Universal Studios Vacation Planning | Cost Of Visiting Universal Orlando 2021
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 ก.ค. 2024
- In this video we talk about Universal Orlando vacation planning! Have you ever wondered what a Universal Orlando vacation costs? We break down the cost of visiting Universal Studios 2021 including what you can expect to pay for the Universal Orlando hotels, Universal Orlando tickets, and food in the theme parks. We also look at two examples of a Universal Orlando vacation. The first example shows the prices for some of the more budget friendly options, like Endless Summer resort. The second example looks at a vacation with just a FEW upgrades, such as staying at Portofino Bay (unlimited express pass, anyone??) and budgeting for a few drinks with dinner. Or, you know, three butterbeers. To each their own! These examples give you a real life idea of what a Universal Orlando vacation might actually cost, and it shows you that Universal has worked to make a Universal vacation accessible for a variety of budgets.
If you’re looking for some tips and tricks to get the MOST out of your Universal vacation, check out our trip planning guide! We have several videos discussing things like the express passes at universal, the different on site hotels, the UO dining plan, and more! We also have more tips and tricks videos in the making, so make sure you hit that subscribe button so you don’t miss anything!
UNIVERSAL ORLANDO VACATION PLANNING GUIDE: • Playlist
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#ThePughTwo #UniversalOrlando2021 #UniversalStudios2021
When is your next Universal Vacation?
This September thanks for the tips guys keep'em coming !
@@eliezermalave4707 September is an amazing time of year to go to universal! Thanks for watching!
Next January and next October or November!
October. At the Hard Rock. We ten to book about 9mo out.
April 19th. Staying at Cabana Bay. It's my favorite because of the lazy river and the price. Universal can be pricey but we are retired military and they have spectacular ticket deals and room discounts for the military.
I appreciate the backwards hat, really drives home that it's business time.
Gotta catch em all!
Yet another great video! I love that you fact check everything. We just booked for 8 nights beginning Dec 3 at Royal Pacific, a premium hotel. Weekend nights are $238 and week nights are $219. We've paid $529 for the same room during peak season. Since we want the option to go in the parks for seven days, we skipped standard tickets and bought "Seasonal" annual passes (two parks), since the blackout dates won't affect us ($304 each). If you are arriving by air, don't rent a car; most everything of interest off-site is a short Uber ride (including Icon Park). Unless you're including Disney. Like you guys, we buy single-day tickets to Volcano Bay depending on the weather. We've always felt Volcano Bay is a one-day attraction. Your videos are so detailed and interesting at the same time. They are a must-see for inexperienced Universal visitors!
Thank you so much! Thats a fantastic rate on Royal Pacific! Yeah we have never rented a car but we also never leave the parks haha. Thank you for your continued support, it means a lot to us!
Also a side note for young solo travelers is that you can’t book a stay at most of the hotels unless you are over 21.. I had to book at the clarion inn which includes the early park admission but they won’t bring your in park purchases to the hotel
That’s a great point to make! We’ve never really thought about that, but I think that’s a fairly common rule for hotels. Thanks for watching!
Yay! I love your videos, they're always packed with so many useful tips.
Thank you so much! We love doing them!
I found your channel last night and my husband and I have binged so many videos! I couldn't find any channel that gave actual information on the costs to save and to splurge. Thank you so much, we love your channel!!
Hey Amy! Welcome to the channel! So happy you found us and that you are enjoying the channel! If you ever have any questions, please feel free to reach out!
Excellent Video! I was hoping you both made this. I am glad I found it. Thank you both!
Oh thank you! We’re so glad you enjoyed it and we hope it was helpful!
Thank you for all these videos, I was able to make my childhood dream come true thanks to your videos. I followed your advice and planned a whole trip for 2 adults for $2000 for a 5 night stay and park to park. Definitely recommend the annual passes and staying on site!
That’s awesome to hear! We hope you have the best time on your trip! We love hearing that our videos helped make it possible, you’re gonna love it!!!
I just started watching your videos, as I am planning our first trip to universal this Christmas. I have so many questions and I don't want to miss out on stuff. I wish I could pick your brains!! Thanks for the ideas!
We’re always happy to answer questions! We hope you have an awesome time on your first trip!!
Thanks for the information !!! Loved the video guys
Thank you for watching!
