DVC Jackie
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Nov 6, 2008
- Messages
- 55
Before I begin this trip report let me say the last time we went to US was 5 years ago. We had fun but I would have never dreamed of making US/IOA an entire vacation. Fast forward to The opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. My two Potter-philes begged me for a trip to visit Harry. O.K., if we were going to do this we were going to stay on-site to take advantage of express pass (yes, I did pay attention to all of the experts on this forum!)boy was I happy we did!! So, I booked the Harry Potter Package @ RPR.
RPR- I am a DVC snob who was doubtful. WOW-this place was incredible! Lush landscaping,impeccably clean rooms and common areas and customer service beyond fantastic. We stayed Club level which was more than worth the money in breakfasts,soda,water bottles and yummy chocolate chip cookies! I had ordered a birthday cake for my husband about a month before our trip. The hotel lost the order. The Club Concierge arranged for a replacement and charged me half the originally quoted price-fantastic customer service. The cake was an outrageous Harry Potter theme with chocolate owls-beautiful!
IOA- We couldn't decide which ride was our favorite:Spiderman or Forbidden Journey. Both rides blew anything Disney has outta the water! The express pass and early entry let us ride everything multiple times with no wait-WALK-ON! The included package breakfast was yummy and the restaurant was half-empty. Yes, Hogsmeade is cramped and I get the whole intimate village atmosphere,but, when it opens to the general public it is downright uncomfortable. We found butterbeer and pumpkin juice to be delicious and we bought our fair share of HP keepsakes.
US- Was fun-our favorites were The Simpsons Ride and Men in Black. My kids insisted we revisit Louies Pizza for lunch-great as the last time we were here.
City Walk- We ate here most nights. Margaritaville scored 1st place, with Bubba Gump and Nascar Cafe coming in a close second. (My kids are picky eaters and enjoyed all of CW restaurants!)
Blue Man Group- We saw this show on our arrival night. We had front row center seats. Our sons, 16 and 11, were mezmerized the entire show. The 11 year old was a giggling wobbly pile of crepe paper at the end of the show.
I haven't heard that many belly laughs in a long time-priceless!!
SeaWorld- We spent a day here. Took a cab,$20 one-way,the hotel shuttle got there too late for our liking. We did the sea lions up-close tour,$40 per person, well worth the money. My kids are still talking about it.
One final note-the ONLY diappointment of the trip was the way the outside of the Forbidden Journey ride was done. It is a tremendous building that is visible from many points in both the park and que. There were points when the designers didn't try to make the visible exterior look like a castle. It really took away from the total experince to see a very industrial looking building. I just felt Universal cheaped out on this.
We would not hesitate to make US/IOA a vacation destination again
Jackie
RPR- I am a DVC snob who was doubtful. WOW-this place was incredible! Lush landscaping,impeccably clean rooms and common areas and customer service beyond fantastic. We stayed Club level which was more than worth the money in breakfasts,soda,water bottles and yummy chocolate chip cookies! I had ordered a birthday cake for my husband about a month before our trip. The hotel lost the order. The Club Concierge arranged for a replacement and charged me half the originally quoted price-fantastic customer service. The cake was an outrageous Harry Potter theme with chocolate owls-beautiful!
IOA- We couldn't decide which ride was our favorite:Spiderman or Forbidden Journey. Both rides blew anything Disney has outta the water! The express pass and early entry let us ride everything multiple times with no wait-WALK-ON! The included package breakfast was yummy and the restaurant was half-empty. Yes, Hogsmeade is cramped and I get the whole intimate village atmosphere,but, when it opens to the general public it is downright uncomfortable. We found butterbeer and pumpkin juice to be delicious and we bought our fair share of HP keepsakes.
US- Was fun-our favorites were The Simpsons Ride and Men in Black. My kids insisted we revisit Louies Pizza for lunch-great as the last time we were here.
City Walk- We ate here most nights. Margaritaville scored 1st place, with Bubba Gump and Nascar Cafe coming in a close second. (My kids are picky eaters and enjoyed all of CW restaurants!)
Blue Man Group- We saw this show on our arrival night. We had front row center seats. Our sons, 16 and 11, were mezmerized the entire show. The 11 year old was a giggling wobbly pile of crepe paper at the end of the show.
I haven't heard that many belly laughs in a long time-priceless!!
SeaWorld- We spent a day here. Took a cab,$20 one-way,the hotel shuttle got there too late for our liking. We did the sea lions up-close tour,$40 per person, well worth the money. My kids are still talking about it.
One final note-the ONLY diappointment of the trip was the way the outside of the Forbidden Journey ride was done. It is a tremendous building that is visible from many points in both the park and que. There were points when the designers didn't try to make the visible exterior look like a castle. It really took away from the total experince to see a very industrial looking building. I just felt Universal cheaped out on this.
We would not hesitate to make US/IOA a vacation destination again
Jackie
