Where do I even start? About This Page:

[jjjmranch]

My boys (DS7 and DS almost 9) are planning on going to Universal Studios in August 2011. All my planning has always been for Disney. I don't even know where to start for this adventure. Are the crowds just as bad in August at Universal vs Disney?
Help!

Thanks!

Jane

[Shell_of_the_South]

First you should decide if you're going to stay in a Universal onsite resort or stay offsite. The resorts can be pricey, but there are lots of discounts out there if you look. Mousesavers has a Universal page with all the available discounts:

MouseSavers.com - Discounts at Universal Studios / Islands of Adventure Orlando - tickets, hotels, meals

There are lots of plusses to staying onsite. Unlike Disney, the hotels are in walking distance to the parks, so you can easily walk back to your resort for a midday break. There are also water taxis for travel to Portofino Bay and Royal Pacific. You don't need a water taxi for the Hard Rock, it is so close.

The biggest perk to staying onsite is your room key. Just show your room key at the entrance of most attractions and you can enter the Express line. This cuts down your wait time significantly. Most folks refer to it as "front of the line access".

Then you should decide how many days you want to visit the parks. You should allow at least two days, three would be best for first timers to experience everything the parks have to offer. Universal also has some combo tickets with other attractions such as Wet & Wild, Busch Gardens, and I think Sea World too. You can check Universal's website to see their parks and resorts. Register your email address on their website to get emails with available discounts and specials.

www.universalorlando.com


If you're still overwhelmed, you might consider purchasing a Universal guidebook, such as Kelly Monaghan's:

Amazon.com: Universal Orlando 2011: The Ultimate Guide to the Ultimate Theme Park Adventure (9781887140904): Seth Kubersky, Kelly Monaghan: Books

Hope this helps!! The number one thing I tell people when visiting Universal for the first time is don't compare it to Disney. It's not Disney--Universal has its own unique characteristics. I've read a lot of complaints about Universal: the parks are dirty, the team members are rude, there is no theming. But in all of our trips I've never encountered any of this. Islands of Adventure has some of the most fabulously themed lands (they call them "islands") I've ever seen. Take time to enjoy the little things there too. They have some great shows and street performers as well as the attractions.

Happy trip planning!

[Colexis Mom]

We did Universal/IOA in August, I think it was back in 2006, so the kids would have been 7 and 4. We did 2 days. We dedicated one day to each park. We got there at rope drop, to help minimize waits. They were too small for the big coasters, so DH went on those while I stayed with the kids. Each Island at IoA had a kids coaster or a kids ride, so we did those, and just worked our way around. They loved Suessland. At Universal, we only did a few things (Shrek, Jimmy Neutron, ET, and the kids area). I used the Universal Website trying to figure out what they were big enough for and would enjoy!

[elbodans]

while i've not gone to universal (yet--we're going in may) i have been planning the trip, and my words of advice for you are this: don't worry! from ALL of the reasearch i've been doing, it seems planning a universal trip is not nearly as complicated as planning a disney trip. i have the book mentioned above (get it!) and he offers brief touring plans--but nothing like the disney touring plans i've seen (and i've looked at those, too--i love planning!) are you staying on site? we are mainly because of the convenience factor--no need for a rental car or parking, and you can use your room key as a fast pass all day long. in the book mentioned above it even says something like 'if you have express passes, don't worry about a touring plan, do what you want'. how great is that? it also would depend on how many days you have--i suppose you wouldn't even need the express pass if you had many days. we have three full days (not counting arrival day) and a half of a day on the day we depart. we're planning one full day at universal studios, one full day at islands of adventure, and the morning we leave we will likely return to IOA. (as for the third full day? ahem...disney of course! my husband wants to do AK in the am and Epcot at night) have fun, happy planning...and again, buy the book! if nothing else, it will get you very excited for your trip!

[Huntermom]

As my kids got older, especially my boys, they preferred Universal to Disney. I have stayed at the RPR and PBR and both were wonderful hotels. PBR, the lowest priced hotel, is equivalent to the lower level Disney deluxes. I have consistently had much better service at Universal Hotels than Disney. It may not be true across the board, but for me my stays at Universal were special.

I think 2-3 days is nice. I found there are more middle of the road attractions at Universal. When my ex and I were both ride wimps (I am since reformed) Universal Studios was the park be both enjoyed most because there were very few attractions we could not do, The rides we could do were great attractions and varied.

If your boys like thrills, they will probably love Universal.

I was told that Universal fills with locals on the weekends, so go during the week if you can. With FOTL access, you will walk on most rides-anytime you want.

[jennie622]

Definitely pick up the Guide mentioned above. It was extremely helpful in planning. The Universal website is helpful also but not as much as that book.

We went this past October for a long weekend. We stayed off site on Idrive. I regretted that decision. The traffic was horrendous and it was loud!! We were only 10 minutes from the park but parking is $15 per day.

