Hijinks & Shenanigans but not much Mayhem@The Dark Side+Disney:Link to DL/Hawaii TR

[eandesmom]

Okay so apparently I was watching the title of your TR for hints and an update and...FAIL on my part. Seriously behind.

It has been a while since our family has used Southwest- the last time was in 2004, when the boys were young enough that we had priority boarding.

This time, I called 23 hours, 55 minutes before our flight, and received boarding numbers: B50, B51, B52, and B53

When our boarding position was called, we made our way up the aisle, I believe I spied 4 seats fairly close togther, 2 in front and 2 a row behind about mid-plane. Mark said I see seats in the back When we got there, we discovered those seats were occupied by little ones- we couldnt see their heads over the seats.

There was one empty seat in the very back row. I took that. The 3 boys doubled back. Nate and Ben found seats together, 8-10 rows in front of me. No idea where Mark was (turns out he was pretty close to the front). Seating fail!!! Mark HATED this.

I'm dreading this a bit. We are flying SW home in Jan, first time as a family. And while the boys are old enough, it's going to be wierd and a pita. Not so much that I'm going to pay extra for the privilege of a higher number though!

The Hard Rock employees all have their favorite musical artist listed on their name tags (like the hometowns on Disney tags). The doorman had Bob Marley. Another woman I saw had Celine Dion. My Hard Rock name tag would profess my worship of Jimmy Buffett. There would be a tie for second place between Jersey rockers Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes and local favorites The Fools.

Which performer would appear on YOUR nametag?

I don't remember that from our trip! How neat. I couldn't pick to save my soul, I have a ridiculous amount of music. It's a bit insane. What's the weather, what's my mood, what am I doing... BUT given that it's the Hard Rock I might have to go with..

Evanescence.

Weren't expecting that one were you?

Rockstar room readiness and service!

We had originally booked a standard view room through Travelocity. About a month after booking I called Hard Rock directly to see what the AAA room rates were- turns out that was a much better deal. They were sold out of standard view rooms, but we booked a garden view for less money. No cancellation penalty with Travelocity, so this is what we ended up with:

That's cool, I don't remember AAA being better when we looked I need to remember that. I did do the Hard Rock all access pass which was supposed to get you an upgrade at check in and it did. We'd booked Garden and got Pool. I like your view, it's lovely!

This is the place to come for the best ice cream and smoothies ever created! This award winning ice cream store not only offers musically inspired ice cream flavors, but also sells a wide variety of snacks, candies and drinks, as well as breakfast items, sandwiches and pizza.

Open Daily at 6:30 am for freshly brewed Starbucks coffee drinks and breakfast pastries.

Great ice cream and a godsend for the Starbucks for the walk to the parks!

We did not have plans for dinner on our first night at Universal- we didnt know where we would be or when we would be hungry. We stumbled back to the Hard Rock after a long day- 4 am wakeup, 3 hour flight, hours at Universal and then Islands of Adventure.

We spied this poster and decided to get a pizza with a couple of drinks


The meal really hit the spot!

Cost: $28.00 plus tip for 1 large pizza and 2 drinks

Your family gets by one one pizza? I am impressed. That would not have flown with my clan. Good to know it was decent.

The pool at the Hard Rock opens daily at 8 am. Hours may vary by season.

One of the features is a speaker system which allows you to listen to music underwater. The pool also features a cool pool slide. There is poolside entertainment daily, like Hula Hoop contests, Scavenger Hunts, Balloon Toss and a Dive-In Movie shown nightly. A nice touch was the cooler of citrus water offered near the pool.

On of the drawbacks of the pool is the depth. I think it is around 4" deep in most places.

Shocker! You didn't make it to the pool.

The depth is a HUGE drag, really detracted for us and the slide was just ok in our opinion. Evan did have a blast racing for a frozen t shirt once...

We did like the poolside dining.

Hard Rock Orlando is offering a couple of neat programs this summer:


Sound of Your Stay- Guests can borrow an expensive guitar for use during their stays.

BE A CLOSET ROCKER WITH PICKS.

Satisfaction. That’s what a luxury brand experience should embody. And what could be more satisfying than a world-class Fender guitar delivered to your room? Hard Rock and Fender have teamed up to offer a uniquely authentic rock-and-roll experience and serious guitars are the new in-room amenity. Are you ready?

Guests may choose from 20 different awesome Fender guitars including legendary Stratocasters, classic Telecasters and a few special surprises. We also offer bass guitars for those of you who love throwing down a funky baseline. Plus, we provide an amp and a pair of headphones to ensure maximum sound for you and zero noise complaints to us.

