Animal Kingdom vs Universal Studios Florida

[DisneyAndUniversalFan]

Let's say that you have one single day in the Orlando area, and you can only go to one of these two parks. Which would you pick?
Both parks have excellent rides, outstanding themed lands and great immersion.
Which park is superior, has better rides, more fun, etc? Which is the better park? This isn't meant to get people mad because they are completely different types of parks, this is just a civil discussion.

 

[J4546]

this imo is the worst comparison ever. AK is sooo much better than USF but I guess that could just be me haha. I feel like USF prob my least fave of the disney/uni parks in FL.

 

[DKampy]

Easy for me… Universal Studios is my least favorite dis/Uni themparks… while DAK is my favorite

 

[Weather_Lady]

I don't think there's any comparison. They're differently-scaled parks, offering a very different roster of experiences. A better comparison would be USF to Hollywood Studios, which attempts some similar theming for the park's main drag, and suffers from some of the same problems and criticisms as USF (not enough to do, and too much of what there is to do is outdated or just not that desirable).

I still enjoy them all in their own way when I'm there.

 

[cheezbat]

Atmosphere Animal Kingdom kills it…but ride wise, I’d have to give it to Universal. Animal Kingdom is severely lacking (still after 26 years) in rides.

 

[DisneyAndUniversalFan]

Atmosphere Animal Kingdom kills it…but ride wise, I’d have to give it to Universal. Animal Kingdom is severely lacking (still after 26 years) in rides.

You nailed it. I get that Animal Kingdom is pretty and all, but it still is lacking in substance and rides/attractions. At least USF has more of a quantity of rides to go on. For the theming and vibes, Animal Kingdom. For rides and more fun, Universal takes it.

 

[Dranth]

AK for me.

Right now, I feel like USF is the worst park of the Uni/Disney group by a long shot. It has one great ride in The Mummy, one great classic in ET and then a bunch of middling to bad rides including one that is in contention for worst ride ever with F&F. The food is also kind of bad and the park itself just seems to lack any real charm.

On the positive side, it does have one of the best themed areas ever done in Diagon but the ride itself is a real let down.

AK on the other hand is amazing as an actual park. It has great food, amazing ambiance, theming is top notch outside of one section of one area and while it is most certainly lacking the number of rides it needs, what it does have is generally good and, in some cases, great with Safari, FoP, and Everest all being up there.

Both parks close too early so I'd call that a push.

Bottom line for me is Uni needs to badly refresh and revitalize USF while Disney needs to update a few rides as well as increase capacity at AK, hopefully all those things happen in the coming years as I would love a great USF and AK to go visit.

 

[rd805]

I enjoy Animal Kingdom a lot more for their heavy hitters (FoP, Everest, the Safari, PLUS the dining & excellent theming). With that being said, I spend much more time in USF because I enjoy Mummy, MIB, Jimmy, ET, Diagon Alley. AK wins the vote for the quality over quantity but until they add some new attractions, there's very little to keep going back to do now that I've had my fill of FoP and Everest ha!