How Many Days to Allot?

[ancestry]

Question: How many days do I need to allot to do the major rides at both Universal Parks? Can they be done in one long day in early May?

Background/More Info: I haven't been to Universal for quite a few years (about 12 years I believe). I used to work in the media and was there for the opening of Islands of Adventure (1999) and then I think we did another promotion in 2001 or 2002 with Universal.

This May (the 7th through the 14th) I will be traveling with four young adults -- there will be myself (44), my daughter (22), my son (18), my unofficially adopted son (19) and my best friend's daughter (19).

The kids love thrill rides and have asked if there is anyway possible that we can get some time over at Universal so they can hit the major attractions and thrill rides.

The last time I was at Universal I could have easily done the highlights of both parks in one long day. I'm wondering if that is still the case.

I'm trying to decide whether to stay several days at Disney and then rent a car and move over to Universal for the rest of our trip. Or to just get a car and shoot over to University for one long day while staying on Disney the entire time.

Switching hotels with this many people -- especially those who aren't exactly neat and organized would be a pain. On the Disney end we were thinking of staying at the cabins and would probably have a fridge full of food. Don't want to deal with moving food around, etc. if I don't have to.

Any suggestions?

 

[macraven]

i do split stays so i don't have to deal with the transportation back and forth from the motherland to the darkside.

i get a lot more down time and can spend the darkside vacation portion at a leisurely pace and stay totally relaxed.

but, i do more than just the parks as i take advantage of the hotel and city walk during my stay.

if you only want to do the highlights of the parks, you could get it done in a couple of days and commute from the motherland.

the way you worded your question made me think that the darkside visit is only for rides.

if you do day trips, be at the park early to park the car and be in line for park opening.
if you buy a single day PTP ticket, it can be upgraded to add a second day if you want to return for more darkside fun the next day.

stay away from fridays in May as that is when the local schools do their "field trips" to the parks.