The best part? There's no charge or time limit on use (but just to be sure you don't go off on your next world tour with our guitar, a $1,000 credit card deposit is required when checking a guitar out). So grab that Fender axe you’ve always wanted to try, channel Stevie Ray or Clapton and shred for as long as you're staying at Hard Rock Hotel.

That is cool but oh, that deposit would be nerve wracking

Tracks
tracks.® is a free music download program where guests can download playlists curated by celebrities and music pros.

At check-in you will receive a code to download your choice of 3 themed playlists to serve as your official soundtrack to enhance your Hard Rock Hotel experience. Playlist themes include City which features cutting edge rock and electronic sounds, Players which reflects the more classic side of Hard Rock, and Resort which features more recognizable pop-rock hits and new bands about to break.[/SIZE]

Love that!

Coming back one afternoon, we noticed people going into this door, which was just beyond the gated area of the pool. We suspected it might be "short cut" to the path, so one afternoon, we went in this door to find out where it is, and the next morning Ben and I tried this way while Mark and Nate took the path starting by the boat launch. Ben and I beat them there by a minute or two

We didn't ask anyone if there was a better way to go. If you have stayed there and know a better route, please share. I know when we stayed at the Portofino, we walked through the Hard Rock parking lot and cut through some trees near space 621, I believe and that took us RIGHT to City Walk. But we didn't find out how to get out there during our stay.

We never found anything faster, through the pool was by far the best.

 

[natebenma]

Hi Dee - opening band for Loverboy was Huey Lewis and the News. So funny you went to see them as well. Think at one time I also had their album.

OH I used to love Huey Lewis and the News

I would have much preferred Huey Lewis to the heavy metal opening act we had.

Great tour Dee!
I wouldn't expect any different.
We took the same path I believe. I remember the butterfly garden. We walked in the morning and took boat back. We did the bikes once or twice.
In 2011 we got a cabana on our off day. It was fabulous. Each cabana has a name too Lol. We were in the Stevie Wonder one I think confused3 ( closest to the slide)

The cabanas looked really nice. If we ever actually spent time at the pool, I might consider getting one of those.

I'm all caught up. Loving this so far, I love how I learn so much from your TRs! The Hard Rock hotel looks really awesome!

Glad you enjoyed the tour. We really liked the Hard Rock and we will be back next time we go to Universal.

Hopefully you will find some good tips as the report goes on. I continue to preach about on-site stays for US/IoA and traveling LIGHT! I was so glad to have my fanny pack, and of course I had a 2 gallon Ziploc bag to stuff the bag into while we did water rides.

Hello! Hopping over to your TR. I have never stayed on property at UO but the Hard Rock Hotel looks really cool! Also we were in Orlando at the same time and celebrated our anniversary on the same day! (Our really anniversary was on the 23rd but we celebrated on our last full day which was the 19th at MK) How cool is that?!

That is cool that your trip was at the same time and you were also celebrating an anniversary. Were at Mk that night with the annoying rain?

You will have to check out my pictures to see if you appear in any!!!

Thank you for the wonderful picture tour Dee. Can't wait for the parks now.

Thanks!

I'll get started on the theme parks updates tomorrow.

 

[natebenma]

Okay so apparently I was watching the title of your TR for hints and an update and...FAIL on my part. Seriously behind.



I'm dreading this a bit. We are flying SW home in Jan, first time as a family. And while the boys are old enough, it's going to be wierd and a pita. Not so much that I'm going to pay extra for the privilege of a higher number though!



I don't remember that from our trip! How neat. I couldn't pick to save my soul, I have a ridiculous amount of music. It's a bit insane. What's the weather, what's my mood, what am I doing... BUT given that it's the Hard Rock I might have to go with..

Evanescence.

Weren't expecting that one were you?

Rockstar room readiness and service!



That's cool, I don't remember AAA being better when we looked I need to remember that. I did do the Hard Rock all access pass which was supposed to get you an upgrade at check in and it did. We'd booked Garden and got Pool. I like your view, it's lovely!



Great ice cream and a godsend for the Starbucks for the walk to the parks!



Your family gets by one one pizza? I am impressed. That would not have flown with my clan. Good to know it was decent.



Shocker! You didn't make it to the pool.

The depth is a HUGE drag, really detracted for us and the slide was just ok in our opinion. Evan did have a blast racing for a frozen t shirt once...

We did like the poolside dining.



