Great WDW trip - regret splitting with Universal

[quest4dl]

Thanks for sharing -- we're going in May and can't wait!



Wow EE in 10 min after doing Safari?



This is my biggest takeaway from your trip. By 7 getting better? That's pretty good. We have two MK evenings planned that see us getting to the park around 7 so hopefully things aren't bad then.

You know, now that I reflect a bit more, I think we did do single rider on EE even on our first pass. I just assumed that the first ride was together (since that's what I wanted to do) but now I vaguely recall sitting next to a band student on his first trip to WDW.

Not all attractions are better but some are like Speedway and Winnie the Pooh. You have to wait until after fireworks for headliners and then a bit longer for some rides like Peter Pan. So you do need to have extended hours - at least until 12 am (it was open until 1 am during our visit) to really take advantage of low lines late. But definitely much better than the 11 am to 6 pm time slot.

 

[mm1971]

Your thoughts on Compareing Disney and Univesal are interesting. When I went to both I was pleasantly surprised by IOA. The HP area is amazing and way more detailed than even Disney does. I think Universal is catching up with Disney and Disney better watch out while Disney is spending billions of dollars into MB which at best is a slight benefit compared to what we use to have and Universal is spending their money on expend actually attractions, which is a huge benefit to their guests. I just cannot help but think what Disney could have done with all that money they are spending on MB, imagine they could be building right now Star Wars land or up dating Epcot. I would easily say Universal easily beats HS, Epcot and AK. MK still beats it but it is much closer than it use to be.

Estimated crowd numbers would tend to disagree with your opinion. Both Universal parks are still not ahead of AK or HS in annual attendance (HP brought them closer). They will never reach Epcot and MK numbers. That said, I agree that the HP area is well done (and the new area sounds great as well!). We enjoyed parts of both US and IOA when we were there, but for our family Disney provides more. That is because my kids are not big thrill riders so there tends to be less they will do in US/IOA, making the value less to us (I wish we as a family would do more of what US/IOA has to offer). I see Disney adding Avatar and AK becoming more of a full day attraction with extended hours. There are rumors of HS being next with more SW and maybe some Pixar updates. Disney is also investing in the cruise lines and updating the older ships. Unfortunately with so many more properties and assets, the $$$ gets allocated to more things than just park attractions. I don't see US/IOA "catching up", but I do see them making what they have more attractive and potentially getting more of the local or day trippers than they have in the past. Maybe they will prove me wrong, but for now I still view US/IOA as a 2-3 day vacation where Disney can be 1 day, a week, 10 days, 2 weeks and just offers more of a longer vacation option.

We have yet to experience both MB and FP+ so I will reserve judgement, but let's call it what it is. The MB's design is convenience and to get guests to spend more $$ while at the parks. The easier it is to swipe that band and impulse buy, they more the system is achieving it's goal. While the guests gets some minor benefits of convenience and a new way to tour, Disney gets real time information on what guests are doing and preferences to better market themselves.

My last point is Epcot sadly. The only way anything significantly happens there is if they find more sponsors. Unfortunately that is the Epcot model. Every attraction and country represented has a sponsor. Disney has relied on the sponsors since day 1. In today's world, I don't see too many companies willing to commit multi-millions for the advertising/marketing. It just isn't happening. My hope is that Disney will decide to start doing more on their own, but I see it as unlikely for a while until all the other parks are done.

 

[cruisingkat]

We have AP for both Disney and Universal. We like both.
But we think Universal's AP has better benefits than Disney. You get a really great discount on Universal hotels with an AP - much better than Disney's AP rate. At Universal, you get a 10% discount on food - no matter what time of day or type of restaurant. Also, you get a better break on the renewal rate at Universal than at Disney.
We do like Disney - we love F&G and F&W. We think the Christmas decorations at Disney are much better than Universal's. We like all the photo opportunities, the characters at Disney - I was never a big fan of Woody Woodpecker.
Each have their advantages and disadvantages. DH is a big fan of the Simpsons and we both like Harry Potter so those two areas of Universal appeal to us. In fact we can't wait until this summer when Harry Potter expands into Universal Studios park.
I have been to Disneyland and loved the Cars area - wish Disney World would have the same sort of area themeing around a particular Disney movie. They are headed that way with new Fantasy Land expansion.

 

[quest4dl]

Thanks for the report quest4dl.

Seems like you are yet another in a long list that is finding the only *true* crowds at WDW to be at the Magic Kingdom while the other 3 parks are a relative breeze.

I know you said that Universal/IOA was packed, but was it as crowded as the Magic Kingdom? How about the Royal Pacific Resort? Did it seem fully booked?

P.S.- We have stayed at the Boardwalk Inn(in 2009) and absolutely fell in love with it!

Universal/IOA was much less crowded than WDW but busier than our trip in 2011. On our last day there was some kind of cheerleading competition so they were filling up the boats (you'd think the young, athletic girls could manage the walk and leave the boat for other guests - I know they are entitled to use them too - just would have been courteous) and the parks were a bit more crowded. RPR did not seem overcrowded in lobby areas. Just didn't have the same feel as the Polynesian. Pool area looked lovely but we didn't use it. Rooms were smaller, only one sink, a bit worn looking. Nice to have a Keurig coffee maker though at RPR - in-room coffee at Boardwalk was horrible but you could get decent coffee at the Bellevue lounge.

MK was just insane - I have never seen a sea of people in Frontierland like that before. But, at the same time, it seemed easy to get a decent parade/fireworks spot at the last minute. You only need to line up early if you have little kids that need to sit/stand up front.