Sapphire Falls or Dockside?

[kizmet311]

So, there is a HUGE price difference between the Kids Suite at Sapphire and the 2-Bedroom Suite at Dockside. We are looking at a 5-night stay from December 15-20.

Is Sapphire worth the the extra money? I know the suite is about 100 square feet bigger at Sapphire, but what are the other advantages to Sapphire? I'm a certified hotel snob, but I'm also trying to convince my husband to do this trip and a lower price would certainly help my case. It looks like the 2-Bedroom Suite at Dockside would be about $600 cheaper than a standard 2-Queen room at Sapphire and about $1,600 cheaper than the Kids Suite that I really wanted at Sapphire. Thoughts.

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

So, there is a HUGE price difference between the Kids Suite at Sapphire and the 2-Bedroom Suite at Dockside. We are looking at a 5-night stay from December 15-20.

Is Sapphire worth the the extra money? I know the suite is about 100 square feet bigger at Sapphire, but what are the other advantages to Sapphire? I'm a certified hotel snob, but I'm also trying to convince my husband to do this trip and a lower price would certainly help my case. It looks like the 2-Bedroom Suite at Dockside would be about $600 cheaper than a standard 2-Queen room at Sapphire and about $1,600 cheaper than the Kids Suite that I really wanted at Sapphire. Thoughts.

I don’t know if I should answer this because we’ve never stayed at sapphire, but we like dockside. It is bare bones but has an upbeat vibe. Is it $1600 cheaper over the five nights (like $300 extra/night)? Because that actually sounds like a decent price for a suite at sapphire. We saw a similar price spread between dockside 2 bedroom and sapphire but the sapphire was just one standard hotel room,

 

[kizmet311]

I don’t know if I should answer this because we’ve never stayed at sapphire, but we like dockside. It is bare bones but has an upbeat vibe. Is it $1600 cheaper over the five nights (like $300 extra/night)? Because that actually sounds like a decent price for a suite at sapphire. We saw a similar price spread between dockside 2 bedroom and sapphire but the sapphire was just one standard hotel room,

Based on what my planner quoted for a 5-night stay in the Kids Suite at Sapphire, it was $1600 more for the entire trip to do that rather than the 2-Bedroom suite at Dockside. So, around $2200-2300 for 2-Bedroom at Dockside and around $3800 for Kids Suite at Sapphire. Of course, the prices I am getting for Dockside were from my own pricing on the Universal website.

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Just out of curiosity, are you looking at AP rates? Because with one AP, you are looking at $2,834.56 all in for the "Kids Suite with a connecting Pool View 2 Queen Room" at Sapphire. Or $771.53 all in for the 2 bedroom pool view suite at Dockside. Worth the upgrade to save $1000.

Sapphire is obviously a different class of hotel. It'll be quieter, better features, better amenities, better pool, ability to pool hop (though you won't need to, Sapphire's pool is great), and the water taxis are lovely of course. Worth is subjective, but I would think "hotel snobs" would prefer Sapphire. You can also do a split stay if you would like to experience both.

 

[tony67]

Personally Id stay at Dockside. I had a similar issue where it was 100 a night for dockside and 180 for Aventura.
I really prefer Aventura but 800 (10 nights) buys a lot of drinks and food. If I had been able to get the AP rate for Aventura of 140 then that might have changed things. Since I am not there for the hotel other than to sleep I see no point is spending the extra.

That said make sure you look at the "suite" at dockside vs the suite at Sapphire.

The Dockside suite is one large area with kitchen and two beds and then a small separate room - so not really a two bedroom suite IMO. So be sure it will fit your needs.

Also with Dockside you cant pool hop which I just found out this week - so that is a bit annoying but I get it.

Lastly as the PP said - make sure you look at upgrading one of your tickets to an Annual Pass and see what that will save you. You can book an AP rate without actually having the AP as long as you have it when you get there. Depending the pass you can also get discounts on food, merch etc..

 

[healthydoseofdisney]

Obviously for price Dockside is the winner in this. I love Sapphire Falls it’s my favorite Universal resort. Not only is it beautiful but the rooms are very nice, the amenities are wonderful and the boat transportation is a nice touch. I suggest checking out this resort at a time it’s cheaper or has some type of discount because it is worth the stay but it can get expensive.

 

[Skippyboo]

Have you looked at Suites at Cabana Bay sort of in between hotel level of SF and Dockside, you still are north of I4, pool hopping, food court, multiple pools, bowling alley.

SF is nice hotel, water taxi, sit down restaurant, cool bar, their market/QS is pretty weak but that’s typically the norm for higher tier Universal hotels.

Are you planning on spending all day at the parks or more time at the hotel?

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

We stayed at Surfside just a regular room but found the buses to be very efficient.

