How to Plan a Free Universal Orlando Trip Using Rewards
A trip to Universal Orlando Resort is an unforgettable adventure, but the costs can add up quickly. Flights, hotels, park tickets, and meals can easily put a strain on your budget.
The good news? With the right mix of credit card points, miles, and cash-back rewards, you can make that dream trip surprisingly affordable, or even free.
In this guide, I’ll walk you through exactly how to plan a free Universal Orlando trip using rewards—designed as a weekend getaway that maximizes time in the parks while keeping costs as low as possible—so you can enjoy every moment without worrying about the price.
🛏️ Hotel: Where to Stay with Rewards
Let’s start with where to stay. Choosing the right hotel can make a big difference in both convenience and cost. While staying off-site is often cheaper, staying at a Universal hotel has perks like complimentary transportation to and from the parks and Early Park Admission—which can really maximize your time, especially on a short trip.
Since I wanted the least expensive on-site option, I focused on Universal’s value hotels. Booking directly with Universal would have cost just over $500, but I knew there might be a better deal booking through a credit card travel portal.
These portals—offered by issuers like Chase, Citi, and American Express—allow you to book travel using rewards. The process is similar to using any travel booking site: search for your destination, compare options, and pay with points at checkout. If you have a qualifying card, your points can be worth more per dollar when redeemed this way.
Not all theme park hotels appear on these portals, but Universal hotels often do. For this trip, I used the Chase Travel Portal, where, at the time of this writing, my Ultimate Rewards® points are worth 25% more thanks to my Chase Ink Preferred® card. Chase is phasing out its fixed redemption values and replacing them with a variable rate “Points Boost” program.
I booked the all-new Universal Terra Luna Resort, a Prime Value property located next to the new Epic Universe park. It offers a great mix of affordability, proximity, and on-site perks—making it a perfect match for a weekend rewards trip.
- Hotel: Universal Terra Luna Resort
- Class: Value
- Nights: 2
- Cash Price: $517.51
- Rewards Strategy: Book using points through the Chase Travel Portal
- Cost: 39,418 Ultimate Rewards® Points
- Out-of-Pocket Cost: $0
- Why This Option: Less expensive than booking direct and includes on-site perks
- Pro Tips: Check cancellation policies before booking, and try to reserve early for the best selection. Hotel availability through credit card travel portals can be limited. It’s also worth checking back regularly—prices can fluctuate as inventory updates. If your reservation is still within the refundable window, you may be able to cancel and rebook at a lower rate.
✈️ Flights: How to Book with Points
Airfare can quickly become one of the biggest expenses of a vacation—but it doesn’t have to be. By using airline miles or flexible travel rewards, you can significantly reduce (or even eliminate) your flight costs.
To start, I used Google Flights to compare options. It’s a great way to see which airlines fly the route, what times are available, how many stops each flight has, and what the cash prices look like. For a quick weekend trip, I knew I wanted a nonstop flight that I could book with points.
After narrowing it down, I found roundtrip JetBlue flights that worked well with our schedule. Since I had JetBlue TrueBlue points available, I searched for award availability on JetBlue’s website. While the cash price wasn’t too high, using points made the deal even better—especially with JetBlue’s generous change and cancellation policies. Like most award flights booked with points, I still had to pay a small amount in taxes and fees which I can cover with cash rewards from shopping portals.
- Route: Boston (BOS) ➜ Orlando (MCO), roundtrip
- Airline: JetBlue
- Class: Economy
- Number of Travelers: 2 adults
- Cash Price: $286.96 per person
- Rewards Strategy: Use JetBlue points
- Cost: 20K JetBlue points per person
- Out-of-Pocket Cost: $11.20 per person, covered with cash rewards
- Why This Option: Nonstop options, acceptable flight times, and low points cost
- Pro Tips: Be flexible with your travel dates when possible. Flying a day earlier or later can significantly reduce the number of points or miles needed—and may offer better flight times or availability.
🎟️ Theme Park Tickets: How to Save on Park Admission
Theme park tickets are often one of the biggest expenses of any trip—and one of the trickiest to cover with rewards. Fortunately, there are a few strategies that can help. Cash back credit cards can offset the cost, or you can buy tickets through travel sites like Undercover Tourist or Viator and use a card like the Capital One Venture Rewards to “erase” the purchase with miles.
