Insane savings on EP when staying at Royal Pacific (Math included!)

[keishashadow]

So far, all of our trips were at least 30% below the standard rate (1 Spring Break, 3 Thanksgiving, 3 cancelled trips during Covid in May/June/Oct, and one upcoming trip for mid-Feb). With school aged kids, we usually go during "peak" season, so I expected the discounts to be on the lower side. I did try a couple of dates and did see some cases where there were 40-45% discounts, but nothing below 30%...

It’s probably time to revive the date & rate thread, will run it past mod Mac

For HRH standard this year i’m Pricing, today’s check produced -

$264+ all week days, end of February (APH)

$324+ 4 nights starting april 30th

$530+ A few week days 4th of july week (rack)

Sept into October trip in area of $365 night for 3 nights

Friday after Thanksgiving $525 for 3 nights

 

[pannm]

We just booked one of the Loews Hotels and got a little more than a 40% cheaper rate using our APH rate. For our next trip, the rates are showing 35% discounts depending on what final date we choose. I think they're offering decent discounts if you can do a slow season visit. I was really excited for the discounts we got!

Below are my cost comparisons for the exact same nights and dates...
RP total cost w/o APH- $1995
Our RP total cost WITH APH $1159

 

[pannm]

It’s probably time to revive the date & rate thread, will run it past mod Mac

For HRH standard this year i’m Pricing, today’s check produced -

$264+ all week days, end of February (APH)

$324+ 4 nights starting april 30th

$530+ A few week days 4th of july week (rack)

Sept into October trip in area of $365 night for 3 nights

Friday after Thanksgiving $525 for 3 nights

That is really interesting. For me, I am looking at a weekday rate for HRH in February and the APH rate says it's $189. ($212 after tax). Am I missing something, or do people occasionally get different rates through APH?

The Rate that I have listed for 1 weeknight using APH at Royal Pacific is $169 plus tax in February.

 

[keishashadow]

That is really interesting. For me, I am looking at a weekday rate for HRH in February and the APH rate says it's $189. ($212 after tax). Am I missing something, or do people occasionally get different rates through APH?

The Rate that I have listed for 1 weeknight using APH at Royal Pacific is $169 plus tax in February.

RP is often the most reasonably priced property.

As with most resorts, rates do drop in general depending on their occupancy metrics

Will find reductions after final cancellation period too

 

[BadgerGirl84]

I think the deal is crazy! We've always done Disney-focused trips with 1-2 Universal days mixed in. Next month we are doing a one week Universal focused trip (with plans to go to US 3 days, Legoland one day and DHS one day)--we are staying in a rental home because we love the space and extra bedrooms for a family of 5. But I had the idea to book one night on-site at US to get the Express passes and WOW! I was shocked by the price. I booked one night early March for $254 at RPH. We will get 2 full days of Unlimited EP for FIVE PEOPLE! That's about how much we've paid in the past for 2 people to have the regular Express Pass. Unreal. We just need to decide if we want to actually spend the night there or not--I think it might be fun for the kids to see City Walk at night and take the water taxi around.

The bonus for me is also that I got my husband on-board for us to get Seasonal APs and one Preferred AP--pretty much guaranteeing another trip.

 

[TreeFalls]

I think the deal is crazy! We've always done Disney-focused trips with 1-2 Universal days mixed in. Next month we are doing a one week Universal focused trip (with plans to go to US 3 days, Legoland one day and DHS one day)--we are staying in a rental home because we love the space and extra bedrooms for a family of 5. But I had the idea to book one night on-site at US to get the Express passes and WOW! I was shocked by the price. I booked one night early March for $254 at RPH. We will get 2 full days of Unlimited EP for FIVE PEOPLE! That's about how much we've paid in the past for 2 people to have the regular Express Pass. Unreal. We just need to decide if we want to actually spend the night there or not--I think it might be fun for the kids to see City Walk at night and take the water taxi around.

The bonus for me is also that I got my husband on-board for us to get Seasonal APs and one Preferred AP--pretty much guaranteeing another trip.

