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Universal Studios - Orlando
Posted on 11/16/17 at 1:41 pm
Posted on 11/16/17 at 1:41 pm
Daughter is obsessed with Harry Potter and driving us crazy to take her down there. Is there any added benefit to stay at one of the properties in the packages they offer on their site? Was kind of surprised how expensive that place was. I went to Islands Of Adventure several years ago, and just remember it being like Six Flags.
Is 2 days plenty of time? I was thinking doing a condo via VRBO.
Is 2 days plenty of time? I was thinking doing a condo via VRBO.
7
Posted on 11/16/17 at 2:22 pm to The Spleen
The big benefit is you get to get in to Wizarding world of harry potter an hour early, as well as volcano bay.
Also, if you stay in the upper level or middle level hotels, you get free Universal Express, which is their version of FastPass.
Also, if you stay in the upper level or middle level hotels, you get free Universal Express, which is their version of FastPass.
Posted on 11/16/17 at 3:19 pm to LSUFanHouston
the express pass was worth it. Better than FastPass as there was no scheduling of times and only 3 at a time like FastPass. If you go during a busy time it is necessary.
Posted on 11/16/17 at 4:43 pm to mgdtiger
I am not a fan of staying on site for Universal, don’t think the value/immersiveness is the same as staying at Disney. Their fast pass system has never been worth it for me, that might change for Nintendo world when they open it though.
Posted on 11/16/17 at 5:14 pm to The Spleen
I would definitely recommend staying on site for both the early entry and the express pass. Two days is plenty if have these.
Posted on 11/16/17 at 5:42 pm to Dam Guide
quote:
don’t think the value/immersiveness is the same as staying at Disney.
It's not. It's a hotel on resort property... which is a far, far difference from the disney-ness of their hotels.
quote:
Their fast pass system has never been worth it for me, t
If you go at a busy time of year it's definetly worth it. If it's slow... not at all.
Posted on 11/17/17 at 1:32 pm to The Spleen
2 days is plenty of time to do both Universal Parks IMO. Went back in February and spent a day at each park. We were able to ride everything and many of the rides twice.
Posted on 11/17/17 at 3:54 pm to LSUFanHouston
quote:
If you go at a busy time of year it's definetly worth it. If it's slow... not at all.
I go all the time busy and slow. My wife’s grandma works there for something to do. We get free entry. That may why it may not be worth it for me. I’ve ridden everything a ton. Never in a rush to do everything and know when to ride stuff during busy times. It’s pretty easy to do both parks in two days and see most everything without the fast pass even when it’s busy. The exception is probably haunted houses during HHN. That shite can get ridiculous, fast pass is a must.
Posted on 11/17/17 at 4:28 pm to The Spleen
Are you going at a busy time or not? This will be the answer on if you should stay on site or not. I preferred staying on site because of the free fast pass and you just walk to the park
Posted on 11/19/17 at 6:45 am to The Spleen
I went two years ago and didn't stay onsite. I wish I would have though if nothing else just for the convenience. BTW Harry Potter experience was great , I'm 51 and not a huge fan( my wife is) my advice is spend the extra and stay on site... two days is plenty of time
Posted on 11/20/17 at 8:02 am to Civildawg
quote:
Are you going at a busy time or not?
I don't know when we're going yet. Possibly spring break, or late May once the kids are out of school. Guessing both of those times are busy times.
Posted on 11/20/17 at 9:03 am to The Spleen
Staying on site gets you and your group early park admissions, admission to the park one hour before the park opens. It switches from Universal (Diagon Alley and Minions) and Islands of Adventure (Hogsmeade), so go to Universal Orlando's website to find out. If it is just you, your partner, and kid, I would stay at Cabana Bay. It is one of the cheaper on site hotels and it is right by the new water park, Volcano Bay which also offers early park admissions if staying on site. However, you will not get express passes.
The hotels that offer express passes are Portofino, Hard Rock, and Royal Pacific. Cabana Bay and Sapphire Falls are the cheaper ones, but Cabana Bay is more geared towards children with its two pools, lazy river, and bowling alley.
Staying offsite can be really cheap. You can find villas in Kissimmee starting as low as $60 a night that have stocked full kitchens and multiply bedrooms. The trade off is that you would probably have to rent a car because it is about a 20-30min drive to Universal from Kissimmee and pay for parking, which is $20 a day.
