Need advice...

DaisyandBoo

Earning My Ears
Joined
Apr 22, 2014
Disney veteran here...Universal virgin. My family typically travels to Disney in the fall. I thought that was the plan this year until my DD12 says "why do we always have to go to Disney again? Can't we go somewhere else?". I'm not sure what is wrong with her...but whatever. My DD13 is experiencing Disney Depression as a result of this crazy idea to go Universal. So, back when the Disney dream was still alive, I booked 8 nights at Wyndham Bonnet Creek (Oct 21st-29nd) for an incredible rate ($890 for 8 nights). We stayed at BC our last trip and LOVED it. LOVED the extra space and proximity to Disney. Loved the grounds. So, now that we are planning a Universal trip I have a dilemma. I have done some research and the express pass you get from the 3 deluxe hotels sounds amazing. But, do I really want to give up BC? Looking on advise on the following:
1. Has anyone stayed at Wyndham Bonnet Creek and gone to Universal? Am I crazy to consider staying here or is the distance not THAT bad?
2. Given that we will have an entire week to enjoy all 3 Universal Theme parks, is the express pass really needed? Especially during this time of year? I am someone who really does not prefer to stand in lines more than 20-30 minutes (I do not believe I have ever stood in line more than 30 minutes for an attraction).
3. If we stay at BC, I am thinking that an annual pass is probably the way to go, given the number of days we are looking to visit the parks. Thinking I should get the Preferred Pass to save on parking and get other discounts. Get DH and DD's the seasonal pass. Hey...if we fall in love with the dark side, we could always make use of the season pass by coming a few days at the beginning of our Disney trip that WILL happen next fall. Do all the AP's get the same level of discount on merchandise and food in the parks? What about the same level of discount on hotel's?
4. The cabana's at VB look amazing. The ability to use Tapu Tapu from the cabana seems to be a huge benefit. Has anyone stayed at one of these yet? Would you say it is worth it? How much does it cost?...I have seen different numbers out there on different sites. need advise or advice...

Thanks for any help you can give to this Universal Virgin! I can honestly say that I am looking forward to this adventure. I had been delaying it for a number of years because I was worried I would have issues fitting on the Universal rides. I have had a significant change in my life recently. I have lost 55lbs in the last 6 months and feel that if I continue to loose another 20lbs (I will then weigh 215lbs) I SHOULD be ok to fit on all the rides. We are slowly making headway with DD13 and she is no longer whining about not going to Disney. I'm not sure I would go as far to say that she is excited about Universal, but at least the whining has ceased!
 
That IS an amazing rate. I personally only want to stay at an onsite deluxe for universal. Of course you're not going to get that deal, but have you looked at the Loews hotel website yet?

Do all the AP's get the same level of discount on merchandise and food in the parks?

Nope.

What about the same level of discount on hotel's?

Yep.

But the discount isn't just given. It has to be available for your dates and you have to book it. With your length of stay it's also possible the "stay more save more" rate might show up and be better than an ap discount.

I'm on my cell and don't have the cool site bookmarked to give you (maybe damo etc will show up and post it OR I'll get into my laptop later and post it) but you can go to the Loews hotel website and check on rates. There's an ongoing post that lists the dates the AP discount is offered for as a guide for you. They release ap rates monthly and it's only for a few months out. Anyway, you can put "APH" into the code field on the hotel website and see if an ap rate pops up.

You don't have to have the ap to book with the ap rate. Have it at some point during your stay to show the front desk; that's all they need.

I had been delaying it for a number of years because I was worried I would have issues fitting on the Universal rides. I have had a significant change in my life recently. I have lost 55lbs in the last 6 months and feel that if I continue to loose another 20lbs (I will then weigh 215lbs) I SHOULD be ok to fit on all the rides.

Congrats! Have you read through the various threads about size and their rides?

Fwiw my husband hasn't been able to fit in any of the big thrill rides yet, but he has a lot of fun at Uni. He is finally finally managing to get some weight off and sees that maybe he'll be able
to ride thrill rides in the future, but for 7 years he has enjoyed Uni just fine.
 


...2. Given that we will have an entire week to enjoy all 3 Universal Theme parks, is the express pass really needed? Especially during this time of year? ...
Evenings can be crazy especially during this time of year at Universal because of HHN.

