First time to Universal for 10 years

minnie2000

minnie2000

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
We are going to WDW for the first two weeks of August. I know it will be very hot and busy but it was the only time we could go. I have two young teenage DDs who are crazy about Harry Potter, so we are planning a few days at Universal. The last time we went was in 2003, so we are not sure where to start!

We have bought our tickets and have fourteen days to use if we want. I was going to spend a day in each park, and then go back if we wanted to. Can anyone give us any tips? I was going to get there before opening and head straight for HP as that is our priority. I don't remember much about parking. Does it take a long time to park and then get to the park?

We don't like the very intense rides. DH might try the Rip Rockin (?) coaster, but the rest of us won't! We are looking forward to HP, MIB, the Simpsons ride, Despicable Me, and Shrek 4D. Is there anything else we should try?

Can anyone recommend somewhere good for snacks at lunchtime? We are on the DDP, so will have breakfast and dinner at WDW, and won't need much for lunch, just something quick and easy. Can we take snacks in our bag or is that not allowed?

I would be grateful for any advice!
 
Nero the dog

Nero the dog

Well-Known Member
I would look at booking 1 night at the Royal Pacific. You could get a room for $279 which includes front of line passes for 2 days and early entrance to Harry Potter. To buy the express passes for all of you for 2 days would cost around $560. At a busy time of year I would recommend not standing in queues if you want to get everything done.
 
minnie2000

minnie2000

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Thanks Nero, but we won't be able to book any more nights. We have already booked a package deal including flights and Disney hotel room. I think we'll have to manage without express passes unfortunately. :(
 
Disneydreamer23

Disneydreamer23

Well-Known Member
Spider man? Transformers? My grandma rides both lol cat in the hat ioa is cute, if they love hp id dedicate 2 days for it is quite big, they have the ride twister and disaster they are not intense.for snacks they have ccarts every where with Turkey legs etc.
 
katiekinzakat

katiekinzakat

Active Member
Don't miss some of the live shows. Horror Make-Up is my favorite theme park show anywhere (and the theater is air conditioned!). The Blues Brothers are also great and fun to watch.
 
Disneyhead'71

Disneyhead'71

Well-Known Member
I would also give Mummy a try. While it is a roller coaster, it really isn't all that intense.

Here are my suggestions:

IOA:
Spider-man
Bluto's
Dudley's
Jurassic Park River Adventure
Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey
Flight of the Hippogriph
Ollivander's Wand Shop
Poseidon's Fury
And everything in Seuss Landing

USF:
Despicable Me
Mummy
T2:3D
Horror Make-up Show
ET
Simpson's
Men in Black
Transformers
 
JillC LI

JillC LI

Well-Known Member
minnie2000 said:
We are going to WDW for the first two weeks of August. I know it will be very hot and busy but it was the only time we could go. I have two young teenage DDs who are crazy about Harry Potter, so we are planning a few days at Universal. The last time we went was in 2003, so we are not sure where to start!

We have bought our tickets and have fourteen days to use if we want. I was going to spend a day in each park, and then go back if we wanted to. Can anyone give us any tips? I was going to get there before opening and head straight for HP as that is our priority. I don't remember much about parking. Does it take a long time to park and then get to the park?

We don't like the very intense rides. DH might try the Rip Rockin (?) coaster, but the rest of us won't! We are looking forward to HP, MIB, the Simpsons ride, Despicable Me, and Shrek 4D. Is there anything else we should try?

Can anyone recommend somewhere good for snacks at lunchtime? We are on the DDP, so will have breakfast and dinner at WDW, and won't need much for lunch, just something quick and easy. Can we take snacks in our bag or is that not allowed?

I would be grateful for any advice!
Click to expand...

Yes, do leave about 20 minutes to park and walk to the entrance gate, and get through the gates. Leave more time if you want to be one of the first people into the WWOHP (of those who do not have early entry). We visited the WWOHP for the first time last December, and if your son is a big HP fan, he will adore it. It is so true to the story. Leave some time to check on the shops there too. The line at Ollivanders Wand shop gets long quickly and moves extremely slowly, so if you want to see the show there, I suggest you hit it first thing, before any rides. Just so you know, Forbidden Journey is a pretty intense ride. I am a big chicken and won't ride any of the big coasters, but because of my HP love, I tried FJ. I'm glad I did, but I screamed my bloody head off the whole time. Don't forget Flight of the Hippogriff which is a small coaster, unlike the Dragon Challenge. I would add to your list ET, and also Revenge of the Mummy (which is comparable in intensity to RnRC if you can handle that). Spiderman is a great ride and is less intense than FJ. Transformers is, of course, the big new ride, but I can't tell you anything about the intensity firsthand.

You can bring in snacks in your bag. I recommend you try a frozen butterbeer (if you're not put off by sweet drinks).
 
minnie2000

minnie2000

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Thanks JillC, I'll bear all that in mind!

I didn't know FJ was intense! Can you compare it to some of the Disney rides? The girls and I wouldn't do Dragon Challenge. We have been on most Wdw rides apart from TOT, RnRC, Star Tours and Mission Space. We haven't been on the Everest ride, but we will this year. They don't like very intense rides, but love splash and BTM. Is FJ a simulator or coaster?

