Disney or Universal??

[Cool-Beans]

I like both Uni and Disney. With a 2-year old, there are rides you can't do in all the Orlando parks. If I were taking a kid that little, I'd hit all the parks and just do little kid stuff.

The people who say both Uni parks can be done in a day, it is all thrill rides, it is dirty and unthemed are lying. I don't know WHY and don't want to fight about it, but it is just flat-out untrue.

Cedar Point is an amusement park. Lots of big time thrill rides and other rides, as well. The rollercoasters at Uni and WDW can't compare (except the Hulk), but that isn't their thing! CP isn't into themes, either. I like CP, really. If I've been to CP once, I've been there 200 times. But it really is like comparing apples and lemons.

 

[blondeheroine]

She said the only ride she considered to be a rollercoaster was the Hulk, which is clearly false.

And my point is - that's what SHE considered a coaster. I'd consider Hulk a coaster as well, but if she's used to going on barf and whirl rides and calling them rollercoasters, then she's probably not going to consider anything but barf and whirl rides rollercoasters.

As far as Busch Gardens Tampa goes - I'd compare it to Six Flags with animals. I went once and that was enough for me. What both Disney and Universal have going for them is story and theming with their attractions. You could go on a rollercoaster just about anywhere. That's just my opinion. However, as of '98, I didn't find BG Tampa anywhere near the top of the ranks as far as thrill rides. No doubt they've added attractions since then, but it would have to be a massively impressive attraction to get me to drive back there.

 

[phamton]

I've never understood why so many people say that Universal/IOA don't have enough for little kids to do. Bear with me as this may get long.

Let's start with Universal Studios:

Production Central

Jimmy Neutron: Most of the kids are familiar with the Nick characters from the ride especially the Rugrats, Dora, and SpongeBob. It is a fun 3 D silmulator ride with stationary seats for younger kids. When you exit the ride there is an interactive area where kids can send an email to friends, be the director of a cartoon, or control the sound effects of a cartoon. They can play a trivia game and, if they get enough correct answers, they win a round on an arcade game. SpongeBob also has a meet and greet in that area. You don't even have to go on the ride to enter the interactive area.

Shrek: Stationary seats are available for toddlers are anyone who doesn't like a little shaking but the best thing is the meet and greet with Shrek, Fiona, and (my favorite) Donkey. I can spend quite awhile just listening to Donkey interact with the kids.

Woody Woodpecker Kid Zone

Animal Planet Live is fun for kids to watch but the Barney show is every little kid's favorite. After exiting Barney, there is a play area where kids can make music, splash in the water, or draw on the walls. There is also a meet and greet with Barney.

Curious George is a wet and dry play area. Kids can squirt people with water cannons or run upstairs to dump buckets of water down. There are all sorts of water interactive areas. For those who want to stay dry, there is a Ball Factory where kids can shoot and throw nerf balls and plenty of climbing for the little ones. The balls are soft and safe whether you are throwing or getting hit.

Woody's Coaster is a kiddy coaster. ET is also a fun ride for the kids. Listen for ET to say your name at the end of the ride.

Fieval's Playland has tons of interactive elements and everything is at a mouse eye's view. There is also a slide where kids can take a two person water raft down.

World Expo

Kids love standing inside the giant coca cola bottle and getting fogged.

Now on to IoA:

Suess Landing

The whole land is built for kids, with even the fences, signs, and steps are built kidsize. One Fish Two Fish is like Dumbo but with water. Caro-suess-el is a whimsical caroussel full of Dr. Seuss characters. Cat in the Hat has some spinning but kids love this ride.

If I ran the Zoo is another interactive play area. Kids can crawl into holes, squirt water on a small island, and play tic tac toe. There are plenty of areas to climb and get some energy out.

Other areas in Suess Landing: Toss a coin into the mouth of the fish in McElligot's Pool to receive a surprise. Sit on Horton's Egg outside the Cat, Hats, and Things gift shop. Walk through the street of the Lifted Lorax and listen to the Once-ler. Stop by Sneetch Beach and listen to the story of the Zax. Meet the Grinch, Cat and the Hat, and Thing 1 and 2.

Jurassic park

The Disovery center there is a mini-science center where every exhibit is based on dinosaurs. Kids can test their dinosaur knowledge, X-ray the inside of a dinosaur egg, have their DNA sampled to create a new dinosaur, search for bones in a rock, and can "Beasuar" by looking through virtual reality glasses in dinosaur models, or watch a dinosaur hatch in the nursery.

