Is this a place for a 4yo??

[DutchsMommy]

Just wondering. We will be at WDW in Feb with DS who will be turning 4. We have done WDW a few times and I am thinking of 'branching out'. We are going to check out Gatorland. I have been thinking of renting a car to make life easier. That got me to thinking about what else was around. I know NOTHING about IOA/US and was wondering whether there are attractions geared towards the younger set? We would probably only blitz through in a day.

Thanks!

 

[4greatboys]

At IOA my 5 yr old (who has been several times since 2.5 years) likes, and can ride:
Cat in the Hat
One Fish, Two Fish
Caro-suess-el
Unicorn
Jurassic Park
Spiderman
and Storm Force

US:
Jimmy Neutron
Shrek
Twister
Earthquake
Jaws
MIB
ET
and Fivels play area

 

[phamton]

I think they would have a great time! I would suggest you look at these two articles and decide if there are some things there that your children would like:

Kids at Universal

Kids at Islands of Adventure

 

[Mimi Q]

My younger DD was 2 years old the first time she visited IOA and US. She loved it. We really needed two days.

 

[Skywalker]

My two boys were 4 and 6 when we went last year and they loved it! Loved it more than Disney in fact! It is really two bad you can't spend two days though.

 

[DeirdreTours]

For the active young child, US and IOA have a lot to offer-- Curious George's playground beats any of Disney's play areas. My children are huge Dr. Suess fans and loved that area.

 

[Sterm26]

My daughter was 4 when we first took her to USF. We only had one day, didn't make it to IOA. She liked the Jimmy Neutron ride, Shrek 4-D, E.T., Back to the Future (her favorite movie at the time), and even Men in Black. On Jaws, we sat her between us, so she didn't really see the shark, she didn't like Earthquake, and was scared silly by Twister. We had to take her to the Beetlejuice/Ghostbusters show to calm her down. Knowing what we know now, we probably would have gone to IOA to see the Dr. Seuss stuff. But there's enough at the Studios to keep a 4 YO interested.

 

[tclowe]

My 2 year old and 6 year old loved Universal as well. At Universal Studios, you have the Barney show (live show with a photo op at the end for all kids who get in line. A little Barney play area. Then we spent 2 hours just in the ball cage. The ball "cage" had cannons, guns, and vaccums to suck up all the soft balls. It was so much fun to collect those colored balls and then shoot them at each other or perfect strangers. This is a big play area that will hold many people, but most don't go in because it is way in the back behind the sprays of water from Curious George.

Then there is the Woody Woodpecker roller coaster for small kids. Then they have Animal Planet live show. The E.T. ride is in the same area. My kids also loved the live show Beetlejuice Revue (fun music and cool costumes).

 

[pandora174]

We just took our 3 year old & he loved it. He rode tons of stuff & was entertained the entire time. They have great playgrounds in both parks & not to mention the Nick characters.

 

[JulieWent]

I wouldn't say there are as many things for 4 year olds to do at Universal as Disney, but I know of things 4 year olds would LOVE at Universal. Nearly all of these attractions I haven't been to, but I know are certainly for your son.
USF ATTRACTIONS I WOULD RECOMMEND
Shrek 4-D (If he hasn't seen Shrek, rent the movie and watch it before you leave.)
E.T. Adventure (Watch the movie E.T. if he hasn't seen it)
Curious George Goes to Town
A Day in the Park With Barney
Fievel's Playland
Animal Planet Live!
Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast (Once again see the film if your boy has not seen it, and you have to like Nickelodeon to enjoy this, also kids under 40 inches must sit in certain seats.)
IOA ATTRACTIONS THAT I RECOMMEND
Ptyranadon Flyers (Must be 36 inches to ride)
The Flying Unicorn (Must be 36 inches to ride)
The Cat in the Hat
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish
Caro-Suess-El
If I Ran the Zoo
Camp Jurassic
Jurassic Park Discovery Center
Me Ship, the Olive
Storm Force Accelatron

Hope that helps!

Austin

 

[Laurabearz]

I tottally agree with the above poster. Our kids.... 6,5,2 all love US/IOA. If your 4yo likes coasters then they will love the Flying Unicorn. They best coaster out there for the 36-40 inch group.

 

[ozarkmom]

My kids are older but when we were there this year my 15 yr. old daughter commented several times how much fun she and her brothers could have had there when they were little. Oh by the way she insisted on my taking her picture by the Barney statue and with several Dr. Suess characters.

 

[Kellydelly]

We will be going in March with our 22 month old twins, almost 4 year old, and a 6 year old too. We've been taking our kids since the oldest was not quite 3 and we all have a great time (annually for the last three years)!