Escaping Snowy New England for Freezing Florida Feb 2015 Final Hours 11/17 p. 23

[natebenma]

Continued from a few previous posts

After we escaped from Gringott’s, we saw a couple of fireworks over the tops of the buildings from


Universal’s Cinematic Spectacular (100 Years of Movie Memories) - features the most powerful scenes of some of Universal Pictures most iconic films, all projected on cutting-edge waterfall screens within the Universal Studios lagoon- surrounded by colorful, synchronized water fountains and pyrotechnics and all set to a powerful musical score.

We have not seen this show on our previous trips and we had just missed it tonight. But we still have 3 more nights we will be here. That should give us plenty of opportunities to watch this show for the first time. Right?






Night Night Universal Studios!

We walked back to the Hard Rock and stopped in at the club lounge for dessert. They were offering pound cake with strawberries and cookies.






We each got a plate of sweets and some water, we returned to our room and got ready for bed.

Despite our very late arrival in Orlando that afternoon, we had an excellent afternoon/evening in Universal Studios and we really did hit all of our must-dos:

Mummy
Simpsons
Transformers
Rip Ride Rockit
Men in Black
Escape from Gringotts

and a great dinner at Leaky Cauldron.


Next Up: Wizarding World of Harry Potter- Islands of Adventure: The Early Bird Catches the Snitch

 

[afwdwfan]

We walked over to Men In Black and found that the ride was closed. The Team Members at the entrance told us exactly when the ride would be back up but then they flashed us with some sort of pen-light thingy. I think.

Well, that isn't very helpful!

We glanced back towards London/Diagon Alley which looked gorgeous in the setting sun.

Yes it does. Although it is going to take some getting used to not seeing Amity over there.

There are some neat 4-D effects. This one can induce motion-sickness.

Simulator rides and I have our issues. This one is among the biggest offenders.

Here are a couple of pictures from the carnival-themed preshow to the preshow room

It really is great theming!

"Foolish humans!" Aliens Kang and Kodos from The Simpsons' take you into orbit on an all-new ride designed to make your head spin, your stomach tumble and your Glorb blow out. Say hello to many of your favorite Springfield citizens as you try to fry them with lasers. It’s good ol’ family fun!

Ok... I'm not sure I've ever even heard of this one!!! Last time I was there they were in the process of building the rest of Springfield, it was just the ride back then.

This is another simulator-type ride and if you have been on Spiderman at Islands of Adventure, you have been on the same ride, but better. The queue for Transformers is loud, repetitive and boring. Blah, Blah, Blah “All Spark”, Blah, Blah, Blah. The ride is well done, but well, Transformers don’t do it for me. Maybe if I watched the movies.

No!! That's disappointing! I want to go back to US more so to ride this than to experience the Harry Potter stuff...

Nate and I had the opportunity to ride again after dark and it was fantastic seeing the parks and City Walk all lit up while whipping along the tracks (listening to “Rainbow Connection” by Kermit the Frog)*.

That would be awesome! And excellent song choice.

Once the ride is underway, you press down on the ride logo (HRRR) for 10 seconds and a keypad will come up. Then you can program in a 3 digit code for the following songs:

Hmmmm... I'd heard somewhere that they had taken that bonus feature off. Did anybody have any luck with it on this trip?

This ride requires that you store your loose articles in a locker (WHY???)

Because it is Universal...

Did you see the story yesterday that they placed metal detectors at Rip Ride Rockit to check for any keys or anything that people might be trying to sneak onto the ride in their pockets?

 

[afwdwfan]

We thankfully did not have to walk through the room with all of the line corrals this time. I think that area adds about 40 minutes to the wait.

Yikes!

Then you spend the next 10 minutes or so with giant white spots in your vision from the flash. Seriously!

But you are not through waiting in line yet. There are stairs in the cavern that lead you up to where you get into your mine cart. Now, I’m not sure why we “descended’ so far in the elevator but then had to walk up the stairs to get to the ride level, but, oh well.

That's why Universal hires Engineers instead of Imagineers.