But since you have a week, EP is not really needed.
 
We went last October for HHN. We did not have express passes and the lines were crazy long. We stayed at Cabana Bay Resort and loved it. Really nice pool and lazy river. The bus system is so great, no long rides like at Disney....probably the only real thing I preferred to Disney actually. I'm not a thrill ride person, so the rides I wanted to go on are more limited than at Disney but Diagon Alley is phenomenal, like being in the movie. Have fun no matter what you decide.
 
Congratulations on your weight loss.......that is amazing! You must be so proud.......and hope your daughter falls in love with Universal.

We wouldn't be without EP. Regardless of time of year and length of stay, it's a godsend at times.

Wait times can be massive for certain rides, even on so called quiet days........over 100 minutes for Despicable Me isn't unusual.
 


Express is so tempting. Still debating. We still have plenty of time to cancel Bonnet Creek if we decide to stay on property. I wonder if any better promotions will becoming out? We have become spoiled with 2 bedroom condos. The girls complain about DH's snoring when in a regular hotel room. We do not sleep well either as DD13 likes to talk/yell at people in her sleep. LOL. The struggle is real...

I appreciate all of your thoughts and comments!
 
Express is so tempting. Still debating. We still have plenty of time to cancel Bonnet Creek if we decide to stay on property. I wonder if any better promotions will becoming out? We have become spoiled with 2 bedroom condos. The girls complain about DH's snoring when in a regular hotel room. We do not sleep well either as DD13 likes to talk/yell at people in her sleep. LOL. The struggle is real...

I appreciate all of your thoughts and comments!
You can get RPR for $215/night. That includes EP. The total is $1939. That's essentially $1939-$890 = $1049 for EP. Divide that by 9 and it's $117 per day for EP or $30 per person per day for EP.

Cabana Bay is $149/night with no EP, but you'd get Wizarding Hours and you'd be on site. I don't think you're going to find a better deal especially during the prime week of HHN.

Plus you'd need to add $5 to buy earplugs for everyone so they can sleep. ;)
 
You can get RPR for $215/night. That includes EP. The total is $1939. That's essentially $1939-$890 = $1049 for EP. Divide that by 9 and it's $117 per day for EP or $30 per person per day for EP.

Cabana Bay is $149/night with no EP, but you'd get Wizarding Hours and you'd be on site. I don't think you're going to find a better deal especially during the prime week of HHN.

Plus you'd need to add $5 to buy earplugs for everyone so they can sleep. ;)

I'm not sure why I did not realize this before...We really did pick the worst week in October given the popularity of HHN.
 
that last week of hhn (including the two november dates) is not packed crazy in the parks
or it wasn't last year from the reports i read about line waits.
so you might not have picked the worse week to try the darkside.


check out some of last years threads for your time period of line waits in the parks.
think weekdays should be okay for you in the parks.
the weekends is when you will see crowds as many come in the afternoon and stay for hhn at the studios.

with your sleeping situation of a snorer and yeller in their sleep, i can't say which hotel would be best for you.

onsite deluxe hotels might be hard for someone if they don't wear ear plugs at night when one in the group can shake the walls with snoring.......
i prefer the deluxe rooms as i can easily take breaks from the parks anytime
no real travel time at all to go from hotel to parks/city walk
maybe 10 minutes using the water taxi or walking


check out the different ap levels and make sure there is no black out dates for park entrance on the lowest level ap.

wish you the best on which hotel to stay at.
if you prefer the extra space at BC, do a split stay.
most nights there and add on some nights onsite.
 
Oh, and guess what, that's about the same age my kids said, we're done Disney. If you kid likes faster and more thrill rides, Universal will be her choice for years. Only now that my kids are late teen and adult, we're going to Disney again, but also going to Universal. They can't stay away from Universal when in the Orlando area.

If it were me, I'd look at the AP rates. Since you seem to want to go every day for the week, early start will help with the crowds, and park hopping if not doing HHN. If one of you gets the Preferred, then free parking at CityWalk. Which is not a bad thing. Check out Gina Gina's trip reports. They enjoy the Sheraton Vistana, since they are owners, and had Premier Universal APs. They did not mind the ride over, parking at CityWalk, and staying off site, just adjusted their touring, and went several days. Check out the black out dates for the seasonal, and the cost of the different APs.

