Haven't been to Universal since 2014

[WLSILVERCREEKSPRINGS]

We are a Disney family and haven't been to Universal since 2014, looking for a thread with some good planning tips for a game plan but didn't seen much compared to the DIS forums. Staying at onsite at RP and will have 4-day ticket (3-day multiple parks including VB & one day at EU). Three adult family (Dad/Mon/Daughter). We've been going to DW since 1987, so this is a bit out of my wheelhouse & only the one trip to Universal in 2014. Not trying to do everything but just want to have a good plan like we do at DW. TIA for any advice/tips/etc.!

 

[Skippyboo]

You don’t really need much planning. You can get into a park an hour early as onsite guest. Royal Pacific will give you unlimited express pass to Studios and IoA - good for almost everything but Hagrid’s. It’s your room key so go to hotel before the parks to pick it up.

We don’t know how Epic is going to work yet.

You don’t really have to book your restaurants far out. A couple of days is fine, most can be done day of.

 

[disneyseniors]

We are a Disney family and haven't been to Universal since 2014, looking for a thread with some good planning tips for a game plan but didn't seen much compared to the DIS forums. Staying at onsite at RP and will have 4-day ticket (3-day multiple parks including VB & one day at EU). Three adult family (Dad/Mon/Daughter). We've been going to DW since 1987, so this is a bit out of my wheelhouse & only the one trip to Universal in 2014. Not trying to do everything but just want to have a good plan like we do at DW. TIA for any advice/tips/etc.!

We love RPR and it is our resort of choice when we go to Universal. Our family were big disney fans, but have switched to Universal, and we love it. It reminds me of how disney was when you could wander around and ride something when you wanted, or go to a restaurant and eat. It's a much easier, pleasant place to navigate than disney. There is no planning and scheduling involved.

You might want to read some Universal trip reports. There are two up on the site now, or you could find the forum marked Universal trip reports. The ones done by Schumigirl are excellent and filled with information and photos. I find that these TR's are great for accurate information from people who know and love Universal.

I know you will have a great time staying at RPR and gong to the parks.

 

[WLSILVERCREEKSPRINGS]

You don’t really need much planning. You can get into a park an hour early as onsite guest. Royal Pacific will give you unlimited express pass to Studios and IoA - good for almost everything but Hagrid’s. It’s your room key so go to hotel before the parks to pick it up.

We don’t know how Epic is going to work yet.

You don’t really have to book your restaurants far out. A couple of days is fine, most can be done day of.

Thank you

 

[WLSILVERCREEKSPRINGS]

We love RPR and it is our resort of choice when we go to Universal. Our family were big disney fans, but have switched to Universal, and we love it. It reminds me of how disney was when you could wander around and ride something when you wanted, or go to a restaurant and eat. It's a much easier, pleasant place to navigate than disney. There is no planning and scheduling involved.

You might want to read some Universal trip reports. There are two up on the site now, or you could find the forum marked Universal trip reports. The ones done by Schumigirl are excellent and filled with information and photos. I find that these TR's are great for accurate information from people who know and love Universal.

I know you will have a great time staying at RPR and gong to the parks.

Thank you

 

[Skippyboo]

OP, what time of year are you planning on going?

 

[WLSILVERCREEKSPRINGS]

OP, what time of year are you planning on going?

First week of June

 

[CAPSLOCK]

My biggest advice is always to be aware that the two main water rides, Popeyes barges & Dudley Dooright flume, will leave you soaked. Wring out the panties soaked. Plan accordingly (hotel break after, change of clothes, general willingness to walk around wet). I see many, many people wearing sneakers & general park attire, unaware that they will be drenched. Those people are great fun to ride Popeyes with, incidentally, as the whole raft roots for other people to be doused. Jurassic Park River Adventure will get you splashed but not soaked, especially not on the bottom half, so doesn't require special planning.

 

[WLSILVERCREEKSPRINGS]

My biggest advice is always to be aware that the two main water rides, Popeyes barges & Dudley Dooright flume, will leave you soaked. Wring out the panties soaked. Plan accordingly (hotel break after, change of clothes, general willingness to walk around wet). I see many, many people wearing sneakers & general park attire, unaware that they will be drenched. Those people are great fun to ride Popeyes with, incidentally, as the whole raft roots for other people to be doused. Jurassic Park River Adventure will get you splashed but not soaked, especially not on the bottom half, so doesn't require special planning.

Thank you

 

[Kit Jackson]

What is the group's tolerance for motion simulators and thrill rides? (I'll do motion simulators, but I'm a basically a ride coward and have still enjoyed my trips.) Which franchises are your family members big fans of? This will help with what to recommend and what to skip. It seems as though you have one day for Universal Studios and one day for Islands of Adventure, is that correct?

If you are willing to spend money, this book was incredibly helpful when I planned a trip to Universal Orlando.

https://www.amazon.com/Unofficial-G...&sprefix=Unoffical+Guide+to+Uni,aps,92&sr=8-1

 

[WLSILVERCREEKSPRINGS]

Wife and daughter will ride most anything, my rule is if you have to buckle me in, I don't ride it, but love the atmosphere and seeing them have fun riding the thrill rides

 

[CAPSLOCK]

my rule is if you have to buckle me in, I don't ride it

I think only Kong, Fast & Furious, and Villian-Con have no restraints at all. And the stationary seating on Minions.

