Better late then Never? A Christmas at the Dark Side 2014 TR

[choppee]

wow! this is really an amazing overview of the lands. i really appreciate the detail of your tr! thanks so much for doing this!

 

[Teknik_DC2]

Day 2, Part 2: The Wizarding World Day





We entered Hogsmead which is a place that has become very familiar to us over the years. The original Wizarding World that made us fall in even more love with the Universal Orlando Resort. It was odd seeing it not super crowded though. Which made it easy for us to get thru to get to our next destination.







That next stop would be Hogwarts Castle to go on Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. The posted wait time was 15 minutes but in reality the ride was a walk on. In all the times we have come never have we seen no wait. But even today the Greenhouses had nobody waiting. The ride truely would be a walk on.














Forbidden Journey's Que set the standard for themed que's but Gringotts diffenitly took that to a new level. But that doesn't mean Forbidden Journey's still isn't great. Forbidden Journey's que has so much to see but suffers from the fact that most of the wait is typically outside in the Green House and not inside the castle where you want to be. I also wish that Dumbledor's office and the Dark Arts Classroom were holding rooms (like bill weasly's office in Gringotts). You are just pushed thru these rooms and don't get to see the whole part of those scenes which are some of the best parts of the Hogwarts Que. The best part with today was with no line we could take our time thru the line.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

Our rides on the Forbidden Journey were as great as always. The new projectors have all been installed and all the screen scenes looked great. Unfortunatly the Soul Sucking Demintor scene still isn't working. I have pretty much given up on that effect even though it was one of my favorites. Overall it was a solid ride and confirmed to me that Forbidden Journey is still better then Gringotts.






When we were done at Hogwarts we ventured back down to Hogsmead and spent some time casting spells with our new Interactive Wand. Seriously the interactive wands are so much fun. And in Hogsmead we finally seemed to be getting the hang of it a bit. The only thing the interactive wands kind of ruin was for 4 years it was fun to walk by the Hogsmead shop windows and seeing something magical taking place in each one. Now with the wands the windows are stagnent until you perform the spell.












We soon left Hogsmead but instead of hopping back on the Hogwarts Express at this time we continued on thru the Lost Continant. This poor land just keeps getting smaller and smaller as almost all of its "Arab" section has been obsorbed by the new Wizarding World courtyard to tie in the Hogwarts Express station.







The place we were heading to was Suess Landing. This is where the Holiday festivities take place in Islands of Adventure. Although the holidays hadn't officially started yet the area was all decorated and Christmas music was playing. It was pretty amazing.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

Although we weren't here for the Christmas Stuff. We walked over to Suess Landing so that we could take Daniel on the Cat in the Hat ride. If you read my last report's you may remember that Cat in the Hat use to not have a height limit so Daniel had rode it many times before and loved it. However shortly before our June trip a height restriction was added and Daniel was now to short to ride. It devistated him on our June trip and was one of the saddest things we had to see as his parents. He was barely too short in June so we hoped that he would make it on this trip. And thankfully he did. He was tall enough to ride Cat in the Hat again and he couldn't be more excited. Needless to say we would ride this a few times on the trip as it is easily his favorite ride in the resort.





When we were done with the Cat in the Hat we made our way back towards the Wizarding World. More specifically the Hogwarts Express station as we would be heading back to the Studios for the rest of the night.










Although the Hogsmead station isn't as detailed as Kings Cross it is still pretty cool in its own right. I loved walking thru the Forest Que. It seemed like quite a long walk though but at least it was pretty. There was no wait so we pretty much got right on to the train. The Ride video heading back to London is completly different then it was coming the other way. But these 2 videos are the only options. I kinda wish that could have done like Star Tours and had different scenarios each time you ride but its all right. I think I liked the video going to Hogsmead more then going to London.









