Anyone ever take young kids to Universal?

[disney-super-mom]

I was curious about how young kids (under 8 years old) handle the attractions at Universal. Are most of the rides and attractions too scary or intense for young kids? (I don't mean Curse of the Mummy or Jurassic Park, which of course are WAY too scary for the younger ones.) I was thinking more along the lines of Shrek 4-D, Back to the Future, Studio Tour, Terminator 2 3-D, WaterWorld - are these attractions and shows too scary or intense for the younger set?

Our family has been to DL and DCA many times, but we never seem to make it up to Universal, and we're curious about what it has to offer a family with little ones (6 1/2 and 2 1/2 years old).

We've been to Knotts Berry Farm, but I just hate spending money for entrance to the park when all we can do there is Camp Snoopy. It just doesn't seem worth the $ for us.

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Hollyster2]

My kids never did well at Universal when they were young. My son's last trip there ws when he was 9 and he did not like the Mummy walk through thing at all, but handled all the rest of it well! I think my 6 yr old could handle alot of it, but I have tried to take my kids under that age and they weren't crazy about it at all. I remember the little ones would NOT walk near that shark statue they have hanging upside down for photo opps. but now they love it. They seemed to be stressed waiting for something to keep happening on the movie tour ride. The King Kong did not go over well either. There will be some things you can guide them to, and it was decorated in cat and the hat when we went at Christmas time 2 years ago and that was fun. Good Luck!

 

[Pokemom]

It depends on your kid's disposition - if they are scared by loud noises, sudden action, etc., they may not handle a lot of the attractions very well. When my daughter was 7, she was very scared in Backdraft. She's now 11 and still doesn't like Backdraft. I didn't take her on Curse of the Mummy or Jurassic Park. Terminator 2 3D was a little scary - she held my hand tightly all the way through, but when it was over she said she liked it. On the Backlot Tour the Avalanche Tunnel can be a little scary. She was a little nervous at Waterworld, but the action was far enough way that she wasn't really scared. She and I spent a lot of time in the Nickelodean area while my husband and son went on the scarier attractions. The best thing to do is to explain what is going to happen in the attraction - loud noises, darkness, scary people - whatever it is - and try to prepare them for what is going to happen. If they know what might happen and that it is make-believe, it is much easier for them to handle it. Even with all these "scary" things, we have always enjoyed Universal. There are lots of things to see that aren't scary (Animal Show, Wild West Stunt Show) and that your children would enjoy.

 

[crazymama]

My 5 yr old did not like the special effects show at all! She hates blood and, suddenly, they are showing on a jumbo screen just how you can pretend to saw off someones arm with a trick knife. That did her in. I guess we goofed on that one. She was pretty upset. My 7 yr old desparately wanted to go on Jurassic Park (and would have been fine with it) but was just a smidge under the height line. He was so disappointed... its all he had cared about riding. They did like the Animal Planet show, Shrek 4D and were lukewarm on the Backlot tour. My 10 yr old liked pretty much everything.

 

[spazzyjazzy]

My son loves Universal Studios. When he was younger mainly Jurassic Park and Back to the Future. Now he loves the Mummy ride. If Van Helsing is still there I would not recommend it for the little ones.

 

[disney-super-mom]

Thanks everyone.

You've all helped us narrow down our choices for a side trip. It sounds like Universal is just a little too advanced for our kids. I think the shark and King Kong, and lots of other stuff, would scare the heck out of them. I don't want to ruin it for them, so Universal goes on the wait list for now. Thanks again!

 

[Albertan mom]

My kids were 5 an 8 when we took them. The 8.5 year old liked it. The 5.5 year old, not so much.
There was barely anything he wanted to go on.
We all loved Waterworld, it was great. Kids still talk about it.
Nickolodeon was closed for refurbishment when we were there, which was a total bummer, since that is what the kids would have loved.
The studio tour was cool, a few scary parts though.
Shrek 4-D was cool.
The Spiderman Rocks show my son loved!
(dont know if it is still there)

We aren't going to go to it this trip, since we were just there. But we will go again, when the kids are a little older.

 

[nemofanatic]

we went when my ds was 3. He loved it. He couldn't go on jurassic park, but he loved the shows, nickelodeon zone, shrek, back to the future. There were only a few rides we didn't do. We thought it was worth it. He absolutely loved the studio tour. We are going again this coming week during our disneyland trip

yay!!