The resorts also ship home as well. That way you don't have to worry about taking things on a plane. Cost of shipping is based on the price of your purchase.
I've stayed off site plenty of times. Best western, holiday inn,(right across the street) rosen inn(i-drive). Close enough to walk or use the hotel's courtesy shuttle. The universal shuttle every 15 minutes vs maybe 3-5 a day is the game changer for me.
That is a huge game changer. The holiday inn you had to reserve and it only ran until the mid afternoon. Not great for hhn season! Which is your favorite?
@@fudge_factor It's been years since i've stayed off-site. I really liked the rosen inns, but you just about had to take the shuttles. If i'm not mistaken they ran 8 or 9 am, again around 3 or 4, and return trips were around 10, 11, and 12. Best western and holiday were easy walks to the parks and stay all day when i was in my 50's. In my 60's, i'm getting on the water taxi back to adventura and taking a nap before i head back for hhn. :D
nearby was a hotel fairly large, 3 star rated . first trip down there, i had to book with another place quickly. THis hotel i wont name was a 1.5 star at best. first room, the safe was missing from the wall itself, the toilet seat broken, the carpet looked gross. they moved me to a new room the safe did not have any type of locking mechinism, the liquid stain on ceiling from room above was a gross brown colour, i crunched on a beetle or worse when i first stepped in. after that i did my research and only stay on property but might try the hilton nearby.
I just stayed at the Sheraton 1 mile from CityWalk. Perfect location for walking to the park for HHN and great rooms (it’s really close to the Endless Summer resorts)
We highly recommend staying at either the JW Marriott or Ritz Carlton at Grande Lakes or the Marriott at the World Center. All of them have free transportation and have fantastic accommodations and dining. You do have to schedule your transportation but it’s just a quick phone call and you’re all set. Also, if you guys are annual passholder you should have been able to go to EPA, it’s one of the perks of being AP.
Oooo those sound nice! We might have to try those next time! We do the military annual pass, which is cheaper but doesn’t get a ton of perks with it. Certainly not complaining about it. Just no epa
Great Video Ben and Aub❤❤. Was very interesting to watch. Y’all are brave I think if I was in yawls position and everything was sold out I would definitely look at staying off site. Would not be happy about it though. Keep up the amazing work you guys are almost a 5K look at y’all.😊😊❤❤❤
We certainly think being at Universal is better than not, so if we had to stay off site we would do it again! We would just prefer on site if at all possible! We are getting there! You’ve been with us since the beginning and we cannot thank you enough for it!! 🙏 we are glad we can keep creating videos you enjoy!!
@ 💯 agree. 👍 y’all have grown so much and so fast 💨. I have truly enjoyed watching it all unfold. I really don’t get how y’all don’t have 100k plus followers. 🤯Y’all are fabulous 🥰🥰. Keep up the amazing work I know it’s all gonna pay off soon 🔜 ❤️❤️
On site just seems to be so much better for costs and convenience. That said, I always fly to MCO and do not rent cars. So I use both Uber and Lyft, the costs vary, but in the end, it is a lot less money than rental fees and parking. This includes going to Disney or Sea World from a Universal hotel. I tried the Universal airport bus service once, it was OK by myself, but if I had a group of two or more, Uber/Lyft costs a lot less.
Totally agree with you! We used to fly, and second your stance on the shuttle service! Having uber or lyft just makes more sense and costs about the same as the shuttle, and then you don't have to pay the additional parking fees. We enjoy being in the Universal bubble and the team members make the experience even better!
Are you guys going to do a follow up video for HHN final house rankings? We just got back from going to HHN on Wednesday and Halloween night, interested to see your final rankings along with scare zones/food.
I stayed offsite for the February 2024 OI Meetup. BIG MISTAKE! While it was cheaper and still pretty close to the parks, the one big item that set me off: Resort Fee. When going to Vegas and staying on the strip, I have no issue paying the stated resort fee. However, a low-budget hotel with a minimal pool...nope, that's not a resort, I don't care how minimal the fee is. The third party that I booked through didn't disclose any resort fee and didn't say I had to pay anything at the hotel. I refused to pay the hotel the resort fee and called the third party I booked through. After an interesting conversation, the third party agreed to pay the fee to the hotel. So that's a scam to watch out for at offsite hotels. Going forward I am only staying onsite.
No issue here with paying a resort fee, as you typically don't pay for parking. Universal has "resort fees" as well, as the parking fees are ridiculous.