Why did you get the preferred AP? We are doing a family of 5 trip and getting APs because we'll be back in the area in the Fall, and I was wondering if there's an advantage to getting one "upgraded" one. But I haven't been able to wade through all the benefits yet...

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Why did you get the preferred AP? We are doing a family of 5 trip and getting APs because we'll be back in the area in the Fall, and I was wondering if there's an advantage to getting one "upgraded" one. But I haven't been able to wade through all the benefits yet...

The Preferred AP offers discounts on food and merchandise, 10% on most everything at Universal. Also free parking.

 

[BadgerGirl84]

Why did you get the preferred AP? We are doing a family of 5 trip and getting APs because we'll be back in the area in the Fall, and I was wondering if there's an advantage to getting one "upgraded" one. But I haven't been able to wade through all the benefits yet...

Yes, we want it primarily for free parking. The 10% discount on food and merchandise is great too. We don’t both need it—we will always drive together and I don’t think I’d buy enough stuff to justify it for the times we split up with the kids in the parks.

 

[cfoxga]

We just need to decide if we want to actually spend the night there or not--I think it might be fun for the kids to see City Walk at night and take the water taxi around.

I would recommend spending the night there. Just pack enough for the one night. It should give you a good feeling whether to do onsite or offsite on your second (and third) trips. As a family of 4, it was a little tight at RPR vs HRH/PBH, but you will be amazed at your 2 RPR days vs the others. Having stayed in most of the onsite resorts, I don't think we could do anything other than deluxe onsite again. Having EPs allows you to sleep in, go to the pool, and still ride everything you want. Not having to get in a car and avoiding the CityWalk security, is fantastic. Even though walking is often faster, I love taking the boats.

 

[BadgerGirl84]

I would recommend spending the night there. Just pack enough for the one night. It should give you a good feeling whether to do onsite or offsite on your second (and third) trips. As a family of 4, it was a little tight at RPR vs HRH/PBH, but you will be amazed at your 2 RPR days vs the others. Having stayed in most of the onsite resorts, I don't think we could do anything other than deluxe onsite again. Having EPs allows you to sleep in, go to the pool, and still ride everything you want. Not having to get in a car and avoiding the CityWalk security, is fantastic. Even though walking is often faster, I love taking the boats.

We are a family of 5 and always book a big timeshare, condo or vacation home when we travel. We aren't used to sharing one tiny room for the 5 of us! I'm going to try to convince my husband to get on board with the idea of packing stuff for one night just to try it, though.

 

[cfoxga]

We are a family of 5 and always book a big timeshare, condo or vacation home when we travel. We aren't used to sharing one tiny room for the 5 of us! I'm going to try to convince my husband to get on board with the idea of packing stuff for one night just to try it, though.

On the flip side, you probably waste 1-2 hours each day driving to/from the parks each day, especially if driving back for a mid-afternoon nap/swimming and return to the parks at night. We did the offsite condo/house rentals back in our Disney days. But one onsite trip to Universal changed everything for us. Having the resort, parks, and CityWalk all within walking distance kept us out of Disney for the last 4 years...

With 4 of us, it is tight compared to a house/condo, but we feel it is worth it. Since you are 5, it is a tight squeeze, especially at RPR (335 sq ft). HRH has a bit more space (375 sq ft), and PHB even more (450 sq ft).

 

[Darth Insidious]

We just booked one of the Loews Hotels and got a little more than a 40% cheaper rate using our APH rate. For our next trip, the rates are showing 35% discounts depending on what final date we choose. I think they're offering decent discounts if you can do a slow season visit. I was really excited for the discounts we got!

Below are my cost comparisons for the exact same nights and dates...
RP total cost w/o APH- $1995
Our RP total cost WITH APH $1159

Do you book the room ahead of time and then rebook when the APH rates come out?

 

[schumigirl]

Do you book the room ahead of time and then rebook when the APH rates come out?

I believe that`s what most folks do.