We have not seen this show on our previous trips and we had just missed it tonight. But we still have 3 more nights we will be here. That should give us plenty of opportunities to watch this show for the first time. Right?

Uh oh... ominous foreshadowing...

They were offering pound cake with strawberries and cookies.

Yum... I could eat myself into a food coma before bed!

 

[kimmy85]

...It's one of the unwritten rules of being a single parent of an only child. You must ride scary amusement park rides and not show fear so they will not be forever scarred. Last trip she wanted to try the Dragon coaster and I went on with her. She didn't love it, phew!

I've been there Sharona and it will get better. I was in the same situation (single parent of any only child) during my son's amusement park years. In the beginning, until age 12-ish, all was well since our summer vacations were only spent in WDW.

Then we discovered the Dark Side and HRH.

I quickly learned that vanilla dippin' dots always made me feel better after a queasy ride...It wasn't fear I was showing, it was my slightly green complexion....

Our last Mom & me trip together was the year before he went off to college (2009) and he wanted the Dark Side. I hung tough with the Hulk but was able to beg off on Dragons.

Now that my future trips are with my new DH, his ride appetite is on par with mine. We look forward to our BCV trip in November but we are already talking about taking our first trip together to US/IOA in late 2017 (provided that Kong is open by then)....

I do miss the coolest hotel on the planet!!! Thanks for the TR Dee!!

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

The Team Members at the entrance told us exactly when the ride would be back up but then they flashed us with some sort of pen-light thingy. I think.

HA classic!!

It's weird but I have so many different experiences on Simpsons ride. I've had some great rides, and others I found boring. Thankfully never any motion sickness at least. It probably really depends on where I am in the vehicle. Great pre-Show area though. Classic Simpsons.

Dee, I only remember eating at Mel's once, but I actually thought it was really good. That was I think 2010. That said, the first time I ate at Richter Burger I loved it, and the second was horrendous. So, I guess it's a crap shoot, lol.

I haven't done Rip Ride Rockit for a while, but I do quite like it.

Men In Black is probably (no definitely) the ride that annoys me the most in regards to requiring a ride locker. Seriously they can't afford a pouch?

Haha, good point. You go down only to then climb up. Actually sounds like the Land pavilion.

They weren't running the nighttime show when I was last there so I still haven't seen it. I've heard it's really good though.

 

[MEK]

Great updates. You certainly got your ride on! And all four of you road that Rip, Ride, Rock it! Seriously - I don't think I could do that. You are way braver than me. You look like you are having a blast.

So I finally slotted in Universal Studios for next February. Can you believe its taking me so long?

 

[SarahDisney]

You'd think they wouldn't want to use the light-pen thing on you ... unless they don't want people on the ride?

All of the Simpsons pictures just remind me why I don't watch that show ... I find it a little creepy.

I love the idea of the "secret" songs on RRR ... but even if you couldn't get it to work, I'm glad to hear Ben enjoyed his first ride! I've never done it, but would love to next time I go! (Last time I went to US I just did IoA, and the time before that was before it opened)

I love all of the Gringotts pictures! I'm dying to see that ... but I still don't know when I'll get back to US.

Sounds like you had a great day and ended it with a nice dessert!

 

[Wood Nymph]

You really got a lot done considering how long your flight delays were. The strawberries look good but overall the choices look a little skimpy.

 

[natebenma]

Totally agree with you on Transformers. Not only did it give me a headache the 2 times I've tried it, it was also kind of incomprehensible to me. I guess the whole All Spark thing must make sense if you've seen the movies which I tried but couldn't get through (and I am a secret sci-fi nerd).

We ate at Mel's on our last trip. Just burgers and I think Boo had her usual chicken fingers. It was not great but it was not awful. I liked the burger there better than the one I had had on a previous visit from Krusty Burger which we all thought was gross. Different strokes I guess...

