Ticket prices seem insane?

[mcjw2011]

They weren't that insane when I purchased a four-day park-to-park ticket in 2011 for $157 and a 2-day PTP for $144. The annual pass sounds like a better deal if you can afford two vacations a year.

Another thing you can consider is if you want to go to Universal, but don't have a specific year or time set, just buy them now and 'sit' on them. And then when you're able to take the vacation, they are still good years from when you purchased it. That also protects you from being gouged further than if you bought them right before your trip.

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

This thread is very informative and touches on all the reasons why we won't be combining Universal with Disney on our May 2018 trip. We plan on doing at least 3 days at Universal and 1-2 days over at Legoland.

 

[Momloveshockey]

I'm at a loss...unless I'm looking at it wrong...it will cost us almost $1000 for three of us to go for 2 days!! Looks like $200 each, then add on the Express Pass...that's 1 day at US and 1 at IofA! That's insane!! B

 

[damo]

I'm at a loss...unless I'm looking at it wrong...it will cost us almost $1000 for three of us to go for 2 days!! Looks like $200 each, then add on the Express Pass...that's 1 day at US and 1 at IofA! That's insane!! B

I suggest you don't get the express pass. Get there at park opening. Do the big rides first thing and take advantage of single rider lines when possible.

 

[mcjw2011]

I suggest you don't get the express pass. Get there at park opening. Do the big rides first thing and take advantage of single rider lines when possible.

I did this, even though I don't have kids. Your family won't have to wait in long lines for the rides, just hop on them and enjoy. Then when the park gets busy later on, you can just walk around, shop or anything else you haven't done yet. (I recommend the character interactions after the rides, your kids will love to meet Optimus, Bumblebee or Megatron after doing the TF ride.)

Use the money you would spend on an Express Pass for souvenirs or lunch/dinner passes instead.

 

[Momloveshockey]

I suggest you don't get the express pass. Get there at park opening. Do the big rides first thing and take advantage of single rider lines when possible.

What about the fact that we are going Dec 29 & 30th...plus we have to go to Car Care Center and rent the car in the morning of the 29th (when it opens) and then drive to US... Would still skip the Express Pass?

 

[Seoulbro]

I think I have mentioned this before in another thread, but, this year, we (family of 4) have decided to do both parks as we have never been to universal, and we can't imagine going to Florida and not do Disney. We are traveling in August. I'm Canadian, so for Disney, I took advantage of the Canadian offer. We booked 4 nights at POP with 4 day park hopper tickets with the water park and more option. For Universal, I booked 6 days at the Royal Pacific with the explorer ticket (14 days, all three parks). We are also using points for 4 nights at the Sheraton. We have plenty of options for our two week vacation, and we managed to get this for under $4500 US, not including food and gas.

I think it also depends on when you book and what discounts are available. I booked really early for Universal, and took advantage of the Canadian deal when it was offered. While I do find things expensive ($12 for a milkshake!!??), I think I am getting pretty good bang for my buck.

 

[Metro West]

What about the fact that we are going Dec 29 & 30th...plus we have to go to Car Care Center and rent the car in the morning of the 29th (when it opens) and then drive to US... Would still skip the Express Pass?

I wouldn't skip the EP if you're going during Holiday Hell Week...crowds are going to be insane...even for the Express lines. You are already going to be at a disadvantage by showing up late after getting the rental...you will need all the help you can get...EPs will help some but not as they normally would. It's just too busy that week. I live in Orlando and won't go near the parks during that time.

 

[glocon]

Depending on the price of EP, would it be cheaper to get a room at one of the deluxes for the free EPs since one night at the resort gets you two days of EP?
I guess if there are any rooms left for that week at this point....

 

[damo]

What about the fact that we are going Dec 29 & 30th...plus we have to go to Car Care Center and rent the car in the morning of the 29th (when it opens) and then drive to US... Would still skip the Express Pass?

Nope. You are going at a crazy time. Might not be a good time to be doing both WDW and Universal unless you can actually stay over at Universal while you are visiting the parks.

 

[back2disney]

I'm at a loss...unless I'm looking at it wrong...it will cost us almost $1000 for three of us to go for 2 days!! Looks like $200 each, then add on the Express Pass...that's 1 day at US and 1 at IofA! That's insane!! B

I agree insane - I was surprised when they hit 4 digits, definitely made me do a double take and rethink, might as well make it a 4 or 5 day since its only around $50 a more a day per person to add but then now you have to use them all within 7 days instead of 14..

 

[mickeyluv'r]

One thing to consider when thinking about AP's is that you get additional discounts on food/merchandise and parking (depending which pass). Sometimes those small meal discounts can add up to making the AP a better deal.

Another thing to consider is that you don't have to do all or nothing. You can buy one AP, but regular tickets for everyone else.

Both US and WDW also allow you to upgrade a regular ticket to an AP when you are there in person, so that might be another way to spread the cost a little, or give the idea some extra thought. Though sometimes the GS line can be a bit slow.