I love your videos! I saw your Universal Passholder video back in November, and I decided to purchase one for me and my boyfriend. It has personally helped me budget a trip knowing that I do not have to purchase park tickets. I live in GA, so I plan visits either Friday to Sunday, or early Sat morning to late Sunday night like you advised. That way I only spend one hotel night and I am able to use my unlimited express pass :) THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE ADVISE.
We love hearing that our videos have helped! Congrats on becoming a passholder and thank you so much your support! We hope you continue to enjoy the videos.
Love your videos. Keep em coming ☺️
Thanks Brittany! The support means the world to us!
Nice breakdowns, I like it, we did 2 weeks at cabana bay pre COVID including airfare (escaping Canada), round trip airport transportation and entertainment (blue man group) for similar to your portofino bay budget, we usually book about 6 months before depending on my vacation schedule so it’s nice to see it broken down this way
Thank you! We’re so glad you found it helpful. Cabana Bay is a great resort, and it sounds pretty reasonable for a two week stay! Booking in advance is the best way to save money. Those hotel rooms really go up the later you book them. Thanks for watching!!
Going in May and super stoked about it!!! I booked about a month ago. I was able to score a FL resident room rate at portofino bay. (The Hard Rock ones didn't last long! Lol.) We also decided to become passholders because it is a better deal for us. Your annual pass videos were super helpful in deciding which ones to get!! Keep up the great videos! 👍
That’s so soon! We’ve never stayed at Portofino, but we’ve heard great things. You’ll have to let us know how you like it! The annual passes are great, we think they’re a better deal for almost everyone. We’re so glad our videos help, too! Thank you for watching!!
Really appreciate this guys! I’m planning a trip for our family of six and it was nice the way you guys just broke everything down and added in tips about budgeting, food and parking and what not. You guys are so cute the way you talk to each other and I love the way she laughs at what he says and how he keeps looking at her for agreement, you guys are so in sync and are just the best couple. Love it.❤❤❤
Oh my gosh you’re so sweet! Thank you so much! We’re so glad this video was helpful and we hope you have a wonderful time at the parks!!
Hey there! How much did you end up spending?
Great video guys!
My wife and I really appreciate all the info!!!
Thank you so much! We’re so glad you enjoyed it. We appreciate your support!
I always enjoy your videos you make as a couple !
Thank you so much!
The unlimited express pass is great perk I get by staying there in that hotel. Keep sending out those great videos.
You guys are awesome I love your videos
Thank you so much Mae!
Thanks for the info this would definitely help to plan out our trip for family of five.
We’re so glad this was helpful!
Thanks! Love the help
Thank you for watching!
Not coming from Seattle or Nashville but coming from Bogotá Colombia next year and all thanks to your videos and info.
That's awesome! We hope you have a great time on your trip! We're so glad our videos have been helpful, and we appreciate you watching them!
You both are great. At the 5:30 mark, that's exactly what my family did. Opened Volcano Bay, rode, back to resort, then went to both parks for a final rollercoaster and Harry Potter hurrah!
Thank you so much! It’s a great way to spend the day!
Very useful!!! Thanks 🙏
We’re so happy to hear that! Thank you for watching, we appreciate the support!
Your videos have been so helpful to learn proper planning for Universal. You have incredible tips. We are getting so excited about our upcoming trip. I need to plan for lots of Butterbeer in my budget. 😁 We frequently stay at Disney World and Universal is competitively priced. There are always ways to save and cut those costs. Great video.
We are so happy to hear that they have been helpful! The months/days leading up to the trip are some of favorite parts. We can’t help but be excited for you haha. Always budget butterbeer!
nowadays Universal resorts have WAY more benefits than DW
@@lavetaloca7790 I hate to admit it out loud but you are so right. I've always been a die hard Disney World enthusiast but recent decisions of greed is pushing their fans away. Universal is smart for opening their arms to the fans Disney is slamming the door on.
You guys are so knowledgeable and I really enjoy your videos! How many times do you think you've been to Universal at this point? I went a bunch as a kid, but I'm planning to take my family in around six months for the first time. I feel like so much has changed since 2005 haha. Thanks for all the tips!
We’ve probably been 20-30 times? We’ve lost count! If we lived close by, we would visit as often as possible. SO much has changed since 2005, you’ll have a great time with your family! Thanks for watching, we really appreciate the support!
Love these videos. We are staying at the Royal Pacific Saturday. Our room was $600 🥴
Thank you so much! Royal Pacific is great, but the prices for the premier hotels can get crazy when the parks are busy. We hope you have a great trip! We appreciate your support!