Awesome ride photo from RRR - you have serious nerve. I am a total big drop scaredy cat. I can handle the coasters where you sort of shoot out of the gate but anything with a long-slow-agonizing-apprehension filled-nerve racking climb is out for me - and thankfully for DD as well so far. If that ever changes, I'll have to grin and bear it. It's one of the unwritten rules of being a single parent of an only child. You must ride scary amusement park rides and not show fear so they will not be forever scarred. Last trip she wanted to try the Dragon coaster and I went on with her. She didn't love it, phew!

I think we did Transformers a couple of times on this trip. It might be groundbreaking technology (or at least was when they did it at Spiderman), but the story loses me, too.

We don't have any interest in Mel's and the reviews I have read do not have me yearning to eat there. It looks pretty cool at night though!

The worst part of RRR is when you are climbing up that first track, sitting with your back parallel to the ground. After that it is easy! I just have to tell myself "What are the chances something will go wrong?" And then I think about the recent incident when people were stuck on the ride for an hour or so, in the position I just described.

The Dragon coaster is not my favorite either. But good for you for toughing it out.

I've been there Sharona and it will get better. I was in the same situation (single parent of any only child) during my son's amusement park years. In the beginning, until age 12-ish, all was well since our summer vacations were only spent in WDW.

Then we discovered the Dark Side and HRH.

I quickly learned that vanilla dippin' dots always made me feel better after a queasy ride...It wasn't fear I was showing, it was my slightly green complexion....

Our last Mom & me trip together was the year before he went off to college (2009) and he wanted the Dark Side. I hung tough with the Hulk but was able to beg off on Dragons.

Now that my future trips are with my new DH, his ride appetite is on par with mine. We look forward to our BCV trip in November but we are already talking about taking our first trip together to US/IOA in late 2017 (provided that Kong is open by then)....

I do miss the coolest hotel on the planet!!! Thanks for the TR Dee!!

That is so nice of you to share your past experiences with Sharona.

Good tip about the dippin' dots- thanks. The one time I got queasy after Astro Orbitors, an iced coffee helped me.

Glad you are enjoying the report!

Well, that isn't very helpful!

What isn't?

Yes it does. Although it is going to take some getting used to not seeing Amity over there.

A moment of silence for Jaws. That was one of Ben's favorites.

Simulator rides and I have our issues. This one is among the biggest offenders.

And yet, you can go on the teacups a gazillion times with your DD!!!

We have found Bonine to be very helpful in coping with simulator-heavy Universal.

It really is great theming!

They did a great job with Springfield.

Ok... I'm not sure I've ever even heard of this one!!! Last time I was there they were in the process of building the rest of Springfield, it was just the ride back then.

It opened shortly after our July 2013 trip.

No!! That's disappointing! I want to go back to US more so to ride this than to experience the Harry Potter stuff...

Maybe if you like the Transformers franchise, the ride might be a little better. How do you do with Spiderman motionwise?

That would be awesome! And excellent song choice.

I thought so!!! They also have the Muppets "Moving Right Along" Unfortunately, I was unable to execute the bonus track keypad both times I rode.

Hmmmm... I'd heard somewhere that they had taken that bonus feature off. Did anybody have any luck with it on this trip?

There you go! I am the only one who tried. The first time I got nuthin' when I held down the logo and the second time I saw the keypad but it flashed away before I got a chance to type in a code.

Because it is Universal...

That makes sense!

Did you see the story yesterday that they placed metal detectors at Rip Ride Rockit to check for any keys or anything that people might be trying to sneak onto the ride in their pockets?

I did not, but I did see on the news that some riders on Hulk were stuck 15 feet in the air for awhile.

It's hard enough getting the guys to stop for pictures but then when they have an excuse like potential blindness, it makes it more difficult for me justify the photo shoot.

That's why Universal hires Engineers instead of Imagineers.

Good one!

Uh oh... ominous foreshadowing...

Yum... I could eat myself into a food coma before bed!

Why not! It's vacation.

 

[natebenma]

Off to work, I'll be back with more replies this afternoon.

 

[afwdwfan]

A moment of silence for Jaws. That was one of Ben's favorites.

I remember when I was little it scared the crap out of me. I mean we were on a boat on the water and I thought the sharks were real.