That is cool but oh, that deposit would be nerve wracking



Love that!



We never found anything faster, through the pool was by far the best.

No, my bad!!! I lengthened the name of my TR and now I'm not sure I have room for update hints in the title line! I plan on another update tomorrow.

Same here- Mark wanted to pay extra for the boarding preference but I am too cheap! We have a small credit from a price drop, and he wanted to use it for that, but we couldn't.

No, I was not expecting that musical act! Hope the name fits on the name tag.

I called about AAA discount on a whim, and was really pleased at the price drop- Ok, it was only about $80 for our 3 night stay, but it was for a better room. Savings are savings!

Yes, one pizza for the 4 of us. 2 slices each. The more amazing thing was that we got by on just 2 drinks. Man, am I cheap!!! We also had some snacks that we had packed for the trip- some Dark Chocolate Coconut Newton cookies and granola bars that I think served as dessert.

I remember your review of your meal from The Beach Club. There were a couple of times I considered it, but it never happened.

If there had been more time in the room we might have let Nate try one of the guitars but I agree- "Ouch" on the $1,000 deposit.

We didn't download the "Tracks" to our phones. I wonder if it would have worked with our Zune accounts- for those of you who are not familiar with Zune, it is the Microsoft "equivalent" of iTunes.

 

[WDW2012]

Subbing. Looking forward to reading your trip report as we're planning a first time trip to the dark side next year. Hoping to learn a lot before then ;-)

 

[tiggerfan77]

That is cool that your trip was at the same time and you were also celebrating an anniversary. Were at Mk that night with the annoying rain?

You will have to check out my pictures to see if you appear in any!!!

Yes! We were there for all that rain, in fact we missed Wishes because of it! Now I'll have to check to see if your family was in any of my pics as well

 

[mickeystoontown]

I love all of the musical touches at the Hard Rock....the snacks displayed in the drums, the pool menu shaped like a record, etc. Or is that shaped like a CD and us old folks think it looks like a record album?

 

[ocalla]

I love all of the musical touches at the Hard Rock....the snacks displayed in the drums, the pool menu shaped like a record, etc. Or is that shaped like a CD and us old folks think it looks like a record album?

I thought it was a record too!!! Now you've got me laughing at myself

 

[teekathepony]

Holy Hannah! A girl takes a wee hiatus and winds up on page 10! Hehe oh well, back to read and all subbed for the rest!

 

[natebenma]

Subbing. Looking forward to reading your trip report as we're planning a first time trip to the dark side next year. Hoping to learn a lot before then ;-)

Hope you get some useful info from my report. I am usually pretty descriptive and try to offer lots of hints and tips.

Yes! We were there for all that rain, in fact we missed Wishes because of it! Now I'll have to check to see if your family was in any of my pics as well

We were able to see Wishes (for the first time) because we did the dessert party. We were mostly under cover- it was just sprinkling by the time the castle show and fireworks started.

I love all of the musical touches at the Hard Rock....the snacks displayed in the drums, the pool menu shaped like a record, etc. Or is that shaped like a CD and us old folks think it looks like a record album?

What's a CD???

I really liked all of the themed touches! The drum set snack display was brilliant!

I thought it was a record too!!! Now you've got me laughing at myself

Holy Hannah! A girl takes a wee hiatus and winds up on page 10! Hehe oh well, back to read and all subbed for the rest!

Sorry about that! I'm used to blazing fast threads, though. The Beach Club FAQ has been going through at least 10 pages a day lately!!!

 

[333disneymom]

Great updates! Love your pics of the hotel and what a nice view!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[natebenma]

Great updates! Love your pics of the hotel and what a nice view!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

Thanks!!!

We really enjoyed our stay at the resort and absolutely loved the view. It was fun to watch people walking or on the rickshaw bikes or to see one of the shuttle boats go by on the way to/from the theme parks.

 

[DrMomof3]

I'm only a week late here! I'll catch up tonight!!!

Amanda

 

[natebenma]

I'm only a week late here! I'll catch up tonight!!!

Amanda

Amanda!

Thanks for popping in. See you later.

 

[natebenma]

I remember sitting on a plane to Orlando for either our 2008 or 2009 trip- we were next to a family with teenagers and when I asked them if they were going to Disney and they said,
"No, we go to Universal now"

I shook my head (on the inside) and thought "What a misguided group!"

But I get it now.

My teen prefers the thrills at Universal/IoA. We are all blown away by the magic of Harry Potter. And the on-site perks rock!