Depending on when you're going, two days is enough time to do both parks, but if you want to fit in Volcano Bay, I would go with three. Check out the crowd calendar at Orlando Informer to see when the best times to go to the parks. Here is a rundown of the next few months:
January is pretty slow, but picks up the last weekend for the Celebration of Harry Potter. It is also busy for the weekend before MLK Day.
February can be slow except for a few days around Valentine's Day. They also do a Mardi Gras celebration with concerts. Also, Spring Break can start in late February from some schools.
March and April are busy during Spring Break and Easter. After Easter, it dies down a bit.
May is pretty mellow, but busy during Memorial day weekend.
June through first half of August are the busiest because of Summer, duh. There are also concerts during the summer.
Second half of August through September is probably the best time to go. Most of the kids are back in school. Even on Labor Day weekend it is not that crowded.
October is slow, but can get crowded for Halloween Horror Nights.
November and December are slow except for Thanksgiving week and Christmas through New Year's.
The hotels that offer express passes are Portofino, Hard Rock, and Royal Pacific. Cabana Bay and Sapphire Falls are the cheaper ones, but Cabana Bay is more geared towards children with its two pools, lazy river, and bowling alley.
Staying offsite can be really cheap. You can find villas in Kissimmee starting as low as $60 a night that have stocked full kitchens and multiply bedrooms. The trade off is that you would probably have to rent a car because it is about a 20-30min drive to Universal from Kissimmee and pay for parking, which is $20 a day.
Depending on when you're going, two days is enough time to do both parks, but if you want to fit in Volcano Bay, I would go with three. Check out the crowd calendar at Orlando Informer to see when the best times to go to the parks. Here is a rundown of the next few months:
January is pretty slow, but picks up the last weekend for the Celebration of Harry Potter. It is also busy for the weekend before MLK Day.
February can be slow except for a few days around Valentine's Day. They also do a Mardi Gras celebration with concerts. Also, Spring Break can start in late February from some schools.
March and April are busy during Spring Break and Easter. After Easter, it dies down a bit.
May is pretty mellow, but busy during Memorial day weekend.
June through first half of August are the busiest because of Summer, duh. There are also concerts during the summer.
Second half of August through September is probably the best time to go. Most of the kids are back in school. Even on Labor Day weekend it is not that crowded.
October is slow, but can get crowded for Halloween Horror Nights.
November and December are slow except for Thanksgiving week and Christmas through New Year's.
Posted on 11/20/17 at 10:00 am to Red5LSU
Good info. Thanks.
We would most likely drive down, and have our own car. I like the idea of a condo for cooking easy breakfast and dinners, thus saving some money on dining, though that is maybe negated a little by the parking fee.
It would be me, my wife, and 2 kids - 11 year old girl, and 15 year old boy. We've considered letting them each ask a friend to go though. So we'll see on that. Would definitely get a 3 bedroom condo/house somewhere in that case.
quote:
taying offsite can be really cheap. You can find villas in Kissimmee starting as low as $60 a night that have stocked full kitchens and multiply bedrooms. The trade off is that you would probably have to rent a car because it is about a 20-30min drive to Universal from Kissimmee and pay for parking, which is $20 a day.
We would most likely drive down, and have our own car. I like the idea of a condo for cooking easy breakfast and dinners, thus saving some money on dining, though that is maybe negated a little by the parking fee.
It would be me, my wife, and 2 kids - 11 year old girl, and 15 year old boy. We've considered letting them each ask a friend to go though. So we'll see on that. Would definitely get a 3 bedroom condo/house somewhere in that case.
Posted on 11/21/17 at 9:29 am to The Spleen
If you're going to Volcano Bay, I would heavily suggest staying at Cabana Bay, so you can walk to the park and bypass the bus.
Posted on 11/21/17 at 10:35 am to DVA Tailgater
Kids aren't big on water parks, so doubt we do Volcano Bay.
Posted on 11/21/17 at 12:18 pm to The Spleen
Stay at the Orange Lake Resort
Posted on 11/22/17 at 1:00 am to Dam Guide
quote:we went right after Christmas and the express pass was a life saver. Definitely a major plus and it made Disney's 3 at scheduled times seem so inferior
Their fast pass system has never been worth it for me,
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