My personal opinion (not that anyone asked) is that you enjoyed yourself in spite of yourself. i.e., you went to UOR with the intention of wanting to dislike it because it wasn't Disney, but you ended up liking it but are creating excuses as to why it isn't as "great" as Disney.
The ho-hum...I made the reservation a few months ahead. Got an email receipt about the trip and then...nothing else. Not a post card welcoming us, or email with some special video. Nothing to get you excited about our upcoming trip. Sorry, but Disney has this in the bag.
Every time I have booked an on-site room I have received an e-mail about a week in advance detailing my reservation and "advertising" the hotel, the amenities, information about the parks and on-site entertainment. Same as Disney. Perhaps it went into your bulk/spam folder, but they do send them out.
2 The check-in/ticket/express pass thing.
Since Lowes owns the hotel the room key doesn't get you into the park. so, once you check in, you have to go to a separate desk for park tix, then go to the express pass kiosk to get your picture taken. So you have 3 things to keep track of (room key, express pass & park tix) PLUS some city walk pass. Disney has this one too. one wristband for the whole thing. that's it.
While the Magic Band or RFID card can be a convenience, the lack of a "one pass fits all" at UOR hardly ruins or lessens the experience. I think this is a pretty lazy argument for disliking something.
4 The Parks. I think Disney is where my heart belongs. Here is why. I am really not into superheroes, I really can't stand the Simpsons, Betty Boop is well..."old" The minions and Harry Potter do nothing for me (my wife is the HP fan). AND most important, I have no history with anything there. No past trips with my Dad when I was young. So, i had nothing to really reflect back on.
See, this is where I am sure you went to the parks hoping to dislike them. Do you have some sort of personal requirement to have a previous attachment to where you are visiting in order to enjoy it? I have never been to London. Should I let no previous sentiment for it taint an experience I have there on a future trip? I am not a big fan of films that exploit racial stereotypes, but I love Splash Mountain as an attraction. I am not a fan of the Men in Black franchise, but really enjoy the attraction USF. Was never really a superhero movie fan but LOVED Spider-Man. What makes a ride or attraction truly great is its ability to be understood and enjoyed by guests whether or not the are a fan of the origin of the ride's theme.
Didn't really realize this until I went into the gift shop. I didn't want ANYTHING. Really, NOTHING AT ALL. I was kind of stunned. The wife found/bought some pretty cool HP stuff. They do a great job of Merchandising Potter stuff.
I can say that about Disney too. There is nothing Disney sells that I would ever buy. UOR doesn't really have any park-specific merchandise worth buying either, but some of the more IP-specific merchandise is appealing.
But the parks themselves seem SO CHOPPY i.e. The minions, the 50's, the warf all with Transformers plopped in the middle of it all. the layout really sucks. It just doesn't seem organized at all. No cohesiveness at all. A lot of empty store fronts.
BUT...I am so used to being at disney this may be the Biased WDW person in me. Disney is just so second nature to my wife and I.
The park is based on a studio theme, which are choppy. IOA, however, is much more cohesive (I'd argue even moreso than Magic Kingdom). DHS isn't that much better (and its "streets of America" is laughable compared to the facades at USH, some of which do have shops inside).
Rode Spiderman, Transformers, both Harry potter rides, The Hogwarts express, Disaster, the Mummy and ET. Let me say this they were all AMAZING. So well done. And Un-disney. (except for ET) It was kinda refreshing. I can be entertained by some other things. A LOT of 3-D screens though
A lot of people disagree with the use of screens. Personally, it only bothers me on Transformers. For the desired experience, AAs just would not be sufficient. I think Minion Mayhem would have been better as a more advanced version of Roger Rabbit (from DLR).
Here is where I got a little peeved. The wife has a gluten allergy. So Food options are a little tricky. The cast members just really didn't seem familiar. So it was a bunless burger for lunch (boring)
I will take som of the blame here b/c i didn't map this part out quite enough. We just know Disney so well. we don't have any issues.
Breakfast was non-existant (for us-no pastries) which made us go back to the hotel (post Harry Potter early start) for a really pricey breakfast. Food and service EXCEPTIONAL though.
I don't know what UOR's options re for food allergies, so I will defer to your experience on its availability, assuming you actually inquired as opposed to just assuming there were no options because they aren't advertised. As for breakfast, both the Leaky Cauldron and Three Broomsticks serve breakfast, as do all the on-site resort hotels.
Looks like a CLUSTER of CRAP. that is all I can say. Not a fan.
I am personally not a fan of CityWalk's design either. DD isn't much better, with similar businesses pretty much grouped in sections. But it does look less clustered.
I did have a great time. It just doesn't have the repeat factor that Disney does (for me at least) This place just seems to have a lot of "stuff". Just nothing that makes me say, "I have Gotta go to UNIVERSAL"
Just my observations.
But it begs the question: do you really enjoy Disney's offerings, or is your nostalgia what really "makes" Disney for you? I enjoy the quaintness of DLR and WDW and the uniqueness of some of their offerings. But it certainly doesn't prevent me from enjoying the rides and attractions at Cedar Fair or Six Flags parks, and most certainly not at Universal.