Really helpful
Thank you!!
Great video guys, don’t forget those three butterbeers 🤣
Always budget butterbeer 😆
Sung to gilligan’s island song, instead of three hour tour it’s three butter beers. ;)
Working on a trip for Fall 2021!
If you need help let us know!
Hi Anna & Tyler! Excellent video on the different ways to visit Universal. I book my trips anywhere between a week before and year before. I really enjoy my stays at Hard Rock, Royal Pacific and Adventura. But I normally stay off site, just across the street at the DoubleTree. They take great care of me there, I have a great loyalty to them and Hilton branded hotels that makes my stays with them well worth the 1/2 mile walk to CityWalk. The hardest walk back was after a night at HHN at 2 in the morning after walking 50,000+ steps that day, but it was a great nights sleep. Ken
Haha oh gosh, I wish I could sleep that well every night. We know that feeling, for sure! You just have to find what works for you as far as hotels go!
@@ThePughTwo question for the two of you, now that you live in Orlando, I assume that you will still occasionally stay at one of the on-site hotels but not as much as you did before?
@@ThePughTwo Yes an HHN day is one of the most tiring days of the year and always ends with a good nights sleep!
I know this is old but we just got back from universal and we would get done with rides around 1:30 and so we would go change and hit up volcano bay until close. The kids loved it and it made the day feel less stressful. We did this 3 days in a row so yes you totally can split your days like that
Thats awesome to hear! Yeah when the parks aren't too busy, we can see how it would be possible! Thank you for letting us know and thank you for watching!
Just booked a trip for my 40th birthday next month. Total cost 3k. One person Harry Potter package. 8 days at dockside. 3 days at disney world parks. 2 days at Universal parks( plus express pass), 1 day SeaWorld(with meal plan) and 1 day discovery cove. Also includes 2 days of breakfast in the harry potter world.
That is an awesome Birthday! Happy early birthday! We hope you have a great time and it sounds like youll have a busy, but fun week!
We are still debating on Hard Rock or Cabana Bay for our trip in November, either one we are super excited to go back! Also planning on buying annual passes! I thought i knew all of the tips and tricks but your videos have been helping us plan a better trip overall! Love your videos!
That's so sweet! We're so glad our videos have been helpful. Cabana Bay and Hard Rock are both awesome, so you'll have an amazing time either way!
I’ve been to Cabana once and it was so nice. Definitely recommend Cabana 🏖
@@DarkAnubis It really is a great resort!
@@DarkAnubis I’ve stayed at cabana before and loved it! Haven’t stayed at hard rock though
@@DarkAnubis it’s a great hotel! We were huge fans when we visited, too. Thanks for watching!
For the first time, even with their cute accents, captions were following along almost perfectly. Good, spaced enunciation, kids. ;)
Hahah! Thank you! We are glad you like the accents. Sometimes TH-cam doesn’t have a clue what we are saying... which to be fair neither do we! 🤣👍🏻
Thanks for Sharing
❤️&✌️
Thank you for watching!
Good 👍🏻 Stuff ! You share.
Thank you! We’re glad you’re enjoying it!
I always go to volcano bay on my days at universal :)
It sounds like you need to get a volcano bay annual pass, then!
we’re also from VA and we booked a vacation package at Cabana Bay with 3park park to park tix while universal was doing a promo and I believe it’s still going on until April 19th!
Yeah that’s a great promo they have running right now! Gives people a chance to experience everything at a great price. You’ll love Cabana Bay if you’ve never stayed there before!
I live in Nashville! I really want to plan for a universal trip. Haven’t been since 2017!!!
Hey Kris! We are in Nashville a lot! 2017? Thats too long! You need to get yourself back to the parks!
Thank you for the info, my wife and I began planning our trip in June for a trip in August. We are traveling from the South West to Orlando, and a flight for 4 + hotel at Endless Summer Resort our expense is already at $3,200 not including theme parks and food 😒. Thanks Orbitz, should have went with Costco travels you at least get theme park tickets for the same price.
We always suggest booking straight through Universal themselves! Using a travel agent that books through Universal can sometimes save you some money, too, but flights for 4 people can get really expensive. We hope you have an awesome time at the parks, though!!
Every time you guys put out a new video I get excited for my trip to universal all over again. Thank you for making so many videos that are centered around the travel planning aspect of things. Not many other universal vloggers cover this subject thoroughly and it really makes your channel stand out. My question of the day: do the on-site hotels charge per person per room? Or is it just one rate per day? For context, my daughter and I plan to stay at the hard rock during our visit.
