First trip..atmosphere?

[tdelano]

Our first trip to US/IOA is planned for Dec. I am very excited about staying at the Universal Hotels, I know my kids are going to love the rides..not waiting in lines will be heaven... BUT I am wondering if the overall atmosphere of the park complex is comparable to Disney? We have been to Disney twice and found it to be the ulitmate family vacation. Everything was just near perfect.. clean, pretty, the details amazing..etc. Will we find Universal to be the same??

 

[themepark]

We just returned from 4 nights at the RPR. We found the hotel to be absolutely gorgeous. Everything was very clean. I felt so good the entire time we were there. All the employees of the hotels and the parks were incredibly friendly and helpful. We did not encounter one rude or unfriendly person while there. The hotel staff and the FOTL priviledges made us feel like a VIP's. When we were leaving, I made a comment that I felt so happy which I never feel that way when leaving vacation. I know it was because of all the wonderful people, the ease of riding what we wanted and not having to wait, and the "happy" feeling in the parks and at Citywalk. I think you will have a fantastic time. Everything is larger than life and the attention to detail is definitely there. Every ride is themed to the hilt. Our family had a wonderful time and we can't wait to go back.

 

[DocBosch]

Universal's atmosphere theming is up to par to Disney's, but not the same as Disney. You can't expect it to be like Disney because the two are shooting for different things.

Universal Studios Florida is supposed to be a movie studio. A lot of people complain that there's no fantastical atmosphere when entering the park, but that's because that area is what you would see once inside the gates of a movie studio in Hollywood.

The Front Lot, which actually starts outside of the park, mimics the production offices and administrative buildings of a movie studio, with it's guest services offices and stores. Production Central is seemingly un-themed, except for the fact that it's exactly what the sound stage area of a Hollywood movie studio looks like.

The rest of the park is what would be considered the Back Lot area of a studio. A "back lot" is where the fake outdoor sets are located. For example, the New York area is actually a montage of different parts of New York in different eras. All of it is as highly detailed as you would expect a movie set would be. Some people complain that it’s not totally impressive because you can tell that it’s all sets. What they don't understand is that this area isn't supposed to be New York... it's supposed to be a movie set version of New York. It's purpose is not to make you believe your actually in New York, but that your on a movie studio back lot set of New York.

The rest of the park is similar. The San Francisco area is a back lot version of San Francisco bay, and the Hollywood area is a conglomerate of Hollywood Blvd and Beverly Hills . The Expo Center, where Back To The Future and MIB are located, is supposed to double as a World's Fair type setting. The Amity area is similar, but I believe it's actually supposed to make you feel your in the fictional town from Jaws. The KidZone's atmosphere is not totally cohesive but the individual areas, like Fivels Playland and Curios George Goes To Town, are highly themed.

Here's a hint. The walk from the Hollywood area to and the Expo Center may seem kind of dull, until you realize you’re right between the East Coast and the West Coast. On your left is Central Park and on your right is a Beverly Hills-esque Spanish Villa apartment complex. For a more appealing and less congested walk, take a stroll through Central Park, or make a right into the apartment set and take a shortcut to the KidZone.

Universal Studios was designed so that any part of it could be used on a movie shoot. While Disney parks are considered a stage, with everything going on inside of them a show, Universal Studios is more like a behind the scenes peek. At Disney you can stand back and see the big picture, but at Universal you have to look at the details and ideas behind everything to fully enjoy it.

I discussed the Studios park mainly because that's what most Disney fans point to as being a lack of theme and atmosphere at Universal. I could go over the rest of the resort if you'd like.

-Kevin

 

[tdelano]

Thank you for the great information. Now I know what perspective to look at the park.. I am not sure that I would have before..and I will be able to explain to my kids before we go!

 

[>>^..^<<]

Disney parks are very magical and you ohhh and ahhh and it makes you feel good or basically like a kid again.

Universal Parks are cool... and they are fun, we laughed so much at these parks...

Islands of Adventure is a great set up and it is fun to walk from port to port, the theming is great. Fun stuff here is SuessLanding, Jurassic park area, Spiderman, all the water rides & flying unicorn.... there is also hulk and duelling dragons if your kids are big enough.

Universal is more of a mish-mash of buildings and streets and it took me a bit to get my bearings in there... but your kids will love the rides such as ET, Men in Black, Shrek, Jaws, animal planet show, back to the future etc...

Don't worry you will have a great time

>>^..^<<

 

[webray]

You will find that the Universal resorts will exceed your expectations beyond what disney does.

The parks are wonderful...lots to see and do. Islands of Adventure is considered one of the most, if not the most outstanding park in Orlando.

Enjoy!

 

[DocBosch]

Originally posted by tdelano
Thank you for the great information. Now I know what perspective to look at the park.. I am not sure that I would have before..and I will be able to explain to my kids before we go!

No problem. But remember, that was only regarding the Universal Studios park. Islands Of Adventure and he individual resort hotels are a different story.

The Islands park is very much in the same vein as Disney, where it transports you to different worlds, just not Disney-like worlds. Everything Universal learned about faithfully recreating different locations into movie sets was used to make Islands Of Adventure a place full of detail and atmosphere. It differs from Disney theme and tone, and in some ways it tops Disney's efforts. Many parts of Islands of Adventure are what Disney would be like their imagineers weren't restrained by budget and Disney pap. You won't find a kids area in Disney as richly designed as Suess Landings, or a mystical land as dedicatedly thought out and grounded as The Lost Continent. Even the Port Of Entry, IOAs "Main Street", is extraordinarily original and fantastic by itself.

The resorts are far more grounded in reality, but just as amazing. They each recreate their own characteristic: Hard Rock Hotel is a rock star's southern California mansion, the Royal Pacific Resort is a south pacific resort destination (be sure to eat at Jake's to get familiar with the resorts back story), and the Portofino Bay Hotel is a Italian seaside village.

City Walk is just a cool place, with a huge conglomerate of excellent designs. It's almost like a futuristic urban scene, but that's just my view (it actually resembles Rouge City from A.I.).

-Kevin