first universal trip

[disney fan 13]

Hey, so i have been going to WDW forever but i never really wanted to go to universal because at that time i was not the biggest thrill junkie. now that i am i am planning on a trip in october. i will be spending 2-3 days at disney and... wait for... 1 day at universal. yes i know but it is my first trip and i just want to try it out before dedicating more days to it in future trips... anyway i was wondering is it possible to do both parks in 1 day, how close are the parks, must do rides and good places to eat would be great to know as well. also i know this has been asked before but what would be the difference in the trip ( example, bad CS, effects not working exe) any help would help a lot. thanks

 

[Chevross]

1. Yes, both IoA and US can be completed in one day, but that's if crowd levels cooperate and rides are operating. You'll be rushing it most likely.

2. Both are practically next to each other, possibly a 5 minute or less walk from one gate to the other.

3. There are a ton of rides, but I think I'll just suggest four from both parks. US: Men in Black, Mummy, ET, and the Horror Picture Make-up Show. IoA: The Amazing Spider-man, The Forbidden Journey, The Cat in the Hat, and the Jurassic Park River Adventure.

4. US: Finnegan's Bar and Grill. CityWalk: Bubba Gump, Hard Rock. IoA: Meh, mostly just quick little places to eat here.

 

[Slipknot]

IoA: Meh, mostly just quick little places to eat here.

Have you ever eaten at Mythos?

 

[Chevross]

Have you ever eaten at Mythos?

No. I've heard of it and seen it, but I've not had the opportunity to try it yet.

 

[Pioneer Hall]

Tackling both parks in one day when you haven't been before is ill advised in my opinion. Pick the park you want to go to more, and enjoy it. Even if the crowds are very low, you will be rushing from park to park trying to get what you can in. You'll end up missing a few things in each park if you do that and your ticket is going to be more expensive. Pick one gate and stick with it and if you like it then go back to the other or both next time.

While this is a Disney board, both Uni parks are a lot of fun and quite enjoyable. Don't think you are going to be getting a second rate experience that won't warrant you to take your time and enjoy it.

 

[JillC LI]

We did both parks in one day without an Express Pass in October 2009. it was our first visit and we were able to see and ride about 90% of what we wanted, but I should say that we walked back and forth between the parks several times to accomplish this and it's a bit of a hike but we don't mind walking alot. That said, with the new Harry Patter area, it might be tricky to fit everything in. if you do want to visit that area of the park, I suggest you make a bee-line for it first thing in the morning. And make sure you are there at rope drop to fit in the maximum amount of attractions.

 

[Matpez]

We did both parks in one day without an Express Pass in October 2009.

And then the Wizarding World of Harry Potter opened in June of 2010 and things changed.

 

[JillC LI]

And then the Wizarding World of Harry Potter opened in June of 2010 and things changed.

Which is exactly what I said a bit further into my post.

We did both parks in one day without an Express Pass in October 2009. it was our first visit and we were able to see and ride about 90% of what we wanted, but I should say that we walked back and forth between the parks several times to accomplish this and it's a bit of a hike but we don't mind walking alot. That said, with the new Harry Patter area, it might be tricky to fit everything in. If you do want to visit that area of the park, I suggest you make a bee-line for it first thing in the morning. And make sure you are there at rope drop to fit in the maximum amount of attractions.

 

[NowInc]

Its very doable..even for a first time. Harry Potter lines are only bad on weekdays..add to that the fact that HHN is going on in october and thus the parks during the day are pretty significantly less crowded...but keep in mind also that they may close earlier as well.

as for what "must ride" stuff they have...

US: Simpsons, Men in Black, Mummy, Horror makeup show, and if you have 45 minutes to spare..hit up disaster.

IOA: Hulk, Spiderman, Jurrassic park, Forbidden journey.

 

[britlightyear]

We did both parks on a Thursday the last week this past January. We were at IOA at park open, walked right on to Forbidden Journey, spent about 2 hours just wandering around and enjoying everything in the Harry Potter area and then went on to ride all the other rides at IOA. Walked over to US at about 3 pm, did all the rides (except Shrek and HRRR :hurl and since US closed at 6 we walked back over to IOA for and hour (they closed at 7) walked right on to Forbidden Journey again and rode a couple other things before leaving at 7.
I will admit we were a little rushed at US because I really wanted to get back to IOA to ride FJ again.
This was our first time at the parks and I believe with enough pre-planning and as long as the crowds aren't too bad you could do it in one day. No, we did not have the express pass but we also plan on spending at least 2 days at US/IOA this coming January so that we can fully experience everything (we did not take time to see any characters but will next time)