Thank you so much! We really try to create helpful content and it means so much to us that you're enjoying it and learning some things along the way. This is a great question, the hotels are not per person. When you look up the rates for a room, that is the room per night regardless of how many people are staying in the room. I think the maximum number of people for a standard room is either 4 or 6, but the price does not increase with more people.
@@ThePughTwo lovely, thank you! I have been assuming so, but I got a little confused when you said 4 nights at endless Summer would cost 700+ dollars at a rate of $87 per night. Perhaps you were figuring in parking or some sort of vacation package?
@@johnniet007b oh no! $87 per night is the lowest endless summer goes for. Depending on how busy it is, the prices increase from there. We looked at four nights this June for the examples, and the price per night was about $176 because June is during peak season. Sorry for the confusion!
@@ThePughTwo Haha yeah I caught that on my third watch through 😂 Thanks again guys!
Weather issues would be the reason to get the 3 parks pass. Or if you are staying at Cabana Bay, where it really easy to get to Volcano Bay. Also maybe doing night stuff at main parks.
We love going to the parks at night! Cabana Bay is really convenient for VB, too. Some of the views are gorgeous!
I agree with $50 / person for food.. It can go up to $100 if you do a Table Service Meal like Mythos or Three Broomsticks. The BEST meal for under $10 are the "Jacket Potatoes" over at the Taxi Stand near WWOHP. They're so filling and smothered / loaded with toppings.
We LOVE the jacket potatoes! They’re so big we usually just split one between the two of us. You can definitely spend more than $50/day if you want to 😂 but that’s about what we average on our visits. Mythos is definitely worth it every once in a while!
We are taking our first trip to Universal in May 2022 and I have loved watching your videos. Ya'll have so many great tips and information and ya'll are both easy to listen to. Thanks for the content!
Thank you so much! That is so so exciting! The first trip to the parks is always an amazing adventure so we are really excited for you all!
Love you guys my next trip is in July it’s my honeymoon I’m trying to learn how to save a lil money but the price is growing everyday. Ps I wanted to go to one of the primer hotels
Congrats on the honeymoon! Yeah that can happen with the price unfortunately. If there are any questions we haven't answered for you let us know please!
Thank y’all
Thank you for watching!
Thanks for this was looking for a breakdown estimate. Trying to make a plan for next hhn, definitely staying on site for unlimited Express pass unless universal is dumb and eliminates that. Staying in a cheap hotel first and visiting Disney then going to stay onsite at universal. :)
You are welcome! Thank you so much for watching! That sounds like a great plan. If you need any help please let us know!
I hope I get see you guys in October
We will be there so it’s possible!
Great vlog as usual guys. Coming over from the UK has its own challenges in terms of ticketing and of course hotels. Your guidance on the cost of meals is really useful. I think I've looked, but any chance of a lowdown on some of the restaurants in Citywalk? Thanks as ever, and hopefully see you there in November!
We get spoiled with it only being a 2 hour airplane ride away! How long of a flight is it from the UK? We could definitely work something up potentially about citywalk (we love the restaurants). If you have any questions about any of them we’d love to try to help! Would love to say hello in the parks and thank you so much for watch!
@@ThePughTwo we’re about 10 hours flight away from Orlando, so a bit of a trek! We enjoy the restaurants at Citywalk, but have never been to Cowfish......what do you think to it? We went to Bubba Gumps and found it quite disappointing, the Mexican place and NBC we loved both!
@@julianchance5469 We love Antojitos and Cowfish is our favorite. Some of the other places have been hit and miss for us as well, but Cowfish has always been delicious and it hasn’t seemed to matter what we order.
This was good
Thank you!!
We are from the UK and just booked for August 2022 12 nights at the hard rock hotel 🤘can't wait.
OH WOW! 12 nights sounds like a DREAM. We aren't even part of the vacation and we are excited!
@@ThePughTwo we were meant to be staying at cabana bay but it got cancelled so we upgraded to make up for it. 😁 We are grab food on the go people if you have any recommendations.
@@TheThemePark3 our two recommendations are the crepes, specifically the brisket crepe, and green eggs and ham! We haven’t had anything we didn’t enjoy from those two places.
@@ThePughTwo thank you guys we will make a note of them. 👍
@@TheThemePark3 absolutely! We’re glad we could help!
