Universal for the first time in 10 years!!

[col]

Hey everyone, this is gonna be my first time at Universal in 10 years -I'm a Disney girl so I always stay on property! I know A LOT has changed over those years; goodbye Jaws and King Kong, but hello Harry Potter and Springfield! Anyway I was wondering if you guys and girls could tell me what's the best things to do, where to eat etc.

All help appreciated

 

[marni1971]

Ten years? Be ready for a LOT of improvements.

 

[Jimmy Thick]

The Potter area, while everyone loves to say how great it is, basically features only one new attraction, that being FJ. The other attractions in Potter are just repackages of rides you more than likely already experienced with no new significant differences, be warned.

As for places to eat, I highly recommend Mythos, its by far the place to eat at in the Universal parks.

My Universal/IoA favorites:
Spider-Man
The Mummy
Terminator
All the water rides in IoA

The attractions not up to par for me.
Jurassic Park- A LOT of the animatronics never work.
Dr. Doom's fearfall- Nothing but a Six Flags rip off.
Poseidan's Fury- The mold is terrible in this place and the final film is so completely washed out its hard to follow the action.
I also tend to avoid all of Suess's Landing, the place just screams visual headache.

I also recommend staying at one of the Deluxe hotels Universal offers. Staying there gives you the valuable front of the line perk that easily lets you do both parks in one day. Stay away from the second class value resort Universal is currently building, if you choose to stay there, you pay a premium price but do not get the same perk, the front of the line access, as the deluxe. It pays to pay at Universal.

Jimmy Thick- Hope you have a great time!!!

 

[col]

Ten years? Be ready for a LOT of improvements.

I know haha

 

[col]

The Potter area, while everyone loves to say how great it is, basically features only one new attraction, that being FJ. The other attractions in Potter are just repackages of rides you more than likely already experienced with no new significant differences, be warned.

As for places to eat, I highly recommend Mythos, its by far the place to eat at in the Universal parks.

My Universal/IoA favorites:
Spider-Man
The Mummy
Terminator
All the water rides in IoA

The attractions not up to par for me.
Jurassic Park- A LOT of the animatronics never work.
Dr. Doom's fearfall- Nothing but a Six Flags rip off.
Poseidan's Fury- The mold is terrible in this place and the final film is so completely washed out its hard to follow the action.
I also tend to avoid all of Suess's Landing, the place just screams visual headache.

I also recommend staying at one of the Deluxe hotels Universal offers. Staying there gives you the valuable front of the line perk that easily lets you do both parks in one day. Stay away from the second class value resort Universal is currently building, if you choose to stay there, you pay a premium price but do not get the same perk, the front of the line access, as the deluxe. It pays to pay at Universal.

Jimmy Thick- Hope you have a great time!!!

Thank you for the advice. I'm staying at a Universal deluxe hotel so that gives me early entry to HP. I liked SpiderMan, that was there the last time I was. I'm looking forward to seeing Minions haha. I'll be at Universal for 4 days so hopefully I can do everything twice lol. I'm looking forward to seeing city walk, I've been seeing the changes on twitter and it all looks good.

Do they still have the 50s or 60's diner at universal?

I did a search for Mythos and it looks like I need to book a table -do I need to book ADR's?

 

[draybook]

Yeah, Mel's Diner is still there and not a shabby place to eat.

 

[TubaGeek]

Meet Donkey! I know he was there 10 years ago, but it's the one character interaction I actually enjoy. That thing blows my mind.
Also the parade is great, but only if you catch one of the show stops, which are marked on the map.

 

[afar28]

If you're staying on property you should be able to do everything you want to do easily. If you haven't been in 10 years then you will be shocked at the improvements. Have a good time!

 

[col]

If you're staying on property you should be able to do everything you want to do easily. If you haven't been in 10 years then you will be shocked at the improvements. Have a good time!

Thank you I'm really looking forward to going to Universal.

 

[col]

Yeah, Mel's Diner is still there and not a shabby place to eat.

Great, that's one of the places that stands out in my mind about Universal.

 

[col]

Meet Donkey! I know he was there 10 years ago, but it's the one character interaction I actually enjoy. That thing blows my mind.
Also the parade is great, but only if you catch one of the show stops, which are marked on the map.

I've heard no one talk about Donkey! Universal have a parade?! I need to start doing my Universal research haha.

 

[TubaGeek]

I've heard no one talk about Donkey! Universal have a parade?! I need to start doing my Universal research haha.

Donkey blows talking Mickey out of the water. The parade is the best one in Orlando right now, if you'll take substance over length.

 

[Lauratron]

As for places to eat, I highly recommend Mythos, its by far the place to eat at in the Universal parks.

Sorry to hijack this thread for a moment, but I'm headed to Universal in 2 weeks (first time I've been since the month it opened); would I need reservations for Mythos this time of year?

 

[jhudder3]

Sorry to hijack this thread for a moment, but I'm headed to Universal in 2 weeks (first time I've been since the month it opened); would I need reservations for Mythos this time of year?

Doesn't hurt to book.

 

[marni1971]

You can ask concierge about booking Mythos. Or try in person at rope drop (but you'll probably be running to Potter)

Also see if the night show, Cinematic Spectacular, is playing at the Studios. Yes, they now have a lagoon show as well as a parade! Good place to watch is by the railings next to the wooded garden area.

 

[NutsForFlorida]

I haven't been there since Thanksgiving 2010. I'll be there on 4/10. Can't wait to check out Transformers.

 

[NutsForFlorida]

you wont be dissapointed, its pretty cool

Good. I'm glad to hear it.

 

[BryceM]

In IOA's Port of Entry, there is a kiosk to book reservations. We did it when we got there, and we were able to have a nice 12:30 reservation at Mythos. It just depends on how busy it is.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

You can also book some restaurants like Mythos online at universalorlando.com. It's how I did it and it's very easy to use.

 

[MichWolv]

Hey everyone, this is gonna be my first time at Universal in 10 years -I'm a Disney girl so I always stay on property! I know A LOT has changed over those years; goodbye Jaws and King Kong, but hello Harry Potter and Springfield! Anyway I was wondering if you guys and girls could tell me what's the best things to do, where to eat etc.

All help appreciated

I was just there a couple months ago for the first time in 10 years, so we're even. Other than Potter-land and the upgrades to Spider-Man, IOA has not changed its attractions much -- it needs more updating. The Studios park, on the other hand, has new stuff all over the place.

I would say to make sure you don't miss the following:

Forbidden Journey
Dragon Challenge
Incredible Hulk
Spider-man (the HD upgrades are amazing)
Despicable Me Minion Mayhem
Transformers
Twister
Hollywood Rip Ride Rocket
Simpsons
Men in Black Alien Attack
Shrek 4-D

Beyond that, though, just about every other attraction in both parks is worthwhile, particularly since you will have unlimited Universal Express, and won't wait in any lines.

As for food, I was unimpressed. Even Mythos, which everybody seems to love, was just "eh" as far as my family was concerned. We did enjoy Three Broomsticks, however. Food was good, and the atmosphere was fun.