We tried butterbeer in the HP film set in London, and found it very sweet!
 
HTF

HTF

Well-Known Member
minnie2000 said:
Thanks JillC, I'll bear all that in mind!

I didn't know FJ was intense! Can you compare it to some of the Disney rides? The girls and I wouldn't do Dragon Challenge. We have been on most Wdw rides apart from TOT, RnRC, Star Tours and Mission Space. We haven't been on the Everest ride, but we will this year. They don't like very intense rides, but love splash and BTM. Is FJ a simulator or coaster?

We tried butterbeer in the HP film set in London, and found it very sweet!
Click to expand...

It's not that intense, it's just very realistic and in your face. The forces exuded on your body are more like those on BTM or even Dinosaur. The brand new profiling and upgrades to the projectors have also drastically cut down on the motion sickness which is something that's plagued the ride since opening. The only real warning I have for people is claustrophobia or fear of things invading your personal space. The FJ can be quite a thrilling journey on the senses and even made me let out a little profanity the first time a dementor popped out. Set pieces get VERY close to the ride vehicle. Overall it's an amazing cannot be missed attraction. As far as Disney comparisons ehhh you really can't compare it as no Disney park anywhere has a ride system this advanced. If you had to compare it to something I would say its a cross between Dinosaur, Star Tours, Haunted Mansion, and Alien Encounter.
 
RTeker

RTeker

Active Member
I finally went back to Universal myself after an even longer, 13 years, and my advise is simple as I went for 4 day park-to-park 2 weeks ago. 1 unless you do have a room at one of the onsite resorts, forget the express pass thing. 2 the Photopass system they have there, get it and use it. I thought it was worth it but I did the mistake of not getting every photo with the various characters they have coming around the park. 3 Park meal deal, up to you but it might be a good idea to look into for maybe your kids. 4. GET the Park hopper!!!!!!!!! And finally, just enjoy the parks for however many days your there for, cause if you can't hit somethings and you have more than 1 day for the Universal parks don't worry you can't go back again later :D
 
JillC LI

JillC LI

Well-Known Member
minnie2000 said:
I didn't know FJ was intense! Can you compare it to some of the Disney rides? The girls and I wouldn't do Dragon Challenge. We have been on most Wdw rides apart from TOT, RnRC, Star Tours and Mission Space. We haven't been on the Everest ride, but we will this year. They don't like very intense rides, but love splash and BTM. Is FJ a simulator or coaster?
Click to expand...

It is not a coaster and it is not a simulator either. As others have said, it's a robotic arm. I can't really compare it to anything at Disney, and obviously everyone has their own tolerance levels for what they find too intense. I can ride BTMRR, Space, Splash, and even RnRC with no problem, but I find the drops in Everest and ToT to be too much for me to enjoy. Perhaps that's why I found the fast swooping robotic arm so intense. Swooping is a good word for it. And I agree with others that it is very in-your-face. Also, I rode it before the adjustments were made to prevent motion sickness, and I did find myself a tad nauseous afterwards. But like I said, as a HP fan, I'm glad I rode it, and I would ride it again on a future trip.
 
minnie2000

minnie2000

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Thanks for the advice. We went to IOA a few days ago. The girls loved all the HP stuff, my eldest DD was like a three year old, she was so overexcited!

We went on the HP ride and loved it, although I had a moment of panic when the bar came down very tight and I could hardly move my arms. We rode it two more times and I kept the bar up slightly then, so didn't feel so claustrophobic. The ride was excellent, and I loved the swooping flying feeling. We queued for about an hour for the first ride in a very long hot line, but then used the single rider line, which was fantastic. We walked right to the front and just waited a few minutes. After the third time we all started to feel a little queasy, so we headed to Seuss Landing and enjoyed the gentle rides there! DH also went on the Hulk, but we didn't go on with him.

We are going to go to USF is a few days, and will definitely go back to IOA before the end of the holidays.
 
tissandtully

tissandtully

Well-Known Member
If you're going to be visiting during the peak season right now I think an Express Pass would be totally worth it, I went on Saturday and it was 120+ min wait for most of the big rides.
 
JillC LI

JillC LI

Well-Known Member
Zipitidoda said:
@minnie2000 how was the parking and walking to IOA? We are headed there for one day during our WDW trip and have been curious about parking and the hike to get in.
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Leave yourself sufficient time if you plan to be amongst the first people in the Park at opening. It's longer than any walk I have ever had from a Disney bus to my room in a Disney resort.
 
Zipadeelady

Zipadeelady

Well-Known Member
JillC LI said:
Leave yourself sufficient time if you plan to be amongst the first people in the Park at opening. It's longer than any walk I have ever had from a Disney bus to my room in a Disney resort.
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That's good to know. We will be going mid December...any idea on crowds that time of year?
 
Jwhee

Jwhee

Well-Known Member
Ohh, and Twister and ET don't usually have an hour wait, it's equivalent to the Grand Fiesta Tour having an hour wait... CRAZY!
 

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