Hi, only found your channel recently and enjoy the content very much. I have a question, and apologies if I missed something in the video. Are the prices you quoted in this video for just 2 people or a family of 4?
It's just for two people! We said in the beginning that we would look at a trip for two. If you wanted to compare prices for a family, just add the cost of tickets and food for each extra person! We're so glad you're enjoying our content! Thanks for watching!
Are these prices without discounts or with the premier annual pass hotel and food discounts? Thanks for all the awesome vids guys!
These are without any discounts! You could absolutely get lower hotel rates with an annual pass. You could also save some money on food with that UOAP discount! Thanks for watching!!
I love them parks omg
We love them, too!
Your videos are so helpful! How many days would you recommend first timers who want to experience everything at all 3 parks?
We are doing a video on that tonight! It will be out tomorrow!
@@ThePughTwo Awesome! I’m looking forward to it :)
Thanks for the great info. Looking for dates in Sept. Portifino is LESS than Royal Pacific (usually the least expensive premier hotel) & Hard Rock doesn’t have availability (my dates).
Yeah that happens sometimes when the base rooms get booked at say Royal but not at Portofino!
Going with my daughter who is 17 to HHN in late Sep. Staying at dock side but doing the VIP non-private tour first day, express 2nd day, and just catching up on the 3rd day on anything we want to do again. With 2 park passes for 3 days and HHN for two nights along with the VIP/express passes (HHN express also for quick access to haunted houses) looking at $2,700 which is worth every penny to me. Planning on spending between $500-$800 for food/souvenirs over those 3 days as well.
That's really not bad for everything you're getting! We hope you and your daughter have an awesome time and the parks and at HHN! We've never done the RIP tour, so we're a little jealous! lol
@@ThePughTwo The non private VIP tour (max 15 people) was only about double of what an Express pass cost and I mostly wanted it because I enjoy behind the scenes kind of stuff and to have front of the line access to the rides that don't offer express pass like Velociraptor and Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure.
I got 3 park tickets with a Costco Travel, and it was cheaper than buying Volcano bay ticket for 1 day separately. I got a great deal
We have heard someone else talk about the Costco travel stuff and how they saved some money! We need to look into it! Thank you for sharing!
8 days to go! I think we got a great deal on Portofino Bay. Getting free Unlimited Express passes seems to be worth staying there just by itself. Hoping, but not expecting, some universal magic as it were, as this trip is for my 50th (and my daughters 15th) birthdays
Happy early birthday to you both! We 100% agree, the express passes are so worth it! We will cross our fingers and hope something special is in the works for you as well! Thanks for watching and make sure you let us know about your trip!
Thanks for your videos. So helpful! My son and I are staying at Loew's Royal Pacific in August. Should we purchase the park hopper (four day) tickets online or just do so at the hotel? Thank you!
We like purchasing before hand just to save some time! Also make sure to compare the prices with Annual Passes! Sometimes around that 4 day mark you get a better deal on passes, plus you can get up to 30% off of your hotel!
@@ThePughTwo Thank you! Also, are the tickets that you purchase physical tickets or are they loaded onto your hotel room key? Thank you.
One thing I wish you added is the savings if you upgrade to an AP. It costs less than 4 days at the parks! And you get discounts on your hotel stay.
We have several videos dedicated to annual passes, and a lot of people just aren’t interested in purchasing one so we decided to exclude it. Plus with the recent price increases, it was going to make each trip about $200 more expensive if I remember correctly. We agree that an annual pass is the best idea for most people, but that just wasn’t the focus of this video.
Did the guideline change? During 2020 and 2021 you weren’t guaranteed entry… you were, as royal pacific guest services, an agent on the phone and a gate agent told me… hotel guests were given priority when parks hit capacity during the pandemic…
Love your videos!!
The parks are back to full capacity now so there’s really no concern about them allowing access or not! They’ve been back to full capacity now for several months.
I guess we have to try the butter beer 😂
We think its a MUST if you couldn't tell lol!
Hello, does the annual passes come with a photo package? If not would you purchase one? And can you use it at Disney springs photo place as well?
It does not. You might be able to get a discount on the photo package with your annual pass, but it is not included. Also, Disney Springs is a Disney property and is not associated with Universal in any way, so no the photo package would not be useful there. Thanks!
We will be RV-ing to and from Florida, but want to stay at a Universal Hotel while at the park. Will we be able to park our RV at or near the hotel? Thanks. Your videos are so helpful.
