Help for a newbie- pretty please!

[NNPMom]

Okay I have been reading this thread for months and I think I am semi- prepared. We are Disney veterans who are venturing into uncharted territory this year- 4 days at Universal, staying at RPR club level. There are 8 adults and 7 kids who range from 9-16.

So...

Aside from Harry Potter (which will be the highlight for almost all of us- only one of the 15 has not read the books!) what will I be sorry if I miss it?

Planning to try Mythos and Tchop Chop as well as Margaritaville- any problems here?

One person is handicapped and one too short for many rides- what can they do while waiting for others? I assume leaving bags with them is the better plan than fighting with the locker system? Do many of the rides let off somewhere that cannot be seen from the start of the queue?

What is the one (or two or five) things I must know having never been there?

Thanks in advance!!!

 

[Planogirl]

Many of the rides let out in or next to gift shops just like that other place. You might want to pick a certain spot for non-riders to wait where you can all meet up. That would be particularly important in Wide World of Harry Potter where it gets so crowded. It also get tremendously jammed around the water rides in IOA when it's hot. We like the Hogwarts train and Me Ship the Olive for example. The train is very obvious and Me Ship the Olive is fun for someone young.

I would say otherwise to just relax and have fun. The Universal parks are very easy to tour when you stay onsite since you have Front of the Line. The only exceptions would of course be Forbidden Journey, Hollywood Rip-Ride Rockit and Pteranodon Flyers all of which don't have the Front of the Line feature. The Flyers seems to have a very slow loading line too so if you have a child that wants to ride that you might want to plan for it.

Touring Universal is so much more relaxing. It's hard to grasp that at first after all of the planning needed for WDW. We never use lockers since we don't carry much with us but they can be useful. I had to store my Butterbeer mug a few times during our last trip. I'm lousy with the lockers but there's always someone around to help if you're like me.

Useful things to know? It's nice to have lunch at Citywalk when you get tired of the crowds. Starbucks is sold in the Studios. The Blues Brothers is a nice show but it gets hot where they perform. The Gruesome Gory Horror Show (or whatever it's called) is funny and not scary at all. Terminator is the best place to rest and get cool for a while.

 

[Metro West]

If you're staying onsite you won't have to worry about the lines too much and with early entry for WWoHP, you should be in a very good position for doing multiple trips on attractions.

Its a good idea to leave packages/bags with a non-rider if possible so that's a good plan...if the person doesn't mind.

Dinner plans sound fine.

You should be able to do everything you want in four days...not to worry.

 

[damo]

There are so many playgrounds in the two parks that it might be a good idea to have someone dedicated to spend time in them with the little one.

 

[NNPMom]

Thanks for all of the help. The little one is actually 9 and fearless (at 7 his favorite ride was Tower of Terror!) but very small for his age so we are a bit worried about height restrictions.

I understand open table is the way to go for reservations? Since we are (quite accidentally) there at the same time as Leaky Con I assume reservations will be necessary.

Lastly we are headed for the Dream after our stay. We love our transportation service, but two people are driving their own cars. Any realistic drive time ideas to the Port?

Thanks again!

 

[Badge]

With a group of your size, I would use open table for all your dining. This will allow them to prepare. Really, this is the only thing that you need to have planned out. You will be really surprised at how relaxing staying onsite is. With 4 days you will have more than enough time to see and do everything in the park (more than once!) without needing to rush. Thats what is so amazing about the Express pass.

As far as where to wait for non-riders, we normally have people wait near the entrance to the ride. Since you will have express access, you will only have about a 5-10 minute wait at max. A lot of the time the walk through the line is the longest part of the wait. Since you will only be inside the ride for a very short time for most of the rides, this is an easy place for your non-riders to wait and a place you know since you just were at it. Of course in HP, its better to have a place picked out. The area around the train can be really busy. You might want to think about doing child swap for the HP rides. Since the HP area is normally really busy, you might have a hard time finding a nice place for them to wait. With child swap, one or two adults can wait with the non-riders and then switch out when you get done riding. The rides have an area to wait in while the first group rides and then the first group can wait for the 2nd group to get done. This allows everybody to wait together (more like walk together since the line will not be big for express) and then will provide you will a nice safe and secure area for the non-riders to wait. I really only suggest doing this for the HP rides. All of the other ones you will be able to find nice places for the non-riders to wait. Lots of benchs and food places to wait at with a table to set the bags.

For rides that everybody will ride, they provide free lockers if no bags are allowed on the ride. Have one or two adults take the bags and store them while the rest of the group waits near the ride. Then once you are finished riding, go back and grab your bags. You normally have about 10-15 minutes more than the current wait time to store the bags before they start to charge. For example, if Mummy has a posted wait time of 60 minutes, you normally can store your bags for 75 minutes before getting charged. Since you have express and will be done with the ride in maybe 10 minutes, you can go back and ride again without needing to change lockers. Just make sure to get them before the time is up!