Islands Of Adventure

[DisneyTabby]

We went here on May 11th and we probably won't be back. We arrived around 9:30am and after we parked were walking towards CityWalk when all we saw were schoolkids and of course they were all going to Islands Of Adventure. We finally went in and headed to Suess Land which was okay but when we got to Jurassic Park all we saw were groups of 7th & 8th graders with no chaperones. Now I have 2 boys 13 & 10 but this was bad. All the rides from here on were at least a 75 minute wait and when we decided to go eat there was even a long line here. So we sat to decide what to do. Do you know we stopped counting schools at 25!!!! 25 different schools here!!! So we had no choice but to leave at 12:00 and come back at 5:30 when most of them were leaving. I've been a room mom myself but to let these groups run around unattended isn't right. Was anyone else there this day too? What did you see?

 

[phamton]

Unfortunately, you went at a time that all of the Orlando parks were having school groups. My husband's school went to Seaworld. Some of the schools are better at chaperoning than others. I'm sorry your experience wasn't great. Hopefully, you'll give IoA another try.

 

[DisneyTabby]

We did notice that at Seaworld too but there weren't that many. I just think Universal should do a better job at organizing the schools and not let so many come on one day to accommodate their other guests. 25 is way too many and they were the ones in matching shirts who knows how many more there were.

 

[phamton]

I don't think any of the Orlando parks turn down groups. Pop Warner cheerleading and Brazilian tour groups topics come up all the time on the Disboards. Disney, Universal, and Seaworld all work hard to recruit groups, especially in the off season like the middle of May. I suspect Seaworld had less because more schools chose Universal and Disney over Seaworld---not that I blame them. My husband was hoping his school would go to Disney or Universal. His school did do Grad Bash at Disney though and he went to that.

You might want to check on the Universal forums before your next trip and they can give you a heads up for when groups are there.

 

[goofy!]

I just think Universal should do a better job at organizing the schools and not let so many come on one day to accommodate their other guests. 25 is way too many and they were the ones in matching shirts who knows how many more there were.

How much control does Disney and Universal even have over groups attending? The groups purchase tickets just like any other customer, as they are customers. Do they have to inform Disney they are showing up? In our case, our group of 600+ just all bought our own tickets and went when we pleased, but usually in large groups, as the kids all wanted to go together.

To expand on this, we were part of a large cheerleading competition in March. There were at least 25 - 30 gyms participating. And some gyms, like ours, had over 150 kids + families. That was close to 3,000 cheerleaders + their families. And there was another competition in town too, so that made for even more groups. As I mentioned above, in our case, we all purchased our Disney tickets on our own. I know our gym did not inform Disney that there were potentially 150 kids + families visiting over the weekend. Although Disney was well aware of cheerleading competition, we did not have any set timeframe that we could visit or not. However, when visiting, we did all wear our team t-shirts, so large goups would look like they were part of a tour group, although we were just a bunch of friends that had bought tickets and were heading to the parks together. Disney had NO control over when and where we went because they had no idea when and where we would show up.

Although, I must say, I do feel your pain. Although we were part of the cheerleading group, and even though the groups I saw were always well behaved and well chaperoned, it sometimes got too energetic even for us cheer parents. Another mom and I were commenting that we would hate to be an unsuspecting person checking into that hotel where it was filled to 98% capacity with families with kids ages 5 - 18. If we were overwhelmed with the amount of kids, I can imagine what it was like for those not involved.

Edited to add: Our group wasn't 150 - it was actually over 600. It was 150 cheerleaders + their families. How could I forget the families? Oh wait - I am probably still brain damaged from that weekend

Anyway - we had 600 people show up at any given time in large groups with the same t-shirts but we weren't restricted to a time or date. We just showed up.

