Universal becoming more popular than Disney?

[ChrisFL]

Wow, lots of bashing here.

I don't see where the theming and immersion elements come from. I see much better theming at Universal than at DHS as a "Studio" and regarding rides that "don't fit" next to each other, there is a Large electric guitar standing next to an old abandoned hotel at DHS, how does that fit together? :shrug:

Outside of Star Tours has a few scenes from the movies all pushed together that makes no theming sense, yet people never say anything bad about it.

Some Disney fans can go all day long completely ignoring the problems they see at WDW but think Universal is somehow evil or six-flags like anytime their names are brought up.

I love both parks and competition is a GOOD thing. Do you think you'd see Everest, Rock n Roller coaster and Mission Space if it weren't for IOA? I doubt it.

 

[Legacy]

I was just about to post that same thing. I have been to US 4 times since it has opened. I have enjoyed myself while I was there, and spend maybe 1/2 a day and I am ready to go back to WDW (I am not a thrill ride person, so many things did not appeal to me). Now that I have kids, I see no reason to go there again for quite a while. My daughter is 4 and my son is 21 months. I really cant think of anything for them to enjoy for a whole day. I want to be able to ride things or see shows with my family. However when they are 10 or so, I will totally take them there for a day or 2, but the bulk of my stay in the Orlando area will be at WDW. For the person who might think US is like 6 Flags, it is not even close, it is 100 times better. If you are going with adults or have kids older than 10, by all means, take them to US, you will most likely have a great time.

For kids...

Universal Studios

Jimmy Neutron: Nick-Toon Blast
Shrek 4-D
ET: The Extra-Terrestrial
Woody's Kid-Zone (which includes a coaster like the Barnstormer and two play areas)
Animal Actor's Stage Show

Islands of Adventure

Suess Landing

Cat and the Hat
Caro-Suess-El
If I Ran The Zoo Play Area
One Fish Two Fish
High in the Sky Suess Trolly Ride

Lost Continent

Flying Unicorn (though it will be closed during the Harry Potter addition to become the Hipogryph

Jurassic Park

Discovery Center Play Area
Camp Jurassic Play Area
Pteranadon Flyers

Toon Lagoon

Me Ship, The Olive Play Area

Marvel Super Hero Island

Storm Force Accelatron


So... um... they can't do anything there before they are 10?

 

[Dragonrider1227]

Universal is far more superior!!! Everyone should go there!!!

Especially Sept 7th - 17th and December 8th - 13th.

(Then we'll have WDW to ourselves...:drevil

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

 

[DisneyYorkian74]

ok so disney has 50 millions people a year and universal has 13 million as stated early. but how many of the disney people go there more then once a year and more then once there on there trip that is magic kingdom . i would say like 70 percent. i would say 90 percent go once a year to universal. so that saying it would be like it would be 15 million people really coming to disney and 11.7 going to universal studio's. as well as a average to universal is two and disney is five to six nights a week.

WDW is the world's number one vacation destination and 15 million unique visitors is not a number that would launch WDW to that top spot.

We also know that at any given day WDW has over 100,000 people spread throughout the resort.

I can assure you that a lot more than 15 million people visit WDW a year and the gap between Universal's attendance and WDW is a lot more than just about 4 million...

 

[Skip]

I know the coaster rides at US and IOA are far more thrilling than most disney-coasters which to date do not even feature an inversion with the exception of RRC- but I do not care because the theming is far superior. If I compare the coasters of IOA and WDW I realize, that the US-coasters are just some constructions which do not differ much from amusement park rides.But there is no disney-coaster where you actually SEE it's a coaster because the construction is either covered with landscaping (EE, BTMR) or in the dark (SM). When I ride EE it's a small adventure, a journey into the himalayan mountains, with a highly elaborated queing area. Is there a comparable theming in the US-coasters?

Actually, yes. It's called Revenge of the Mummy; it's an indoor combination dark ride and roller coaster with state of the art technology and animatronics. Its queue, which starts as a movie studio and transitions into a "real" egyptian tomb, is highly regarded as one of the top queues anywhere. Dueling Dragons also has an amazing fully-fledged queue (the ride itself isn't as nicely themed, however).

The only thing that a thread like this can guarantee, is that a huge amount of excreta will be spouted as fact by people who havent a clue.

Agreed.

A common point that is being brought up is that Disney has 50 million visitors a year while Universal only has 13 million. My response to this = Just because something has greater attendance than something else doesn't mean it's better. Six Flags Magic Mountain could have 50 million visitors a year and Disney World could have 30 million - does that mean Six Flags Magic Mountain is better than Disney? Of course not. Now, I enjoy BOTH parks. I visit both as much as I can. However, I find Universal to be a MUCH better overall experience. Does that mean I hate Disney? No. That's silly. (Though, to be honest, I find that Disney has gotten lazy with their parks. As a result I visit Universal a bit more nowadays).