Purchase tickets before hand so you can skip the lines and go directly to the will call kiosks, input your ressie # and out pop your tix. They have a version of park hoppers but we didn't take advantage of that, we spent nites over at CityWalk eating, shopping and dancing.

We also tried out the Meal Plan for one day. Adults are $20 per day (not sure about kids $$) and that includes all you can eat. Unfortunately, you only have 3 restaurants in each park to dine at. The choices are staples like fried chicken, burgers and such with typical desserts. We added on the CityWalk dinner entree for $6pp and you can go to 1 of 3 places and pick off a limited menu. Food was ok. We went out of pocket the rest of the trip.

If you do stay on property, definitely take advantage of their version of EMH for Harry Potter, especially if you go on a weekend. The roller coasters at IOA are fantastic. I still prefer US over IOA for the theming.

As far as planning goes, we are spoiled with all the Disney guides and websites available. There is not a lot to help plan Universal, the Guidebook above was the best I could find. Fortunately, the parks are smaller than Disney (and there are only two). We ended up getting to the park early, working in a counter clockwise direction. We hit every ride, attraction and show without spending $$ on Express Pass. We did do one night at Halloween Horror Nites and having EP for a hard ticket event is an absolute must. Since you are going in August, EP might be worth it since crowd levels will be higher and so will the temps!!

Good luck with planning!

[elbodans]

also (i just found this out whilst reading the book mentioned above and came on here to let you know) most of restaurants in city walk don't even take reservations--so there's no advanced dining reservations needed (or possible). the sit down restaurants in the parks (mythos, for example, which we want to check out) doesn't take reservations until 30 days before. actually, the only place i've found that even takes reservations six months out is Emerils (and we've eaten there in Vegas--VERY pricey, so I can't recommend it!) i realize that to some people (like me) who are over planners (guilty!) this may seem stressful, but it's a vacation--without reservations or trip plans, you can relax!

[MBUS]

We were there last August and found the crowd level to be ok. We stayed onsite (love love love the Royal Pacific Resort) and used the early opening to get into the Harry Potter area. I love the Express Pass perk so much that we always stay onsite 1-2 nights when we visit US.

My oldest 2 DS enjoy thrill rides and so are big Universal Fans. My youngest DS (10) and DMum are not into thrill rides - I am not really either - so for them they like US but would not mind skipping it either. We got 3 day passes, because we knew we wanted to spend 1 day per park and thought with the heat maybe a third day would allow us to revisit favorite rides.

We did the meal deal one day. We liked it. With 3 boys, age 10, 13 and 15 we got our money's worth. We ate early lunch (since we were in for early opening), late lunch, and dinner that day.

I found the Universal Orlando website to be a lot of help, too. Bring sunscreen, as there is not always a lot of shade. Lots of opportunities for wet rides, if you like them.

Happy planning!
Beth

[jjjmranch]

Thanks everyone! My boys aren't into the big coasters, so I'm happy to hear there are other things to offer. Especially WWOHP. The overplanner in me was lost because there isn't a lot of material. I'll definitely be looking up that book!

[Coop]

Don't go! My DH and I went in November. Our troubles started by trying to purchase tickets. I ordered them online at the beginning of Oct and got a confirmation number. When we didn't receive them in a week, I called to inquire. I got a run around. They had no record of my purchase. I was already charged and had a confirmation number. They then said they would cancel that purchase and re-submit it. Then they called me back (and instead of saying "Mrs. Bollman, this is Ben from Universal calling re:" He said "Hey trace, its Ben" Totally unprofessional. They then said they couldn't re-issue tickets because they were having computer trouble. By the 4th phone call and excuse - I said forget it. I went through AAA for tickets and got an "E-document" Thankfully the AAA agent wasn't happy with that and looked into it further. They finally sent the tickets over a month after beginning the ordeal. I probably never would have gotten them if it weren't for the travel agent. But I had to join AAA in addition to the cost of the tickets.

Once we got there (we were only going to IOA - for the Harry Potter exhibit) We walked through and went straight to the Harry Potter exhibit which was disappointing. Too small. The shops are too small. The rides are only geared toward people who like coasters. We wanted to go into the shops but they are all connected and you can only go in one way and have to walk through. Also the lines to go in the shops were an hour and a half long!!!! We finallly got into HoneyDukes - because the line went fast and wasn't as long as the others - and as I was checking out my purchases - they cashier asked "are you having fun here at Hogsmeade?" I said yes and she then said "I'm glad. I just can't say I like your shirt though" - I was wearing a Mickey Tshirt.

My husband said "We went on a Saturday, after the movie opened. So naturally it's going to be busy and crowded. We should give it another chance" But after the treatment I got - NO WAY!

My advice - DON'T GO! Don't waste your money. Don't waste your time. I was trying not to compare it to Disney - but I have never had such lousy treatment.