Just got back.....

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ToyStorygirl

Active Member
Original Poster
Hi

I went with my family - ranging all ages and I think they will all agree with my summary (or pretend to)


We did the Keys To The Kingdom tour as it was our 15th year of going. I did enjoy it but be warned it reveals nothing you probably won't have read in trivia books. Seeing the utilidors is cool but right at the end and only a small part that they know tours are going through (I.e.im not sure if what you see is really as behind the scenes as you may think). You see backstage of frontierland/adventure land where they keep the floats for the parade. Quite funny how the staff area was full of discarded drinks and litter - guess they want to chill and be messy away from guests :)


We are a very athletic family but struggled at it being just over 5 hours long. We did stop for lunch (at 11!) but had to sit with a family we didn't know which was a bit awkward. Few gripes aside if you're a Disney nut do it.


After the debate with Universal vs Disney here's my take after spending time in both....
Merchandise - strangely I found Universal had the edge this year. More variety and fairer pricing.
Food - again Universal won out. Disney have become appalling in their food in recent years. Ironic to pull away from McDonals then continue to serve junk everywhere.
Rides - I know Uni fans will go nuts but I'm giving it to Disney. They lost BTTF, Jaws and Kong. Huge mistakes. Transformers is fantastic however. IOA is basically 4 themes so if you don't like Dr Seuss, Jurassic Park, Marvel or Potter you're s*it outta luck! I exaggerate slightly as each land has great attractions but I like the old way they did stuff where it was just one ride per film, not several rides all aimed at one film.
Atmosphere- Disney holds the crown for me. Cast members are not as friendly as they once were but I think the cheesy magic word needs to be said. There's just something there that gives it the edge.
Nightlife - City Walk mostly for the fact you walk out the park and you're there - no driving miles or having to wait for a bus like at Downtown Disney. Think the restaurants are better too. Both have poor shopping choices now though.


I say let's mash them together to make a super park ;)

I'm fairly jet lagged so hope that all made sense!


Oh and the Christmas lights on the castle on STUNNING!!!
 
ryan1

ryan1

Well-Known Member
I have been to Halloween Horror Nights every year since 2000 (13 years!) but never go to Universal any other time because I don't think it is worth the money to visit either park. I have been to IOA 3 times and Universal 1 time outside of HHN.

On the last HHN trip the missus and I decided to go to IOA for the day before going to HHN since neither of us had been in 6 or so years. The crowds were very light which was great, however, it exposed IOA as a very limited park. We got to the park at opening and had finished the majority of the rides in the park by 1pm and ended up leaving at 3pm because we were done. The only rides we didn't do were Doc Doom Fearfall, CaroSuessel, and Pteranodon Flyers but we rode Spiderman, Hulk, and Dueling Dragons twice instead. We never realized it was a half day park but it is.

At US if you are not a fan of Simpsons almost a quarter of the park is now of no interest. I feel US is a half day park as well. Its great they are adding rides but they have a long way to go to catch up since their theming of the lands is way behind. I'm glad they do HHN and they do it very very well so I'm not a Universal hater by any means. Citi Walk is much better than Downtown Disney Westside in my opinion as they actually have nightlife for adults.

The missus and I are Disney park vets as we both grew up going and have both been at least 100 times, we've also been to Euro Disney and Disneyland (2 times for me, once for her). We did the Keys to the Kingdom tour a few years ago and really liked it but as you mentioned you don't see much of the Utilidors but we had a good guide and it was worth it.
 
HollyAD

HollyAD

Well-Known Member
It has been years since I visited UNI. I think my son would like the Dr Seuss part but other than that it just doesn't appeal to me like it used to. But I used to LOVE US as a child! Mostly because of things that are gone now. Jaws, Back to the Future, etc... To me the fact these rides were based on classic movies made the park more appealing. Sorry I can't get with the Superheros, Men in Black, Twister (the biggest movie ride disappointment I have ever had) or many of the "newer" attractions. Now on the other hand...we always go to citiwalk. We have to stop by Margaritaville or Bubba Gumps almost every trip. To my family...Disney is just way more classic. It's that emotion you get when you are walking around and you notice all the small details from the music to the smell. It's the feeling of being taken into another world whether it be Africa or Frontierland. Disney's ability to "take you somewhere else" is what really takes the cake for us. UNI just has never had that ability for us.
 