Just like when we got to Hogsmead earlier in the day when we exited Kings Cross the rain had returned and was raining on the parks. The girls thru on there ponchos but I hoped it wouldn't last as long like earlier in the day. I was wrong though as it rained most of the rest of the evening. We didn't go back to Diagon Alley at this time. Instead we walked towards the New York area of the park to watch the Superstar Parade.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

With the Universal Holidays starting tomorrow this would be the only day on this trip that we would be able to see the Superstar Parade as the Macy's Parade would be running each night the rest of our vacation. The parade route was roped off but with the rain we honestly didn't know if the parade would even take place still. It was diffenitly running behind and we even almost gave up on it but finally the music came over the speakers and it was heading our way. We picked the spot in New York that we did in hopes that we would have a good view of the Despicable Me float during the show stop. We soon realized though that in the rain the don't do the show stops (likely for the safety of the performers). This makes an already small parade seem even more pathetic as the entire parade that consists of Despicable Me, Sponge Bob, Hop, and Dora passed by in what seemed like 30 seconds. The parade isn't bad and the floats have incredible detail. Plus Daniel loves it. But honestly it needs to be about triple in size to really be considered something respectable.


















When the parade passed by we decided to walk across the Street and take a ride on the Revenge of the Mummy. As with practically every other attraction this day we walked pretty much strait on to the ride. It too was as great as I remember and having just rode Gringotts earlier in the day I knew I still liked the Mummy more. This is one of the those rides that prove you can make an amazing attraction out of a crappy franchise.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

We were done with the Mummy and when we got back outside the sun had gone down and all the Christmas Lights around New York as well as the Christmas tree were lite up. Christmas just makes everything so much more magical when the parks are already incredible after dark.








By this point in the day we were hungry and ready to eat dinner. So we made our way back to the London and eventually Diagon Alley to go get some food. This area also looked incredible after dark.








For dinner we would be eating at the Leaky Cauldron. I mean it was the new restaurant part of the Diagon Alley expansion so we had to try it. We missed the Dinner rush so we were able to get in and order our food without any sort of wait. The food here is more traditional British then what you'll find in Hogsmead at the Three Broomsticks so many of the options are pretty odd and interesting. Kiera and here sister played it safe by sharing some Fish and Chips but I decided to try the Toad in a Hole which was 2 sausages in a cream pudding batter stuff. Both options were good and I would try them again. However we all agreed that we prefer the food at Three Broomsticks. The themeing is great in here though. Although it seems much brighter then it does in the movies.








Before leaving the Leaky Cauldron I went back and ordered a ButterBeer. But not just any ButterBeer that we have come to know over the years. Recently they created a Warm ButterBeer for the cold months so we had to try it. It was delecious. I didn't think anything could come close to the Frozen Butterbeer but this is a very close 2nd. It was so good espeically on the cooler nights later in the trip. You must try it.



By the time we finished with dinner we had less then 30 minutes until the park would be closing for that night at 7pm. And we sitll had one last thing planned for today that we needed to do before the park closed. And so exploring Diagon Alley after dark would have to wait another night.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

We made our way back to the front of the park to the Despicable Me: Minion Mayham ride. Over our last few trips we have come to find the best time to ride this without an Express Pass is the final 30 minutes of the night as you will typically find the wait less then 20 minutes. So long as your in line before the park closes you will still get to ride. We got in line with about 10 minutes left til park closing and only waited about 5 minutes until we were in the first Preshow room. This ride will typically pull long waits all day long even on a slow day so do it last if you can. Minion Mayham is a fun ride and one I recommend checking out at least once on a trip.






The ride is a motion simulator so keep that in mind. But it is a lot of fun with the humor you would expect from the Despecable Me movies. Although there is a 40 inch height limit for the motion simulator the ride does also have stationary seating so those under 40 inches can still enjoy the attraction as a 3d movie. I sat in the stationary seating this time with Daniel so Kiera and Kena could do the moving seats. We hope Daniel is tall enough next time we go back as he already loves it. I can only imagine how much more he will like it when he moves to the movie.










By the time we finished with the ride the park had officially been closed for about 15 minutes. So we were very surprised when we exited a ride and one of the Minions was still out meeting guests. Once again a far cry from our June trip where it was hard to find a Minion meeting period much less after the park had closed. Daniel saw the Minion and just had to see him again even though it was the same one from earlier in the day.





With the park closed we made our way towards the exit stopping briefly just at the little shop right next to the exit gate. For years we have just passed this by when leaving. However I recently found out that this is one of 2 locations where all the Universal Markedown and Clearance Merchandise goes. We found the rack with the items but it was pretty small at this spot. Perhaps the location in Islands of Adventure would have more. From there it was a quick walk thru City Walk and we were soon back at our car.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

Although the early closing kinda sucks the parks were slow enough that we could do all that we wanted and still have time to do other things in the evening. Like tonight after we were done at the parks we drove over to the Orlando Premium Outlets located across the freeway from Universal. The main reason we came was for the Disney Character Warehouse where all the Clearance Disney Parks merchandise goes. We found this on our 2nd trip to Orlando and its a must go to each time now as its where we always find most of the Disney merchandise that we buy. And today was no different. We walked out with a bag full of stuff.