Only you know your husband but if the lower rate is a big way to sway him you might have to slide that hotel snob in you to the side for the trip.

Some things to consider:

• Kids suite at Sapphire has a 2nd bathroom whereas the 2 bedroom suite at Dockside does not.
• Kids suite at Sapphire has twin beds for the kids and the 2 bedroom suite at Dockside has queen beds for the kids.
• Kids suite at Sapphire has a king bed for you and your husband and the 2 bedroom suite at Dockside has a queen bed for you and your husband.

Personally I wouldn't downgrade the overall space in terms of functionality by going with Sapphire 2 queen room with looking at other rooms that are suites as that means your kids have to share a bed, you and your husband do not have any separation from your kids and to boot you still only have 1 bathroom.

As an honest observation here don't set yourself up from the onset to automatically prefer the higher end hotel just because it's higher end. You're comparing Universal's lowest category of Value with the 2nd highest category of Preferred. You can expect that the Preferred hotel will be nicer overall. That doesn't mean it's the right one for you to choose just on that.

Since split stay was brought up I'd rather do the combo of Value hotel for 4 nights with Premier hotel (Universal's highest level for hotels) for 1 night and get the Express Pass for 2 days with just that 1 night stay (you get Express Pass for check in through check out day so 1 night nets you 2 days of Express Pass). In that respects Royal Pacific tends to be the cheapest of the 3 Premier hotels.

 

[lisam70]

Since split stay was brought up I'd rather do the combo of Value hotel for 4 nights with Premier hotel (Universal's highest level for hotels) for 1 night and get the Express Pass for 2 days with just that 1 night stay (you get Express Pass for check in through check out day so 1 night nets you 2 days of Express Pass). In that respects Royal Pacific tends to be the cheapest of the 3 Premier hotels.

I would recommend this as well.
Yes SF is a nicer hotel but for the price difference to me personally not worth it. I would much rather pay a little more for the premier resorts to get EP and balance that out with a split stay at either CB or Aventura. The family suites at CB are pretty roomy but only one bathroom with the sink, toilet, and shower are all separate.
Or if you don't want to switch resorts you can book one night at the cheapest premiere as a throw away room to get EP and just stay at Dockside.

 

[MIChessGuy]

Last month, when my solo booking at Dockside was upgraded to a suite at check-in for some reason, I remember being surprised at the lone bathroom in the suite. Of course it did not affect me as I had no suite-mates. But this kind of thing struck me as a major fail. If I were considering one kind of room vs a similar kind, that missing 2nd bathroom would be difficult for me to get past. Also, the alleged kitchen was unimpressive -- coffeemaker, a sink, an underpowered-looking microwave and a maybe 4-ish square foot refrigerator. I did appreciate that they supplied some paper plates and plasticware, though.

 

[nighttowll]

Lots of great points made already, but the one thing that is the deal breaker for me hasn't been mentioned. When I stay at Universal, I love that you can walk. I love staying on property with everything all right together. That and EP are the two reasons for me to bother with a hotel at all and not simply rent a condo or house.

We don't always walk, and I've taken buses from CB before without any issues, but I love having the option to walk. We find the walking path relaxing and enjoy strolling along it in early morning, and it's so nice to be able to just walk out your door and go. The boat ride is also nice, but we love that if there isn't a boat / bus ready when we are, we can just go. Enjoy taking the bicycle gondola carts as well. Although, you have to pay for those.

With kids, depending on ages, walking may not matter to you at all, but December will be great weather for walking.

I will also second all the people saying book at least one night at one of the Premier hotels for EP. We did that our first trip, booked a throw-away-room, as we actually had a condo off-site, and it worked out perfectly. One night gives you two days of EP, the day you check in and the day you check out.

Also, second getting one AP for the discounted rates if any are available. That could save you more than switching to Dockside would. You can check the rates from the link found in the AP Resort Rate thread here and can book the AP rate room without having your AP yet. You just need to have the AP by your stay. Only 1 person in the room needs an AP to get the rate. If you guys decide you like Universal and might want to come back, you can upgrade your regular tickets to AP tickets at any time as long as they are still good. It's a huge savings over paying for two sets of regular tickets each year, but for the room rates, you only need one AP ticket.

I've not stayed at Dockside as I have no desire to stay "off" property, but CB I've stayed at a few times and always enjoyed. It's really nice, especially for a value. It's more on the Disney Moderate level than a value, and I guess now that they have added Dockside and Endless Summer as the new value hotels, it being a moderate is more accurate. I would checkout the AP rates for it. Not sure availability or price difference for your dates, but I'd do it over Dockside. The theming is amazing. The views of Volcano Bay are great. The pool has a lazy river, and although it is a long walk, you can still walk or you can take the boat to Sapphire and then walk the last bit, so there are options besides the bus if needed.