That’s a great question! Unfortunately we’re not 100% sure on the answer. I would think that the hotels would be able to accommodate an RV, but I would suggest you call Universal’s guest contact number and ask them directly. We’re so glad our videos have been helpful, sorry we can’t be of more help with this question. Thanks for watching!!
Halloween... Flying from Seattle, with 9 people. Wish us luck!!!
Oh wow! We hope you have a great trip! We’ve always wanted to spend Halloween at the parks, so we’re a little jealous lol
I just went and had the 3 park tickets for 249. We ate beforehand and brought in snacks and our own drinks and they didn't say a thing. We got freestyle cups for a souvenir/drink which was wasn't bad if you got 3, definitely worth it. I personally don't like eating at a restaurant while in the park unless it has a to die for setting that's a must do. I personally would rather grab something quick to eat and enjoy the park. My daughter is 5 and my son just turned 4 and the lady at the resort told us they look like twins and since they weren't that big for their age to just say they turn 3 next week 🤣. So my family of four got into all 3 for 500 bucks! We only had one lady at Island of Adventure kind of look at us like we all knew they weren't 2, but there wasn't really any issue besides that so idc what anyone says, if your kids look young then say they turn 3 in a couple days there's nothing they can do and you'll save a lot of money to put towards other things for your vacation. My wife and I go somewhere every year with her grandparents (timeshare) and we don't have the disposable income to spend thousands on theme parks every year so we budget and prepare accordingly. If we only went to Orlando once a decade or so, then I wouldn't mind not being cheap lol.
We’re so glad you had a great trip! The park tickets are definitely expensive, but we would recommend looking at annual passes when your kids get older! Especially if you plan on going every year. You can even pay monthly to make it easier!
We are going in September. Just booked this in early June.
That’s so fun! September is a great time to go, we hope you enjoy it!
@@ThePughTwo I was hoping it was.
Hi thanks so much for your help. We are disney or so universal is new to us. We are waiting for universal to release their info for January so we can book. But now we know about what price to expect. One question, can you carry food in with you in a backpack?. Thanks for your time
Yes you can absolutely carry food and drink into the park! Its a great way to save money!
On the hottest day, I do Volcano bay 10am-4pm. Shuttle back to hotel to shower. Then go to IOA from 5pm-close. Do Hagrids last, right before close, because it’s line is the longest.
Thats a great strategy! We love doing Hagrids at night as well!
Yikes!
Just moved to Destin from Wyoming and was looking into 4 nights/5 days stays at WDW and Universal.
I guess I will book a cruise instead.
Way cheaper and less stressful.
Lol we get it!
We just went in July and the best money spent was staying at the royal pacific for 1 night. It was almost 600 with tax and all but incl the express pass. We came early by 7ish to check in and get our room keys which are the express passes. Save time by buying tickets on the app. If not you will have to get on another guest service line or kiosk. Those lines are ridiculously long!
The premier hotels seem very expensive, but can be a total trip saver! Express passes make your stays so much more enjoyable that its sometimes hard to go without one! Oh man, yeah those lines can get CRAZY at the front gate. Another tip for you is if you purchase the tickets online, you can pick them up in the hotel lobby!
Even annual passes?
Me and my wife spur of the moment up and went to universal and stayed at loews sapphire resort for the weekend and spent about 1700 all together for room tickets pet/parking fees eating and having fun. Just a fyi if you up and want to go like we did
Thank you for sharing this! This hopefully helps someone else reading!
Planning to spend either 4 to 5 days at Universal late September. Debating between Park to Park or One Day a park. Seems the one day per park would work fine since the parks will close earlier due to HHN and we don’t think we can stand/walk more than 6 hours a day. Your thoughts? We bought annual passes 5 years ago, drove there and stayed at Portofino Bay Hotel. Hope to try Hard Rock hotel this time. Thank you for your helpful videos!
So HHN only runs on select nights so the parks wont 't close early every night. Also nights that HHN is going, they will have IoA open pretty late into the night! We always suggest comparing prices of things! We are big fans of the annual pass!
Question! Ive got a 5 day park to park pass for all three parks. I've also got a ticket to HHN one of those nights. What should I do during the day before HHN so that I'm not exhausted for it?
Head back to the room after lunch and take a nap! Then be back in the parks for stay and scream by about 4!
