How many days for Universal/IOA?

[KCheatle]

I'm planning how many days I need to book for my next trip. We are going to go to US/IOA, but I don't know how many days I need for that? I've got a 3 yo and a 7 yo - can I get it done in one day if we get a 2 park pass or do I need two days?

 

[flynnibus]

1) It depends on if you are going during a busy time - many people have been when the parks aren't busy and they skip things that don't interest them.. and then claim they are done by afternoon. If you are going during a busy time or actually want to see everything.. you need 2 days at least, preferably 3. Since you have little ones, they are going to be excluded from a lot of things. Something like 2 days is probably best.

2) If its going to be anything but 'ghost town' season.. the onsite hotel is well worth the Express Pass option if you have more than 2 people in the group. The express pass pretty much pays for the hotel markup alone.

3) Decide if you want one or two park tickets. It's expensive - it's something I would help decide based on when you are going. The park hours can be short.. so if its a short hours period, you may not really get a lot of value out of park hopping. Pay attention to when you are going and check the park hours and gauge how long you will last each day.

There is arguably more kid-friendly stuff in the studios side.. so you may find IOA difficult for a full day alone (if you didn't have a 2park ticket). So decide how important WWOHP is for you and if IOA offers anything for your group (based on height, desire for WWOHP, if you will do water rides).

 

[Disneyhead'71]

KCheatle, First of all I say 2 Days. One night at The Royal Pacific Resort. (1 night gives you 2 days of Unlimited Express Pass, Check-in day/Check-out day). Even with little ones you can find fun stuff to do at UOR, especially with access to a resort pool. Despicable Me has a 40" height requirement for the moving seats, but has non-moving seats your little one can use to enjoy the attraction. Just check the height requirement list below.

http://www.universalorlando.com/Resort-Information/Ride-Height-Requirements.aspx

 

[Club Cooloholic]

There are 2 forms of Express Pass at US/IoA: one for a resort guest and another if you purchase it. The one you purchase is good only once per ride. When you figure the cost of 4, it is cheaper to stay on site for a night. The one as a resort guest is unlimited. The Express Pass system amounts to about a 5 minute wait on the high end. One example is when my DD wanted to go on Cat in the Hat. The standby line was 30 minutes. We passed the same people 8 times riding it. The same goes for Hulk, Spiderman, The Mummy, MIB, Simpsons, and all of the other countless rides. It is definitely a huge perk.

Hey BigRedDad, thank you so much for mentioning this! I just cut out our first night at Disney and will instead stay at the Lowes Royal Pacific. We wanted to do a day there anway, I'll rent a car the airport instead of doing the express and head there first before the Mouse Fun begins.

 

[BigRedDad]

You won't regret it. That resort is as nice as most Disney Deluxe resorts. Being able to get in 1-hour early to go to WWoHP is great to. You should be able to do every ride at both parks as many times as you want (except Forbidden Journey). I can give you a few tips to maximize riding some of the rides. I do not want to post them here.