But it really was a cool ride. I love the updates they've made at US, but that's where Disney has them beat. They recognize the history and nostalgia people have for the classic attractions at WDW. In US, they put in cool new rides, but they do it at the sacrifice of the opening day headliners like Jaws, Kongrontation and Back to the Future. Granted, I love their replacements. But if I think back to my first memories of Universal, there's just not much from those memories that I can go back and revisit. I mean there's E.T... but I think that's literally the only thing.

And yet, you can go on the teacups a gazillion times with your DD!!!

We have found Bonine to be very helpful in coping with simulator-heavy Universal.

The rides that actually move, go fast, forwards, backwards, upside down, and spin around don't bother me much. I mean I could get off Hulk and jump right back on for hours on end without any problem. But put me in a seat that moves with a screen in front of me and it's trouble. The first time I visited DHS after the new Star Tours re-opened, I think I rode 3 times in back to back to back and I was struggling afterwards.

I always take Dramamine whenever I'm heading into the parks and it helps.

But that particular simulator ride... I don't know what it is about it. Hit me pretty hard when it was Back to the Future and still does as the Simpsons. That and Mission Space Green are the worst! For some reason I do better on Orange than Green?

Maybe if you like the Transformers franchise, the ride might be a little better. How do you do with Spiderman motionwise?

Well, I do like the Transformers movies. Well the first one. The second one was bad, the third was a little better and the fourth one just went off the reservation. So yeah, I enjoy the franchise and will watch the movies. But the first one was by far the best.

Spiderman doesn't bother me too much, honestly.

I did not, but I did see on the news that some riders on Hulk were stuck 15 feet in the air for awhile.

I saw that! Here's a link to the metal detector story.

 

[Sailormoon2]

Great details on all the rides, keep it comin'

 

[HockeyMomR]

Wow, I almost forgot this was just your first day. You really got on a lot of rides and chance to get through DA. Also love the music choices on RRR and Ben's happy smile!

Rebecca

 

[sharona]

I've been there Sharona and it will get better. I was in the same situation (single parent of any only child) during my son's amusement park years. In the beginning, until age 12-ish, all was well since our summer vacations were only spent in WDW.

Then we discovered the Dark Side and HRH.

I quickly learned that vanilla dippin' dots always made me feel better after a queasy ride...It wasn't fear I was showing, it was my slightly green complexion....

Our last Mom & me trip together was the year before he went off to college (2009) and he wanted the Dark Side. I hung tough with the Hulk but was able to beg off on Dragons.

Now that my future trips are with my new DH, his ride appetite is on par with mine. We look forward to our BCV trip in November but we are already talking about taking our first trip together to US/IOA in late 2017 (provided that Kong is open by then)....

I do miss the coolest hotel on the planet!!! Thanks for the TR Dee!!

I'll have to try the Dippin Dots trick, thanks! Although it's not so much queasy as it is scared out of my mind, lol. I save the queasy for the screen rides.

 

[natebenma]

Off to work, I'll be back with more replies this afternoon.

Or maybe not until today

Ended up getting busy with work and then preparing for the second of 3 performances of Fiddler on the Roof at the middle school

HA classic!!

It's weird but I have so many different experiences on Simpsons ride. I've had some great rides, and others I found boring. Thankfully never any motion sickness at least. It probably really depends on where I am in the vehicle. Great pre-Show area though. Classic Simpsons.

Dee, I only remember eating at Mel's once, but I actually thought it was really good. That was I think 2010. That said, the first time I ate at Richter Burger I loved it, and the second was horrendous. So, I guess it's a crap shoot, lol.

I haven't done Rip Ride Rockit for a while, but I do quite like it.

Men In Black is probably (no definitely) the ride that annoys me the most in regards to requiring a ride locker. Seriously they can't afford a pouch?

Haha, good point. You go down only to then climb up. Actually sounds like the Land pavilion.

Got to love a good "flashy-thing" joke. Or this one.

Simpsons is pretty good. I can do it about once a day. The boys like it more than Mark and I do.

Probably won't be trying Mel's (More Leaky Cauldron, please, or maybe something at Moe's). We ate at Richter Burger once and it was better than expected, but we had set a pretty low bar.

