What kind of theme park privileges do you get staying at US resort?

[wdwfreak]

I've heard about somehting similar to EE at Disney and also front of the line privileges for guests of US resorts. Can anyone explain these perks to me in detail (if they exist)?

 

[damo]

If you stay at one of the resorts you get express line access for every ride that has one with no restrictions. There is no EE.

 

[themepark]

Having unlimited front of the line access to the rides is the best perk EVER! Your room key is your express pass. All you do is show your room key to the attendants at the rides (and most shows) and you enter through the express line. Sometimes they will scan them, sometimes they don't. You have FOTL access each day of your stay including the the day you check in and the day you check out.

 

[Eclpz314]

We were there in July and even though I had read over and over again on these boards how great fotl was......wow, it went beyond my wildest expectations! I had a lot of concerns with taking a midsummer vacation to Florida again with the heat and long lines for attractions. Staying onsite at US with fotl access spoiled us enough that we're going back this July without concern. Another thing I really appreciated as US was being able to take a 10 min. walk past all kinds of tropical flowers and arrive at the parks. When we were tired after a long day we could take the water taxi. Oh, and I guess one more thing. Staying at the Royal Pacific seemed like it was far away from a theme park. It wasn't done up in US theming, it was South Seas, right down to the original handcarvings and statues......it was very relaxing early in the a.m. just walking around the resort with my cup of coffee. We plan to take time to see Hard Rock Hotel and Portofino this trip as I've heard/read that they're very nice also.

 

[muntzfab4]

We stayed at HRH last April during spring break and never waited more than 10 minutes with FOTL. It was awesome!

 

[wdwphanatic]

FOTL is AWESOME!!!!! Nothing compares to it at Disney. It basically means that you can show up at either of the parks at noon during the busiest time of the year and not have to wait more than 15 minutes or so for virtually any attraction...

Fastpass at Disney is very similar to Express Pass at Universal. If you're not staying at one of the on-site hotels, you can take advantage of that... Doesn't begin to compare with the FOTL access for hotel guests, however!

Hope this helps,
Sarah

 

[MadamG2U]

FOTL pass is why I just booked 2 rooms for August. I can't wait. We went last year in August and never felt the pressure of waiting in long lines in the sun. The kids have even said they would rather go to Universal because they never hear "the line is to long!"

 

[SHarrison]

I just bought Kelly Monaghan's 2004 Universal Book (great book if you are interested in only Universal!!) and the one drawback to the fotl access that he noted was that you will miss the "storyline" of the ride that most people see while waiting in line. Has this bothered anyone or does it really not matter??

 

[gschmerl]

Originally posted by SHarrison
I just bought Kelly Monaghan's 2004 Universal Book (great book if you are interested in only Universal!!) and the one drawback to the fotl access that he noted was that you will miss the "storyline" of the ride that most people see while waiting in line. Has this bothered anyone or does it really not matter??

On certain rides, you might want to go in the "regular" line if the wait isn't too long. For instance, make sure you walk through the castle of Dueling Dragons at least once.