I've considered staying at off-site hotels, but the price of the Value hotels a lot of times are comparable to those non Universal hotels closest to the parks, or just a little more expensive. Besides the pricing, I don't have to drive anywhere during my stay (love living in the Universal bubble for a few days😊), and I don't have to worry about the quality of the hotel. The service, cleanliness, and comfort of the Universal hotels is uniformly excellent, and it's worth spending a little extra for what you end up getting. Value hotels are great if you're on a budget, like I frequently am. I am a Florida resident and annual passholder, so I do get a price break, so do what makes financial sense for you, but I definitely recommend staying on site if possible. Wow, didn't mean to make an ad for Universal hotels, but it really came out that way😂
We love it!! The onsite hotels are great and the team members always make it an even better experience!! We will fight to stay on site every single time!
@@fudge_factorAs an aside, Ben's "I can't take this anymore" face at the end cracked me up. To the Universal hotels, where showers always drain! (Or at least if they don't, someone will come fix it quickly)
Thanks for the reminder to always book early for onsite hotels! I have no desire to be off site 😅 The clothes that were left has me 🤮🤢. Why wouldn’t they remove that?
Another GREAT video - as usual! I often wondered about if staying off-site is worth it. I would have thought you both were annual passholders so you would have got the EPA benefit - but maybe you didn't use it to prove a point...?? Most Holiday Inn Express by us have the free hot breakfast, which is a good perk to have - it saves on one meal. Maybe you didn't get that...?? It's not like it is the most wonderful breakfast in the world, but its food and its free!! I don't think I would stay off site unless I was desperate. But then, even a bad day at Universal is better than a so-so day at home! LOL!
Such good points here! We have a military annual pass (it doesn’t include EPA unfortunately) but it has tons of extra perks for a great price that’s hard to beat. As for free breakfast… you should have seen Aub’s face when they told us the Holiday inn we were staying at didn’t have one. 😂😅 we thought it would as well, since that’s been our experience. That’s said, we agree that at least being at Universal (even if staying off site) is still better than a day not at universal. 🤗🙌😂 any plans to go back and visit the parks soon?
@@fudge_factor We are HOPING to go sometime next Feb. for Mardi Gras. If we are lucky, we will get a good concert and MAYBE be able to include an OI Meetup - which we have never gone to before. Tall order, huh??!!
Not outside the realm of possibility! There is usually a February OI meetup, during Mardi Gras, and usually includes a concert weekend! It’s possible 💜💛💚
The fact that the maid obviously didn't come in and clean if they left things someone left behind and that means dirty sheets is making my skin crawl...
Through watching your videos about universal studios, you like to stay in an onsite hotel (which is understandable). As I watched this video earlier, you stated your thoughts about an offsite hotel. Two questions: 1) if you willingly or had to stay in an off site hotel, do you have a suggestion? & 2) have you considered the gaylord Orlando resort? I came across it through watching videos about universal studios & I thought I saw a video about them and (I think) they mentioned having transportation to different “parks” in Orlando. Which means no early admission obviously.
Aside from this one we have not stayed off site, so we would have to ask other people their thoughts! We had one friend that said the Sheraton was alright! We have not heard of it! Should we check it out?
@@fudge_factor I’ve only heard & read about it. A few years ago, I knew someone that stayed at the Gaylord in Nashville. I like the images & videos they showed of that one. As I’ve been thinking about a possible trip to universal studios, I found out there was a Gaylord in Orlando. As I’ve looked it up and liked what I saw, I’ve thought about staying there. That was before I started looking into universal and found out they had onsite hotels. Most likely, if I were to make it to universal, I would probably stay onsite. It would come down to whether I want the early admission &/or express passes. But to answer your question, I do think it would be a good place to check out. If I were to visit Orlando, and whether I went to universal or not, I’d most likely stay there.
@@Brian4LifeWe’ve stayed at several of the rooms at Gaylord Palms and would highly recommend getting the Gulf Coast rooms if you can. This is the newest tower and has the nicest rooms at the moment. The beautiful atrium view rooms are slowly getting out dated, even though you can’t beat having a view of the atrium (warning you do hear a lot of noise in these rooms if your a light sleeper). It’s a nice hotel and there are a couple of good places to eat (pricey but good). Also, the water park is fun for an additional cost. It’s not. Volcano Bay but for a resort they did a nice job. Gaylord Palms is also part of the Marriott chains so you can use your Marriott Bonvoy points. We posted above and highly recommend either the renovated Marriott World Center or Ritz Carlton and JW at Grande Lakes. Also the Hyatt Regency at the convention center and Hilton Orlando at the Convention Center are nice as well just not sure if they have transportation, I think the Hilton might because they are a Universal Partner Hotel. Sorry so much info we’ve stayed at several places in Orlando so I hope this is helpful.
