How much room hopping is too much?

[mumzie2three]

Me and my son are arriving 7pm on Sun, Jan 13 and leaving at 1pm on Fri, Jan 18th.....thinking of 2 nights at Aventura, then 1 night at Hard Rock (for Express Pass Tues/Wed), and ending with 2 nights at Cabana Bay. I would buy an AP to get best rates, but ultimately staying at CB for the whole 5 days is cheaper with StayMoreSaveMore. Any thoughts? TIA

 

[schumigirl]

Well, for me that would be far too many changes. You don’t say how old your son is and what rides he’ll be doing.....is he too young for the bigger rides or is he an adult?

Why not cut out one of the basic hotels and stay at just one of them.....either Aventura or CBay........but still have your one night at one of the hotels that offer EP.......

I’ve never been at that time of year, so you may not need EP and could then stay at CBay the whole time......you have four and a half full days to do the parks, so should be able to cover it.......

But, I’m very biased towards EP even in so called quieter times......it really can make a difference......as you said one night stay at one of the deludes gives you two full days of EP.

 

[mumzie2three]

Well, for me that would be far too many changes. You don’t say how old your son is and what rides he’ll be doing.....is he too young for the bigger rides or is he an adult?

Why not cut out one of the basic hotels and stay at just one of them.....either Aventura or CBay........but still have your one night at one of the hotels that offer EP.......

I’ve never been at that time of year, so you may not need EP and could then stay at CBay the whole time......you have four and a half full days to do the parks, so should be able to cover it.......

But, I’m very biased towards EP even in so called quieter times......it really can make a difference......as you said one night stay at one of the deludes gives you two full days of EP.

Thank you for the feedback! My son is 10 and I am not really sure which rides he is going to gravitate towards, besides the Harry Potter ones. He hasn't been since he was 4 yrs old.
I have to wear a patch so I can do the motion sim rides and I have fibromyalgia, so a lot of walking/standing can take its toll. One of our days will probably just be a resort day to rest and relax.
I agree that the time of year means I probably won't need EP and with just 2 of us, I will just buy it if needed once we are there.
Our last trip was 5 of us at RPR club level and so I'm a little afraid I will miss that, but budget wise it doesn't make sense for the 2 of us. I usually have no trouble planning trips when it's the lot of us, but for some reason this small trip is driving me nuts. Lol. Thanks again.

 

[tony67]

I used to do split stays at Disney and it was really just too much hassle IMO
The biggest issue is waiting to get checked in - yeah you can leave your bags and go to the park - but you do want to get back to the hotel check and and be setup - also a lot of packing and unpacking of things like chargers and toiletries. I find it rare that a room is available at Universal if you check in before 3 or 4.
At Disney they would move you bags from hotel to hotel on property - but that does not seem to be an option at Universal.
I'd find it even worse at Universal as the parks close early compared to Disney so if you go back and check in at 4 or 5 that's pretty much it for the day - you might get back to the parks for an hour or so - there was usually at least on park open till 9 or 10 at Disney if not midnight or 2 AM

It might work fine for you - and getting the express pass for two days makes a lot of sense - just think about the logistics of it.
If you were staying 5 night you might find the price at Royal Pacific to be reasonable - when you stay five night that's where the you get bigger discounts.
I have priced it for 4 or 5 nights in the past and 5 nights as almost the same as 4.
Also 5 nights is usually cheaper than the AP prices - as you point out at CB

I'd also take a look at the packages at Universal for your stay - depending on when you are going it can be a bit less expensive - (50-100)
Also check your various credit cards - currently AMEX has an offer for $100 back when you book a package with tickets of 500 or more.
This is one of the offers where you have to log in, look at your card offers and add it to your card.
Be aware rules on package cancellations are more strict than room only bookings - one other issue with the packages are they seem to be forcing the 3 park tickets.
I usually buy the least expensive ticket and then upgrade it when I get there - although I see they added annual passes to the mix now

 

[mumzie2three]

I used to do split stays at Disney and it was really just too much hassle IMO
The biggest issue is waiting to get checked in - yeah you can leave your bags and go to the park - but you do want to get back to the hotel check and and be setup - also a lot of packing and unpacking of things like chargers and toiletries. I find it rare that a room is available at Universal if you check in before 3 or 4.
At Disney they would move you bags from hotel to hotel on property - but that does not seem to be an option at Universal.
I'd find it even worse at Universal as the parks close early compared to Disney so if you go back and check in at 4 or 5 that's pretty much it for the day - you might get back to the parks for an hour or so - there was usually at least on park open till 9 or 10 at Disney if not midnight or 2 AM

