I need planning help for Sept. Universal trip

[uninewbie]

I need help planning our first trip to Universal this September. We are arriving Friday night the 23rd and leaving at 1:30 on the 27th. We have 12 and 10 year old sons and a 6 year old daughter. Our 2 sons like the coasters and other thrill rides. I was going to buy the 4-park flex and stay at the Cypress Pointe Grande Villas. My tentative plans are as follows.

Saturday - IOA from opening until early afternoon then hit Wet'N'Wild for a couple of hours before heading back to villa.

Sunday - Universal Studios from opening until early afternoon then hit Wet'N'Wild for a couple of hours before heading back to villa.

Monday - Sea World from opening until early afternoon then maybe Typhoon Lagoon until closing before heading back to villa.

Tuesday - IOA or Universal Studios from opening until 11:00 then head to airport for 1:30 flight

I thought about staying on site but I am hoping that FOTL is not really necessary at this time of year especially the first few hours of the day. I am hoping that we can cover most of the Universal parks in 4-5 hours at this time of year and go to the water park when the day gets hotter and the kids get tired.

I do not know which days to do which park, maybe I should move Sea World to Saturday and do IOA on Monday when the crowds should be lowest. I scheduled Sea World for Monday because I have heard that Sea World is not very pleasant when crowded.

The children like waterparks that is why I have scheduled so many but I do not know if the crowds will be too heavy at Wet'N'Wild in the afternoon on a weekend. Maybe I should move Typhoon Lagoon to the weekend and do Wet'N'Wild on Monday.

I have only been to Orlando once in Sept. 2003 when we did the 4 disney parks and Blizzard Beach in three days, this worked well because of the small crowds and still allowed for time around the hotel pool.

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Foladar]

Please let us know how Cypress Pointe Grande Villas was for you, I have that on my list for possible stay Going Oct 1st - 9th myself, 4 nights onsite at Universal and possibly 4 onsite at Disney.

 

[robvia]

Welcome aboard.

September is one of the best months to visit, crowds are light, so you can get away with not having FOTL. Sure, it's worth the money, but for your first trip back, you can stay off site.

I think your gut feeling about switching things around may be correct.
SWF has 2 rides to visit first thing in the morning (JTA and Kracken), the rest are shows and you just arrive 30 minutes before each to get a good seat. There is a simulator ride near the polar bear exhibit, but it's one of those kind that can make some sick, so I tell everyone to do the walk thru. Visiting SWF on a Saturday morning may be a good idea.

WnW would be packed on a Saturday afternoon. The slides always have long lines later in the day and the locals would be there. It may be a good idea to flip things around and visit WnW on a Sunday morning if they want short waits for the slides. It's really hard to say on this one, but I hate waiting in long lines for slides.

The other thing, is you can visit IOA and USF in the same day. For some reason, most plan on 1 park a day, and don't realize they can go between them. It's more walking, but can be done. The only thing is, the parks will be closing early in September, so try to get an early start each morning.
That would mean stocking a cooler before checking in, and eating doughnuts and milk.

 

[momof3disneyholics]

Monday - Sea World from opening until early afternoon then maybe Typhoon Lagoon until closing before heading back to villa.
QUOTE]

I just to make sure you know that Typhoon Lagoon is not included in the Flex ticket.

 

[uninewbie]

I was hoping that by late afternoon even on a weekend that WnW would be emptying out but is sounds like that was wishful thinking. Based on your imput here is a revised plan.

Saturday - SeaWorld from opening until early afternoon to late afternoon then head back to villa.

Sunday - IOA from opening then USF until early afternoon to late afternoon then head back to villa.

Monday - WnW from opening until bored and then either back to IOA/USF or possibly Typhoon Lagoon for afternoon.

Tuesday - IOA/USF rides that we either missed or want to try again from opening until 11:00 then head to airport for 1:30 flight

My concern is that Sunday we will hit what I consider to be long lines (more than 20 minutes) for the popular rides such as coasters, water rides, and Spiderman and Mummy. I want to try WnW and I think that has to be a weekday to be any fun. If the Sunday lines are long for me, am I right in thinking that we should have very little lines Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning first thing at IOA/USF?

Thanks to everone for your help.

 

[robvia]

That plan is much better. Sunday will be fine, as most are at church in the morning.
I repeat this over and over, but you haven't heard it yet.
The parking garage opens at 8am, sometimes 07:45am. You want to be there when it does, park your car, put on suntan lotion, walk thru city walk, and get in line at the gate. You'll be one of the first into the park when it opens. Doing this, you can take a lap of walk on rides. Most people sleep in and arrive at 11am. This is when the lines for the popular rides get long.
There are a couple attack plans for IOA, but most of the time, you go down the main drag, then to the left for Hulk, Spiderman, and Dr. Doom. After that, you either continue going clockwise around the park doing the water rides, or you go the other direction to do Dueling Dragons.

