Newbie here!

[flinkerfrosch]

Hi!

I am not a stranger to the Disney ways, but am lost when it comes to planning our 1st trip to Universal/IOA.

Myself, DH and boys 5 & 7 are coming to Universal on Sat, Sept 27th for 5 nights.

We may stay on property (still figuring that out) but I have a few questions about the parks and Character meals.

1st- Are the parks busy at the end of Sept? And, when does Universal release there park hours for Sept?

2nd- What park is better to do first? My 7 year old is tall, so he can do almost every ride, and he's a real thrill seeker, so he LOVES coasters!

3rd- Are their many character meals at the parks or hotels? And, do I have to book 180 days in advance like I do at Disney?

4th- Any tips or "must do's" "must see's" for a 1st timer?

I really appreciate all and any help/tips!!

Cheers

 

[macraven]

that saturday and sunday the studios will close at 5:00 due to a hard ticket event, hhn.
studios won't get crowded until late that afternoon though.

if you are staying onsite, you won't have any issues of waits for the rides using the express lines.

that time in september usually follows a pattern of time closures.
decent weather and low crowds.

studios could be at 6:00 during the week and ioa at 7:00.
if crowds are higher due to the hp2 opening, i'm sure hours could be extended an hour........have to wait and see.
park hours will not be out this early.

you don't have to plan a darkside vacation like you do for the motherland.
easy to make a eaterie ressie the day prior or even the morning of.


get the layout and description of the rides at www.universalorlando.com

read some of the stickies for guidance and tips from others.

we have quite a few about the characters in the parks and hotels w/dining.

hope you have a great vacation at the darkside!

 

[flinkerfrosch]

that saturday and sunday the studios will close at 5:00 due to a hard ticket event, hhn.
studios won't get crowded until late that afternoon though.

if you are staying onsite, you won't have any issues of waits for the rides using the express lines.

that time in september usually follows a pattern of time closures.
decent weather and low crowds.

studios could be at 6:00 during the week and ioa at 7:00.
if crowds are higher due to the hp2 opening, i'm sure hours could be extended an hour........have to wait and see.
park hours will not be out this early.

you don't have to plan a darkside vacation like you do for the motherland.
easy to make a eaterie ressie the day prior or even the morning of.


get the layout and description of the rides at www.universalorlando.com

read some of the stickies for guidance and tips from others.

we have quite a few about the characters in the parks and hotels w/dining.

hope you have a great vacation at the darkside!

Haha, the darkside!?

5pm is early for closing, but not much I can do about that

Hopefully, the hours extend a bit! We actually wouldn't be going to US or IOA on the Sat because its the day we arrive. I was thinking of getting 2 or 3 day park tickets and spend a few days hanging out and swimming at whatever resort we pick. I will wait and pick the park days once I see the park hours.

As for Character meals..I must admit, I'm confused by it all. I've read that their are no character meals in the parks, and they're all held at certain resorts. Is there a webiste that would give me all the locations and what characters attend what meals?

Thanks for the your help! Much appreciated

 

[macraven]

i would have to pull up the website to see the rotation for the hotel dining with characters, can't remember which evening i went to them.

rph has the character dining twice a week.
the other two hotels divides up the remaining days.

you order from the regular menu and the characters show up around 5-6:30ish.

i have had scooby doo and another time the simpsons while at the Island Dining room at rph.
at hrh, saw scooby characters.

you pay for what you order at dinner and the characters roam around with a handler to meet you.
very simple.

hotels did switch days of the week around on this character dining so you would need to call the hotel to make sure which day of the week they are hosting.

LaBamba (studios) had a breakfast when i was there in the fall but you might want to check the UO website to see if that is still happening.

the one breakfast w/characters that i loved and would do was at confisco grille at port of entry at ioa.
they stopped it when they started up the la bamba breakfast.

i'm still a bit in a huff over closing that poe out as i loved spidey and seuss characters.