Never been, need advice

[Myothername]

We have only been to Disneyworld but this year the family wants to try Universal. Here is who will be going:

Brother - won't ride thrill rides for the most part if they are too jerky due to neck problems
Sister in law - will ride anything and everything and loves shows
Me - Same, will ride anything and everything and just okay with shows
Nephew A - age 11 will ride anything if we talk him into it but loves shows too
Nephew B - age 10 will ride anything if we make him

We will be going in January most likely so hopefully crowds won't be so bad.

How many days should we plan to be at Universal? We want to ride everything a few times

Where should we stay? At WDW we always stay onsite for the convenience but this trip money is more an issue.

What kind of tickets should we get? We always get the unlimited park hoppers at WDW. I understand if you stay onsite you get front of the line passes but I figured it won't be so crowded for the thrill rides so that may not be an issue.

What about restaurants? Are their good restaurants in the parks like at WDW or should we just eat offsite?

Thanks so much for the help.

 

[heidijanesmith]

We have only been to Disneyworld but this year the family wants to try Universal. Here is who will be going:

Brother - won't ride thrill rides for the most part if they are too jerky due to neck problems
Sister in law - will ride anything and everything and loves shows
Me - Same, will ride anything and everything and just okay with shows
Nephew A - age 11 will ride anything if we talk him into it but loves shows too
Nephew B - age 10 will ride anything if we make him

We will be going in January most likely so hopefully crowds won't be so bad.

How many days should we plan to be at Universal? We want to ride everything a few times- we like to spend 3days at a minimum and stay on site. The unlimited express pass will allow you to ride your favorites over and over.

Where should we stay? At WDW we always stay onsite for the convenience but this trip money is more an issue. We stayed at HRH and thought the location was amazing. Took about 3-5min to walk from the pool path to US. HRH's location, early entry into WWoHP and unlimitted express pass makes staying on site worth every penny for us.

What kind of tickets should we get? We always get the unlimited park hoppers at WDW. I understand if you stay onsite you get front of the line passes but I figured it won't be so crowded for the thrill rides so that may not be an issue. Staying onsite does not allow you to go to the front of every line. There are a few rides that do not accept the Express Pass. But the rides that do accept the pass are great, kind of like a fastpass line, we rarely had more than a 5min wait in the express pass line, even during July and Aug. We like to get the park-park passes, and take advantage of the early entry into WWoHP in the AM, back to the hotel for a mid-afternoon break and then back to IOA or US in the evening after eating at City Walk.

What about restaurants? Are their good restaurants in the parks like at WDW or should we just eat offsite? We love to eat at City Walk, there are lots of great restaurants there. We also like to eat at the Irish Pub (forgot the name) at US and at Mythos at IOA. If you stay on site, when you ask for a table, show them your hotel key card and you will get the next available table.

Thanks so much for the help.

There are lots of rides and shows for everyone's tastes at UA and IOA. Plenty for all levels of thrill seekers.

 

[macraven]

the name of the irish pub is Finnegans.

love that place also!

 

[RMulieri]

Jan is a great time to go, lower crowds..LOTS of large tour groups though.We did 5 days last time and are doing 6 this time.( 4 full park days both times) .We loved the easy ,slow pace and it was an actual stress free vacation..Definitely stay onsite..The resorts are beautiful, deluxe and all are within a short walking distance or dedicated boat ride away.The Unlimited Express pass is FANTASTIC and even came in handy in Jan in avoiding the tour groups.

 

[braddillman]

I'd stay offsite (I usually do, but did stay once onsite). In January crowds should be quite manageable, I don't expect you'd need or benefit much from fastpass. Tip: check the price of the fastpass to gauge the crowd level; you'll find it's more expensive on days they expect higher crowds, e.g. holidays. So, the more they charge for FP the more useful it is/the less the they charge the less it's worth. So if the FP is less, then less reason to stay onsite.

Not sure for budget accommodations, we have a timeshare. We (family of 5) prefer a timeshare with a kitchen - saves a fortune on breakfast and supper, but we tend to eat lunch or maybe just a large snack midday in the parks. Note: we have supper down to a routine - one parent takes the kids to the pool, while the other heats something in the oven. We figure the kids would want chicken nuggets or pizza anyway, and they prefer the pool to waiting for a table at a restaurant, so its win-win all around. Bagged prepared salads are good too. Renting a house is almost as good.

I recommend the park-to-park passes so you can go where you please, when you please. You don't need to stick to a rigorous schedule like Disney here.

The in-park restaurants are reasonable and reasonable priced. Some more recommendations:

Splurge for Mythos at lunch if you can, it's top notch stuff, really very nice.
Make sure you get a butterbeer at the Hog's Head (shorter line than the cart or the 3 broomsticks). I also like happy hour at The Watering Hole (in Jurassic Park near the Harry Potter entrance) - just because my favourite theme is Jurassic Park. The mexican take out upstairs at citywalk is fresh and affordable. Refillable popcorn is a favourite with my kids, we just stop every time it starts to empty - the kids would rather snack on popcorn while they're waiting to ride, than to stop altogether and wait in a snack line.

I'd say you need 3 days. Last time, we had 14-day flexpasses and spent a lot more than 3 days, but we love universal a lot.

 

[Planogirl]

If you are at IOA and want a quick sit-down place consider trying the Confisco Grille. That place has improved so much the past few years and it's our go-to full serve place if we don't go to Mythos or Citywalk.

 

[jjas]

Just a word of warning from our experience last week - we ate at Pastamora at City Walk and it was TERRIBLE in every way - bad food, bad service and expensive!!

 

[glocon]

Have you ever done a split stay at WDW? Is a split stay at UO an option? That way you could stay onsite for day (2 days of unlimited express with one day onsite) or 2 days (3 days of ep) than move to a less expensive or more roomy option off site. It really is worth it to stay site, even more so than staying onsite at WDW. The unlimited ep and one hour early entry to WWoHP make it a trip like no other. Just so you know, there is nothing at WDW to compare with the unlimited ep. Imagine a fastpass for almost every ride, over and over and over if you want. It is incredible. It makes for SUCH a different trip than if you didn't have it. If even one or two days onsite is an option, you will not regret it. You probably wouldn't ever do it any other way again!

But any UO is better than no UO, so even if you do not stay onsite, you will have fun.

One more thing- even though Jan is not usually a busy time, as someone else mentioned- there are the tour groups....