Once we were done at the Outlets we headed back to our hotel where we still had time to go relax in the Pools Hot Tub before it closed for the night. Like I said one of the perks of the parks closing early is we could relax at the hotel. We always love hitting the Hot Tub after a long day in the parks.






When we were one at the Hot Tub we went back to our room and turned down for the evening. We watched watever Christmas Movie was on ABC Family that night and then went to sleep. We had another big day ahead of us at the parks tomorrow. They would be open a little later because tomorrow was the start of the Grinchmas and the Macy's Holidays. Christmas at Universal was officially going to begin.

 

[mrsabbott]

I love the Christmas decorations! Great pics! You are braver than I am though.. I absolutely hate being out in the rain! I don't care to walk around soaking wet from a water ride.. but from the rain... ick! I love that you guys just threw on some ponchos and kept right on going..

 

[HM]

Enjoying your TR. We had a family vacation there not long after yours. Great time of year to go.
DD and I hope to go back this December too.

 

[wiscbugs]

We had a whole bunch of good characters at the Minion Dance Party. Once we had Vector, Gru and a minion. Another time we had 3 minions and Agnes and Edith...they were a ton of fun!

 

[Teknik_DC2]

Day 3: The Christmas Day

Our third day of vacation was what I anticipated to be the busiest Universal Park day that we would see. Not only was it a Satuday but it was also the 1st day the Universal would officially kick off the parks Holiday festivities with The Macy's Parade in the Studios and Grinchmas in Islands of Adventure. Figuring it would be busier today we strived to get to the parks earlier today then we would any other day. Although we tried it was still after 10am by the time we got parked and made our way to City Walk.







The focus of todays parks visits would be the Christmas festivities that would be taking place. And since most of the Studios Christmas stuff wouldn't be starting until the evening hours we decided to start our day in Islands of Adventure.








Most of the crowd that we entered the park with were making there way towards Suess Landing to see the Grinchmas stuff or make there way to the Wizarding World - Hogsmead. We decided to go the other way towards Marvel and start our day there.




Our 1st ride for the day is my personal favorite ride ever created. The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman. Even with some stiff competion from amazing attractions such as The Forbidden Journey, Gringotts, and Transformers, Spiderman is still easily my favorite ride of all time. Its also awesome when there is practically no wait like there was at this time.







Next up was another staple of Islands of Adventure which also had no wait. The Incredible Hulk Coaster. This was still a time before the Metal Detectors had been installed. However Universal was being very strict about the no loose articals so Kiera took our stuff and went up the exit ramp to the Child Swap while Kena and I rode. I would still say the Hulk is my favorite extreme coaster and although I was regreting it at the time I was happy I rode it back to back going again right after our ride was over with Kiera. I didn't know it at the time but this would be our final ride on the Classic Hulk Coaster. As of this writting the Coaster has now been closed down for a massive refurb and will reopen next Summer 2016. Expected is a New Que, Launch Tunnel, Retrack, and Ride Vehicles with new effects. I liked the classic Hulk but i'd be lieing if I said it didn't need a refurb. This ride had got so rough that 2 back to back rides were enough to call it good for the rest of the trip.






Since Daniel hadn't got to go on a ride yet today we went next door to do the Storm Force Accelerator which is basically Universal's version of Disney's classic Tea Cups. When we came earlier in the summer this ride scared Daniel so we were interested to see how he would do this time. And unfortunatly it was more of the same haha. He liked it at 1st but once it started picking up speed it put him to tears. We will try again when we return to the parks on another trip and hope he will do better next time. Especially because he loves the Tea Cups at a local Amusment Park.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

Now done with Marvel we went to Suess Landing where we still had some time to kill before the next Grinchmas Show would be starting. As we walked past the "Oh the Stories you will hear" stage we noticed that all the Dr. Suess characters were out so we stopped for some photos with them. Daniel loves the characters.


