Camp Jurassic is a play area where kids can run through caves, squirt water, climb rope bridges, and go down slides. There is also a kids' ride called Pteranodon Flyers where adults can only ride if they are accompanied by a child.

Toon Lagoon

The Me Ship, the Olive is a tri-level play area. There are stairs to climb, slides to go down, and a piano to play. They can squirt the people who are on the boats at Popeye and Bluto's Bilge Rats.

Marvel Super Hero Island

Storm Force Acceltron is a teaccup clone. This one makes me dizzy but kids love it. And there are characters who ride into Marvel several times a day for Meet and Greet.

Now all of these examples are for little kids. Older kids will probably love some of the wilder rides but we know all about those rides. It's the things for the toddler to age 5 kids that we often forget. You can buy a 2 park ticket for only $10 more than a one park and park hop during the day.

 

[cleo]

Hi phamton! It's always great to 'see' you!

What about all the photo opportunities in USF/IoA? Even little children can 'fly' with Marmaduke, or pose at any of the terrific photo stops. It requires parents to slow down a bit, but the end result is, you actually spend time interacting with your child/children rather than simply experiencing an attraction together. Obviously, you can do this at any of the parks, but certainly USF/IoA have plenty on offer in the photo-spot department.

2 year olds don't care that much about where they are, as long as everyone's happy and there are some colorful things to see. Stopping long enough to enjoy your TIME with your child is, to my thinking, even more important than which park you visit.

 

[mill4023]

I've never understood why so many people say that Universal/IOA don't have enough for little kids to do. Bear with me as this may get long.

Woody's coaster is probably not something a 2 yr old can ride. Same goes for the water slide in the Fievel area and the Storm Force Accelatron. The Jurassic Discovery center would be quite boring for most 2 yr olds.
So you've really just reinforced my point by listing very few rides that are suitable for a 2 yr old.
Jimmy Neutron, Shrek, and ET.
Animal Planet and Barney.

One Fish, Two Fish
Caro-seuss-el
Cat in the Hat

Like I said, I love USF and IOA and I had a great time there. And if you asked my 9 and 11 yr olds to pick Disney or Universal, I'm honestly not sure what they'd say. They loved the Universal parks. Some time in the next year, I'd like to take a 3 or 4 night Univeral only trip.

But if the question is which is better for 2 yr olds and seniors, I don't see how even the most die-hard Universal fan can claim it's Universal.

 

[ReallyFunMom]

Hi phamton! It's always great to 'see' you!


2 year olds don't care that much about where they are, as long as everyone's happy and there are some colorful things to see. Stopping long enough to enjoy your TIME with your child is, to my thinking, even more important than which park you visit.

Totally agree! Really, you can have a great time with a toddler on a playground. It's nice to kick back in the sun with an ice cream cone and let them spend an hour playing in the water fountains if thats what they want. My kids couldn't handle lines at this age so it worked well for us to do the kiddie rides over and over with no line while the other people that made it there at open raced for the Hulk, the Mummy, etc. DH had no interest in the Hulk but my kids liked waiting nearby and watching people, including mommy, go on the Hulk. They liked seeing spiderman way before they could ride it and we started on the stationary seats for Neutron and they loved chasing the light around in the Spongebob area waiting for an appearance. It's all attitude, whichever park. I will say that IOA/US is a little loud for kids. We tossed in ear mufflers into our backpack and put them on when the kids needed to have the edge taken off the sound level. We wished we'd had them ourselves sitting near a speaker on Jaws. I can see how many would prefer Disney, any park can be great with the right attitude. I think the one day ticket to Disney is pricy so it might best be saved for a time when you can make a longer stay of it but, thats just my opinion. I actually like SW for that age, with a next day free or similar promo.

 

[phamton]

you've really just reinforced my point by listing very few rides that are suitable for a 2 yr old.
Jimmy Neutron, Shrek, and ET.
Animal Planet and Barney.

One Fish, Two Fish
Caro-seuss-el
Cat in the Hat

I see you have dismissed all my other areas too such as Me Ship Olive and the interactive play areas. There are very few rides designed for 2 year olds at any parks including Disney. A two year old enjoys play areas more than rides. Even Peter Pan or Snow White aren't rides that most 2 year olds would enjoy. My suggestion has always been to go where the rest of the family wants to go and then find things there that the toddlers and babies will enjoy while there. As the mother of 5 children, we did family vacations that suited the whole family and never planned one specifically for our two year old. A two year old would probably enjoy the McDonald's playground in your hometown just as much as any themepark.