Have an open mind, people. Calling Universal another "six flags" because it has two (well technically) three outdoor looping coasters is just ignorant.

-Skip

 

[teebin]

Actually, yes. It's called Revenge of the Mummy; it's an indoor combination dark ride and roller coaster with state of the art technology and animatronics. Its queue, which starts as a movie studio and transitions into a "real" egyptian tomb, is highly regarded as one of the top queues anywhere. Dueling Dragons also has an amazing fully-fledged queue (the ride itself isn't as nicely themed, however).



Agreed.

A common point that is being brought up is that Disney has 50 million visitors a year while Universal only has 13 million. My response to this = Just because something has greater attendance than something else doesn't mean it's better. Six Flags Magic Mountain could have 50 million visitors a year and Disney World could have 30 million - does that mean Six Flags Magic Mountain is better than Disney? Of course not. Now, I enjoy BOTH parks. I visit both as much as I can. However, I find Universal to be a MUCH better overall experience. Does that mean I hate Disney? No. That's silly. (Though, to be honest, I find that Disney has gotten lazy with their parks. As a result I visit Universal a bit more nowadays).

Have an open mind, people. Calling Universal another "six flags" because it has two (well technically) three outdoor looping coasters is just ignorant.

-Skip

Hear hear...

 

[dhoywdw20x]

Not even close

Disney offers nearly double the amount of attraction per park to Universal. The parks at Disney are much larger and can handle larger crowds and greater occupancy. Where as Universal parks offer fewer attractions and are not has large.

Islands of Adventure as 15-18 attractions Magic Kingdom has 30+.

 

[Skip]

Disney offers nearly double the amount of attraction per park to Universal. The parks at Disney are much larger and can handle larger crowds and greater occupancy. Where as Universal parks offer fewer attractions and are not has large.

Islands of Adventure as 15-18 attractions Magic Kingdom has 30+.

You neglect to mention that Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios have about 10-14 attractions each... and Universal Studios beats out Hollywood Studios in terms of number of rides and attractions.

-Skip

 

[dreamscometrue]

ok so disney has 50 millions people a year and universal has 13 million as stated early. but how many of the disney people go there more then once a year and more then once there on there trip that is magic kingdom . i would say like 70 percent. i would say 90 percent go once a year to universal. so that saying it would be like it would be 15 million people really coming to disney and 11.7 going to universal studio's. as well as a average to universal is two and disney is five to six nights a week.

:shrug: Well....ummm...yeah....that's quite an interesting post. I really like how you completely make up numbers and multiply them together to get useless data. That's really impressive. You've convinced me.

 

[DisneyGigi]

I have made 6 trips to Orlando and have never been able, to even for a day, convince myself to waste a single precious Disney day on Universal so from my point of view I am gonna have to say NO! :ROFLOL:

 

[DisneyYorkian74]

Just because something has greater attendance than something else doesn't mean it's better.

Nice job putting words into people's mouths.

Nobody is saying that WDW is better because it receives so many more visitors than Universal, or that Universal is worse because it receives less.

Those numbers just reflect WDW's popularity and the fact that Universal has zero percent chance of ever becoming even in the same league of the popularity of WDW in terms of attendance.

You need to look at the context of the thread before you go off making comments like that.

 

[hrcollectibles]

I for one enjoy going to Universal Studios. I have an annual pass I think it cost me around 100.00. It gets me two parks, free parking and discounts. Studios is great because it appears to be exactly what it is a Studio. They still have tv shows produced there. The theming at Islands of Adventure is awesome. With all that being said I really don't feel the I am immersed as I am at Disney.

 

[NCState]

I have made 6 trips to Orlando and have never been able, to even for a day, convince myself to waste a single precious Disney day on Universal so from my point of view I am gonna have to say NO! :ROFLOL:

I agree I have never nor wanted to visit Universal. So, let the ones that wants to go, that will leave more space for ME!

 

[Foladar]

After looking over both of my annual passes, I didn't see anything that states that I'm not allowed to enjoy both parks.
Universal does have attractions for both kids and the family. There is also great theming, and of course Disney will have better attendance - compare the New York Yankees (or Red Sox) and most other newer ball clubs, the history and being around for so many years will give them that "following" and keep people coming back.

By the way, Universal is good, even if you don't like Universal because competition is *always* good for the consumer.

 

[Skip]

Nice job putting words into people's mouths.

