My review of Universal Studios Orlando

[moose2008]

Just got back from my first visit to this place. I had a lot of fun there and I'm glad I went. Although it wasn't as epic as I thought it was going to be, it still was one of the best trips I have ever been on. First off let me tell you about the lines. The first two days I was there the lines were really short. Even for Harry potter I didn't have to wait longer than 45 minutes to ride that ride. The lines moved pretty quick and I got on the rides in a hurry.

Now let me give you a short review of all the rides and attractions I did. On a scale of 1-10 I ranked each ride. Now nothing deserves a 10 and nothing deserves a 1 there just standards so 9 is perfect and 2 is the worst:

ISLANDS OF ADVENTURE:

The Hulk Ride-7 nothing special, rode roller coaster before.

Dr. Dooms Fear Fall-7 again rode similar rides that were taller and faster.

The spider man ride-8 Although the animation seems a little out of date the ride as a whole is sweet!

Jurassic park ride-8 kinda boring in the begging but when you get inside the building just awesome.

Harry Potter Ride-9 Awesome ride definitely innovated and worth the wait!

Dragon Challenge-8 love how close the roller coasters come to each other

The sinbad show-8 entertaining and love the acting

Poseidon's Fury-5 It just was boring to me couldn't stand it didn't like it one positive thing would be the structures on the outside of the building they looked pretty cool!

Rid Saw Fall-7 the ride it self was OK but it looses points cause of the darn annoying song they play in the line.

UNIVERSAL STUDIOS:

Shrek 4D-7 I saw Shrek 4 in 3D before I went here so I've seen a 3D Shrek movie before. It was still kinda of funny.

Rip ride rockit-8 Its cool that you can listen to song while on the roller coaster so it made it more fun to ride

The mummy-9 My favorite ride overall every part of this ride is awesome

Disaster-6 it took to long to get to the ride itself and the whole trailer thing meh!

Jaws- 5 the ride was boring the acting from the driver was dumb and the shark looks worst than it did in the movie.

Men in black ride-7 its hard to enjoy the scenery when I have to focus on shooting aliens.

The Simpsons ride-8 I love the Simpsons and I love the Simpsons ride

Twister-5 using a fog machine to make a tornado didn't work for me and the whole stage looked like a high school play.

Terminator 3D 7 3D out of date but the skits and plays they have make it interesting.

Over all I give this place 8/10 I loved it, it was great, and I had a lot of fun. If I never visit this place again I always have the 150 plus pictures I took to remind me of all the fun I had.

 

[heidijanesmith]

We just got back too 7-20-10 to 7-23-10

Totally agree with the HP ride, FJ. I'd give it a 10

 

[Metro West]

Thanks for sharing your review.

 

[Planogirl]

Yes, the Mummy is amazing! Thanks for the review.

 

[kangareaux]

I agree with most of this except Jaws. It's one of those rides like Jungle Cruise....you know it's going to be cheesy when you get on, and yet you do it anyway.

It's not one to go on for the special effects, or the awesome shark replica or even the scenery. You go on it for the pure cheese factor of it all.

I love the Jaws ride BTW....can ya tell? LOL!

 

[bubba's mom]

I agree w/ Jaws. It's a cheesy show...but, if the TM is 'into' it, and the guests get into it, it can be a fun ride.

And...we all know the shark is fake....still didn't appeal to my niece who is scared to death of them

 

[klacey1]

Glad you overall had a good time!
I am also a huge fan of Jaws-- I think you just have to put yourself in the mindset of "this is going to be cheesy, but fun and funny!"
I jump when that shark comes out of the water. Every time.

 

[bubba's mom]

Glad you overall had a good time!
I am also a huge fan of Jaws-- I think you just have to put yourself in the mindset of "this is going to be cheesy, but fun and funny!"
I jump when that shark comes out of the water. Every time.

ever do it at night?

 

[sportbettor]

I would definitely give Jaws a higher rating. Also Disaster, I think the pre-ride part is much more interesting than the ride part. The audience participation is usually hilarious.

And I'd give Spiderman a 10. I think its still the best ride in any FL or CA park. Im sure im in the minority of opinion though.

 

[kangareaux]

ever do it at night?

No! Never occurred to me! I bet it isn't nearly as cheesy and just might be the scary ride I think it was meant to be if ridden at night....hmmmmmm....

I have a new mission now! Ride as many of the rides as I can after dark this december!!!

 

[MaleficentandGoons]

I love riding Hulk at night!

 

[Metro West]

ever do it at night?

There's nothing like riding Jaws at night...at HHN.

 

[Rip]

There's nothing like riding Jaws at night...at HHN.

+1, especially when Jack is involved

 

[skifast22]

It's always fun to see other people's ratings on rides Like a few have already mentioned, Jaws is alot like the Jungle Cruise in that the boat captain can really make or break the whole experience. But, even the best captains can have off days or performances as they start to get tired, or are just having "one of those days". But, people keep talking about the cheese factor...seems like I'm one of the few who actually think Universal did a good job of making it scary Sure the shark looks fake at times, but all the scenery, music, fire/steam effects, and the shark popping up pretty quickly at times....scary and I love it!

Couldn't agree more about Poseidon's Fury as well. The exterior is one of the more stunning parts of IoA. Sadly, Universal continued to tinker with the show after opening and it is now an empty shell compared to what it once was. Anyone remember the original show with "Keeper"? I actually went through the attraction several times on my first visit because it was so good!

Oh, and Hulk....sure it's a rollercoaster, but that launch into the first inversion...I've been on ALOT of coasters, that first sequence is what has kept it tops on my list since my first ride!

 

[glocon]

10's in my book: Hulk
Mummy
Forbidden Journey
HOLLYWOOD RIP RIDE ROCKIT

9's in my book: Spiderman
Jurassic Park River Adventure
Simpsons


I wish we were there right now, or at least planning a trip in the near future. We were there for 5 nights last month, and I am addicted to these boards just reliving it all....

 

[poeticdiabetic]

I can agree with most of the OP's reviews. Ripsaw Falls, to me, is fantastic. Also, Jaws is that cheesy ride that I have to ride when I visit because... it was there and I can remember it when I first went to Universal back in 1995. It's nostalgic, so don't go changin.

But my favorite ride of all time in any park that I've ever visited was ROTM. That ride is my all-time favorite, period!

Oh, and I've seen that people were talking about a different experience for rides by riding them at night? Well let me say something that kinda shook me a little bit: One time, I rode ROTM with my family and my DS left his hat on the ride. He sat on it and forgot to pick it up when he left the ride.

Well I had to go back to retrieve it. Now there was some trouble on the ride and it stopped working. As a result, everyone left the queue and the queue was completely empty, however they still had the sounds and effects on.

So here I am: walking... by myself... in the ROTM queue... complete with the dimmed lights, mummies, and that eerie, ominous sound. That was haunting!

You really don't understand how comforting it is just to be around people going through these queues.