@@melissaTFWThank you for the input. It is nice to have others thoughts & experiences. I knew it was a Marriott. But didn’t know about the points / rewards. Good to know. Does seem like a place I would visit!
It saves to stay offsite at Disney. Universal, hell to the nah! You can’t beat the EPA, the walking paths, or transportation. Yeah the parking charges are a little steep but it’s worth it.
@@fudge_factor in my opinion yes. 30 minute early park was not worth it to me. I was in line those 30 minutes; even after arriving an hour prior to that. We stayed at Art of Animation. It’s a value resort. It was ok. Doesn’t compare to Universal resorts 😊
Pro for onsight...package delivery! No lugging around merchandise purchases all day is worth a bunch!
Truth!! Important note though is timing! You have to have at least 24 hours to get it delivered!
@@fudge_factor true, but I've usually shopped my limit by day three of four so...I'm good!
🤣😂
The resorts also ship home as well. That way you don't have to worry about taking things on a plane. Cost of shipping is based on the price of your purchase.
That’s great insight!
I've stayed off site plenty of times. Best western, holiday inn,(right across the street) rosen inn(i-drive). Close enough to walk or use the hotel's courtesy shuttle. The universal shuttle every 15 minutes vs maybe 3-5 a day is the game changer for me.
That is a huge game changer. The holiday inn you had to reserve and it only ran until the mid afternoon. Not great for hhn season! Which is your favorite?
@@fudge_factor It's been years since i've stayed off-site. I really liked the rosen inns, but you just about had to take the shuttles. If i'm not mistaken they ran 8 or 9 am, again around 3 or 4, and return trips were around 10, 11, and 12. Best western and holiday were easy walks to the parks and stay all day when i was in my 50's. In my 60's, i'm getting on the water taxi back to adventura and taking a nap before i head back for hhn. :D
haha sounds just like us! 😂🤣 We have to get that mid afternoon nap 😴
nearby was a hotel fairly large, 3 star rated . first trip down there, i had to book with another place quickly. THis hotel i wont name was a 1.5 star at best. first room, the safe was missing from the wall itself, the toilet seat broken, the carpet looked gross. they moved me to a new room the safe did not have any type of locking mechinism, the liquid stain on ceiling from room above was a gross brown colour, i crunched on a beetle or worse when i first stepped in. after that i did my research and only stay on property but might try the hilton nearby.
Oh sheesh….thats not a fun stay at all!! Talk about adding stress to a stay! What did you do?!
I just stayed at the Sheraton 1 mile from CityWalk. Perfect location for walking to the park for HHN and great rooms (it’s really close to the Endless Summer resorts)
We might have to try that one if we stay off site again! How did it compare price wise to staying in site?
@@fudge_factorit ended up being $90/night for 10/30-11/1. Not too bad and I’m not an AP holder so maybe 30% cheaper than staying on property for me
That’s good to know! Especially for people looking to save some $$ when going to uni!
We've thought about staying off-site hotels. I think you've convinced us not to. Appreciate it
Absolutely!! The on sites are definitely the way to go!
We highly recommend staying at either the JW Marriott or Ritz Carlton at Grande Lakes or the Marriott at the World Center. All of them have free transportation and have fantastic accommodations and dining. You do have to schedule your transportation but it’s just a quick phone call and you’re all set. Also, if you guys are annual passholder you should have been able to go to EPA, it’s one of the perks of being AP.
Oooo those sound nice! We might have to try those next time!
We do the military annual pass, which is cheaper but doesn’t get a ton of perks with it. Certainly not complaining about it. Just no epa
Yes I can restart my streak!!!!! Another day another video on the beach🤣🤣🤣
Woot woot!!
Great Video Ben and Aub❤❤. Was very interesting to watch. Y’all are brave I think if I was in yawls position and everything was sold out I would definitely look at staying off site. Would not be happy about it though. Keep up the amazing work you guys are almost a 5K look at y’all.😊😊❤❤❤
We certainly think being at Universal is better than not, so if we had to stay off site we would do it again! We would just prefer on site if at all possible!
