Our Excellent, Good, and Poor Choices at WDW/IOA/Universal Studios

Rita1965

Mouseketeer
Joined
Nov 1, 1999
Messages
104
Excellent Choices
Moleskin-This is the first time I got a blister at WDW. I was happy I had bandaids to put on the blister, and then I used a large piece of Moleskin to cover the bandaid. It held up great, and I was not in pain.

Mini Misting Fan with Carabiner-Bought some at Wal-Mart years ago, and they are still wonderful. It was really hot in Florida and I loved having my mini mister.

Unofficial Guide-Followed the touring guides, and park recommendations. Were there from
Jun1-Jun8, and the longest wait we saw was for Toy Story Mania at the Studios, 40 minutes.

Neutrogena Sun Screen with Helioplex - I don't tan, I fry and turn a lovely shade of pink/red in 15 minutes. The Neutrogena spf 70 sun screen cream for the face worked miracles, no burns. We used the spf80 cooling spray for the rest of our bodies, and none of us were burned.

Hats and sunglasses – They are a must. Bought a wide brimmed hat, and it kept me very comfortable. I am looking at buying better sun glassed for our next trip.

Moisture Wicking Socks – best invention ever. Kept our feet comfortable. Wore sandals the first day and got a blister. Switched to moisture wicking socks and sneakers and were fine the rest of the week.

Islands of Adventure – Had an awesome time there. Loved the rides and Seuss Landing. Will go back to that park.

Good Choices
Singles of Tide and Cascade – We were staying at a friends timeshare and we used all 4 of the Tide singles we brought, and the Cascade for the dish washer as well. Timeshare gave us some, but not enough to last the entire week.

Staying at Clarion Water Park resort for one night – We had an extra night that we did not stay in the timeshare, and the Clarion Water Park resort was clean, fun, and $100 per night. Make sure you request a ground floor, Water Park view room.

Lanyard with zipper – Bought a plain black lanyard with zipper at Office Max. It was great to have a solid zippered pocket to have the credit car and money in, and then have the fast passes and tickets in the clear pocket. Office Max also has the clear plastic pouches you can attach to any lanyard.

Obnoxious colored luggage – invaluable when standing at the luggage carousel at the airport waiting for your luggage. Mine is getting more common now (fire engine red), need to find something really revolting that nobody else will buy, and that is easy to spot.

Cinnabon at IOA – What a treat it was to sit down in the shade and enjoy a Cinnabon and a milk. I normally always resist Cinnabon, but I gave in to temptation at IOA, and I really enjoyed it.

Gift Shops – Whenever we felt overheated we ducked into a gift shop for 5-10 minutes. We could browse and look around, and when we felt cooled off we left. Only do this if you can resist the temptation to purchase anything.

Tracfones – Bought one each for the kids (10 and 18 years old), and we loved being able to communicate after loosing each other, or when the 18 year old wanted to go off on his own and then later on meet up. Found lots of codes that gave us extra minutes by googling tracfone codes.

Baggalini-My first trip with a Baggalini, and it was great. Held everything I needed, and then some.

Pin Trading – bought a set of pins for my 10 year old, and she loved to trade pins with the cast members. Wish I had thought of that earlier.

Rain Ponchos – A necessary evil. Bought them at the dollar store and brought with us. Note to self, only need one per person, not 5.

Kool aid singles – kids loved it, and preferred it to soda.

Glow sticks from dollar store – great idea for Fantasmic. Note to self, don't leave them in the hotel room next time.

$18 preferred parking at Universal/IOA - I was glad I spent the extra $6 and got to park closer. By the time we headed out of the park we were exhausted. By the time we made it to City Walk we were dragging.

Pool toys from Wal-Mart – worked out great. Passed them on to other kids at the pool the last day we were there so we didn't have to bring them home.

Pedometer – fun to see how far you have walked. The day we were at Epcot we walked 10 miles. The rest of the parks we averaged about 6-7 miles.

Garmin Street Pilot – Downloaded the Points of Interest from Mousesavers. Only went the wrong way when I didn't listen to the street pilot. What a wonderful invention for us who are directionall challenged.

Poor Choices
Wal-Mart – Wish we had not gone to Wal-Mart in Orlando. It was super busy and crowded. The rest of the time we shopped at Publix on International drive, and it is a clean and wonderful store. Publix was never crowded when we were there.

Baggalini at Universal Studios/IOA – really bad idea. Try to have nothing but a lanyard so you don't have to spend 15 minutes before and after the rides trying to get in and out of the lockers. The lines for the lockers were ridiculous. I won't bring anything to those two parks in the future. Just slather on the sunscreen before we go, and buy water in the park. They do enforce the no bags on certain rides there.

Steak N Shake – Wish we had skipped it. Food was nothing extraordinary, but the wait sure was. Would have preferred a quick stop at Wendy's instead.

Miniature Swiss Army Knife – After 20 + trips with it, it finally was confiscated at the airport. Forgot it was on my keychain, and never had a problem with it before. Picked up a new one at WalMart, and will put it in my checked luggage next time.

Cooling Bandanas – used them once, but they did not really work well for me. Found the mini misting fan cooled us off better.
 
Which Wal-Mart did you visit? I've found the new Wal-Mart on Palm Parkway/Turkey Lake Road to be very nice and not that crowded.
 
The Wal-Mart we went to was at 3250 Vineland Road, Kissimee. It was so crowded, I felt completely stressed. Had much better luck at Publix.
 
The Wal-Mart we went to was at 3250 Vineland Road, Kissimee. It was so crowded, I felt completely stressed. Had much better luck at Publix.

Yes, that is not where I would want to shop. If you want to shop at Wal-Mart here, I would definitely recommend the one on Palm Parkway. It is very easy to get to if you are staying on WDW property. If you go to the Crossroads, just turn left onto CR-535. At the next corner there is an Olive Garden. Turn right and you will be on Palm Parkway. You will drive a ways, so don't get discouraged. You will be running parallel to I-4. The new Wal-Mart will be on your left.
 

great info and tips - really useful details!

i also tried the neutrogena helioplex 70 spf this past weekend (at a seafood festival) - so glad i did - i'd have burned otherwise

what is this 80 spf cooling spray? also neutrogena? (i haven't seen it)

wow, lockers are a "must" now at IOA/US? it's been a few years since we've gone - that's got to be awful, waiting on lines before/after a ride at a locker

thanks again for the mini "info" report!
 
Neutrogena also has a spray on sun screen with Helioplex. SPF 80, and they call it a cooling spray as it feels cool while applying it. Excellent sunscreen.

You do not have to put your stuff in lockers on all the rides, only the once where there is a chance of you loosing your items. Examples: The Incredible Hulk, The Mummy, Men in Black, Fire & Ice (dueling coasters). Major pain having to stand in line for the lockers.
 
Do you even have to put your fanny pack in the locker or just a bag or backpack?

I've asked this same question on the UO boards. My answer was no, if it clips snugly around your waist...unless the TM for that particular ride wants you to put it in a locker. :confused3 But I've also read TR's where the vacationer wore a fanny pack the whole time and never had to use a locker. I'm going to try the fanny pack route this year. I gotta have my lip gloss, advil, cell phone, etc..too much for pockets. I may conceal it under my shirt on the bigger rides :rolleyes1
 
on men in black ride for sure we always have to rent a locker which is located in front of ride just outside it...it;s because of how the ride spins you ...but it;s worth it..it is a very fun ride....it doesn't cost nothing to rent this locker at that location...
 















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