Universal newbie...help!

[tink&her2boys]

I like to consider myself pretty knowledgeable concerning Disney, but I know next to nothing when it comes to Universal. My family of boys is wanting to go to Universal this time instead of Disney Where do I start?? How do you get the best deal? I belong to AAA, I've looked at UT for tics, Universal's site for packages. The price seems outrageous compared to my September Disney trips! We are considering the end of May this time or September again. Thanks for any info!

 

[CoachZ]

I like to consider myself pretty knowledgeable concerning Disney, but I know next to nothing when it comes to Universal. My family of boys is wanting to go to Universal this time instead of Disney Where do I start?? How do you get the best deal? I belong to AAA, I've looked at UT for tics, Universal's site for packages. The price seems outrageous compared to my September Disney trips! We are considering the end of May this time or September again. Thanks for any info!

You are in the right place with this site. I use it for help planning any trip to the Orlando theme parks.

An annual pass can help with discounts to onsite hotels. Depending on the level of pass you may also get discounts at restaurants & shopping. AAA can also get you some discounts. UT usually has the best price on tickets, plus tax is included in their prices.

 

[bchbetha]

What are you comparing when you mention that the Universal price is outrageous? Which hotels? The top 3 at Universal give you Express Passes from check in through check out day; Disney doesn't have anything comparable. Fancy hotel and Express Passes would cost $$$ at Disney (if that combo existed). The value hotels are pretty reasonably priced if you decide to skip the Express Passes.
September is HHN so not a slow, low demand time so the prices could be higher than May.

 

[bobbie68]

Hi we have been doing Disney and Universal for years and honestly I always thought Universal was a little cheaper. The big difference is they don't offer the same types of discounts like Disney does. I am going in two weeks and staying at Cabana Bay Beach Resort. I am staying there 7 nights. Universal has a longer you stay the less you pay on their hotel rooms. I got 25 percent of each night. If I stayed at one of the three deluxe hotels I would have gotten 30 percent. I would go on the universal website and check out their promotions and the hotel discounts. This year they ran a ticket special also. I personally would not do a package if you are going to go through Universal. I would keep it all separate to get better deals and you could buy tickets else where. I booked everything through them I like the flexibility to change and control things myself verses a travel agency. I think you will be better at the end of May like somebody said HHN starts and is higher demand. PP mentioned looking into an AP pass as an option also.

We decided to do one night at Royal Pacific Resort to get the express pass for two days. July is one of the busiest months and having that pass is awesome. It really depends on the time of year you go if you need it. I don't see a lot of information about your family and what their interests are so hard to give to much advice.

We love the slower pace at Universal and less pressure to keep a schedule.

Enjoy and ask away

 

[damo]

Universal can definitely be more expensive if you compare a value resort at WDW with a deluxe resort at Universal. You need to make sure you are comparing apples to apples.

Often, people expect Universal to be a second class park with second class hotels and thus should have way lower prices. This isn't the case. Universal is a first class park with first class hotels and their prices are quite similar to WDW.

 

[heidijanesmith]

For us to save money, I buy an AP for myself. It's not that much more expensive, than the pass I buy for DH and family.

An AP can give you discounts on your hotel (subject to availability), discount on food and merchandise.

We find the extra price pays for it's self and then some.

We like to stay at the Deluxe US hotels. HHR is our favorite, it's about a 5min walk, an unlimited express pass is included and cool pool.

 

[wookiebeck]

For the OP, here is where to start. Go to the universal orlando site and click on the hotels. There are five onsite hotels at different cost points. The highest priced three will get you and your party express passes. This is a perk greater than anything Disney has. Once you get this, you will begin to fall in love with Uni.

You can call a resort rep to ask about best room rates, AA and such. They are very helpful.

Next, get tix with UT. Just like WDW, their tix have tax and delivery in the price, so they are your best option.

Third, relax. Nothing left to do but pack.

Many here will tell you to avoid the packages. The reason is that a package locks you into dates with penalties for changing anything. Booking separately can be had for the same (or cheaper) and with flexibility to be spontaneous (especially about your meals).

 

[tink&her2boys]

Thanks everyone! We usually stay at POP at Disney and use free dining during September. We've always stayed there during this time and have always had free dining. We go to our room to shower and sleep so a value resort has always been fine with us. I have decided that we will stay in one of the top three resorts at Universal for the express passes. My DH hates to stand in lines so that in itself is worth it! I AM looking forward to not having to plan every meal, every attraction, every minute of our vacation.

I tried to price it out and it's more than our value room with dining....and we still have to pay OOP for meals. I think that's why I'm in shock! I realize that the resort will be much nicer than POP and less hectic etc. I need to get that through my head! I will look into all the different suggestions!

 

[MAHKL]

For what it's worth, and I may be misunderstanding what some posters are saying, we have booked two packages to Universal (2015 and 2017) directly through Universal. In both cases, we changed the package multiple times--including changes to dates, changes to hotels, and changes in room types. We've never had any difficulty making those changes and we have never paid a penalty for changing anything. Of course, the change is always booked at the rates in effect at the time of the change, but if that happened to produce a lower package cost, we were always refunded the difference. So, while we may pay more than we we would have to pay if we were to book hotel and tickets separately (we're willing to pay more for the convenience of one-stop shopping), we have always had flexibility to change the package without penalty and were never locked into anything.

 

[wookiebeck]

That is interesting info MAHKL. I just read the terms and conditions and there are lots of fees; for revising each part of the reservation (hotels, tix, transporation), cancelling altogether (no refund 45 days out), and the pre-paying down payments. Maybe you got some Universal Harry Potter Magic thrown your way. Excellent.

 

[MAHKL]

Upon reflection, in both cases, we prepaid in full and paid for Cancel for Any Reason protection (which i recollect was in the nature of $100 or so and let us cancel up to something like 1 or 2 days before the trip). That presumably explains why we could change without fees--with the cancellation protection we could have just cancelled and re-booked with no extra fees so no reason not to let us just short-circuit and change for free.

 

[damo]

Upon reflection, in both cases, we prepaid in full and paid for Cancel for Any Reason protection (which i recollect was in the nature of $100 or so and let us cancel up to something like 1 or 2 days before the trip). That presumably explains why we could change without fees--with the cancellation protection we could have just cancelled and re-booked with no extra fees so no reason not to let us just short-circuit and change for free.

Many people have reported incurring fees for changes with a package. Your insurance probably saved you.