 

[livie1205]

i was there that day...IT WAS AWFUL but i stayed at a universal resort so i used express...now alot of the kids paid for the express pass but since they could only use it 1 time at each ride the express line was cleared out by noon so i still had a good time BUT they were really rude and after the 10th person walked into me i wanted to scream lol well i just left there and went to the other park for the rest of the day and by the next day they were gone! the lines for food were very very long,i waited about 1 hour for a cold yucky cheeseburger..NEVER AGIN...the next day i went to the bakery and got a turkey sandwhich and it was good but the best part was NO WAIT lol

 

[dsmom]

I know I am in the minority here but I love seeing these groups of kids having fun! I have been to the parks many times when the cheerleading groups and school groups were there and love their enthusiasm. I have an eight year old autistic son who is mainly non verbal and does not have friends his age so I realize I am coming from a different perspective. When we are in the parks with our son these groups of kids are extremely friendly with him. I know there are some rude kids out there but there are many rude adults also. I just enjoy seeing them have fun together and hope the same for my son oneday.

 

[robvia]

Chaperones wouldn't have changed the visit in any way. Once the kids get into the park, they are let loose in groups to enjoy things.

The problem was showing up at 09:30am. I tell everyone to arrive the parking garage at 8am and be first to the gate. If you (OP) had arrived at 08:00am, you would have been first in line at the gate, the park opened at 09:00am (maybe 08:45am), and you would have been one step ahead of the tour groups. This can be done any day of the year, even the busy summer months. If you show up early, you can take a lap around IOA, then go back to the hotel room in the afternoon to rest, then return later in the day for the evening.

 

[AlexandNessa]

Pouting here ... I just hope that everyone doesn't get on the "another person from NJ complaining, must be something in their water" kick.

I can understand your frustration. We were there at the beginning of May, and while we in no way experienced what you did, the big groups can certainly be oblivious to those around them.

On a side note, giving your post a thumbs down most certainly assures you a long shelf life on this board. Hope you're ready for some notoriety.

 

[GreyStr0ke]

When I used to go on field trips way back in Middle school we were never chaperoned. That takes the fun out of it. Sorry you had some bad luck but most kids are mature enough to walk around a theme park by themselves when they are in 7th or 8th grade.

 

[goofy!]

I know I am in the minority here but I love seeing these groups of kids having fun! I have been to the parks many times when the cheerleading groups and school groups were there and love their enthusiasm. I have an eight year old autistic son who is mainly non verbal and does not have friends his age so I realize I am coming from a different perspective. When we are in the parks with our son these groups of kids are extremely friendly with him. I know there are some rude kids out there but there are many rude adults also. I just enjoy seeing them have fun together and hope the same for my son oneday.

I am coming from the same perspective. My daughter has Down syndrome and this was the first year we took the special needs team to Nationals in Anaheim. (And they won - National Champions!!).

For all the bad rap the cheerleading groups get, I have to say I was absolutely amazed at the kindness, caring and actually good behavior of all the groups. It was my first experience being immersed in 3,000 excited kids, but for a group that big, I was pleasantly surprised at the good sportsmanship, the camraderie and the exceptional behavior of most of the gyms.

My daughter's team, and my daughter, was congratulated by members of other teams across the country. They didn't have to do it, but they did. They made a point to go out of their way and come over and congratulate the kids. Yes, they were very excited at Disney, but the whole weekend was one of adrenaline.

All the teams were energetic at Disney, but not misbehaved. Well most of them at least. There were always a few that gave the majority a bad name.

But again, I do feel the OP's pain, as it was energetic, even for us proud parents.

And speaking of a proud parent (and totally off-topic)

The 2007 American Nationals National Champion Special Needs Cheer Team:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-vqA3xy4J8

The Flyer in the back is actually a wheel-bound child with CP. She is just amazing!

 

[dsmom]

Hey goofy! That;s incredible! Tell your daughter congratulations!

 

[AlexandNessa]

And speaking of a proud parent (and totally off-topic)

The 2007 American Nationals National Champion Special Needs Cheer Team:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-vqA3xy4J8

The Flyer in the back is actually a wheel-bound child with CP. She is just amazing!

goofy!, that was your daughter's team?! You must be terrifically proud. How could you not feel the love? That was awesome!