T

ToyStorygirl

Active Member
Original Poster
Jeff456 said:
Surprised about the food, in my experience the food at Uni is terrible, it wouldn't stop me going though.
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I wouldn't say it was incredible however the rolls, croissants, fruit salads, etc in US ( didn't eat in IOA any day) were way better than any of Disneys "healthy" options. Even fast food from Mel's Diner wasn't as cheap tasting as many of the Disney fast food outlets.
 
T

ToyStorygirl

Active Member
Original Poster
HollyAD said:
It has been years since I visited UNI. I think my son would like the Dr Seuss part but other than that it just doesn't appeal to me like it used to. But I used to LOVE US as a child! Mostly because of things that are gone now. Jaws, Back to the Future, etc... To me the fact these rides were based on classic movies made the park more appealing. Sorry I can't get with the Superheros, Men in Black, Twister (the biggest movie ride disappointment I have ever had) or many of the "newer" attractions. Now on the other hand...we always go to citiwalk. We have to stop by Margaritaville or Bubba Gumps almost every trip. To my family...Disney is just way more classic. It's that emotion you get when you are walking around and you notice all the small details from the music to the smell. It's the feeling of being taken into another world whether it be Africa or Frontierland. Disney's ability to "take you somewhere else" is what really takes the cake for us. UNI just has never had that ability for us.
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Yep, I can understand that. Uni has lost it's appeal for me somewhat since they started bringing new films in over classics. Still a fun atmosphere though - just different to Disney.

I like to break it up and sprinkle a few Uni days in between Disney otherwise I'll feel like I've been eating sweets non stop for a fortnight!
 
T

ToyStorygirl

Active Member
Original Poster
BryceM said:
IOA has 7 themes, but I see what you're saying since the 4 that you listed are the "big ones".
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Apologies, my mistake. Please enlighten me as can't think of 7. I guess maybe the entrance is one and then the part just before (or after depending on where you're starting from) Harry Potter is classed as a theme?
 
BryceM

BryceM

Well-Known Member
ToyStorygirl said:
Apologies, my mistake. Please enlighten me as can't think of 7. I guess maybe the entrance is one and then the part just before (or after depending on where you're starting from) Harry Potter is classed as a theme?
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1. Port of Entry
2. Seuss Landing
3. The Lost Continent
4. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
5. Jurassic Park
6. Toon Lagoon
7. Marvel Super Hero Island
 
Bairstow

Bairstow

Well-Known Member
Toon Lagoon should arguably considered 2 lands, since the Bluto/Popeye Sweethaven area is not only more focused than the rest of Toon Lagoon but has a markedly different style, with more 3-dimensional objects rather than flat painted cutouts.
 
BryceM

BryceM

Well-Known Member
Bairstow said:
Toon Lagoon should arguably considered 2 lands, since the Bluto/Popeye Sweethaven area is not only more focused than the rest of Toon Lagoon but has a markedly different style, with more 3-dimensional objects rather than flat painted cutouts.
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Yes, I much prefer the Sweethaven Area. You could also argue that Lost Continent could be considered two separate lands.
 
BrittanyRose428

BrittanyRose428

Well-Known Member
Interesting comparison between WDW and Universal. Some day I will go to Uni. I don't like how every time we plan a trip to WDW, someone in my family goes into this crazy fit with me randomly saying things like, "You know, sometimes Universal is better than Disney. There's actually really good rides there. It's not all big scary rides. You would probably like it if you would only give it a chance." I guess these random outbursts by my family would be okay if I had ever argued with this thought process, but I never say anything about Universal, I don't claim that WDW is better or say any of those things they mention, but their strange attitude that seems like they just want to prove me wrong (when I haven't even said anything about it), is what always turns me off from going. Eventually I just hope to go by myself, so I don't have to listen to them. :D
 
luv

luv

Well-Known Member
I still like Toon Lagoon and think it's funny. Today's kids, though...they aren't reading the funnies every day. They can turn on cartoons. Hagar probably isn't all that appealing to them. So, if Uni changes it, I won't cry.
 
Bairstow

Bairstow

Well-Known Member
luv said:
I still like Toon Lagoon and think it's funny. Today's kids, though...they aren't reading the funnies every day. They can turn on cartoons. Hagar probably isn't all that appealing to them. So, if Uni changes it, I won't cry.
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I don't know if Toon Lagoon is any more dated now than it was when it opened, as a lot of those funnies, like Marmaduke, Gasoline Alley, and Little Nemo had been out of syndication years even before the park opened. Supposedly Toon Lagoon as we know it was cooked up when a deal to license the Looney Toons from warner brothers fell though, but even knowing this, the decision to build that area of the park like that is baffling.
 
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