This is a confusing topic because the hotel itself has some discretion with regard to when you have

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Purchasing a Universal Orlando annual pass can be an expensive proposition but it can be much more expensive to decide to stay on-site. Luckily, because of the discounted rates offered by Universal s on-site hotels, becoming an Annual Passholder may actually save you money when you add up all the numbers. On this page we re going to look at everything involved in pricing out what option is best for you!
If you are an Annual Passholder with a Preferred or Premier Pass, you can save up to 46% on hotel stays at Universal s on-site hotels. APH = Annual Passholder rate. As you might imagine, the discounts are greatest in the off season and will be smaller or non-existent when the parks are busy.
But if you are traveling when the discounts are maximized, purchasing an annual pass instead of a regular ticket may just save you money when it s all said and done. For example, if you were already planning on buying a 4-day Park-to-Park admission ticket for yourself, you ll be spending around $170. If instead you purchased cheap car rental in orlando florida a Preferred Annual Pass, you d pay around $280 roughly a $110 difference. Considering cheap car rental in orlando florida the on-site hotel room rates start at $250 to $300 per night, by cutting that price nearly in half with an APH discount you can see how upgrading to an annual pass could cover the $110 difference and then some.
And if you do end up with a Preferred Pass, there are other benefits too, such as complimentary self-parking at the main Universal garage (unfortunately not at the hotel), discounts on food and beverages, etc. You can see all the benefits cheap car rental in orlando florida by clicking here .
So that s where this discussion comes in: You are a first-time visitor to Universal Orlando. You re thinking that it might be less expensive for you to purchase an annual pass and get the Universal on-site hotel discount than buy a regular ticket and pay the hotel rack rate. So how do you check prices, what are the logistics for booking the hotel at the annual pass rate, and how do you pick up your pass and get checked in? That s what we will dig into right now!
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT: You must book the annual pass discount rate in advance . You cannot book the regular rate and then, midway cheap car rental in orlando florida through your stay at the hotel, whip out your annual pass and get the discount applied to your stay.
When you re using the online hotel reservation system to check the available cheap car rental in orlando florida AP discount rates, here is what you ll get depending on what s available. First, if there is no APH rate available, you ll get something that looks like this:
One more note about pricing out your on-site stay: As a general rule of thumb, the APH rates are available about three to six months in advance. So, if you search for your travel dates and an APH rate does not come up, that does not necessarily mean it will never be available. Instead, it could just mean that the hotels haven t published the APH rates yet for when you re traveling. The best thing to do at this point is call the reservation department at 1-888-464-3617 and ask the agent about your dates.
As the policy sits right now, you can print out annual passes at any of the on-site cheap car rental in orlando florida hotel s Will Call Kiosks if you purchased a non-Florida resident pass. On the other hand, you cannot print them out at the on-site hotel s Will Call Kiosks if you purchased a Florida resident pass; in that case, you need to go to a ticket window at the parks because they have to check your Florida ID.
So, when you are purchasing cheap car rental in orlando florida your pass, you need to double-check the pick up options. If you indeed are told that your pass can be picked up at a Will Call Kiosk, then you should have no problem getting it right at any of the on-site hotels. Here s what you re looking for if you are making the purchase online at UniversalOrlando.com:
This is a confusing topic because the hotel itself has some discretion with regard to when you have to present your annual pass. Technically speaking, you are supposed to have your pass ready at check-in
However, this requirement can easily be waived by the hotel, and they can instead ask you to bring it by anytime during your stay. The reason for this is because the hotel doesn t actually settle your bill and pay your full balance until check-out, so the hotel can key in any room rate it wants at check-in. If you come by later and show your pass, you then get re-keyed at the AP rate. If you never come by and show your pass, then you just get re-keyed at the rack rate the night before you check-out.
All this being said, if you will not have your pass with you at check-in, I highly recommend that you call the hotel as far in advance as possible and let them know. Chances are they ll say no big deal and note your reservation that you ll bring the pass by later on. But, in any case, it is a much better idea to address this before check-in than wait until you arrive, only to get a new person at the Front Desk that is sticking to the rules, so to speak, and won t let you check-in at the AP rate without first presenting cheap car rental in orlando florida your pass.
On Friday I called the HRH directly and said I had a question about my reservation. Before I managed to ask for a manager, I was transferred to an Onsite Reservations Specialist , but the woman who spoke with me was kind and helpful cheap car rental in orlando florida so I thought I d talk to her first before asking for a manager onsite. She also told me I didn t have to have my AP with me to check in, but I could just come back to desk and show it later that day. Source
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT: You must book the annual pass discount rate in advance cheap car rental in orlando florida . You cannot book the regular rate and then, midway through your stay at the hotel, buy an annual pass and get the discount cheap car rental in orlando florida applied to your stay.
The 365 days of admission you receive with a Universal Orlando annual cheap car rental in orlando florida pass (minus blockout dates if applicable) begin the very first time you use your pass at one of the parks turnstiles they do not begin when you purchase or pick up the pass. So, in theory, you could print your pass at the Will Call Kiosk, carry it around for a few weeks, and your 365 days of admission will not have begun. Then, after a few weeks, if you go to the parks and play, your 365 days will begin. Universal calls this activating your pass.
The catch here is that, per Universal policy, cheap car rental in orlando florida your annual pass benefits do not begin until your pass has been activated. That means, if you pick up your pass but don t take it through the turnstiles at least once, you cannot use your pass for complimentary cheap car rental in orlando florida self-parking, discounts on admission tickets and merchandise, cheap car rental in orlando florida etc. (You can see all the Universal Orlando annual pass benefits by clicking here .)
So how does this pertain to our discussion about Portofino Bay Hotel, Hard Rock Hotel, and Royal Pacific Resort? Well, this is actually a bit of a loophole. If you pick up your pass at one of the on-site hotels then go to check-in, you obviously cheap car rental in orlando florida won t have used it first to go into one of the parks which means that the pass won t be activated. But it turns out that the Front Desk doesn t actually have a way of knowing whether or not your pass is activated. Because it is unlikely that you would pay for an annual pass and never activate it, the front desk takes it on faith that, sooner or later during cheap car rental in orlando florida your stay, your pass will end up being activated and you will qualify for the annual pass rate.
That s a really long way of saying that you don t have to activate your annual pass before check-in, even though technically you re not supposed to receive your AP benefits until you ve done so. (For the technically minded, it may be worth noting that since you actually settle your bill when you check-out, and you will have certainly used your pass by then, this isn t really a loophole.)
I definitely recognize that this discussion can be a bit heavy. I ve done my best to present all the necessary information so you can maximize your savings and have a smooth cheap car rental in orlando florida check-in process. Good luck with the numbers I hope it all adds up in your favor!
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Dan is a former Universal Orlando team member, student cheap car rental in orlando florida at UCF Rosen College of Hospitality Management, and the OI guy who works full-time to bring you the very best Universal vacation planning information. Originally from St. Paul, MN, Dan now lives in Ocoee, FL (on the edge of Orlando) with his wife Rosie, their daughter Noa, and a new baby on the way!
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