 

[goofy!]

goofy!, that was your daughter's team?! You must be terrifically proud. How could you not feel the love? That was awesome!

Thanks. Yup, my daughter is the one front and center under the star in the beginning and the one who goes right to left (when watching the video) doing the cartwheels.

If you hear the screaming in the background - this is the Anaheim convention center, so HUGE. And there were enough people in it to make it that loud. The screaming and energy went on from 8am to 8pm for 3 days with everybody cheering for each other's teams. Now that I have seen it from the inside, I can understand why the cheerleading groups (and other groups) can't just shut off that adrenaline when they hit the parks. I have a totally different perspective now of the kids. I will see them in a new light now when I encounter them at the parks.

School field trips are a different story. But the kids competing somewhere, they are so hyped up I can now understand their energy in the parks.

O..M..Goodness - Hell must have just frozen over. Did I really just defend the cheerleading/pop warner/band/dance/whatever other competition groups????

 

[GemmaPixie]

Goofy that was incredible! Im sure your daughter was estatic that her team won- that's something she will remember for a long long time. Congratulations!!

 

[goofy!]

Goofy that was incredible! Im sure your daughter was estatic that her team won- that's something she will remember for a long long time. Congratulations!!

Thanks!

And just as a fair warning for those of you planning vacations next year and don't want to be amongst thousands of crazy girls and boys hyped on adrenaline:

Our gym, along with numerous others across the country, will be in Orlando for Nationals, March 28-30, 2008

At least we are keeping our fingers crossed that we will get to go to the Orlando Nationals and not Anaheim again. The Portofino is sooo much nicer than the Anaheim Marriott!!!!! And I have to have my Universal fix.

 

[Bill_Lin]

I have read a bit on the web, suggesting that in September and October all Orlando themes parks are inundated by school groups. Since it is not feasible to see all of the parks on weekends to avoid school groups, does anyone have ideas on what days schools are "less likely" to send groups? Do schools prefer to send groups on certain days of the week?

Thanks for any help you can offer.

 

[rie'smom]

We went here on May 11th and we probably won't be back. We arrived around 9:30am and after we parked were walking towards CityWalk when all we saw were schoolkids and of course they were all going to Islands Of Adventure. We finally went in and headed to Suess Land which was okay but when we got to Jurassic Park all we saw were groups of 7th & 8th graders with no chaperones. Now I have 2 boys 13 & 10 but this was bad. All the rides from here on were at least a 75 minute wait and when we decided to go eat there was even a long line here. So we sat to decide what to do. Do you know we stopped counting schools at 25!!!! 25 different schools here!!! So we had no choice but to leave at 12:00 and come back at 5:30 when most of them were leaving. I've been a room mom myself but to let these groups run around unattended isn't right. Was anyone else there this day too? What did you see?

There have been tons of school groups in the WDW parks since we've arrived on Wednesday but I won't let this stop me from going back to WDW. You had 1 day at IOA and there were kids so you won't go back? Try going at another time. Many,many local schools have field trips to WDW and IOA at this time of year. The waits have been at times over 1 hour at the Disney parks. You really need to give IOA another chance.

 

[patster734]

Last weekend, we saw school groups on Friday and Saturday. We didn't see any on Sunday or Monday.

 

[phamton]

I have read a bit on the web, suggesting that in September and October all Orlando themes parks are inundated by school groups. Since it is not feasible to see all of the parks on weekends to avoid school groups, does anyone have ideas on what days schools are "less likely" to send groups? Do schools prefer to send groups on certain days of the week?

Thanks for any help you can offer.

Universal seems to get school groups for the end of year class trips. Those are usually the last week of April though the middle of May. The Cheerleading competitions are usually in February though.

I've never noticed school groups in September or October except for Rock the Universe which is the first weekend in September.