MGM or Universal?

[MrsJ Henry]

We are going to WDW November 16-22. My husband just started talking about wanting to go to Universal for a day.
(not IOA though)
We will probably still go to MGM at least for a little while. (I've been several times... he has never been)
But... which do you think is a better park with more to do?

 

[CharlesandCamilla]

They're both nice. We go to US when we can. We enjoy the shows there. Didn't care much for IOA, but we aren't into thrill rides.

 

[jockey]

I like MGM best!! Universal is OK but 1 day would be long enough!

 

[debkorb1]

They really are hard to choose between. Both offer amazing thrill rides (Tower of Terror VS The Mummy) and a great simulator ride (Star Tours VS Back to the Future). Universal has the edge on immersing you in the Cinematic Arts and has one of the best Theatre attractions I have ever seen (Terminator 2). But then MGM has outstanding live shows and the Indy Stunt Spectacular (Universal's rival the Wild Wild West Show has closed). And of course MGM has the best evening spectacular - Fantasmic.

Both have brilliant theming and while MGM requires less walking, the streets are more congested because it's smaller. They both cost the same in terms of entrance and food and both offer a FASTPASS system allowing you to avoid long lines on more popular rides.

It's a hard one, but I think Universal edges out MGM slightly because of its recent expansion. Men In Black, The Mummy, Shrek and Jimmy Neutron leave MGM trailing - with the Stunt Show opening in 2005 this may change but for now I would go for Universal.

Don't take my word for it - have a look the Unofficial Guide to Disney by Bob Sehlinger - an entire chapter is dedicated to this subject. Or just have a look at the Universal website to see what's on offer!

 

[mad4themouse]

I have to agree with debkorb1. IMHO, Universal edges out MGM in the technology they employ in their attractions. There's more WOW for your $$$ at Universal. If I had to pick either one or the other, it would be Universal, hands down.

 

[mobes_jk]

I agree with the last two posts. I think Universal would be the better bet.

 

[beautybelle]

I've been to both and I have to say that I enjoy MGM the best but then again some of my favorite things in WDW are in MGM such as The Beauty and the Beast show and ToT. Love em.

 

[Montana Disney Fan]

We enjoy MGM better. I found the CMs are better, the park is cleaner, and prettier. Both have some great thrill rides but the MGM rides are "themed" better IMHO.

Have fun,

MDF

 

[Nicoal13]

I prefer MGM. RnRC and ToT are the best rides!

I was at US back in 2000 and I found the rides less than thrilling. I didn't enjoy King Kong or the earthquake ride at all. I'm not sure they are even still there though.

 

[SeattleMark]

I'd definitely give my vote for Universal as well. Aside from RnRC and ToT, the rest of MGM was rather boring. Two rides are not worth it $50+pp to me.

 

[stinkerbelle]

I will also vote Universal
Men in Black Ride
Back to the future (MUCH BETTER then star tours!)
Spiderman
Shrek 4d!!!!
The Mummy!!

(i hope i'm not confusing IOA rides in here.)

IMO - US does more to offer then MGM...I would personally go there in a heartbeat over MGM.

 

[DCSingle]

I vote for Universal over MGM, particularly if you're not into thrill rides. I'm not a thrill rider myself and once you take out the Tower of Terror and Rockin Roller coaster, I find there are very few rides at MGM. At Universal there are lots more rides to enjoy and I also find it to be much more updated than MGM. Also if you're doing a mostly Disney trip it can be really fun to try something different and have some different (and in my opinion better) dining options.

I also find MGM very confusing to navigate and Univeral easier to get around. I can easily do everything I want at MGM in half a day so if you decide that you want to spend at least some time there, might consider pairing it with another smaller park like the Animal Kingdom (I'd recommend MGM in the AM and AK in the PM to do the opposite of the crowds) and then planning a full day at Universal.

 

[mcgrawfan]

My vote is for MGM. It is our favorite park at Disney. We went to US once and probably wont go back. For us it was a waist of money. DH can't ride the simulator rides and I hate rides that have things jumping out at you (ie JAWS) therefore there wasn't much for us to ride there. DH felt ill after riding the Jetson ride.

 

[RyMickey]

Here's a vote for MGM!

We go to Universal once every three trips or so, and, to be completely honest, there's just no comparison in our opinion to MGM.

We think that Shrek 4D is incredibly (INCREDIBLY) overrated. Muppets 4D wins that battle hands-down. Jimmy Neutron is not nearly as good as the Hanna Barbera ride it replaced. Twister is horrendous (and this is coming from an avid Helen Hunt fan). Back to the Future is an incredibly uncomfortable simulator ride.

Then again, there are some things we really like about Universal that keep us going back every third or fourth trip. Terminator, Men in Black (overrated, but fun), ET (we absolutely love this ride), Jaws, Horror Make-up Show (a must-see if you choose to go).

However, we leave Universal as if we've left any other "amusement park." There's not that "theme park" aspect to us. We've always been disappointed with the food quailty and the cast members are considerably less friendly.

All that being said, you probably won't be disappointed at Universal, but I doubt you'll be overwhelmed either.

RyMickey

 

[sconnell]

Personally, DH & I can do without either, for now. We have young children and MGM has more to offer them, Playhouse Disney & Little Mermaid Show. If your husband is really into one of the movies that they feature at Universal, it's worth trying. We enjoyed our visits to Univeral and MGM, but it would depend on what you like.

 

[MrsJ Henry]

Thank you so much everyone for all your thoughts. I think what we will do is spend a 1/2 day at MGM and then a whole day at Universal.
There are a few things that we both want to do at MGM and we both want to see Fantasmic .
We were thinking of staying our 2 last nights at one of the Universal resorts(we are spending the rest of our time at Yacht club) so that we could get the head of the line access . Then again I'm hoping that in November crowds won't be as big so maybe that will not be as necessary since we would like to spend our whole time at the Yacht club.

 

[RLewis]

As long as it is not Thanksgiving week, crowds in November will likely be light at UF. I went there in October and easily saw US in one day (note also that the hours are scaled back in November).

Unless you want to ride the big thrill rides multiple times, you probably can live without the front-of-line access in November.

 

[MrsJ Henry]

We would be at Universal the weekend before Thanksgiving.
We would do Universal at the end of our Disney Trip