RRR is cool! I find it to be a pretty smooth coaster. We would do it more but it doesn't run in the rain/lightning/cold, so we have had limited opportunities on our past two trips.

MIB is the only ride we have ever had to use a locker, because we had a souvenir butterbeer mug. Still don't get it!

The stairs up just add insult to injury. You have just waited 90 minutes in line. You just descended in an elevator. You are ALMOST to the ride. Now continue to stand in line while you climb a spiral stairway!

They weren't running the nighttime show when I was last there so I still haven't seen it. I've heard it's really good though.

You didn't hear it from me!

Great updates. You certainly got your ride on! And all four of you road that Rip, Ride, Rock it! Seriously - I don't think I could do that. You are way braver than me. You look like you are having a blast.

So I finally slotted in Universal Studios for next February. Can you believe its taking me so long?

We have a similar, but much smaller, coaster like RRR at our local amusement park. Ben tried "Untamed" last year and survived, and he loved California Screamin' at California Adventure so I knew he would give it a go.

I am excited to hear you have plans for US. I'm here if you have any questions!

You'd think they wouldn't want to use the light-pen thing on you ... unless they don't want people on the ride?

All of the Simpsons pictures just remind me why I don't watch that show ... I find it a little creepy.

I love the idea of the "secret" songs on RRR ... but even if you couldn't get it to work, I'm glad to hear Ben enjoyed his first ride! I've never done it, but would love to next time I go! (Last time I went to US I just did IoA, and the time before that was before it opened)

I love all of the Gringotts pictures! I'm dying to see that ... but I still don't know when I'll get back to US.

Sounds like you had a great day and ended it with a nice dessert!

"You will forget the Mouse in that other theme park" FLASH!

But I don't really sit down and watch episodes, but the boys watch a lot of Simpsons. There is some pretty funny satire and I like that. They poke fun at WDW in the Simpsons queue and ride. There is a hilarious episode that Ben just had me watch where the Simpsons go on a hilarious ride called Soarin over Springfield. I think I will look for that on youtube and link it here.

Let's see if this works

Soarin over Springfield

OK, that will probably not convince you that The Simpsons are not creepy!

I don't know if the secret tracks are still working, but the problem is that by the time I screw it up, I don't have time to find a song on the regular menu so I end up with ZZTop. Every.Single.Time

Gringott's and Diagon Alley are fantastic.

We ended up having a pretty great afternoon even though we had a much much later start than anticipated. We did have a major disappointment because we didn't make it over to IoA that day. Tune in "tomorrow"

Always nice to have a bedtime snacks.

You really got a lot done considering how long your flight delays were. The strawberries look good but overall the choices look a little skimpy.

We were pretty happy we were able to do so much when we finally got to the park. Riding Escape from Gringott's was a really smart move!

It was enough of a dessert for us. We were so tired we went right to bed.

I remember when I was little it scared the crap out of me. I mean we were on a boat on the water and I thought the sharks were real.

But it really was a cool ride. I love the updates they've made at US, but that's where Disney has them beat. They recognize the history and nostalgia people have for the classic attractions at WDW. In US, they put in cool new rides, but they do it at the sacrifice of the opening day headliners like Jaws, Kongrontation and Back to the Future. Granted, I love their replacements. But if I think back to my first memories of Universal, there's just not much from those memories that I can go back and revisit. I mean there's E.T... but I think that's literally the only thing.


The rides that actually move, go fast, forwards, backwards, upside down, and spin around don't bother me much. I mean I could get off Hulk and jump right back on for hours on end without any problem. But put me in a seat that moves with a screen in front of me and it's trouble. The first time I visited DHS after the new Star Tours re-opened, I think I rode 3 times in back to back to back and I was struggling afterwards.

I always take Dramamine whenever I'm heading into the parks and it helps.

But that particular simulator ride... I don't know what it is about it. Hit me pretty hard when it was Back to the Future and still does as the Simpsons. That and Mission Space Green are the worst! For some reason I do better on Orange than Green?