I'd stay with Bonnet Creek. That's a great deal, and spreading out is a good thing with a tween and teen girls. While I am a big fan of staying onsite, there are many that do not, and still have a good time. Plus, since you have a car, and need a Disney fix, check out Disney Springs on afternoon or evening. Free parking there.

Have fun. And I hope the whole family enjoys Universal.
 
WBC to the universal parking lot is a solid 20 minutes, if no longer, in non peak traffic. Expect a similar wait to clear security and walk to the park gates.

We love WBC. Even if a 1 BR that's a pretty good rate, going to guess u have until a month or so prior to cancel. By that point any APH rates or specials will be released.

Perhaps your DD could get her WDW fix with a MNSSHP, even if just a girls' night out.

Re VB be aware that last week the park was at capacity each day well before 10 am. Admittedly a holiday week but keep an eye on it if you plan on visiting and time your arrival accordingly as onsite guests will have the jump.
 
Update: we decided to keep our Wyndham Bonnet Creek reservation. It is just too great a deal to pass up. I had been checking the Webdite for annual pass discounted rooms onsite. Yesterday, out of nowhere Portofino Bay showed up at $224 per night ($252 when all said and done). Without hesitation I booked one night at Portofino. As I uunderstand it, this will give us two days of express pass. This rate is cheaper than purchasing one day of express passes alone, given there are four of us! Now, I need to figure out how to help my non-themepark obsessed husband that this was the right move. He will not understand why I am paying for a night at both Bonnet Creek and Portofino. It's an amazing idea to me! I have decided to purchase the preferred annual pass for me (to get the food discounts, hotel discount, and free parking when we visit Universal while staying at Bonnet Creek). I am going to get the 3 of them the buy 2 day get 2 days free tickets. If while we are there we end up LOVING Universal Orlando resort I will strongly considering updating their tickets to the seasonal pass. I don't think that it will cost too much more. This will allow us to go a few more days during this trip and we will plan to go earlier in October next year so that we can use the annual passes for 2 years. Does anyone see anything crazy about these plans?
 
Staying onsite is easy, so easy. Everything is close. You walk through citywalk to get to the parks, for offsite parking and bus drop off.

it is so unlike Disney where everything is a bus or drive in. Once we get there, the car is parked and is not moved again

I know you got a great rate, but the drive over and back would get to me. it is not a great drive and during rush hour, it is lousy. Not to mention the parking and walk in from the garage.

Onsite is lovely. All the citywalk restaurants are right there. There are also less hours in the fall at US due to hhn. Being there makes it easy to head back to the room or to VB

Last visit, we got an Uber from the airport and did without a car. Never missed it
 
Update: we decided to keep our Wyndham Bonnet Creek reservation. It is just too great a deal to pass up. I had been checking the Webdite for annual pass discounted rooms onsite. Yesterday, out of nowhere Portofino Bay showed up at $224 per night ($252 when all said and done). Without hesitation I booked one night at Portofino. As I uunderstand it, this will give us two days of express pass. This rate is cheaper than purchasing one day of express passes alone, given there are four of us! Now, I need to figure out how to help my non-themepark obsessed husband that this was the right move. He will not understand why I am paying for a night at both Bonnet Creek and Portofino. It's an amazing idea to me! I have decided to purchase the preferred annual pass for me (to get the food discounts, hotel discount, and free parking when we visit Universal while staying at Bonnet Creek). I am going to get the 3 of them the buy 2 day get 2 days free tickets. If while we are there we end up LOVING Universal Orlando resort I will strongly considering updating their tickets to the seasonal pass. I don't think that it will cost too much more. This will allow us to go a few more days during this trip and we will plan to go earlier in October next year so that we can use the annual passes for 2 years. Does anyone see anything crazy about these plans?


I am pretty sure that you will fall in love with Portofino Bay. We were there just last week. Just like what others have mentioned, staying on site at Universal is nothing like staying on site at Disney... The whole experience at Universal is just sooooooo relaxing and fun. My kids 9 and 5 don't want to go back to Disney now. I am waiting to take them back to WDW in 2021 when Tron opens along with Star War and other things.
 

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