Great video! I can’t believe they don’t have a dining pass
Thank you! Universal does offer a few different dining plans that you can purchase, we did a video explaining the different dining options! Thanks for watching!
@@ThePughTwo I’ll check it out thanks
I want to book a trip in October for my Birthday but I’m reading that the park closes early(5pm) due to HHN. Is this a rip off or will one park stay open longer? I also plan on staying at a premier hotel. Thanks!!
So while Universal Studios will shut down early, Islands of Adventure will be open later. Also Studios will have early park admission during that time to try to help people have more time in the parks. Something else to keep in mind is that HHN only happens on select nights, so the nights that HHN isn’t running both IoA and Studios would be open to everyone!
Do you have any advice I'm traveling alone to Universal for the first time with my daughter this summer?
We would love to help! Do you have any specifics?
I have a 6 year old who loves water parks and doesn't really like rides so I'm planning on the amusement parks early then the water park in the afternoon. I'm sure we'll spend most of our time in Volcano Bay.
That will be a fun day! Volcano Bay is an incredible water park and you will love it! Let us know if you have any questions!
I'm visiting Orlando late October with my son, from Hawaii - airline tickets are expensive with the country opening back up, but not as bad as I thought. Found a Westgate Resort hotel on my company's discount website for $65/night, along with 2 days at Universal for $500, thinking of upgrading to Express.
That sounds like a blast! If you decide to upgrade to express passes for those 2 days, we implore you to look at the premier hotels as it might save you money! We would at least compare!
@@ThePughTwo thanks the tip, but I've already bought my hotel & tickets :(
@@fahsky Thats ok! Its not guranteed to save you money, was just a thought!
Hey, Just started following your channel, thanks for all the informative content. I just wanted to ask, what sort of budget do you take in cash for tips. I'm based in the UK so tipping for us is slightly different. I just wanted some advice on when to tip and generally how much for services. Any info would be very welcome. Thanks
The only thing we really take cash for is tipping the hotel staff like luggage services, etc. Of course if you plan on drinking in the parks, tipping your bartender cash is nice. We put tips for restaurants and ride share like Uber on the card, so we don’t bring much cash with us. As far as amount, that’s really just preference and what you think their service is worth. In restaurants, 18-20% is typical. We hope this helps!
@@ThePughTwo hey. Thank you for the quick response that is helpful to know we can put the restaurant tips on the card payment. 😊😊
@@emman-b926 absolutely, we’re glad we could help!
So i know it’s a older vid but the wife and I have a vacation booked end of April 5 days just 2 people what would be a good amount of money I should look to bring with me? Trying to do it as cheaply as possible already have tickets, and all just looking for like food/ merch needs lol any advice would be great thanks. Also love the vids
Oh gosh! We’d suggest looking at menus and even at merchandise online to try to get an idea for the two of you!
@@ThePughTwo thanks ya, just trying to plan a budget seen most of the really good looking stuff from your vids are about 10 still holding on the roughly $50 a day?
Glad to watch an old video and still see your butter beer addiction....😅
One thing. I stayed at Cabana Bay. So I went to Volcano bay left around 1 then got ready for hhn.
That sounds like an awesome day!
I just booked my room for HHN yesterday. I know the tickets aren't on sale yet but I wanted to make sure that I had a room!! I booked the Orlando informer trip for June around Feb. I usually just to have a trip booked to look forward to. So once I come home from a trip, I'm already trying to figure out when I can go back!!
We do the exact same thing lol! I think people think we have an obsession... we might? Haha, thanks for watching!
@@ThePughTwo I know everyone thinks I have an obsession with universal and Disney I actually like universal better.
@@cheriemccoy-bricker9840 We obviously feel the same 😀. Thank you for watching!
There are payment plans now too 😊
Thats great to hear!
Any tips on suitcase storage? When we go on vacation, we will be leaving on a Friday night but hotel checkout is at 11:00 am. We plan to hit the parks after checking out of the hotel onsite. Are there any suitcase storage services near by?
Yes! All of the on-site hotels have a luggage services counter in the lobby. You can check your luggage with them either the day you check in or check out. This way, you can enjoy the parks before your room is ready or after you checkout.
@@ThePughTwo awesome! 🤩
Is park to park ticket not included in premiere hotels? We got 4 members in a family. We’re planning on flying from canada to Orlando, from Jan 3 to 9th. What would be the best way to save money for this trip?? I checked the Costco package deal, it has a package of “flights for 4 people + portofino hotel for jan 3-9 stay” and everything included is about $9000. Is this a considered good deal since the hotel also will give us express passes? Please help!
