Late April trip; conflicted crowd calendars = indecision about paying more $$ to stay onsite

[ladylonghorn]

We will be doing Universal in late April this year. I haven't been there in years (before having kids). It will be hubby, me and our kids ages 10, 7 and 4.

I've priced out MANY options as I belong to a travel club, get corporate discounts at major chains, and read all the tips. At the end of the day, what I'm torn between is:

A) staying onsite at Hard Rock, putting the 4 year old on the floor or bringing blow up mattress
Pro - early entry and express pass

B) staying onsite at Cabana Bay which gives us beds for all and early entry, but no express passes

C) staying at Hyatt Place which gives us free breakfast, parking and internet. Is walkable (10 min) or free shuttle ever 30 min, but no 1 hr early entry and no express passes. (I don't want to pay the extra $ for them)

Option a is approximately 620, option b is 400 and option c is only 310. Option C doesn't reflect the savings we get for not paying for breakfast. All 5 of us are breakfast eaters!

UCT predicts our first park day as green for both parks, but our second day shows IOA as yellow and USF as red. All the other crowd calendars have our two dates as the lowest crowds. The other 2 crowd calendars I've found online list both days and parks as low crowds.

We generally are at parks for opening, stay till around 2, go back to the hotel to rest then return around dinner and stay for the evening. On our second day, once we leave, we will not return as we move over to our Disney hotel and have TRex reservation that evening for dinner.

We are primarily going for the HP stuff, which my oldest two got into over the last year and I know the express passes are not good on the HP stuff. So I question if spending the extra money is necessary if there are low crowds.

Would love to hear thoughts of others....

 

[JoeCamel]

You left out the magic part, how much of a hardship is it to stay at the HardRock and have the experience of staying at a resort compared to a hotel?

That would rule out #3 if it was worth it.

Then you have to compare what time would be saved with express and compare that to the difference in price and purchasing express passes against the difference in cost.

CBBR is great and the family suite is nice. Very convenient bus service to the park and great pools with lazy river all at a lesser price.

HR is very nice, closest to the parks and one of a kind. If the money does not matter stay like a rock star, if you are family value then CBBR and on a budget then stay offsite but all the options have time involved as part of the difference.

 

[Minthorne]

Did you check Royal Pacific? It's usually a bit less than Hard Rock.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

We will be doing Universal in late April this year. I haven't been there in years (before having kids). It will be hubby, me and our kids ages 10, 7 and 4.

I've priced out MANY options as I belong to a travel club, get corporate discounts at major chains, and read all the tips. At the end of the day, what I'm torn between is:

A) staying onsite at Hard Rock, putting the 4 year old on the floor or bringing blow up mattress
Pro - early entry and express pass

B) staying onsite at Cabana Bay which gives us beds for all and early entry, but no express passes

C) staying at Hyatt Place which gives us free breakfast, parking and internet. Is walkable (10 min) or free shuttle ever 30 min, but no 1 hr early entry and no express passes. (I don't want to pay the extra $ for them)

Option a is approximately 620, option b is 400 and option c is only 310. Option C doesn't reflect the savings we get for not paying for breakfast. All 5 of us are breakfast eaters!

UCT predicts our first park day as green for both parks, but our second day shows IOA as yellow and USF as red. All the other crowd calendars have our two dates as the lowest crowds. The other 2 crowd calendars I've found online list both days and parks as low crowds.

We generally are at parks for opening, stay till around 2, go back to the hotel to rest then return around dinner and stay for the evening. On our second day, once we leave, we will not return as we move over to our Disney hotel and have TRex reservation that evening for dinner.

We are primarily going for the HP stuff, which my oldest two got into over the last year and I know the express passes are not good on the HP stuff. So I question if spending the extra money is necessary if there are low crowds.

Would love to hear thoughts of others....

I would go with the Cabana Bay option. Crowds will be low to moderate, so Express Pass won't be necessary. And you get the Early Entry.

 

[HTF]

We will be doing Universal in late April this year. I haven't been there in years (before having kids). It will be hubby, me and our kids ages 10, 7 and 4.

