the 2 extra days into our trip when I booked the airfare and when I booked 9 nights at the Boardwalk. We usually try to plan 2 - 3 trips a year to Disney so we can get AP's and get our money's worth out of them & we always say NEXT TIME we should go to Universal but we never want to give up our time at Disney. So this is IT. I planned 2 extra days so we wouldn't feel jipped on our Disney time. We'll have 6 nights, 6 days over spring break then this trip in August will give us another 9 nights with 8 days at Disney (I've planned for evening flights home so we have that last day too). I figure with our DVC discount on the AP's we break even at around 8 park days so I feel we'll be good with getting our money's worth on these AP's.

With the longer hours in August and express pass, I think you would most definitely have time to chill by the pool a bit. In fact, that is one of the things we love most about staying onsite at Universal. You don't have to go commando! It is SO easy to go back to the resort for a break. It only takes about 10 minutes to walk back to RPR from IOA!! When I take a break at Disney, I'm exhausted from the break! When you take a break at Uni, it truly is a break. You get to skip the most crowded and hot part of the day on top of it. You could also plan your afternoon break after the water rides at IOA. That way you don't have to walk around wet all afternoon. That is what we normally do.

The bellmen at the resort will hold your bags so you really don't need a locker at the parks. That would just be an added expense. No need to pack light to go over. Just bring a carryon and leave it at the hotel. Also, I would think Mears would be cheaper and almost as convenient as a taxi.

 

[macraven]

The bellmen at the resort will hold your bags so you really don't need a locker at the parks. That would just be an added expense. No need to pack light to go over. Just bring a carryon and leave it at the hotel. Also, I would think Mears would be cheaper and almost as convenient as a taxi.

the Mears shuttle from disney to universal will not allow a carry on piece of luggage. not even the smaller size ones that airlines allow as a carry on.

you can get by with a large beach bag type or backpack if you use the shuttle.

yes, if you are a hotel guest, you can check anything in with valet to hold.

 

[christophfam]

the Mears shuttle from disney to universal will not allow a carry on piece of luggage. not even the smaller size ones that airlines allow as a carry on.

you can get by with a large beach bag type or backpack if you use the shuttle.

yes, if you are a hotel guest, you can check anything in with valet to hold.

I didn't realize that! We've never used Mears from Disney, just from the airport. Thanks for setting me straight... nothing worse than inaccurate advice!!

 

[macraven]

I didn't realize that! We've never used Mears from Disney, just from the airport. Thanks for setting me straight... nothing worse than inaccurate advice!!

no problem!

i just wanted to clarify it will be an issue if someone brings luggage with them.

when i was at disney, a family tried to take their luggage with them as they were relocating to an universal hotel.
they ended up taking a cab.

they list on the site what can not be brought on the day shuttle to UO.

 

[disnewbie108]

With the longer hours in August and express pass, I think you would most definitely have time to chill by the pool a bit. In fact, that is one of the things we love most about staying onsite at Universal. You don't have to go commando! It is SO easy to go back to the resort for a break. It only takes about 10 minutes to walk back to RPR from IOA!! When I take a break at Disney, I'm exhausted from the break! When you take a break at Uni, it truly is a break. You get to skip the most crowded and hot part of the day on top of it. You could also plan your afternoon break after the water rides at IOA. That way you don't have to walk around wet all afternoon. That is what we normally do.

The bellmen at the resort will hold your bags so you really don't need a locker at the parks. That would just be an added expense. No need to pack light to go over. Just bring a carryon and leave it at the hotel. Also, I would think Mears would be cheaper and almost as convenient as a taxi.

Totally ditto this response! The walk between the parks and the onsite hotels and vice versa is a huge timesaver itself. We saved so much time walking back when staying onsite at USFL over any bus/ferry/self drive at WDW. And, if you are really tired, there are a ton of Pedi cab folks willing to take you for a tip. I think we make it back to the USFL onsite hotels faster that we make it to bus stops at WDW when leaving/entering the parks.

Have a great trip. Ditto all the pps who said let us know what you decide.

As a lifetime WDW addict, my expectations have been completely exceeded by Universal and the onsite hotels.

H

PS. I totally get trying to save some $$. All my trips to Orlando have to be tied to some type of military discount for us to even begin to attempt them. Good luck to you, I hope you can work whatever type of discount that gets you there. You will have a ball.

 

[Anal Annie]

Thanks everyone. I'm still weighing all the pros & cons of rental car vs taxi vs Mears. Although Mears is cheapest it was my understanding that I'd need to make reservations (like a specific time) and I didn't want to be tied to a time. Also good to hear about the no luggage rule on Mears up front!! The reason I had been thinking about renting a locker for the 2nd day was so if we opted to use a taxi we could leave straight from the park that evening without having to go back to the hotel to retrieve a bag.

When I said to DH let's add a couple of days at Universal this summer I really hadn't priced it out yet. I'm sure we'll have fun once we're there and I am beyond paying the bill for it.

 

[macraven]

if you leave bags with valet at the hotel once you check out, you can catch a cab from there to return to your dvc resort.

valet will call the cab for you if you ask them.

 

[Anal Annie]

DOH!! (Head slap!) I was gambling that maybe once we got to within 6 months maybe I'd find a better rate on the Universal hotels. NOT! They all went up!! Std. room at the HRH went up from $244 to $269 RPH went from $224 to $249.

UPDATE - I called them and for some reason that higher rate was thru the Loews site. If I go in from a diff. way it comes up at the other rates that I had been seeing. Hummmmmm.... ALSO note that I tried to check thru Expedia & it was over $300 'cuz they weren't offering a "standard" room. So I booked it. I figured for $20 more than the RPH what the heck - go for the HRH. The HRH girl said on the phone that it would be more likely to sell out if I wanted a std. room. NOW to decide if we need hoppers or not and if I should go ahead & get those now too. I am assuming the current deal they have on their website now is PRE-tax but does anybody know for sure? It may still be better to order thru UCT?

 

[heidi8]

About two years ago, my son and I were with a school group at US and had luggage since we were heading to the airport and not back to the buses with everyone else. We checked our suitcases at the kiosk by the lockers right inside the Park, and I think it was seven dollars or so, per bag, then. Saved us a lot of time in the afternoon too!