Another option is to book tickets through a credit card travel portal. Universal tickets are often listed under the “Activities” section. Just like I did with the hotel, I searched the Chase Travel Portal and compared prices to buying directly from Universal. Thanks to the increased point rate from my Chase Ink Preferred® card, booking through the portal offered the best deal.
- Park: Universal Orlando Resort – Universal Epic Universe + Universal Studios Florida + Universal Islands of Adventure
- Ticket Type: 2-day, 1-day at Epic Universe, 1-day at Studios/Islands of Adventure
- Number of Tickets: 2 adult tickets
- Cash Price: $381.26 per person
- Rewards Strategy: Book using points through the Chase Travel Portal
- Cost: 30,500 Ultimate Rewards Points per person
- Out-of-Pocket Cost: $0
- Why This Option: Less expensive than paying cash, thanks to the points redemption bonus
- Pro Tips: When comparing ticket prices, make sure you’re looking at the same ticket type, and check whether taxes and fees are included in the price shown.
🍔 Meals: Cut Costs with Rewards
From butterbeer to burgers, food costs can add up quickly at theme parks. The first step is deciding how you want to dine. You can choose full-service restaurants, quick service, or a combination of both. Some full service restaurants require reservations, are time consuming, and can be costly. For this trip, I chose quick service for lunch and dinner to save time and money. My plan for breakfast each day is to pack something from home in my luggage to enjoy with coffee in the hotel room.
To estimate the cost for dining in the parks, I reviewed menus on Universal’s app and chose to allocate $125 per day for food, or $375 for the three-day trip. To stay hydrated without added costs, we’ll bring refillable water bottles instead of purchasing drinks.
I’ll use my Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards card to pay for meals since it earns 5.25% on dining as my selected category (with Platinum Honors status). Then I’ll offset the cost with money earned from a bank account bonus. Other ways to cover food costs could include redeeming rewards from shopping portals, cashback apps, or programs like Swagbucks.
- Dining Style: Counter service (lunch + dinner), packet breakfast in hotel
- Cash Price: $375
- Rewards Strategy: Pay with a credit card that earns and reimburse cost with bank bonus earnings
- Out-of-Pocket Cost: $0
- Why This Option: Flexibility to eat anywhere without needing reservations
- Pro Tips: Download the Universal Orlando app to browse menus and mobile order meals in advance at the parks. It can help you stick to your food budget and save time in line.
Check out my detailed guide on smart strategies to cut meal costs at theme parks. Read the full article here →
🛍️ Other Expenses: Paying for Everything Else
Since little extras can add up, it’s important to consider all the expenses you’ll incur during a trip. Factoring them in ahead of time helps avoid surprises and keeps your budget on track. For this trip, the anticipated added expenses include transfers to and from the destination airport, and souvenirs.
I’ll book a rideshare for the transfers. Using an online fare estimator puts the estimated total cost at about $60 including tip. This cost could be reduced with Uber credit earned from an American Express® Gold or Platinum Card, or with Lyft credit earned from a Chase Sapphire Reserve card. I’ll estimate another $100 for souvenirs, and cover these costs with money earned from cash rewards credit cards.
- Category: Airport Transfers & Souvenirs
- Cash Price: $160
- Rewards Strategy: Cash Rewards
- Out-of-Pocket Cost: $0
- Why This Option: Easy to cover with cash rewards
- Pro Tips: Keep a running list of incidental costs as you plan. These are often the easiest to forget—but the quickest to add up if you don’t plan ahead.
🧾 Putting it all Together
Let’s break it down! Here’s a quick look at how rewards covered this trip — from flights and hotel to meals and extras.
🧳 Now It's Your Turn
Are you ready to start planning a rewards-powered theme park trip of your own? Whether you’re new to points and miles or already collecting, here are a few ways to take the next step:
Not sure where to start? Begin with How to Plan a Free Theme Park Vacation.
Need to earn points? Browse my top picks for earning rewards.
Already have points? Use this case study as a roadmap and start building your own free theme park vacation.
Disclaimer: Some of the credit card links on this page are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you apply through them, at no additional cost to you. I only recommend cards I genuinely believe can help you achieve your travel goals. Thank you for supporting this site.
About the Author
Written by H. Kinney, author of How to Plan a Free Theme Park Vacation. She writes about using points, miles, and cash-back rewards to reduce the cost of theme park travel.
Read More: About