It certainly hasn’t replaced our love for Disney, but there is room for both in our lives.

I'd also like to see lots of action in this trip report. Don't give us any of that "I went on the Tower of Terror and it was really FUN!".
~NM

Ninja mom forbade me from writing “We went on this ride and it was fun, then we went on that one and it was fun” But that is a lot of what our US/IoA visits were like. And we had a lot of repeat rides. There are a few stories, but not a lot, so a chronological and even day to day reporting about the trip really wouldn’t work well.

So, I am going to present this portion of the trip report in a different way than I will write the Disney portion. I am posting a timeline showing what our days looked like, then for my actual chapters I will make my way around each of the parks, describe each land, post pictures, and include interesting stories from our trip. I hope there are some!





Our Timeline at Universal/Islands of Adventure:

Saturday July 13

4 am- wake up
4:45- car service arrives
5:30- arrive at airport, check bags, breakfast at Dunkin Donuts, board plane
7 am to 10 am- flight
11 am- arrive at Hard Rock Hotel, check in, deposit bags in room
12 noon- enter Universal Studios
Guest Services- Exchange paper vouchers for tickets
Photo Connect- Exchange paper pre-order for Star Connect Card, lanyard
Mummy
Transformers
Men in Black
*********************************************
Around 2 PM: Eat at Lombards
*********************************************
Men in Black
Simpsons
ET ( missed rainstorm)
Mummy
Despicable Me (long wait)
***********************************************
Around 5 PM??? Sprinkling as we walk to IoA

WWoHP:
Zonkos & Honeydukes
Forbidden Journey (45 min wait)
Spiderman
***********************************************
Return to Hard Rock
Pizza from Emacks

Sunday July 14

Left for HP around 6:50 am
Olivander’s line <20 people, teenage girl in Gryffindor garb chosen
Forbidden Journey (30 min wait)
Flight of the Hippogriff
Mark/Ben- get two Butterbeers
Dee/Nate- Dragon Challenge: Blue
Mark/Nate- Dragon Challenge: Red
Dee/Ben- Honeydukes
Jurassic Park- River Adventure closed
Rip Saw Falls
Bluttos Bilge Barges x 2
Ripsaw Falls
Jurassic Park
Fountain
Dee/Nate- Hulk
Mark/Ben- Spiderman
Eat at Three Broomsticks
High in the Sky Trolley (Ben- no power, Dee-no memory)
Cat in the Hat- breakdown
Mark/Nate-Hulk
Dee/Ben- Spiderman
*****************************************************
Back to Hard Rock to chill out
Dee goes to pool, photo safari for 30 min or so
*****************************************************
Universal Studios
RRRx2
Twister
Mummy
MIBx2
Out through Simpsons
*******************************************************
Dinner at Margaritaville
******************************************************
Forbidden Journey
Mark/Ben- return to resort
Dee/Nate- Spiderman
Croissant Moon

Monday July 15

Dee takes tour of HRH- Lobby- Emack’s for bananas
(Special Path to Station 9 ¾)
Forbidden Journey
Hippogriff
Dueling Dragons- Dee/Nate- Red, Mark/Nate-Blue
Butterbeer for breakfast
Jurassic Park
Rip Saw Falls
Blutto’s Bilge-Rat Barge
Me Ship, The Olive
Ripsaw Falls
Jurassic Park
Planned to eat at Thunderfalls Terrace, Nate wanted to go back to room to change
********************************************************************
Ended up at Universal, eat at Richter Burgers
Transformers- down
Men In Black
Hollywood Horror Makeup Show
Mummy
Nate/Mark- Rip Ride Rocket while Dee/Ben waited in rain
Transformers- still down
Tried to get to Simpsons- raining so we took cover at animal show
Cherry Icees
Simpsons- downstairs queue
Men in Black- still raining- might as well do it twice!
Transformers- still down
Purchase Mischief Managed shirt*
************************************
Bubba Gumps
************************************
*Return Mischief Managed shirt, repurchase shirt and Deathly Hallows shirt to get AAA discount
Mark/Ben- rickshaw back to Hard Rock
Dee/Nate-
Rip Ride Rocket (broken seat, Get Busy)
Transformers (20 minute wait)
Mummy
Rip Ride Rocket (20 minute breakdown, Rainbow Connection-902)