I've priced out MANY options as I belong to a travel club, get corporate discounts at major chains, and read all the tips. At the end of the day, what I'm torn between is:

A) staying onsite at Hard Rock, putting the 4 year old on the floor or bringing blow up mattress
Pro - early entry and express pass

B) staying onsite at Cabana Bay which gives us beds for all and early entry, but no express passes

C) staying at Hyatt Place which gives us free breakfast, parking and internet. Is walkable (10 min) or free shuttle ever 30 min, but no 1 hr early entry and no express passes. (I don't want to pay the extra $ for them)

Option a is approximately 620, option b is 400 and option c is only 310. Option C doesn't reflect the savings we get for not paying for breakfast. All 5 of us are breakfast eaters!

UCT predicts our first park day as green for both parks, but our second day shows IOA as yellow and USF as red. All the other crowd calendars have our two dates as the lowest crowds. The other 2 crowd calendars I've found online list both days and parks as low crowds.

We generally are at parks for opening, stay till around 2, go back to the hotel to rest then return around dinner and stay for the evening. On our second day, once we leave, we will not return as we move over to our Disney hotel and have TRex reservation that evening for dinner.

We are primarily going for the HP stuff, which my oldest two got into over the last year and I know the express passes are not good on the HP stuff. So I question if spending the extra money is necessary if there are low crowds.

Would love to hear thoughts of others....

My recommendation is go with Cabana Bay. I've stayed at that Hyatt several times and love the hotel but the area around it now is a mess. The hotel is literally butting up against the I4 construction project. By the time April rolls around that area will be full blown war zone for construction. Your only going to be there a short time but I know after a long day at the park the last thing I want to do is be woken up by pylons being driven into the earth. In addition the breakfast there is hit or miss... So keep in mind you may still have to fork over a little dough for decent breakfast lol.

IMO the Hard Rock is an amazing resort but not worth the money they're charging. Your going to mostly be in the parks so why spend the extra money on a status symbol. I mean if you were going to be there for a week to take advantage of all its offerings thats one thing but IMO don't waste money to stay at a place you won't be able to take full advantage of. As for Express its really not needed if you know how to plan out your day. I mean don't get me wrong express is awesome but if your on a budget, not necessary.

At Cabana Bay I find the rooms MUCH MUCH better for families in the suites. The divider between the bedroom and the living area is fantastic. Couple that with multiple tv's and a kitchenette and life will be much easier for mom and dad. Best deal here is early entry which IMO is a MUST DO! Utilize early entry for Diagon one morning and Hogsmeade the next. Once the park opens to the general public most will head directly to Potter, thats when you and your family attack the rest of the park. If done correctly you can knock out all major attractions at one park by noon. I could go on and on about Universal trip tactics but thats another discussion.

As for the UTC info about yellow at IOA and Red at USF, I'm willing to bet Mardi Gras will be going that night at USF. So be aware by lunch time USF will start to pick up and by dinner PACKED!! Also depends on who is playing as some performers will bring in apocalyptic crowds. So whatever you do go to IOA on the second half of your second day and get out of USF between noon and 2pm

 

[danpam1024]

I'm a HRH girl and always think it is worth every single penny. Join Hard Rock rewards, you earn money back, after our last trip I earned $60 in HR rewards- paid for lunch this trip. HRH has excellent proximity to the parks, and your kids will love the pool and all the happenings there. I don't trust crowd calendars, it always seems busy and EPs are SO nice and make the parks more manageable, and more of a hassle free vacation.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

I'm a HRH girl and always think it is worth every single penny. Join Hard Rock rewards, you earn money back, after our last trip I earned $60 in HR rewards- paid for lunch this trip. HRH has excellent proximity to the parks, and your kids will love the pool and all the happenings there. I don't trust crowd calendars, it always seems busy and EPs are SO nice and make the parks more manageable, and more of a hassle free vacation.

I love Portofino Bay.

While Disney has "The Disney Bubble", there is really nothing more relaxing and just flat out amazing than several days staying within walking distance from the parks with unlimited express pass. You REALLY feel free to do what you want, when you want. No ADRs, no FP+s, just think up what you want to do and go. A 180° polar opposite than a Disney vacation.

 

[danpam1024]

I love Portofino Bay.

