Stay at Universal or Hop to Disney???

[Erica Ladd]

Need some opinions!! We are going to Universal for the OI meetup on 12/6 and bought season AP’s for Uni for the whole family. Splurged on a 2BR suite at HRH for 2 nights. Our 3 kids will go home on 12/8 leaving DH and I to our own devices. History?

Been to Disney as a family 9/18 and 8/19. DH and I went 11/19 adults only. No one has been to Uni yet.

Do DH and I hop over to Disney for 2-3 nights (staying at the swolphin) or do we capitalize on the AP’s at Uni and move rooms/resorts to a more affordable place (the 2 of us don’t need a 2BR suite for just us!!!)

Love Disney, excited about Uni, DH and I just need a couple of nights to decompress and enjoy the atmosphere wherever it is. Opinions???

 

[holden]

If it was me, I'd go to Disney. Disney is my happy place.

We've been to Universal too, but it's not the same to us.

 

[JaxDad]

I would move to another Universal resort just for the experience, specifically Sapphire Falls, Royal Pacific or Portofino. You lose EPs with Sapphire Falls, but it is a beautiful resort, and you would still have boat access to City Walk and the parks. Go with the theming you prefer or maybe the restaurants and lounges available.

 

[Erica Ladd]

I need to look into what restaurants are available at the hotels. That might make a difference. We would be there all weekdays - do you think EPs are a must? Then I would edge towards RP unless Portofino opens...

 

[slpeters]

We went about that time of year the year before last. We stayed at the Royal Pacific for a week did four days at Universal a day at SeaWorld and the MVMCP at Disney World. It was an amazing trip and the price for the holiday party is less of a shock than when you have to compare it to adding another park day to a multiday WDW ticket.

 

[Erica Ladd]

We have 4 day tickets to Disney but probably won’t use them since we would only have 2-3 park days. Which means I’d have to purchase additional tickets OOP. The whole shutdown screwed up my plan to buy APs for Disney during our canceled May trip. Now if they start selling APs again - that might make my decision for me!!

 

[LuvOrlando]

You can see in my siggy that we prefer to move back and forth, it's so much fun to do both! Benefit to being on property at WDW, in addition to the overall fun of submerging into the Disney experience, is the transportation options especially to and from the airport so if you have a rental car you can drop it off on property and then use the bus transport to the airport.

 

[wilbret]

If you are only going to Universal parks, I'd just change hotels there. If you were going to be doing a WDW park or even doing "Nothing," I'd say move over.
Don't forget that your HRH express passes work the day you check out, too. Use em!

If you have Disney itch, pop over to DS one night to walk around and eat.

 

[wilbret]

You can see in my siggy that we prefer to move back and forth, it's so much fun to do both! Benefit to being on property at WDW, in addition to the overall fun of submerging into the Disney experience, is the transportation options especially to and from the airport so if you have a rental car you can drop it off on property and then use the bus transport to the airport.

We bounce around, too. It isn't for everyone, requires smart packing, and I think I've grown out of it a little, but we have been known to stay near SeaWorld, then go to Universal, then to Disney, and then maybe a night at DVC when we can't bear going home. I'm a sucker for park perks like shuttles, express passes, etc. I just added a night to our stay this week so we don't have to rush on our last day. I hate that the main pools open so late in the morning (9am), there's no time to enjoy them on the last day. (no public showers available to even rinse off and get out of town). There used to be deals on some WDW resorts, but they have been hard to find. We stayed at CBR, CSR, etc, for the price of a hotel room.

 

[RamblingMad]

I like UO more than WDW. The later is spread out too much for my liking. If a pandemic wasn’t happening, I’d say go do some Disney dining at the resorts.

 

[disneyseniors]

We usually do it the other way around. We have a 9 or 10 day stay at WDW and in the middle of the trip, have reservations at RP for overnight so we can do 2 days at Universal.
Now, I would like to do it the other way around. Stay at Universal for 5 days, then go to WDW for a day or two.
I love being able to just do what you want, when you want at Universal. If we feel like doing a certain attraction, we just head over to it and use our EP (most of the time EP's are not needed). We eat when and where we want. There is alot to see and do at Universal, and NO it is not disney, but is great all the same.

 

[Planogirl]

I would save Disney for when so much of the resort isn't closed and under construction. Universal is a great place to relax.

By the way, Cabana Bay is nice too and the price can't be beat.