It might work fine for you - and getting the express pass for two days makes a lot of sense - just think about the logistics of it.
If you were staying 5 night you might find the price at Royal Pacific to be reasonable - when you stay five night that's where the you get bigger discounts.
I have priced it for 4 or 5 nights in the past and 5 nights as almost the same as 4.
Also 5 nights is usually cheaper than the AP prices - as you point out at CB

I'd also take a look at the packages at Universal for your stay - depending on when you are going it can be a bit less expensive - (50-100)
Also check your various credit cards - currently AMEX has an offer for $100 back when you book a package with tickets of 500 or more.
This is one of the offers where you have to log in, look at your card offers and add it to your card.
Be aware rules on package cancellations are more strict than room only bookings - one other issue with the packages are they seem to be forcing the 3 park tickets.
I usually buy the least expensive ticket and then upgrade it when I get there - although I see they added annual passes to the mix now

Thank you! I hadn't really thought about the room not being ready and having to stand around to check in midday or later.
I hate to spring for RPR for the entire stay since we can't/won't access the parks every single day/night of our stay. And when I look at just a 2/3 night stay there, the prices are high because no basic rooms are available....but I keep checking. Probably gonna book the CB and just watch prices to see if anything changes. Thanks again.

 

[gotomu212]

I might be the odd man out and say it really might not be TOO much for the trip as you describe it. When I’ve traveled with just my son (who is also 10) ive found its WAY easier than when the husband is thrown in (don’t tell him that!). With just the two of us we kind of go with the flow more and I’m the only one who has to make decisions and there’s no “consulting” with others. We also pack less. With the 3 hotels you get the fun of trying them all out and even though you can pool hop it’s so much easier to stay at your hotel pool so that’s 3 pools he’ll get to play in.

The EP is really helpful with a 10 year old, at least for us. My son wanted to ride some rides over and over and over, and I’d eventually need a bit of a break. With EP I got comfortable sending him on a repeat alone since I’d be with him when he walked in, and he’d walk almost straight to the front of the line, and I’d be there when he walked out. I knew it would be a fast turnaround, without EP it would be too long standing alone in line and then me not knowing when he’d be done, etc. By day 2 I was fine with him riding several rides that way especially for turn 3-6.

 

[slpeters]

I think it's doable if you are getting enough out of it to make it worth while. For instance we once spent a week in Vegas at three different hotels--because no one would comp us for more than two nights. It was sort of an adventure and, well, free hotel for a week felt worth it to us then. Now we're a little bit older and I'm not even sure free accommodations would be enough to get us to move every couple of days. I could almost see the two resorts (one with EP and one without). We're staying at RPR for a week in December and it does sort of occur to me that we're paying for EP on days we aren't even going to the parks (we're doing a day at SeaWorld and a MVMCP), but at $181 a night I'm kind of looking at the EP as a bonus as it's kind of on the low end of what we usually pay for hotels anyway. But I would look pretty carefully at what I'm getting out of moving twice instead of once--if it's just variety I would probably just visit the third hotel.

 

[nkereina]

Its definitely doable, it just depends on your preference. For us, we like to check-in and unpack on day one, and not worry about taking care of "business" again until our departure day. For others, it might be no biggie.

Keep an eye out for APH rates at Royal Pacific. Sometimes they can be really good and not much more than the cost of other non-deluxe hotels. We've gotten great APH rates at HRH and Portofino too, but RPR is generally the cheapest. Sometimes, the savings makes the AP purchase worth it. And if you don't plan to use the AP again, you can just purchase one AP. Both of you don't need it just for the hotel rate.

 

[mumzie2three]

The Stay More Save More rate for Cabana Bay is even lower than the AP rate, so right now all 5 nights are booked at CB. But I will keep watching.....I am trying to keep this trip simple, but I went and bought Disney After Dark tix for MK on our last night. So now I am trying to squeeze Disney into what was supposed to be a US/IOA only trip. Argh!

 

[AnOtHeRdIsNeYfReAk]

We did almost the same thing this past summer. Our first night we stayed off-site at a hotel next to Universal, the 2nd we stayed at Royal Pacific for a night(yay Express pass) and for the remainder of the trip we stayed at a disney resort.

It worked out very well for us. We planned ahead and packed each day's clothing in big Ziploc bags so we didn't need to unpack much.

Admittedly, it wasn't optimal but worth it for the savings of the cost of Express pass for all of us.