Tuesday July 16

Islands of Adventure- 20 minute walk- utilize Room 1155 shortcut
Olivanders
Forbidden Journey
Hippogriff
Mark/Nate- Dueling Dragons
Dee/Ben- Single Rider for Forbidden Journey- was supposed to be 10 min, more like 25
Mark/Nate- Dueling Dragons
Butterbeer
Mark/Nate-Hulk
Dee/Ben- take pictures at Port of Entry and Hulk
Spiderman
10 am Boys go back to Hard Rock
Dee gets picture
Checkout
Fruit parfaits

11 am- meet driver for ride to Beach Club




This is what we needed for the parks:





The top cards are our room keys- we needed these for the 1 hour early entry into the parks. These were pretty neat: Mark had the Universal/Islands of Adventure park symbols. I had Harry Potter. Nate had Jurassic Park, which would have been better suited for Ben. And Ben had Cat in the Hat. He was NOT happy. Ben should have had Jurassic Park and Nate would have loved the Hulk. But they didn’t ask.

Then we needed our park tickets, which were those hard-paper (tyvek, maybe) cards. When we got the vouchers from AAA, they come in a paper print out with a barcode. When we went to guest relations to change to these actual tickets, they gave us a little bit of a hard time and said we could just use the papers, but we knew from the last trip that accidentally getting them wet on the water rides made for very a very smooshy admission process. Plus, the cards were much smaller and easier to deal with.

Then, as resort guests, we had the separate express passes. They used to just require that you show your room keys, but I think people abused that, maybe selling their keys if they were done, so now the express passes have your photo and you print them out at the resort.

Finally, we had a single Universal Photo Connect Star Card- this is like Disney’s Photopass Plus. You add any ride or photos from park photographers onto the card. I was pretty impressed with the service. We preordered (on Facebook) for $40. This included a CD with all our photos ($5 shipping fee), a lanyard, and one 5x7 or 8x10 printout. At some point we could have swapped out the Star Card we had for a plastic one with our favorite family photo from the trip, but we never did that.

I am still waiting for the CD to arrive, but you can post the pictures immediately to Facebook and I also had to have a couple of pictures enhanced, so they were emailed to me. The “Refuses to Participate” picture in my intro was one of the pictures. Others will be added to my updates. Here are a few more:








So it sounds like we are all ready to start our adventure! But unfortunately, that will have to wait for another update. I PROMISE you we will enter a park next time.


Next Up: US: Universal Studios (AKA Unrelenting Simulators): The part of the park we mostly just walk through

 

[teekathepony]

I have a little room in my life for both parks too, Dee. Though there is so much about Disney that I prefer, Universal has its upsides (especially the Wizarding World, for this Potterhead that's the real draw!) They have some awesome rides. I usually find that one day is enough for me, even for two parks. I can see how it's a much more appealing place for thrill ride junkies!
LOVE the pics, especially the Jurassic Park!

 

[YCFAN]

We have stayed at HRH many times but the last three times have been in the Graceland Suite. The view from that suite is the best view I've ever seen from a room in Florida. It also comes with a reserved cabana at the pool. The problem on the last two trips was that after the first day, I couldn't get my kids or their friends to go back to the parks. All they wanted to do was stay at the hotel and in the cabana at the pool!!!!

 

[HockeyMomR]

Love the family pictures. You look like a fun family having a great time.

 

[Lotjestar]

Just discovered your trippie! I'm in, can't wait to read more!

 

[ddluvsdisney]

Love all you family pics. Looks like you had a lot of fun!

I found out this year that I just don't really like US/IOA that much. Maybe it was b/c we weren't staying on property. I feel like I do a LOT of sitting and waiting there. I HATE simulator rides and it seems that's all they have except the BIG coasters.

I used to LOVE BIG coasters, now.... Not so much. I said I was gonna try RRR this year but I chickened out again!
I saw so many woman older than me getting off the Hulk. I felt like such a wimp!!

While at IOA I went on I think 2 rides. HP and JP. I had no desire to wait in the long lines for the water rides and I didn't feel like getting soaked. It's a long ride home when you're wet lol. So for me I think US/IOA is a waste of $$$. I think next time we go it'll be minus me. DH could just take the boys. Not sure what ill do yet, maybe shopping at DTD and the outlets?? We 'll see.

I understand that kid saying we go to US/IOA now instead of Disney. My DS16 would rather go to US/IOA than Disney and won't even go on the big coasters!!! Lol
I know he still likes going to Disney b/c of the smiles in my pics but he doesn't want to be there day and night like me.

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[JanetMom]

Reading your park schedule exhausts me, but then I remember I'm just sitting in my chair reading and I'm no longer exhausted.

LOVE seeing your family photos, so keep 'em coming.