 

[vcgirl925]

We are Orlando residents and have family coming in to visit. We priced out staying at Royal Pacific for one night and then one day two park tickets for 5 of us. $1300. Wahhh. I can't justify spending so much for just one day visit to a park. Not to mention food and drinks once inside. If we nix the hotel and just do the tickets it's $890. Still pretty rough and we won't have express pass which for August with only one day, it's invaluable. Contemplating getting an annual pass but we still won't have express unless we do the most expensive option which is $3,000 for the year, even then it's only after 4.

 

[maverik85]

I can understand the OPs frustration a bit, but as others have said it is comparable to Disney and you can easily spend plenty of time int eh parks at Universal, jsut as long as it Disney with a day park hopper.
That said the front loading does irk me a little for Universal becuase they don't have as much to do there. They have been building up and the addition of Volcano Bay helps a lot, but I still view Universal as a half week type trip. Where as Disney I coudl easily spend ove a week there. I have found it easy to hit everything in 2 days at Universal during a busy period at a leisurely pace. Have always done three day trips for it and it has been really relaxed and able to enjoy CityWalk adn the resorts along with the parks. At Disney I have gone for 8 days and still felt I needed more time to do everything. So yes both places front load but it doens't do me much good to save mroe money by getting a 4+ day ticket to Universal when by the 3rd day I'm kind o done at the parks, whereas at Disney I coudl get a 7+ day pass and easiyl fill my time. 4 theme parks and 2 water parks vs. 2 theme parks and 1 water park just doesn't compare. Plus Disney Springs is a lot larger than CityWalk.

 

[TommyJK]

Where as Disney I coudl easily spend ove a week there.

I'm on the opposide side of the spectrum. I don't see how I could spend more than 5 days at most at Disney Parks. 2 days at MK (although we always do just one with Rope Drop, a good touring plan, and strategic FP+) and a day at each of the others (AK, HS, Epcot).

 

[maverik85]

Universal is slowly getting to the point where I feel I'd be able to spend a week there but right now I think 4-5 days would be my limit. And I only extend it to the point because of Volcano bay, before I'd say 3 maybe 4. Disney has a lot more to do outside of their parks. As stated its 4 theme parks (3.5 right now with HS) and 2 water parks vs. 2 theme parks and 1 water park. However, they also have the Boardwalk area, tons of pools and resort to walk around and pool hop. Trails you can go horseback riding on. Lots of different shows like Cirque Du Soleil and Hoop-Dee-Do Revue among others, while Universal just has Blue Man Group. And Disney Springs is massive. I could probably spend an entire day in there alone, whereas CityWalk I'm kind of done with after a couple hours.
Once Universal gets to the point of opening another a third theme par on the new land they have, and maybe another retail section there too, then I could see a week spent at just Universal, but as it is now, to me, it's a 4 maybe 5 day trip.

 

[StarWarsJez]

I guess it's down to Universal spending a lot of money investing in their parks over recent years, so they're now really catching Disney up - but this is also reflected in ticket prices.

Bottom line is if you're only going for 2 days, you're not really getting good value due to the front loading of ticket prices (something Disneys also guilty of). From my family's perspective that's fine as we seem to spend more time at Universal now anyway, as Disneys just not coming up with the goods imo. (Though I am obviously excited about Star Wars Land 2019/2020)

 

[bchbetha]

What about the fact that we are going Dec 29 & 30th...plus we have to go to Car Care Center and rent the car in the morning of the 29th (when it opens) and then drive to US... Would still skip the Express Pass?

Why waste time renting a car? Just get an Uber or Lyft and be done. Staying onsite for 1 night would be a massive advantage too.

 

[Disney Ron]

Universal is slowly getting to the point where I feel I'd be able to spend a week there but right now I think 4-5 days would be my limit. And I only extend it to the point because of Volcano bay, before I'd say 3 maybe 4. Disney has a lot more to do outside of their parks. As stated its 4 theme parks (3.5 right now with HS) and 2 water parks vs. 2 theme parks and 1 water park. However, they also have the Boardwalk area, tons of pools and resort to walk around and pool hop. Trails you can go horseback riding on. Lots of different shows like Cirque Du Soleil and Hoop-Dee-Do Revue among others, while Universal just has Blue Man Group. And Disney Springs is massive. I could probably spend an entire day in there alone, whereas CityWalk I'm kind of done with after a couple hours.
Once Universal gets to the point of opening another a third theme par on the new land they have, and maybe another retail section there too, then I could see a week spent at just Universal, but as it is now, to me, it's a 4 maybe 5 day trip.

You can't pool hop at WDW except for POR and POFQ who guests can use the other resorts pool.

 

[bchbetha]

I'm at a loss...unless I'm looking at it wrong...it will cost us almost $1000 for three of us to go for 2 days!! Looks like $200 each, then add on the Express Pass...that's 1 day at US and 1 at IofA! That's insane!! B

How many in your group? A family of 4 can run as high as $1036 for 2 days of park hoppers at Disneyworld (I put that all guests were over 10yo). Maybe you have APs but that wouldn't be a fair comparison to Universal ticket prices. Both are absurdly expensive. At least at Universal your price includes the Express Passes, which isn't close to offered at Disney. Again, if you stay overnight, you can get the EPs included and the room costs are cheaper than buying EPs for 2 days for a family. Add in getting on each AP and you can save on the room too.