Well, I do like the Transformers movies. Well the first one. The second one was bad, the third was a little better and the fourth one just went off the reservation. So yeah, I enjoy the franchise and will watch the movies. But the first one was by far the best.

Spiderman doesn't bother me too much, honestly.


I saw that! Here's a link to the metal detector story.

Mark and I went to US pre-kids not long after US opened. We never got on Jaws that trip because the ride kept going down.

You know Kong is coming back, right? To IoA between Jurassic Park and Toon Lagoon.

Funny what bothers different people. Spinning and going in a circle do me in. Worst I ever felt was after Astro-Orbitor.

I think we just watched the 4th Transformers before our trip. I haven't seen the others.

Thanks to the link to the story about both the metal detectors and Hulk.

Great details on all the rides, keep it comin'

Glad you like it! I'll be doing the treatment on IoA next.

Wow, I almost forgot this was just your first day. You really got on a lot of rides and chance to get through DA. Also love the music choices on RRR and Ben's happy smile!

Rebecca

I know, we were just at US for about 3 plus hours. A good start. I was really glad Ben liked RRR.

I'll have to try the Dippin Dots trick, thanks! Although it's not so much queasy as it is scared out of my mind, lol. I save the queasy for the screen rides.

I always love to hear a good trip tip!

 

[EasternShoreGal]

Although I have tried to do this every time I ride,

Every time?
Seriously...once was enough for me.

 

[SarahDisney]

Let's see if this works

Soarin over Springfield

OK, that will probably not convince you that The Simpsons are not creepy!

It's exactly like watching Soarin' at Epcot ... or not.

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

Wow you really did get a lot done in your first few hours in a park. Loving all the ride details and that photo of the sun setting is gorgeous. I really enjoyed the Simpsons ride as did both my boys but my hubby was more than a little green around the gills afterwards! Good choice on the bedtime snacks- love holiday eating

 

[afwdwfan]

You know Kong is coming back, right? To IoA between Jurassic Park and Toon Lagoon.

Not sure how I feel about it though... I'll withhold judgment until I see it.

I kind of feel like you either keep the original and maybe make upgrades (like queue improvements or minor tweaks the way WDW does it) or just get rid of it and bring in something new. It isn't that I'm just a huge King Kong fan and I need to see a Kong ride there, so I'm kind of indifferent to the new one. But I'll definitely check it out when it's done. Sounds like it could be a cool ride.

 

[natebenma]

Every time?
Seriously...once was enough for me.

I'm pretty willing to ride almost anything, unless I think it will make me queasy. The things that go around in a circle or spin do that, I am usually fine on coasters unless I do them a couple of times in a row.

None of us rode RRR in 2011 (there was no express pass). In 2013, I rode either 2 or 3 times. Can't remember. This year the number of times we did this was impacted by shutdowns due to the temperature!

It's exactly like watching Soarin' at Epcot ... or not.

Hope you enjoyed that! I cracked up when my son showed it to me. D'OH!

Wow you really did get a lot done in your first few hours in a park. Loving all the ride details and that photo of the sun setting is gorgeous. I really enjoyed the Simpsons ride as did both my boys but my hubby was more than a little green around the gills afterwards! Good choice on the bedtime snacks- love holiday eating

Thanks!!! I thought it was so pretty looking off towards "London" at sundown. Simpsons once a day is my limit. Holiday eating is the best!

Not sure how I feel about it though... I'll withhold judgment until I see it.

I kind of feel like you either keep the original and maybe make upgrades (like queue improvements or minor tweaks the way WDW does it) or just get rid of it and bring in something new. It isn't that I'm just a huge King Kong fan and I need to see a Kong ride there, so I'm kind of indifferent to the new one. But I'll definitely check it out when it's done. Sounds like it could be a cool ride.

I barely remember... Mark and I went in November 1994. There was not much to do there and Jaws kept breaking down. We were in line twice, but never rode. We waited in line for King Kong for about 2 hours and then we blinked and the ride was over! You did inspire me to find some old photos and I scanned in this one from Kong.