 

[LukenDC]

My vote is for Disney. Universal has a more adult theme and fewer attractions that appeal to children. I enjoyed Universal (first visit was in September!), but was a bit dismayed with the crass jokes in some of the live action shows and there also seemed to be more violence in the attractions at Universal. Disney is a much more wholesome experience than Universal.

 

[mill4023]

I see you have dismissed all my other areas too such as Me Ship Olive and the interactive play areas. There are very few rides designed for 2 year olds at any parks including Disney. A two year old enjoys play areas more than rides. Even Peter Pan or Snow White aren't rides that most 2 year olds would enjoy. My suggestion has always been to go where the rest of the family wants to go and then find things there that the toddlers and babies will enjoy while there. As the mother of 5 children, we did family vacations that suited the whole family and never planned one specifically for our two year old. A two year old would probably enjoy the McDonald's playground in your hometown just as much as any themepark.

I didn't mean to "dismiss" any of what you said. I said in my earlier post that I wasn't including play areas because for most people, it's not the primary draw in a theme park. But if you want to include them, Disney has quite a few as well.
Whether or not the vacation should be planned based on what a 2 yr old and the grandparents will enjoy the most is a separate issue.
But I also don't think that choosing Disney instead of Universal means you are planning "specifically" for the 2 yr old.

I know you think I'm anti-Universal because of my opinions about their decision to eliminate free express passes, but I'm not. I loved Universal and I almost decided to take a Universal only trip in December. If I had enough time, I'd do Disney and Universal every time I'm in Orlando.

I just think that Disney, especially Magic Kingdom, has a lot more attractions that the whole family(babies through seniors) can enjoy together.

 

[cleo]

Nothing geared toward 2 year olds in ANY park is going to be a major draw. The OP wanted to know what was available for her son to enjoy. Perhaps I'm assuming incorrectly, but I wouldn't think that means she is looking for the 'major draw' attractions, but rather, is looking for some fun things for him to do during the course of a day and asking whether Disney or Universal might be the most appropriate.

There are great things for preschoolers in each park, both Disney and Universal. They tend to enjoy play areas and splash fountains most. So although a 2 year old can ride Spaceship Earth (for example), they aren't necessarily going to ENJOY it, in the sense that they aren't going to be awe-inspired by the beautiful settings and the intricate attention to detail.

Scrap Disney and Universal and go to SeaWorld instead. Better yet, go to a water park or your resort pool. THAT'S the sort of place most 2 year olds REALLY enjoy!

 

[love~disney]

There's a lot more to offer small kids at Disney. Universal is aimed at young adults and up. If it was me (I like both a lot) I would take my two year old child to Disney.

 

[phamton]

I just think that Disney, especially Magic Kingdom, has a lot more attractions that the whole family(babies through seniors) can enjoy together.

That is a valid opinion. My original post was not directed toward you but at those who claim there is nothing for young children to do at Universal. I read that statement several times a week and just wanted to clear up that misconception. I didn't even say that she should take her family to Universal instead of Disney. That is up to her. My post was to list some things that young kids can do. Two year olds usually love the Nick characters. They see them on tv much more than they see the Disney characters. Barney, Dora, and SpongeBob are part of their world. Mickey is not unless the parents have specifically introduced the Disney characters.

As far as older guests, my dad (age 88) isn't a big Disney fan but loves the movie-making themes of Universal. In my own family, my oldest daughter and I were the Disney fans, while my husband, 3 sons, and other daughter loved Universal and IoA. I grew to love Universal but I also still love MK. The original poster just needs to decide what will fit their needs the most but don't automatically dismiss Universal because "it doesn't have anything for 2 year olds to do."

I would suggest talking to everyone in the family and decide what interests them the most and not basing it on what the 2 year will like. You can find enough to entertain a 2 year old wherever you go.

 

[blondeheroine]

There are great things for preschoolers in each park, both Disney and Universal. They tend to enjoy play areas and splash fountains most. So although a 2 year old can ride Spaceship Earth (for example), they aren't necessarily going to ENJOY it, in the sense that they aren't going to be awe-inspired by the beautiful settings and the intricate attention to detail.

I love SE and Epcot, but SE gives me panic attacks. I believe it's the only attraction that does this, but the darkness near the end and going slowly backwards makes my breath hitch. *shivers*

But it is a beautiful ride. No doubt about that.

 

[cleo]

Not to go too far off topic, but it freaks my mother out too, blondeherione.