Does a lap bar that goes across the whole row count as "buckled in"?
If not, that opens up more possibilities for you (Simpsons, Transformers, Spider-man, Cat in the Hat (warning: spins!)). And Jurassic Park River Adventure but I'm guessing that's probably a no-go for you, that drop is no joke.

There are a whole lot that have individual buckles/lap bars but are pretty tame. Even the Caro-seuss-el has little lap belts, I believe. I'd put ET, Jimmy Fallon, Popeyes, Caro-seuss-el, Minions, Kang & Kodos (Dumbo), One Fish Two Fish (also Dumbo but less cool/sarcastic than Kang & Kodos), and the Seuss Trolley in the category of "individual lap bars / seatbelts but the ride is tame." Actually, those are all more tame than the "whole row lap bar" rides listed above. MiB is a reasonably tame ride also, but spins a fair amount - I would not call it a thrill ride in any event.


Don't skip the Bourne Stuntacular! That show is awesome.

 

[Minnie1222]

Welcome (back) to Universal. Many of us are AP holders at both Disney and Uni. We can answer most of your questions and give you an unbiased comparison, if needed.

 

[WLSILVERCREEKSPRINGS]

I think only Kong, Fast & Furious, and Villian-Con have no restraints at all. And the stationary seating on Minions.

Does a lap bar that goes across the whole row count as "buckled in"?
If not, that opens up more possibilities for you (Simpsons, Transformers, Spider-man, Cat in the Hat (warning: spins!)). And Jurassic Park River Adventure but I'm guessing that's probably a no-go for you, that drop is no joke.

There are a whole lot that have individual buckles/lap bars but are pretty tame. Even the Caro-seuss-el has little lap belts, I believe. I'd put ET, Jimmy Fallon, Popeyes, Caro-seuss-el, Minions, Kang & Kodos (Dumbo), One Fish Two Fish (also Dumbo but less cool/sarcastic than Kang & Kodos), and the Seuss Trolley in the category of "individual lap bars / seatbelts but the ride is tame." Actually, those are all more tame than the "whole row lap bar" rides listed above. MiB is a reasonably tame ride also, but spins a fair amount - I would not call it a thrill ride in any event.


Don't skip the Bourne Stuntacular! That show is awesome.

Thank you, a lot of my enjoyment comes from seeing my daughter, who has chronic health issues, have fun.

 

[WLSILVERCREEKSPRINGS]

Welcome (back) to Universal. Many of us are AP holders at both Disney and Uni. We can answer most of your questions and give you an unbiased comparison, if needed.

Thank you I'm sure I'll have more as get closer to our trip.

 

[Kit Jackson]

Wife and daughter will ride most anything, my rule is if you have to buckle me in, I don't ride it, but love the atmosphere and seeing them have fun riding the thrill rides

Some of the indoor thrill rides have shows/outdoor entertainment nearby. Near the Mummy ride is the Blues Brothers Show and the Beat Builders uses the same stage. Not too far from Gringotts are two Harry Potter shows that share the same stage.

 

[martikus]

The best part is very little planning needed because you will have express pass. go where the day takes you. Make sure you ride ET - very tame!

Try to fit in a couple shows. Horror Makeup show is really fantastic.

 

[Skippyboo]

They should probably have the parade and night time lagoon show that they had last summer at studios.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

My biggest advice is always to be aware that the two main water rides, Popeyes barges & Dudley Dooright flume, will leave you soaked. Wring out the panties soaked. Plan accordingly (hotel break after, change of clothes, general willingness to walk around wet). I see many, many people wearing sneakers & general park attire, unaware that they will be drenched. Those people are great fun to ride Popeyes with, incidentally, as the whole raft roots for other people to be doused. Jurassic Park River Adventure will get you splashed but not soaked, especially not on the bottom half, so doesn't require special planning.

Overall agree with you that yeah Jurassic Park may not get you as wet as Popeye and Bluto or Ripsaw Falls but you can still get pretty wet on it enough that you may not want to walk around with soaked clothes, the back of the ride you may only get a few splashes, the front different story. My advice is normally to just plan to do all 3 rides back to back

When we went in 2017 we just dealt with it and dried off while people watching people on the drop of Jurassic Park and eating but in 2022 we packed a change of clothes and brought water shoes and just wore those for the rides. In 2022 however we did skip Ripsaw Falls only really because I wasn't feeling the 75 ft drop that day.

FWIW in 2022 even though we were at Royal Pacific we just did a locker for the day. Ordinarily we wouldn't do that but we knew we wanted to do some water rides. I'm not really fond of walking (or taking the boat) when just getting off a water ride personally speaking but I can understand how if someone was going to pause for the day after that it wouldn't be the end of the world doing that.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Some of the indoor thrill rides have shows/outdoor entertainment nearby. Near the Mummy ride is the Blues Brothers Show and the Beat Builders uses the same stage. Not too far from Gringotts are two Harry Potter shows that share the same stage.

Was going to mention that as well. The streetmosphere is still present enough at Universal. It's been a bit since I've ridden the mummy (although I'd like to go on it again if I work up my nerves lol) but last time my husband rode it The Blues Brothers was just getting started on their set so I just sat and watched them, was a nice way to pass the time