Leaving 06/08/11

[anrichter]

Hey all!

My family and I are leaving on 06/08/11 for a vacation in Orlando. We plan on seeing 3 Disney parks for 3 days and go to the Universal parks for 1 day. I have got the Touring plans for the Disney parks and done my research to hopefully make it the best Disney experience possible. Unfortunately there seems to be a lack of information regarding the Universal parks. I know we might not be able to see all of the Universal parks in one day but thats all we got and I wanna give it a shot.

Any advice as to what park to start in? If we start in Island of Adventures should we go straight for the Harry Potter area and get it done first thing? I don't need an hour by hour touring plan like I have for the disney parks but maybe just a rough guideline of which park to get in first and what time I should look at hopping to the next?

Thanks for any advice/tips/help!

Have a blessed day!

[EDIT] Forgot to add that we are planning on going to the Universal Parks on Thursday 06/09/11.

 

[TallandGoofy]

There are lots of great tips all around this section of the boards and also the "stickies" above . I also got a lot of good Universal specific info from www.orlandoinformer.com. It's run by a former US/IOA team member and has lots of good stuff - especially on the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

WWoHP is the place that will get the most crowded the fastest. Most advise either going there first thing in the morning or during the last hour at night. From the sounds of it, once you get that done, the rest of the park(s) aren't too bad.

We are heading down there next week. We are also trying to do two parks in one day. I went ahead and got the Express Passes to hopefully help us cram more stuff in.

 

[Badge]

Well, unless you purchase the express pass or stay onsite, I do not think you can see most of the rides at both parks. So, it depends on what type of rides your family like.

You will want to do HP FIRST THING (like, get there the MOMENT the parks open). If you wait to long, you will might have to wait to get into the HP area. Depending on how big of HP fans you are, you could easily spend hours in the area looking at all the shops, ride, and shows. If you are just there to ride rides, just ride Dragon Challenge and the HP FJ ride. Grab a butter beer and leave the HP and head to Jurrasic Park. Do the River Adventure ride. Then head to Toon area and do Popeye and Dudley if you like getting wet. Then, Spiderman, Hulk, Dr. Doom. If your family does not like thrill rides, you can remove Hulk, Dr. Doom and maybe even the River Adventure. You can skip the Dr. Suess stuff unless you have little ones that want to see it.

After those rides, head over to the Studios and do Rip Ride Rockit, Shrek, Mummy, Jaws, MIB, Simpsons. If you have time, Diaster, ET and T2 3D. Being able to see both parks in one day without Express pass during the summer months will require a lot of planning. Study the park maps to figure out the best path from ride to ride. Some of these rides (Spiderman, Rip Ride Rockit, HP FJ, Mummy, Hulk) can easily hit over 60 minute wait during the summer. Some of these rides have a single rider option. It will be up to you to decide if sitting together as a family is more important or if riding as many rides as you can is. Have fun!

 

[OrlandoInformer]

Thanks for the mention!

There is a ton of WWoHP and Universal info on the OI site (and lots of Disney stuff too). And you can ask any specific question you'd like using the OI Answers service.

 

[hpfan100]

I think you can see quite a bit in one day if you get there early, walk quick and stay till close.

I would...

get there early like be in line ready to get in the park by 8:15-8:30. Often they open up a few minutes early. IOA is first...WWoHP, Oliivanders, FJ, shops first then Dragon challenge and Hippogriff (lines are less at those two), if not into castle tour then use single ride line at FJ for repeats
then head through Suess back to Marvel, ride Cat in Hat if you like and trolley if low wait...it's relaxing
at Marvel ride spidey first then Hulk (think there are singles at Hulk too), dr. doom and storm force if line is short otherwise yo can skip, then hit the water rides if you like em, stroll around JP area/toon area and grab something to eat/snack on

should be able to complete most of that by 2 ish or so, depends on crowds and such

walk to universal
Rip rock it first, then go around the circle so you don't have to back track, use single lines if you need, Shrek, Jimmy if still there , Mummy, beetlejuice or blues brothers if you can, (if you see a show grab a snack/dinner to take with you while you watch),disater, jaws, MIB (at least 2 times), simpsons,ET, horror make up and terminator if time

you could skip the woody area of you don't have little ones
US usually closes an hour before IOA so you could head back to IOA for the last hour to reride favorites or ride things you missed in the am

Hope this is helpful...I think you can see most of the big rides and some of little ones, shows are harder to fit in as will sight seeing

Decide which items are must dos for your family and that will help you plan it out.