While Disney has "The Disney Bubble", there is really nothing more relaxing and just flat out amazing than several days staying within walking distance from the parks with unlimited express pass. You REALLY feel free to do what you want, when you want. No ADRs, no FP+s, just think up what you want to do and go. A 180° polar opposite than a Disney vacation.

I agree 100%! A vacation within the vacation. Disney popped the bubble in 2011 for us

 

[ladylonghorn]

As for the UTC info about yellow at IOA and Red at USF, I'm willing to bet Mardi Gras will be going that night at USF. So be aware by lunch time USF will start to pick up and by dinner PACKED!! Also depends on who is playing as some performers will bring in apocalyptic crowds. So whatever you do go to IOA on the second half of your second day and get out of USF between noon and 2pm

We are going April 20 & 21. Easter is in March this year, so it will be way after Easter. I would not expect Mardi Gras stuff to going on nearly 4 weeks following Easter, but stranger things have happened.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

We are going April 20 & 21. Easter is in March this year, so it will be way after Easter. I would not expect Mardi Gras stuff to going on nearly 4 weeks following Easter, but stranger things have happened.

Mardi Gras ends April 16th. It's become Universal's Food and Wine Fest. It goes for 2 months. It's fun and only mucks up USF on Saturdays so I'm good with it.

 

[fosse76]

My recommendation is go with Cabana Bay. I've stayed at that Hyatt several times and love the hotel but the area around it now is a mess. The hotel is literally butting up against the I4 construction project. By the time April rolls around that area will be full blown war zone for construction. Your only going to be there a short time but I know after a long day at the park the last thing I want to do is be woken up by pylons being driven into the earth. In addition the breakfast there is hit or miss... So keep in mind you may still have to fork over a little dough for decent breakfast lol.

IMO the Hard Rock is an amazing resort but not worth the money they're charging. Your going to mostly be in the parks so why spend the extra money on a status symbol. I mean if you were going to be there for a week to take advantage of all its offerings thats one thing but IMO don't waste money to stay at a place you won't be able to take full advantage of. As for Express its really not needed if you know how to plan out your day. I mean don't get me wrong express is awesome but if your on a budget, not necessary.

At Cabana Bay I find the rooms MUCH MUCH better for families in the suites. The divider between the bedroom and the living area is fantastic. Couple that with multiple tv's and a kitchenette and life will be much easier for mom and dad. Best deal here is early entry which IMO is a MUST DO! Utilize early entry for Diagon one morning and Hogsmeade the next. Once the park opens to the general public most will head directly to Potter, thats when you and your family attack the rest of the park. If done correctly you can knock out all major attractions at one park by noon. I could go on and on about Universal trip tactics but thats another discussion.

As for the UTC info about yellow at IOA and Red at USF, I'm willing to bet Mardi Gras will be going that night at USF. So be aware by lunch time USF will start to pick up and by dinner PACKED!! Also depends on who is playing as some performers will bring in apocalyptic crowds. So whatever you do go to IOA on the second half of your second day and get out of USF between noon and 2pm

I agree with this post. I'd even argue that the Hard Rock Hotel is the most overpriced resort at Universal, often charging more than (IMO) the more deluxe Portofino Bay. With Early Entry, you should be able to more easily navigate the parks; however, Universal only has one Harry Potter section open for Early Entry, and it's usually Hogsmeade (Islands of Adventure). The lines should be pretty manageable for the rest of the park. And I love Cabana Bay. If you plan on having some downtime at the resort, it has two pools within easy walking distance of each other (and one of which has a waterslide) and a lazy river. Plus the bowling alley, arcade, and gym. The kids would probably have more fun there.

 

[ladylonghorn]

I settled on Cabana Bay and confirmed the room yesterday. Not sure we'll have a ton of time to do all that CB has to offer this trip, but there is always next time. And for what it's worth, Portifinio was coming up more expensive than HR!

 

[BubbaQuest]

Have a great trip. Looking forward to a trip report!

 

[nerdboyrockstar]

I settled on Cabana Bay and confirmed the room yesterday. Not sure we'll have a ton of time to do all that CB has to offer this trip, but there is always next time. And for what it's worth, Portifinio was coming up more expensive than HR!

I would've put in another vote for Cabana Bay. Great choice.