 

[uninewbie]

Thanks for the all help Robvia. I did not think that I would have to get to the parking lot at 8 am to be at the gate at 9am, especially in late September with smaller crowds to fight through. Is the walk that far through the lots and city walk or do the gates open before 9am. I would rather not rush to the park and then wait in line for 1/2 hour before the gates open, unless this somehow gives me a big head start over those who get to the parking lot at 8:30.

My 6 year old daughter will not be doing the coasters/thrill rides. Should we split up upon entering with my wife and daughter going right and myself and sons going left? Are there rides going left that a 6 year old can enjoy, or will daughter/wife just be standing around waiting for the coaster/thrill ride to finish? It sounds like my sons and myself will also enjoy some of the rides on Seuss Landing so I would like to experience that part of the park with the whole family if it makes sense.

Any suggestions on how to attack USF once we are done with IOA in late morning/early afternoon?

Thanks again!

 

[robvia]

Arriving early and waiting at the gate does give you an advantage. The walk from the parking garage thru Citywalk takes about 15 minutes. The lines to get into the park start to get long around 08:30am. During the summer, the park usually opens at 08:45am, but in September, it will probably open at 9am.

Splitting up is a good idea. Yes, there are rides for the 6 year old. If you both have cell phones, that's a good way to stay in touch with each other. Just bring cargo pants that have a velcro pocket so you don't lose your phone and stuff. If anything, for your first lap around IOA, what you could do is have everyone go left for the thrill rides. The young ones wait with the wife, or you use baby swap and that way you all stay together, even if the young ones don't ride. Do Hulk, Dr. Doom, and Spiderman, then the rides in Suess Landing.

For USF the plan is usually to visit Shrek 4d first, then head over to The Mummy. Shrek usually has a long wait, but in September, it should be ok.

 

[Blizzrock13]

My 6 year old daughter will not be doing the coasters/thrill rides. Should we split up upon entering with my wife and daughter going right and myself and sons going left? Are there rides going left that a 6 year old can enjoy, or will daughter/wife just be standing around waiting for the coaster/thrill ride to finish? It sounds like my sons and myself will also enjoy some of the rides on Seuss Landing so I would like to experience that part of the park with the whole family if it makes sense.

Okay, I'm just going to list the stuff that would be possible to do considering the height requirements. I don't know your daughter's height, so forgive me if I list something she's too short to ride.

Well, there is plenty for young kids to do. Since she's six, there is also the possibility of being tall enough for some thrill rides. Spiderman is not a scary ride, and the requirement is 40 inches. She can ride Storm Force (the teacups only kewler). Then in Toon Lagoon, there's Popeye, only a 42 inches requirement, which is just a splashing good time. No real drops (the raft goes outta the boat wash kinda fast, but nothing scary). You start taking chances w/ Dudley, which has a 44 inch requirement. The drops are fast a big, I love them, but they're probably too scary for a 6 yr old unless she's an early thrill seeker. Then there's Me Ship the Olive, which is an interactive playarea for younguns.
JP is a great place for everyone, including young kids. Camp Jurassic and the Pteranodon Flyers are built for kids. The Discovery Center has plenty of interactive games. If she feels daring, she could ride the River Adventure. This ride has a height requirement of 42 inches. The whole ride up to the ending is slow moving floating through the water. The big drop may be 85 feet, but I've never thought it scary. However, this along with the animatronic raptors and the rex could definitely scare her, so this is a definite maybe.
The Lost Continent is good too. Ride the kiddie coaster Flying Unicorn, or venture into the deep for Poseidon's Fury, a walk through attraction. Watch amazing stunts in the Eighth Voyage of Sinbad show, or check out the talking Mystic Fountain.
Suess Landing is an island for the young ones. There's the Cat in the Hat, the CaroSuessel, One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish, and If I ran the Zoo. If any of these has a height requirement, it's too small to mention.

 

[uninewbie]

robvia and Blizzrock13, thank you for your help. My six year old daughter is over 48" but her level of thrill seeking is hard to figure out. I will have to play it by ear.

Foladar, I ended up staying at Windsor Hills instead of Cypress Pointe both for the low cost of a three bedroom condo ($85/night) and for the beautiful pool with huge slide. It just opened in July so I am a little worried but the few reviews I have seen have been positive.

 

[the Dark Marauder]

There will be very short lines, so you'll be able to do as much as you want.