ETA: WOW sorry this was so long

 

[Metro West]

Any advice as to what park to start in? If we start in Island of Adventures should we go straight for the Harry Potter area and get it done first thing? I don't need an hour by hour touring plan like I have for the disney parks but maybe just a rough guideline of which park to get in first and what time I should look at hopping to the next?

Since you're going on a Thursday, hopefully the crowds won't be too bad for you. It's going to be tough to do everything in both parks but if you're only concerned with the headliners, you could do it. It really depends on how much time you spend in WWoHP and then how long it takes to do everything you want to do at IOA. The Studios shouldn't be a problem but some attractions have long lines very quickly in the mornings and it gets worse as the day goes by. Once you get to the Studios, take your time and try to see everything you can. Stay until the park closes to have the best time.

Oh...and none of this commando crap. It's a vacation...act like you're on one.

 

[anrichter]

Thanks for all of the informative replies! This will be our first time to Universal so your help is much appreciated.

We have a group of 7 adults (the youngest being 18) and are more into the rides than shows. So we can skip all the kiddie rides/shows and skip most of the other shows unless time permits.

We are not die hard HP fans but we would definitely like to look around a little since we don't know when we will go back to Universal (probably not anytime in the near future.

So the general consensus seems to be: IOA at opening and get WWoHP done first for sure. That will help me plan the rest of the day a lot easier now that I have a starting point.

Is Richter's Burger place a good eat? And which park is it at? I have to buy at least something from it and get a pic because our last name is Richter! haha! Is Butterbeer a definite must try? And which shows are the must sees? (Which ones would I forever regret not seeing?)

Thanks again! (Off to check out the Orlando Informer website)

Have a Blessed Day!

 

[Metro West]

Is Richter's Burger place a good eat? And which park is it at? I have to buy at least something from it and get a pic because our last name is Richter! haha! Is Butterbeer a definite must try? And which shows are the must sees? (Which ones would I forever regret not seeing?)

Richter's is located in the Studios...over near Disaster! I've had decent meals there but nothing out of this world. They have a pretty good sized toppings bar though.

You MUST see the Horror Make Up show at the Studios! It's a riot!

 

[Laurabearz]

Hey all!

My family and I are leaving on 06/08/11 for a vacation in Orlando. We plan on seeing 3 Disney parks for 3 days and go to the Universal parks for 1 day. I have got the Touring plans for the Disney parks and done my research to hopefully make it the best Disney experience possible. Unfortunately there seems to be a lack of information regarding the Universal parks. I know we might not be able to see all of the Universal parks in one day but thats all we got and I wanna give it a shot.

Any advice as to what park to start in? If we start in Island of Adventures should we go straight for the Harry Potter area and get it done first thing? I don't need an hour by hour touring plan like I have for the disney parks but maybe just a rough guideline of which park to get in first and what time I should look at hopping to the next?

Thanks for any advice/tips/help!

Have a blessed day!

[EDIT] Forgot to add that we are planning on going to the Universal Parks on Thursday 06/09/11.

We will also be at UO on 6/9

I agree with Metro... Horror Makeup Show is good, and honestly a great respite from the heat.

 

[Badge]

Is Richter's Burger place a good eat? And which park is it at? I have to buy at least something from it and get a pic because our last name is Richter! haha! Is Butterbeer a definite must try? And which shows are the must sees? (Which ones would I forever regret not seeing?)

Yes, Butterbeer is a MUST try. Some people do not like it, but I, like many people I have talked to or heard from, find it amazing!

I am not a fan of Horror Makeup Show, but then again, I am not a horror fan, lol. I also do not like the Bettlejuice show. I enjoy watching the Sindbad show at IOA and T2 3D if you count that as a show.