 

[Jake]

I always find the problem is having to hand carry meds, ipad, money, type of things. That you can not leave with bell service to lock up. How do you prove $300 in twenty’s are missing ? That your meds are gone, how do you replace meds 2,000 miles away ?? Not one for moving, I like checking in locking thing up in safe

 

[Catrd2012]

I am thinking of doing this too. Considering 2 nights at CB, 1 night at RPR, then back to CB for 1 night. So we check out of CB early, head to RPR with our luggage, check in & get our EP, they hold our luggage until we show up later in the day? What is the best way to get from one to the other with all of our stuff?

 

[mumzie2three]

Well as the OP, I have to say that I only complicated things a little by booking our last night at Disney hotel in the hopes that it would simplify the DAH night and give us a ride to airport the next day.
And then I swapped 4 nights at CB for RPR....before I found out about the pool closing! But I just discovered that Jurassic ride will be closed mid-January as well and my son was looking forward to riding that for the first time. Plus the park closes at 7pm which seems early, so I am really rethinking the entire trip! Or at least rethinking the switch to RPR just for Express Pass for the 2 of us.....I am not enjoying planning this trip.

 

[wendlle]

I like Room hopping.
We have two kids and our next trip in September they will be 3 and 10 months and we are doing 4 hotels over a 24 day period.
5 nights at HRH, 7 nights at Boulder Ridge Villas, 4 nights at Boardwalk Villas and 8 nights at Animal Kingdom Villas.
We pack light even with kids and enjoy the various amenities that different resorts offer.

 

[Monykalyn]

Well as the OP, I have to say that I only complicated things a little by booking our last night at Disney hotel in the hopes that it would simplify the DAH night and give us a ride to airport the next day.
And then I swapped 4 nights at CB for RPR....before I found out about the pool closing! But I just discovered that Jurassic ride will be closed mid-January as well and my son was looking forward to riding that for the first time. Plus the park closes at 7pm which seems early, so I am really rethinking the entire trip! Or at least rethinking the switch to RPR just for Express Pass for the 2 of us.....I am not enjoying planning this trip.

I know it’s almost your trip- I checked touring plans and they are predicting low crowds at Uni at least in Sunday. I’d expect during week even better.
So- keep the deluxe, know you won’t have to wait in any line, and son can reride as much as s he wants with no wait. Less standing and planning and backtracking for you (fibromyalgia - horrible disease - hope you are feeling well!)
Or- go less expensive, knowing it may require not doing a ride if line is unexpectedly longer, or backtracking. Also something to consider is the express queue is usually shorter walk length wise (a time least in busier times, in slow time I don’t know how many switchbacks would be open). But money saved, especially when May not be really needed...and the ep queue often has elements that add to story that express doesn’t...sorry don’t think that was much help

 

[mumzie2three]

I know it’s almost your trip- I checked touring plans and they are predicting low crowds at Uni at least in Sunday. I’d expect during week even better.
So- keep the deluxe, know you won’t have to wait in any line, and son can reride as much as s he wants with no wait. Less standing and planning and backtracking for you (fibromyalgia - horrible disease - hope you are feeling well!)
Or- go less expensive, knowing it may require not doing a ride if line is unexpectedly longer, or backtracking. Also something to consider is the express queue is usually shorter walk length wise (a time least in busier times, in slow time I don’t know how many switchbacks would be open). But money saved, especially when May not be really needed...and the ep queue often has elements that add to story that express doesn’t...sorry don’t think that was much help

Lol! I hear ya! That is exactly the back-and-forth thinking I have had for the past few weeks. Ultimately I have decided to stick with the deluxe and EP.....better to have it and not need it, then to not have it and wish I did. (And yes fibro sucks!)

 

[macraven]

Great decision!

Stick with the deluxe and be able to do multiple rides by using the ep lines

 

[Selina]

Coming from across the pond, we have one long long holiday and prefer to stay onsite, as free to come and go from the parks...so this year have booked the Yacht and Beach Club at Epcot for 5 nights to do the Disney parks and then will transfer to Universal RPR for 12 nights as this is our favourite place. We have also stayed at Hard Rock and Portofino with a bit of a room hop between parks in the past but once at Universal think the RPR is the best hotel by far. I would say the most important aspect is to stay onsite.

 

[CPanther95]

Lol! I hear ya! That is exactly the back-and-forth thinking I have had for the past few weeks. Ultimately I have decided to stick with the deluxe and EP.....better to have it and not need it, then to not have it and wish I did. (And yes fibro sucks!)

Good choice. No question the Deluxe hotels are great for the EP, but we appreciate them even more on the days we don't go to the parks.

 

[Monykalyn]

How did the trip end up going?? Hope it was fun!!