Just got back today from visiting universal studios and ioa (yea I know this is a disney forum but if your a fan of awesome themed rides, then your atleast a little bit of a fan of universal)
I had actually been to uni once before when the park first opened, but I was like 8 or 9 then and the only thing I really remembered was the et ride
The parks were unusually empty, nothing I would ever expect universal or any florida theme park to look like in June! everything was basically a walk on, the most we waited for anything was the simpsons ride, and even that was just 15 min
My initial thoughts about the studio:
"This is like an alternate version of mgm"
"I wish mgm and the studios were to have a baby, it would be a perfect park for that whole hollywood thing that disney and universal were going for"
The first ride we went on was hollywood rip ride and rockit, I never had to put anything into a locker to get on a ride, this was new to me, thought it was really convenient that they gave you a certain time window to use it for free, and with groups where everyone is going on the ride, its a really great option if you dont have anyone to hold your stuff, the screens might be a little glitchy but theres always some uni person around if you need help. The ride was really good, love the first drop!
The next ride we did was disaster, I liked the fact that the subway station had a very 80s vibe, some things were startling because they were pretty much brand new to me but otherwise,I guess its like the backlot tour, you do it once every couple of years just to check up on it but otherwise it can die away or be replaced with a mummy type ride
Which brings me to the next ride, The Mummy! I found this ride to be amazing. I have never been on a ride like this before in my life! what a rush, it might most definitly be my new favorite ride. The ride had a 5 min wait and I simply couldnt get enough of it. I tip my hat to you universal, I dont think I have ever said "WOW" out loud on a ride before but this ride made me say it a couple of times! we ended up riding this like 7x it was just toooo good! well done universal! (btw does anyone know what that monitor in the queue with the lighted blue diamond does? it shows people walking in the queues but I'm clueless about its purpose)
It was then time to eat lunch, decided to have pizza from louies, pretty decent, but what really impressed me more about uni's food was the amount of options they had, seriously they got pretty much everything disney has and more, fried oreos anyone? holy bajeebus they were good
We then headed over to jaws, eh, i like the theming, and the kinetic energy, but its not something I'd be too interested in doing again for a while, otherwise, good to see it still running and taken care of. The cm was really good too ( idk what theyre called here but these "cm's" are up to par with disney cm's I didnt have one negative encounter with anyone who worked there, everyone was actually extremely polite and helpful, I mean they even wave to you as you start your ride and leave the platforms, something I only thought disney did and something I definitly wasnt expecting after hearing some of the stories on these boards about uni employees.
After Jaws, men in black... pretty good, didnt excepct it to be so big and long (thats what she said..lmao sorry im stupid) but it was pretty good, definitly like it more than buzz and I would say slllightly better than tsmm if for nothing else but the larger sets and more motion)
After men in black it was time for et, this was the only ride I really remembered from my first trip and it was more magical then I imagined it being, something about it, idk maybe because I'm an 80s baby and the ride reeks 1985 but I love this ride, especially the queue, its got that disney smell!
Got on Twister, nothing special at all,my thoughts, remove the first half of the show, and just take ppl directly to the actual tornado scene too much talk + too much standing = me putting my angry eyes on.
Shrek 4d was pretty good, doesnt have the heart philharmagic does and the 3d looks a little blurry but still a pretty good attraction nonetheless
Next up was the nicktoons , is jimmy neutron even on nickelodeon anymore? I know for sure the rugrats arent! ah well who cares, its pretty good, nothing to write home about tho
By this time we were exhausted and about to collapse from the heat, so we found a comfortable spot of shade in the little central park area, which I think is so awesome to have, just to be able to lay down in the middle of the park for a while was satisfactory enough but to be able to do it in this beautiful little area made it that much more sweeter. We layed down til we obviously took a nap, fell asleep for almost an hour, I have never fallen asleep in any theme park, but being that we had pretty much done everything we wanted to do, and this little spot of grass was calling our name, we gave in, and it felt great.. the rest of the day we spent, pretty much going back between mummy, et and rip ride and rockit..