AP rooms are limited, so keep a close eye on it as I imagine they can go quickly.

 

[cfoxga]

Do you book the room ahead of time and then rebook when the APH rates come out?

Booking a room early is a good idea, if you are willing to pay the price. I wouldn't book a room at the Seasonal Rate, but the Savvy Traveler rate might be acceptable.

For checking APH rates, I create direct links to each date that I'm interested in and put them in a folder in my browser bookmarks. Every so often, I right click on the folder and "Open All" and the browser creates a tab for each date. Makes it really easy to see when APH rates pop up.

 

[shawthorne44]

On upgrading one pass to preferred. Remember that everyone can have the app on their phone and everyone's phone can have everyone's else passes entered. That makes it easier to share the preferred discounts.

For Disney, have you considered a house off-site? Universal, two premier rooms totally makes sense. Disney doesn't seem worthwhile to pay that much money for minimal benefits. I just booked a really nice 5-bedroom house with gas-heated pool for less than $180/night after all taxes/fees.

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

I just moved our vacation to December because of a big work deadline I'll have in October. I couldn't book the Jurassic Park kids suites using Chase UR points or the AP discount because the end of my trip overlaps with Xmas week, and honestly I feel lucky getting the JP room at all as it seems to be really popular and hard to book in that time period. While it pains me to pay cash, the free express passes and discounts I'll get on my 3 family member's passes with my AP, plus the discounts we'll get in the shops and restaurants, will be nice to have and will add up to a decent savings. And it's still 2K cheaper than our last trip to Disney the same time of year. I'm going to keep an eye out to see if any room discounts pop up in the next few months for those dates, but I honestly doubt they will. Ironically, my kids homeschool so it isn't even their schedules forcing us to travel that week, just work.

 

[asuburbanman]

We just decided to take a no kids trip to Universal in July. We went 6 years ago before kids. Since then it’s been Disney and COVID. Almost booked Royal Pacific at $1,100 for two nights until I read this thread. Got it for $650 for two nights with Preferred Annual Pass rate. So thanks everyone! Now we have 15 months to go back. I can’t believe how reasonable the cost has been compared to Disney.

Too bad the kids (4 & 2) won’t be Universal age for quite some time. Makes me excited for the future though! Wonder how Epic Universe will change everything.

 

[schumigirl]

We just decided to take a no kids trip to Universal in July. We went 6 years ago before kids. Since then it’s been Disney and COVID. Almost booked Royal Pacific at $1,100 for two nights until I read this thread. Got it for $650 for two nights with Preferred Annual Pass rate. So thanks everyone! Now we have 15 months to go back. I can’t believe how reasonable the cost has been compared to Disney.

Too bad the kids (4 & 2) won’t be Universal age for quite some time. Makes me excited for the future though! Wonder how Epic Universe will change everything.

Excellent news for you!

And yes, EU will be a game changer too. There is so much to look forward to when that park finally opens.....it will be spectacular.

 

[Matty B13]

Booking a room early is a good idea, if you are willing to pay the price. I wouldn't book a room at the Seasonal Rate, but the Savvy Traveler rate might be acceptable.

For checking APH rates, I create direct links to each date that I'm interested in and put them in a folder in my browser bookmarks. Every so often, I right click on the folder and "Open All" and the browser creates a tab for each date. Makes it really easy to see when APH rates pop up.

So, when you find a good APH rate, how do you change your reservation for the standard rate? Do you have to call Universal to make the change, or can you just cancel your first reservation and book the AP reservation?

 

[DoryGirl1963]

So, when you find a good APH rate, how do you change your reservation for the standard rate? Do you have to call Universal to make the change, or can you just cancel your first reservation and book the AP reservation?

I tend to book the new ressie at the APH rate, wait a few days to make sure it goes thru on my credit card, then cancel the old ressie because I'm so not a phone person.

Having said that, when I have called UO they are fabulously helpful on the phone, so I'm sure either would work equally well - really whatever you prefer !