Anyone done the Orlando Informer event in December?

Schweino

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Just curious if you felt the OI event, specifically in December, was worth the cost? We plan to spend 3 nights at Universal starting 12/5 and while we will have park days that Friday and Saturday, thinking of adding OI as well to really get as much Universal in as we can until we transition to Disney that Sunday. Open to opinions!
 

JoeCamel

Well-Known Member
Just curious if you felt the OI event, specifically in December, was worth the cost? We plan to spend 3 nights at Universal starting 12/5 and while we will have park days that Friday and Saturday, thinking of adding OI as well to really get as much Universal in as we can until we transition to Disney that Sunday. Open to opinions!
Short and sweet - YES!
 

Schweino

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Short and sweet - YES!
I like short and sweet! We plan to do all the shows/events/whatever during the day and all the unique things they do for Christmas, and then use the OI event to mainly do rides and eat a lot of food. Its double the cost, but we wont be back probably until 2026 (unless I hit the lottery).

Now just crossing my fingers I get to see Mannheim!
 

mergatroid

Well-Known Member
Yes and no, depending on what appeals to you most and how much you can eat. If you're willing to pay and can afford the price then why not? I mean walking around eating as much as you want with so few people there that you can ride everything, what's not to like?

If you're looking for a reason not to go, then it would be the following. However much you eat and drink, you're still losing money on the food and drink side. Universal (and any other park) make a killing on food and drink. You don't even want to know what that $5 donut actually costs, just enjoy it. So when you don't have to pay (because it's included in the ticket cost) you may go around keeping track of how much that would have cost you if you've paid for every purchase, it will come to a lot. That amount is nowhere near what the food actually cost, it's an inflated cost and chances are you're eating a lot of it for the sake of it.

Not trying to put you off, again if you can afford it then go for it. It's more that if you're on a budget and it's tempting you and yet you'll struggle to afford it, the above paragraph is a way out for you. Yes you're undoubtedly getting more food for the cost than if you paid for all those items, but again remember those aren't the real costs but hugely inflated theme park food costs.

It's similar to the special events at Disney where food is included, seems a good deal on the surface but if you really think about it you realise you're basing the value on already inflated costs. If you've allocated the money already an can afford it, then go for it and walk around eating, drinking and riding rides and forget about what the parks paid for the food and just enjoy the splurge.
 

WDWFREAK53

Well-Known Member
Yes and no, depending on what appeals to you most and how much you can eat. If you're willing to pay and can afford the price then why not? I mean walking around eating as much as you want with so few people there that you can ride everything, what's not to like?

If you're looking for a reason not to go, then it would be the following. However much you eat and drink, you're still losing money on the food and drink side. Universal (and any other park) make a killing on food and drink. You don't even want to know what that $5 donut actually costs, just enjoy it. So when you don't have to pay (because it's included in the ticket cost) you may go around keeping track of how much that would have cost you if you've paid for every purchase, it will come to a lot. That amount is nowhere near what the food actually cost, it's an inflated cost and chances are you're eating a lot of it for the sake of it.

Not trying to put you off, again if you can afford it then go for it. It's more that if you're on a budget and it's tempting you and yet you'll struggle to afford it, the above paragraph is a way out for you. Yes you're undoubtedly getting more food for the cost than if you paid for all those items, but again remember those aren't the real costs but hugely inflated theme park food costs.

It's similar to the special events at Disney where food is included, seems a good deal on the surface but if you really think about it you realise you're basing the value on already inflated costs. If you've allocated the money already an can afford it, then go for it and walk around eating, drinking and riding rides and forget about what the parks paid for the food and just enjoy the splurge.

I don't understand the logic. Everybody knows that you're not getting the food for cost... So basing the decision on whether an event is worth it or not based on how much you're paying for a food item vs. what Disney/Universal pays for it seems like a really odd way to look at it. You'd never pay the Disney/Uni costs.
 

AussieFan8

New Member
I love the meetups but personally would not do park days on meetup days. You should be able to do everything you want with two meetup nights, and you’ll be far less tired. The biggest challenge if you only do the meetup is fitting in all the shows that close early.
 

mergatroid

Well-Known Member
I don't understand the logic. Everybody knows that you're not getting the food for cost... So basing the decision on whether an event is worth it or not based on how much you're paying for a food item vs. what Disney/Universal pays for it seems like a really odd way to look at it. You'd never pay the Disney/Uni costs.
I've said that's an excuse if they don't want to go as they can't really afford it. It's a reason to justify missing out rather than a criticism. I'm not saying don't go because of that, rather it's a way of making them feel better about not going if it's a bit too expensive. I'm aware that you never pay what Disney/Uni pay for food and actually explain that in my post.

Just to clarify I'm saying go if you can afford it, if you can't really afford it then why not look at this as a reason to feel better about it.
 

Schweino

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I love the meetups but personally would not do park days on meetup days. You should be able to do everything you want with two meetup nights, and you’ll be far less tired. The biggest challenge if you only do the meetup is fitting in all the shows that close early.
So we decided that we are definitely going to do both nights of the meetup. The big question we are trying to answer is whether or not we should do one day tickets for the daytime. Our biggest thing this trip is to take in all the festivities/shows/events/whatever that US does for the Christmas holiday as this is our first time visiting during the holiday season.

Knowing that is our top priority, would you think getting one-day tickets for our first day would be beneficial and that way we can use the meetups to be a bit more relaxed than hustle?
 
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AussieFan8

New Member
So we decided that we are definitely going to do both nights of the meetup. The big question we are trying to answer is whether or not we should do one day tickets for the daytime. Our biggest thing this trip is to take in all the festivities/shows/events/whatever that US does for the Christmas holiday as this is our first time visiting during the holiday season.

Knowing that is our top priority, would you think getting one-day tickets for our first day would be beneficial and that way we can use the meetups to be a bit more relaxed than hustle?
I think it depends on how important the other (non-holiday) shows are to you. If you do two meetup nights and enter at the earliest entry time, you can see the holiday parade one night and The Grinchmas show on the other night. However, if you want to see, for example, the Horror Make-Up Show and the Bourne show, it can be tough to fit it all in and you may miss a little of something because their last showings are typically right after the meetup entry time. For example, last year we were able to do Bourne and Grinchmas one night and Horror Make-Up and the parade on the other, but we missed a bit of the parade. If you really want to see and do everything, including the shows and holiday offerings, without any rushing, you may want to go ahead with a one-day ticket. But I think you could also fit in the majority of what you want to see with two meetup nights and you'll be less tired and it will be less expensive. I would base it on how willing you are to pay the additional cost for a one-day ticket and how willing you are to maybe miss a non-holiday show or two. All the rides during the meetup are a walk-on or close to it other than Hagrid (and maybe Velocicoaster? but it's not as long as Hagrid).
 

Schweino

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Thanks @AussieFan8! We went ahead and got day tickets for the first park day. We can handle one full day and sleep in on Saturday before the next meet up that night. I appreciate your advice!
 

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