Overall on a scale of 1-10 I would give uni studios a 6.. while their themeing is great (the new york streets are incredibly detailed) so is the majority of other areas in the park.. there simply isnt enough rides.. theres only so many times you can watch a theme park show, the rides are what keep people coming back, and if uni were to somewhow fuse the thrills of the mummy, and strike a chord in the heart with something nostalgic like et. uni would have a real winner on their hands
Up next: Islands of Adventure and how uni succeeded in finding that winner with TWWOHP.. Note to Disney: me and other disney fanboys will no longer have to tell you that you have to step your game up, TWWOHP will politely do that for us...To be continued
I had actually been to uni once before when the park first opened, but I was like 8 or 9 then and the only thing I really remembered was the et ride
The parks were unusually empty, nothing I would ever expect universal or any florida theme park to look like in June! everything was basically a walk on, the most we waited for anything was the simpsons ride, and even that was just 15 min
My initial thoughts about the studio:
"This is like an alternate version of mgm"
"I wish mgm and the studios were to have a baby, it would be a perfect park for that whole hollywood thing that disney and universal were going for"
The first ride we went on was hollywood rip ride and rockit, I never had to put anything into a locker to get on a ride, this was new to me, thought it was really convenient that they gave you a certain time window to use it for free, and with groups where everyone is going on the ride, its a really great option if you dont have anyone to hold your stuff, the screens might be a little glitchy but theres always some uni person around if you need help. The ride was really good, love the first drop!
The next ride we did was disaster, I liked the fact that the subway station had a very 80s vibe, some things were startling because they were pretty much brand new to me but otherwise,I guess its like the backlot tour, you do it once every couple of years just to check up on it but otherwise it can die away or be replaced with a mummy type ride
Which brings me to the next ride, The Mummy! I found this ride to be amazing. I have never been on a ride like this before in my life! what a rush, it might most definitly be my new favorite ride. The ride had a 5 min wait and I simply couldnt get enough of it. I tip my hat to you universal, I dont think I have ever said "WOW" out loud on a ride before but this ride made me say it a couple of times! we ended up riding this like 7x it was just toooo good! well done universal! (btw does anyone know what that monitor in the queue with the lighted blue diamond does? it shows people walking in the queues but I'm clueless about its purpose)
It was then time to eat lunch, decided to have pizza from louies, pretty decent, but what really impressed me more about uni's food was the amount of options they had, seriously they got pretty much everything disney has and more, fried oreos anyone? holy bajeebus they were good
We then headed over to jaws, eh, i like the theming, and the kinetic energy, but its not something I'd be too interested in doing again for a while, otherwise, good to see it still running and taken care of. The cm was really good too ( idk what theyre called here but these "cm's" are up to par with disney cm's I didnt have one negative encounter with anyone who worked there, everyone was actually extremely polite and helpful, I mean they even wave to you as you start your ride and leave the platforms, something I only thought disney did and something I definitly wasnt expecting after hearing some of the stories on these boards about uni employees.
After Jaws, men in black... pretty good, didnt excepct it to be so big and long (thats what she said..lmao sorry im stupid) but it was pretty good, definitly like it more than buzz and I would say slllightly better than tsmm if for nothing else but the larger sets and more motion)
After men in black it was time for et, this was the only ride I really remembered from my first trip and it was more magical then I imagined it being, something about it, idk maybe because I'm an 80s baby and the ride reeks 1985 but I love this ride, especially the queue, its got that disney smell!
Got on Twister, nothing special at all,my thoughts, remove the first half of the show, and just take ppl directly to the actual tornado scene too much talk + too much standing = me putting my angry eyes on.
Shrek 4d was pretty good, doesnt have the heart philharmagic does and the 3d looks a little blurry but still a pretty good attraction nonetheless
Next up was the nicktoons , is jimmy neutron even on nickelodeon anymore? I know for sure the rugrats arent! ah well who cares, its pretty good, nothing to write home about tho
By this time we were exhausted and about to collapse from the heat, so we found a comfortable spot of shade in the little central park area, which I think is so awesome to have, just to be able to lay down in the middle of the park for a while was satisfactory enough but to be able to do it in this beautiful little area made it that much more sweeter. We layed down til we obviously took a nap, fell asleep for almost an hour, I have never fallen asleep in any theme park, but being that we had pretty much done everything we wanted to do, and this little spot of grass was calling our name, we gave in, and it felt great.. the rest of the day we spent, pretty much going back between mummy, et and rip ride and rockit..
Overall on a scale of 1-10 I would give uni studios a 6.. while their themeing is great (the new york streets are incredibly detailed) so is the majority of other areas in the park.. there simply isnt enough rides.. theres only so many times you can watch a theme park show, the rides are what keep people coming back, and if uni were to somewhow fuse the thrills of the mummy, and strike a chord in the heart with something nostalgic like et. uni would have a real winner on their hands
Up next: Islands of Adventure and how uni succeeded in finding that winner with TWWOHP.. Note to Disney: me and other disney fanboys will no longer have to tell you that you have to step your game up, TWWOHP will politely do that for us...To be continued
