Disney / Universal

[2disneyboys]

I know a lot about Disney (thanks mostly to these boards) however, very little about Universal.. This is mostly because neither I nor my 2 boys like heights or rollercoasters so there is not much point in going to Universal over disney for us and our florida trips

I know that Disney has several outlets nearby and also Downtown Disney... does Universal have something similar (like downtown disney or outlets?) Specifically, my boys love Harry Potter and both keep talking about wanting some of the Harry Potter stuff. While I don't know that we'd actually visit universal parks, I'd like to visit maybe some stores if there are some on the outside of the parks. Any help is appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[Darcy03231]

I know a lot about Disney (thanks mostly to these boards) however, very little about Universal.. This is mostly because neither I nor my 2 boys like heights or rollercoasters so there is not much point in going to Universal over disney for us and our florida trips

I know that Disney has several outlets nearby and also Downtown Disney... does Universal have something similar (like downtown disney or outlets?) Specifically, my boys love Harry Potter and both keep talking about wanting some of the Harry Potter stuff. While I don't know that we'd actually visit universal parks, I'd like to visit maybe some stores if there are some on the outside of the parks. Any help is appreciated!

Thanks!

Universal is more than just heights and rollercoasters. I'm I ride chicken. I hate heights and don't do rollercoasters. I thoroughly enjoy Universal Studios. So much so that I've spent a week there and wasn't bored! While I have teens that love the thrill rides so its a draw for them, there's plenty to see/do without going on them.

If all you're looking to do is buy some merchandise I believe that Universal has a store in the airport. They also have Citywalk that has stores and restaurants.

 

[MyDizneyBoyz]

Universal has City Walk which is the area between the two Universal Parks (Universal Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios) and is much like Downtown Disney with lots of shops, restaurants, movie theaters, etc.

You'll have to pay for parking to get into City Walk but you won't need to buy park admission tickets unless you want to continue on into the parks. We've visited City Walk for the restaurants and it's quite nice. It's "busier" and has more of a fun, faster paced feel than Downtown Disney.

If you don't like thrill rides, Universal Studios can still be a lot of fun. They have a lot of "movie experience" rides where you can experience some cool special effects up close but they're not roller coasters - some of them you stand and watch the action (like in Twister where you get the feel of being inside a tornado) or the Simpson's Ride which is a virtual roller coaster similar to Disney's Star Tours (you sit in an enclosed "shuttle" which moves on hydraulics while you watch a screen that gives you the feeling of more motion than you're actually doing).

Have fun!

 

[NeverlandClub23]

We're going to Universal/IoA for the first time this December. The Universal/IoA forum here on the DIS has been really helpful. I also purchased the book Universal Orlando 2011: The Ultimate Guide to the Ultimate Theme Park Adventure by Kelly Monaghan and Seth Kubersky. It was very helpful and a great reference tool for about $10.

We're not rollercoaster riders either (and I'm not a huge fan of heights), but there seems to be a lot to do at both parks without riding the more "thrilling" rides. Especially only going there for a day or two.

 

[Planogirl]

You might want to run to Citywalk one evening. I believe that it's still only $3 to park there at night.

There is a Universal Store in Citywalk. Like a PP said there are also stores at the airport. However the Harry Potter merchandise will be a bit limited but you can still find some cute things.

 

[maleficentmom]

I love Universal and Disney! maybe this pointer will not work for everyone, but it does for us...we get one Pass(the cheapest offered for non-florida residents) and we buy hotel at Universals Royal Pacific and other tix through Universal. The pass did have monthly interest free payments( sort of like QVC easy pay) to your credit card...it gives you a large discount off their 3 hotels (although the discount does seem depend on time of year/events/availability,etc, I think), and discounts off tix, food, merchandise etc...and you get their " front of the line access" for rides when you stay at their hotel(the bomb...we rode the Popeye waterride 3 x. Front of line access is not yet available for HP but they open an hour early for folks staying at their hotels(we rode 2x with minimal wait and there is tons to see in the castle so you really want to wait a bit). To see if the pass would save you you can play around with hotels and dates on their website and put in "APH" (annual pass holder) for the code. We try to time it to use for 2 vacations...and you get 2 days of front of line access with only one night stay(so you get it check in and check out day...and stay somewhere cheaper the next night if you want. We got lots of Harry Potter stuff with the discount. Hope this helps.--------if you do decide to go to Universal Park

 

[2disneyboys]

Thanks for all the info and tips... DH was just saying we may add a few days to our December Disney trip to spend some time @ universal... I'm leaving tomorrow (!!!!) for a disney trip and will have to check out CityWalk. Thanks again!!

 

[elgerber]

I actually found the Universal Store at Citywalk had a better selection of HP merchandise, than the stores inside the park. That was the only store that had the shirts my daughter and I wanted.
That said, we did enjoy Universal for a couple of days. My dd and I get motion sick, so we passed on a few things, but we had a good time. While I wouldn't want to spend a week there (at Disney no amount of days is long enough for us), we really enjoyed the couple of days we spent there.