Nobody is saying that WDW is better because it receives so many more visitors than Universal, or that Universal is worse because it receives less.

Those numbers just reflect WDW's popularity and the fact that Universal has zero percent chance of ever becoming even in the same league of the popularity of WDW in terms of attendance.

You need to look at the context of the thread before you go off making comments like that.

Fair enough. I just see it tossed around so often, as if it "proved" that Disney's popularity was better then Universal because it WAS better.

However, I don't think you can fairly state that Universal has zero chance of defeating Disney ever. While Disney may have the bigger numbers now, it's possible that in many decades it COULD overtake them, should they acquire more expansion space, or Disney continues to be lazy and ultimately destroys what was fun about their parks. Am I saying it's likely? No, it really isn't. But is it possible? Yes. If you need an example of a smaller competitor defeating a larger one, just take a look at Atari vs. Nintendo.

-Skip

 

[lwalker8]

The slow change in opinion towards a favoring of Universal reflects on the shortening attention spans of the American family. People have become more interested in being given excitement on a roller coaster than sitting together as a family watching a fireworks show or exploring the incredible details Disney puts into their parks and show.

Traveling to Disney parks is an American pastime as founded in our cores as any other. Universal is a theme park, where you go to ride the roller coasters and ultimately forget it. It's not the family experience that Disney created that is a part of the American experience.

 

[ChrisFL]

The slow change in opinion towards a favoring of Universal reflects on the shortening attention spans of the American family. People have become more interested in being given excitement on a roller coaster than sitting together as a family watching a fireworks show or exploring the incredible details Disney puts into their parks and show.

Traveling to Disney parks is an American pastime as founded in our cores as any other. Universal is a theme park, where you go to ride the roller coasters and ultimately forget it. It's not the family experience that Disney created that is a part of the American experience.

I thought E.T., the Cat in the Hat, the Animal Actors show (and susequent versions), Hanna-Barbera/ Jimmy Neutron, Shrek, and others were/are great family attractions. Sure Disney has more, but don't count out Universal's offerings as well.

 

[ChrisFL]

Fair enough. I just see it tossed around so often, as if it "proved" that Disney's popularity was better then Universal because it WAS better.

However, I don't think you can fairly state that Universal has zero chance of defeating Disney ever. While Disney may have the bigger numbers now, it's possible that in many decades it COULD overtake them, should they acquire more expansion space, or Disney continues to be lazy and ultimately destroys what was fun about their parks. Am I saying it's likely? No, it really isn't. But is it possible? Yes. If you need an example of a smaller competitor defeating a larger one, just take a look at Atari vs. Nintendo.

-Skip

Agreed, one need only to look at the rapid decline in the park experience offered by Disney when they opened things line DCA, Disney Studios Paris and areas like Dino-Rama at AK to see that, for a time, their parks WERE being executed poorly/cheaply. Luckily it finally DID get to a breaking point where people decided that they weren't going to visit merely on the Disney name alone.

You could also say the same about MGM Studios. When Universal opened it completely blew away anything at MGM but I don't think the attendance figures backed that up (anyone have numbers?)

One must also not forget that one of the main reasons why IOA and newer Universal attractions are so good is that, well, they were EX-IMAGINEERS that designed them!!!

 

[Skip]

The slow change in opinion towards a favoring of Universal reflects on the shortening attention spans of the American family. People have become more interested in being given excitement on a roller coaster than sitting together as a family watching a fireworks show or exploring the incredible details Disney puts into their parks and show.

Traveling to Disney parks is an American pastime as founded in our cores as any other. Universal is a theme park, where you go to ride the roller coasters and ultimately forget it. It's not the family experience that Disney created that is a part of the American experience.

Who says Universal doesn't have these details you speak of? Every single area of both theme parks (with the possible exception of the bland Production Central) is LOADED with dozens of details, secret paths, hidden wonders, and experiences. Universal offers Universal 360, which isn't as elaborate as some of Disney's fireworks shows (but that's not really their fault, it's the surrounding neighborhoods'), but it's fireworks. Universal only has 3 serious roller coasters people. And two of them are apart of the same attraction. Last time I checked Disney has a serious coaster ride as well. To say people "forget about Universal" because "their attention spans are shortening" is just silly. As ChrisFL said above me Universal has many family attractions loaded with detail, nostalgia, adventure, and surprises; E.T. Adventure, The Cat in the Hat, Shrek 4D, Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast, Disaster/Earthquake, Jaws, Men in Black, The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman, Poseidon's Fury, etc...

-Skip

 

[Dagger]

I like Universal just fine, but it doesn't hold a candle in my book. When HP comes along, I will visit right away and reassess at that time.