Next the Girls needed to run to the restroom and Daniel was asking to go on the One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish Ride. Even though this ride is a simple Spinner like Dumbo you do the run the risk of getting wet. The day was warmer though so I figured we would chance it. So Daniel and I got on the ride and he had so much fun. And I don't know how I managed to but we walked off the ride completly dry.





When we were done with the ride we meet back up with the girls and the gates opened to allow people to line up for the next Grinchmas Show. So we got in line for it. The Grinchmas show takes place in one of the nearby soundstages. I think #18. So when you line up for the show you are in the back stage area of the 2 parks which guests are typically never intended to see. I love the behind the scenes stuff with Theme Parks so I ate it all up.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

Soon Enough we were allowed in the massive soundstage where the Grinchmas stage was set up. We got a pretty good spot pretty much center to the stage to watch the show from. I was really excited to see this show. Especially to see how in compared to what we saw at the Hollywood Park during the Christmas Season of 2012. In my Opinion Hollywoods Grinchmas was the highlight of that trip. The Show in Hollywood revolved around the nighly Tree Lighting but in Orlando the show is a full musical production meshing the Story from the Classic Book and the Live action movie in to one production.













The show is diffenitly a MUST DO if visiting the parks while Grinchmas is taking place. I really enjoyed it and I think they took the best parts of the Movie and Book and made a great stage production out of it. However in my opinion it didn't top what we saw in Hollywood. Although Hollywoods was outdoors and nowhere near as detailed there was just something that seemed more special about it. Maybe it was the feeling of it starting off with a Celebrity Reading of the classic story. Maybe it was the story being more original and centered around the actual tree lighting instead of a retelling of the story we all know. Maybe there was something special about being outside and seeing the huge tree light to life and the "snow" falling to the sounds of Christmas. Whatever it was although Orlando was good and a must do. Hollywood was better. From what I hear though with all the change the Hollywood Park has gone thru since 2013 there show is no longer what I remember it to be which is sad to hear.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

As a whole I thought the Hollywood Grinchmas event was better then what Islands of Adventure presented. In Hollywood the whole park is Grinched out. There is a play area during the day with real snow, The Tree is amazing, and the Tree Lighting show and Celebrity reading of the story are so special. The Stairway to the Lower Lot has the book being read over speakers and even the Studio Tour has a small segment where the Grinch and Who's do a small performance on the Whoville set. In Florida the Grinchmas stuff is kept strictly in Suess Landing. It is done really well but it just doesn't compare to Hollywood. Its also sad that outside some small trees here and there, there really isn't any Christmas presence in any of the other areas of the park. What was most dissapointing though was the "Grinch Meet and Greet". In Hollywood he has a whole set built for his Meet and Greet and his dog Max is even there. In Florida he stood in front of a blue screen in the back of the store. Even with the digital imported background from the Photo pass thing it still pailed compared to Hollywoods set up.







Done with the Grinchmas Stuff we continued further in to the park stopping briefly in the Lost Contenent to eat the Sandwiches we bought while watching some kids interact with the Mystic Fountain. This is spot we like to take a break as the fountain is interactive and very funny to watch kids play around with and get soaked. There is also a Coke Freestyle machine nearby where you can refill any cups or water bottles with Water free of charge and no wait.





After Lunch we continued in to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.







Our purpose for coming here was to take Daniel on the Flight of the Hypogriph Coaster. He was finally tall enough to go on it so it was time to break him in lol. This is a fun Kiddie/Family coaster that should be checked out if the wait is short. The line themeing is pretty good and its the only way you can see Hagrid's Hut. I tried to record Daniel on the ride but the gopro malfunctioned unfortantly and didn't recored. This was Daniel's 2nd Coaster. His 1st being the Barnestormer at Disney back in June. I think this scared him much more then that as the Hypogriph is much more intense lol. I guess we will see if we get him back on it on our next visit haha.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

We caught the end of the Frog Choir Show on the Hogsmead stage and then decided to award Daniel for his bravery on the coaster by giving him a Butterbeer. We also cast some spells as the shop windows until the Butterbeer was gone before moving on to Jurassic Park.