We are getting there! You’ve been with us since the beginning and we cannot thank you enough for it!! 🙏 we are glad we can keep creating videos you enjoy!!
@ 💯 agree. 👍 y’all have grown so much and so fast 💨. I have truly enjoyed watching it all unfold. I really don’t get how y’all don’t have 100k plus followers. 🤯Y’all are fabulous 🥰🥰. Keep up the amazing work I know it’s all gonna pay off soon 🔜 ❤️❤️
Just gotta keep pushing on! We truly appreciate all the support! We couldn’t do it without yall!
On site just seems to be so much better for costs and convenience. That said, I always fly to MCO and do not rent cars. So I use both Uber and Lyft, the costs vary, but in the end, it is a lot less money than rental fees and parking. This includes going to Disney or Sea World from a Universal hotel. I tried the Universal airport bus service once, it was OK by myself, but if I had a group of two or more, Uber/Lyft costs a lot less.
Totally agree with you! We used to fly, and second your stance on the shuttle service! Having uber or lyft just makes more sense and costs about the same as the shuttle, and then you don't have to pay the additional parking fees. We enjoy being in the Universal bubble and the team members make the experience even better!
Are you guys going to do a follow up video for HHN final house rankings? We just got back from going to HHN on Wednesday and Halloween night, interested to see your final rankings along with scare zones/food.
We could do that! What was your final ranking??
I stayed offsite for the February 2024 OI Meetup. BIG MISTAKE! While it was cheaper and still pretty close to the parks, the one big item that set me off: Resort Fee. When going to Vegas and staying on the strip, I have no issue paying the stated resort fee. However, a low-budget hotel with a minimal pool...nope, that's not a resort, I don't care how minimal the fee is. The third party that I booked through didn't disclose any resort fee and didn't say I had to pay anything at the hotel. I refused to pay the hotel the resort fee and called the third party I booked through. After an interesting conversation, the third party agreed to pay the fee to the hotel. So that's a scam to watch out for at offsite hotels. Going forward I am only staying onsite.
Interesting! That’s a good point. If you pay a resort fee you kind of expect a resort feel!
No issue here with paying a resort fee, as you typically don't pay for parking. Universal has "resort fees" as well, as the parking fees are ridiculous.
I never have a car with, so don't have to pay for parking. However, parking fees are typically disclosed and expected.
Agreed on both! Parking fees are definitely something to include in the budget! At 20 dollars a day or more it can add up!
I've considered staying at off-site hotels, but the price of the Value hotels a lot of times are comparable to those non Universal hotels closest to the parks, or just a little more expensive. Besides the pricing, I don't have to drive anywhere during my stay (love living in the Universal bubble for a few days😊), and I don't have to worry about the quality of the hotel. The service, cleanliness, and comfort of the Universal hotels is uniformly excellent, and it's worth spending a little extra for what you end up getting. Value hotels are great if you're on a budget, like I frequently am. I am a Florida resident and annual passholder, so I do get a price break, so do what makes financial sense for you, but I definitely recommend staying on site if possible. Wow, didn't mean to make an ad for Universal hotels, but it really came out that way😂
We love it!! The onsite hotels are great and the team members always make it an even better experience!! We will fight to stay on site every single time!
@@fudge_factorAs an aside, Ben's "I can't take this anymore" face at the end cracked me up. To the Universal hotels, where showers always drain! (Or at least if they don't, someone will come fix it quickly)
Haha Ben got pretty frustrated because he’s in charge of booking hotels…so if it’s a lackluster stay he feels responsible 😅
Thanks for the reminder to always book early for onsite hotels! I have no desire to be off site 😅 The clothes that were left has me 🤮🤢. Why wouldn’t they remove that?
Great question….we wondered if someone was already booked for our room!
On site all the way!
Valet parking entrance is amazing
That’s definitely a secret security spot! There was no one there!
Another GREAT video - as usual! I often wondered about if staying off-site is worth it. I would have thought you both were annual passholders so you would have got the EPA benefit - but maybe you didn't use it to prove a point...?? Most Holiday Inn Express by us have the free hot breakfast, which is a good perk to have - it saves on one meal. Maybe you didn't get that...?? It's not like it is the most wonderful breakfast in the world, but its food and its free!! I don't think I would stay off site unless I was desperate. But then, even a bad day at Universal is better than a so-so day at home! LOL!