No the hotels don’t include admission to the parks unless you purchase a vacation package. You’d have to price it all out on Universal’s website to see what the best deal is!
Is it best to go through a travel agent or just book packages ion website to save money ?
We typically go through the site, however travel agents can make it much easier and help take away some of the stress!
@@ThePughTwo ty for that
what if I have an employee rate at a hotel off site do you still recommend staying on site or should I go off site for a cheaper rate
It depends on how much its saving you and how much that money means! We are all about saving money, but early park admission is still worth being able to take part of. If the difference wasn't anything drastic, we would want to have access to the parks before daytime guest!
My son and I spent 5 days here. Not counting the season passes We already had paid for, this trip cost about $900.
$130 X 2 flights, Ohio to ORL
$90 x 4 for Dockside hotel
$70 day for food
$35 Lyft/Uber X 2
That is awesome! A lot of people talk about how its so expensive, but if you do it correctly, you can have amazing trips for not very much money!
may i ask where you purchased your flights?
you can mix hotel too... 1 day/night on a deluxe hotel give 2 days express pass, no?
and you stay on the cheapest the rest of the trip.
Absolutely! You get the express pass the day you check in and check out, so if you’re willing to switch hotels you can save a good bit of money!
I think I maybe got a good deal. I just booked 5 nights at cabana bay, 4 day 3 park, park to park tickets, transportation from airport and back when we leave and also my flights for $3435 total and this was all for 5 people!!
That seems like a good price!
We can buy 14 day tickets in the uk for universal. Are these exclusive to the UK?
No but you have to book a vacation package for them to be available in the US!
any tips for large families, we have 5 children and 4 adults to take on one trip!
Oh goodness! Having at least one person get the preferred annual pass would probably be really beneficial. You get discounts on basically all the food/merch in the parks and Citywalk which will save you a ton with that many people. You could also share 3-4 of the refillable cups to save a TON on drinks! You could also probably save some money by bringing your own snacks and sharing lunch entrees. We usually split one meal at lunch time because we don’t want to ride rides being super full. We hope this helps! If you have any other specific questions we’d be happy to answer them!
I have a question , we have a condo we are going to stay in ( it’s a friends ) so we won’t be needing a room . We have purchased tickets and booked the parks in advance tho … can they still “ hit capacity “ and turn is away after we do all of this ? We are going spring break btw … lol help
Hey Jen! We believe this was part of the reason they went to the dated tickets! If you have a date specific ticket, according to Universal website, you should be granted access!
New subscriber here! Thank you for all the info. I’m a Disney girl but the husband is dying to go back to Universal so I’m trying to make that happen. If I go ahead and book a room and buy tickets now and then a discount is offered later, would I be able to change my room and tickets to the discounted price? I doubt it happens but would like to be able to if it does. Thanks!
Thank you! We’re so glad to have you! You can absolutely book your hotel room ahead of time and change the rate if the prices drop. As far as tickets go, we’re not sure. I have a feeling they will not give you money back on tickets, so you could wait or you could see what annual passes would run you. They’re usually a better deal if you’re visiting more than 2 or 3 days. We hope this helps! We’d be happy to answer any other questions you might have!
@@ThePughTwo Thanks so much for responding so quickly! We’re planning to go the last week of July so I doubt there will be any deals during peak time but I didn’t want to regret buying tickets now. I’m about to book our room right now!
@@brianawallace7979 that’s so exciting! We wouldn’t expect much to change this summer as far as their vacation packages and deals, so you’re probably good to go ahead with those!
When I heard that the premier hotel rooms were at best would be 250 per night I was like YES I GOT IT HALF THAT. Like no joke royal pacifico I got to stay at for like 200 per night because I chose one night with the suite for next week and I was just like that’s super cheaaaaap
That’s crazy! We’ve never seen them that low before. We’re glad you got such an awesome deal, and we hope you have a great time!
We got a banging deal, 5 days at Dockside Inn with 4 day park to park for just under $1200, and plan on bringing roughly $1200 for the 3 days we will be in the park, food, souvenirs etc, do you think this is a decent budget for in park expenses?
Oh wow, that’s awesome! We usually budget about $50/person/day for food, and then sounvenirs just depend on what you’re wanting to get!
I’m going on December for Christmas and new year
That will be a fun trip!