In Jurassic Park we made our way to the Discovery Center which is one of Daniels Favorite places in both parks. If you didn't know there are many kid activities on the lower level of the Discovery Center. Daniel could literally spend hours down here if we let him. By far the coolest thing though is getting to see a "Live" Dinosaur Birth. The kids really eat this up and it is really cute to see the Raptor's egg crack and hatch open. One of the kids watching the show will even get to name the Raptor. This is one of those little experiances that I recommend not to miss if you have a young child.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

While still in Jurassic Park I toyed with the Idea of taking a ride on the River Adventure. But since neither of the girls wanted to go on it with me and us quickly running out of time to get over to the Studios for the Macy's Parade I decided against it.












We had a little over an hour until the parade was scheduled to begin so we figured we would just go hop on the Hogwarts Express to head over to the studios. But apparently everyone else had the same idea. When we walked up to the Hogwarts Express station it had posted a 45 minute wait. The longest we saw it get the whole time we were in the parks. With that long of a wait we decided to park hop the old fashioned way and just walk. For those interested Youtube Vlogger TheTimTracker did put it to the test and came to the conclussion that if the Hogwarts Express has a 25 minute wait or more then it is faster to walk to the park then to wait for the train.














This was the only time we Park Hopped the old way thru CityWalk on this trip. It was cool seeing most of the CityWalk construction complete across the lake. Its changed so much since we started coming back in 2009. Seeing so many people approching the Studios to see the 1st night of the Macy's Christmas stuff we took the side entrance located by the Blue Man Group Theater where of course there was no wait to get in.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

While walking past the Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit plateform we noticed that there was practically no wait to go on the ride. So we made a quick stop to go on the the coaster. Daniel fell asleep on the walk so Kiera went strait to the Child Swap Room while Kena and I were on the ride in less then 5 minutes. It was a fun ride as always. And much more pleasent then when we came in June where I pulled down the lap bar way too tight.




After our impromptu ride on Rockit we made our way in to the New York section of the park which already had hundreds of people lining the street awaiting the Macy's Parade. From watching Vlog's and reading trip reports it was recommend to find a spot close by the Christmas Tree as the parade ends with a sort of Tree Lighting show. There were no longer any spots along the curb but we found a space that worked right next to Reserved section behind a group sitting on the curb. We would end up waiting over 40 minutes before the parade would reach this section and the area just got more and more crowded.














The parade started nearly 20 minutes earlier by the time it reached where we were watching from. This parade is awesome and diffenitly a Must See if at the parks during the Holidays. I don't know how many of the baloons are still used in the real Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade but they were diffenitly a sight to behold.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

This parade along with the Universal Mardi Gras Parade is diffenitly how a parade should be done. I really don't know why there Day Time Super Star parade isn't nearly as good as there seasonal parades.










In addition to some familiar Baloons and Floats that have been part of the actual Macy's Parade in the past Universal also plugs many of its park characters with the Minions, Shrek, and Simpson's making apperances.










The parade is fairly long and I was surprised to see it start while fully daylight still and ending with it being almost completly dark. Daniel really enjoyed the parade especially when the confetti would rain down from the sky.

 

[Teknik_DC2]

Just like the real Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Santa's arrival is the conclusion of the parade. And just like the Vlogs and Trip Reports said Santa does stop with the "Rockettes" for a small Tree Lighting show. Santa welcomes everyone out and says a few other words then countdown and the tree elimunates with all its lights. This is again something you only see if viewing the parade from New York in front of the fake Macy's store front and Mummy ride entrance. Unfortunatly from where we watched from we saw the behind of Santa as he stops litterally right in front of the tree. After the tree lighting Santas float leaves but many of the parade characters and Rockettes stick around the tree for photos.









We really loved the parade and recommend checking it out. If you do our spot was good but you will get a better view of Santa during the tree lighting if you sit directly across from the tree or by the Mummy. If your going for pictures go to the end of the New York street where the parade turns back towards the Transformers ride and you will have some great head on photos of the baloons, characters, and floats.










The other major part of the Studios Holiday festivities are the Mannheim Steamroller Concerts. And so once the parade was over we made our way to the Concert stage located in front of the Rip, Ride, Rockit coaster to find a spot for the concert. The area was already pretty packed but we found that you were allowed to sit on the edge of the walk ways as long as you didn't completly block it. We watched most of the concert but not all of it. It was really cool and so awesome to see such a familiar sound of Christmas live and in Concert. It really was great and again something you must see if doing the Holidays at Universal. The only thing bad was the one person who was standing in front of a wheelchair the whole show. Don't know why the had to stand instead of sit like everybody else.