Such good points here! We have a military annual pass (it doesn’t include EPA unfortunately) but it has tons of extra perks for a great price that’s hard to beat. As for free breakfast… you should have seen Aub’s face when they told us the Holiday inn we were staying at didn’t have one. 😂😅 we thought it would as well, since that’s been our experience. That’s said, we agree that at least being at Universal (even if staying off site) is still better than a day not at universal. 🤗🙌😂 any plans to go back and visit the parks soon?
@@fudge_factor We are HOPING to go sometime next Feb. for Mardi Gras. If we are lucky, we will get a good concert and MAYBE be able to include an OI Meetup - which we have never gone to before. Tall order, huh??!!
Not outside the realm of possibility! There is usually a February OI meetup, during Mardi Gras, and usually includes a concert weekend! It’s possible 💜💛💚
The fact that the maid obviously didn't come in and clean if they left things someone left behind and that means dirty sheets is making my skin crawl...
Ohhh trust me….aub was aware lol. She was paranoid
2:39 or go to portfolio bay and take the boat
Facts! We did end up doing that a time or two 🤫
Through watching your videos about universal studios, you like to stay in an onsite hotel (which is understandable). As I watched this video earlier, you stated your thoughts about an offsite hotel. Two questions: 1) if you willingly or had to stay in an off site hotel, do you have a suggestion? & 2) have you considered the gaylord Orlando resort? I came across it through watching videos about universal studios & I thought I saw a video about them and (I think) they mentioned having transportation to different “parks” in Orlando. Which means no early admission obviously.
Aside from this one we have not stayed off site, so we would have to ask other people their thoughts! We had one friend that said the Sheraton was alright! We have not heard of it! Should we check it out?
@@fudge_factor I’ve only heard & read about it. A few years ago, I knew someone that stayed at the Gaylord in Nashville. I like the images & videos they showed of that one. As I’ve been thinking about a possible trip to universal studios, I found out there was a Gaylord in Orlando. As I’ve looked it up and liked what I saw, I’ve thought about staying there. That was before I started looking into universal and found out they had onsite hotels. Most likely, if I were to make it to universal, I would probably stay onsite. It would come down to whether I want the early admission &/or express passes. But to answer your question, I do think it would be a good place to check out. If I were to visit Orlando, and whether I went to universal or not, I’d most likely stay there.
@@Brian4LifeWe’ve stayed at several of the rooms at Gaylord Palms and would highly recommend getting the Gulf Coast rooms if you can. This is the newest tower and has the nicest rooms at the moment. The beautiful atrium view rooms are slowly getting out dated, even though you can’t beat having a view of the atrium (warning you do hear a lot of noise in these rooms if your a light sleeper). It’s a nice hotel and there are a couple of good places to eat (pricey but good). Also, the water park is fun for an additional cost. It’s not. Volcano Bay but for a resort they did a nice job. Gaylord Palms is also part of the Marriott chains so you can use your Marriott Bonvoy points. We posted above and highly recommend either the renovated Marriott World Center or Ritz Carlton and JW at Grande Lakes. Also the Hyatt Regency at the convention center and Hilton Orlando at the Convention Center are nice as well just not sure if they have transportation, I think the Hilton might because they are a Universal Partner Hotel. Sorry so much info we’ve stayed at several places in Orlando so I hope this is helpful.
Love all the info!! It’ll certainly help people weigh their options!!
@@melissaTFWThank you for the input. It is nice to have others thoughts & experiences. I knew it was a Marriott. But didn’t know about the points / rewards. Good to know. Does seem like a place I would visit!
It saves to stay offsite at Disney. Universal, hell to the nah! You can’t beat the EPA, the walking paths, or transportation. Yeah the parking charges are a little steep but it’s worth it.
That’s good to know about Disney!! You think it’s worth staying off site there?
@@fudge_factor in my opinion yes. 30 minute early park was not worth it to me. I was in line those 30 minutes; even after arriving an hour prior to that. We stayed at Art of Animation. It’s a value resort. It was ok. Doesn’t compare to Universal resorts 😊
That’s great to know!! Uni for the win 😎
That where I stayed for HHN 32 😂😂😂
Stayed at the double tree this year.
How did they compare?
@@fudge_factorthe double tree was hands down better. And I don’t have to cross the road to get to the crosswalk platform.
Plus double tree lobby cookies!