Today I am going to review some tips I used to help me plan for our vacation to Universal Studio Orlando, FL. I have read half of the Harry Potter book series and watched all the movies. My fiance on the other hand is obsessed.  Living in Southern California give us  the privilege to visit Universal Studio as many time as we wanted to. At one point, we even hold the Universal Season Pass.

“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.” —Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

M. tried out some magic at the Diagon Alley in Universal, Orlando

This year, our trip to  Universal Studio in Orlando, FL in April was amazing. Allow me to share my experience with you:

When Is The Best Time To Go?

The best time is go is during the month of March to May: avoid the crazy hot and humid weather plus and way too crowded park when summer starts. We planned our vacation during the first week of April because that was my fiance’s spring break. Turned out it was the best time to go because:

  • It was the last week of Spring Break for many colleges and universities so it wasn’t as crowded as it was compared to the week before
  • Weather was just right: not too hot and not too humid. It rained only twice.

How To Get Cheap Airplane Tickets?

We use our points to purchase air tickets

If you have credit card points, use them. I have both Chase Sapphire Preferred and Freedom, which allow me to combine all the points together.

TIP: When combining points, make sure to convert over to Sapphire because points worth more when redeem for travel under Sapphire Preferred. On their website, Chase suggests that their customers get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards. An example is 60,000 points are worth $750 toward travel.

How To Get Good Deals on Hotel?

Loews Portofino Bay Hotel

We did a lot of research by going through AAA deals and travel packages on UniversalOrlando.com. We wanted our hotel to be close to the attraction so we don’t have to spend money on Uber or car rental. There were so many options to choose from:

The best way to decide what hotel you want to stay at is to look at the comparison between the resorts. Out of all the selections, only 3 offers Free Universal Express Unlimited: Loews Portofino Bay Hotel, Hardock Hotel, and Loews Royal Pacific Resorts. We wanted the Universal Express Unlimited because it allowed can go on any rides without waiting in the lines as many times as we want to. It was a great choice because

When to Book Hotel?

This was where we stayed at. Amazing Italian theme and this was the view looking back at our hotel from the water taxi.

In general, we always plan our vacation at least two months ahead of time. It allowed us to get better deals on vacation packages and especially on airline tickets.

Related:

Should You Get Car Rental?

Orlando is 1 hour away from Cocoa Beach

I don’t recommend renting a car.

Orlando located in the center and it is about an hour away from the beach. There was only one car rental service in our hotel (Loews Portofino). Car rental fee was expensive: about $110 for 24 hrs, plus gas.

Our hotel offered bus shuttle that could take guess to the beach. But it was a hassle because it costed $30 one way and we wouldn’t have the freedom of exploring around since we have to rely on the bus schedule.

Our Vacation Video

Here is a little clip that I put together for our vacation. Enjo

What About Foods? Where To Eat?

Portofino, italy

Well, there were restaurants and event Starbucks at Loews Portofino Hotel. We tried almost all the restaurants there. They were all delicious and within reasonable price. If you haven’t yet figured it out,  Portofino is a real village in Italy. Their themes and restaurants are inspired by this real village in Italy. And if you like Italian foods, you pick the right place.

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