Pre-Trip Planning/Report Universal/Seaworld-without catchy title!

[sk8jdgca]

The Christmas a Party is really good. We found we could get on all the rides ( arrived at 4 pm) with little wait. We arent big on parades, so the rides are really good at that time. We stayed to the very end.

Funny you mentioned Bubba Gumps, my son was just talking about how he never likes what he orders there (I'm with him but my daughter loves seafood so she thinks it's ok) they both agreed the best part is the drink cups that light up

 

[disneyavonohio]

Think we are leaning towards the Christmas Party. Something different that we haven't done.

How did I miss your earlier entry on this report?

The pic of your little fellow passed out on the bed is absolutely precious. I feel the same way after a full day of mogging around in the parks, I just don't look as adorable when I finally succumb to the weariness .

I wish you weren't kidding about the wand being for sale. We mighta been able to work a deal . Its one of those things I couldn't rationalize splurging on at full price, but that looked mighty fun nonetheless!!

You have a GREAT price for your November trip, and a big woohoo for making that happen! I just totalled up our October expenses and we're up to $3900 for just the two of us (the HHN RIP Tour, MNSSHP, and a few other splurges are kicking the snot out of my budget). Perhaps I shouldn't have added it all up!

As far as your Disney day goes, I would do the Christmas Party versus HS....just because its one of those seasonal things you can't do all the time. Strike while the iron's hot, seize the day, and all that kind of advice, ya know? But then again, I'm a Christmas lover too.....so perhaps I'm not the most objective. That said, cookies and hot chocolate at MK sounds awfully festive. Let us know what you ultimately decide!!

Thanks Gina. He is usually only adorable when he is sleeping! Being the littlest of three brothers, he learns ALL the bad habits of the other two!

I think I agree with your logic- we are leaning towards the Christmas Party. Something different that we haven't done. We really like the Osborn lights at HS-but for the difference in price and the other things we will get to see, it is a good trade off.

I don't post a ton on here, but do read a lot--so after reading so many trip reports for ideas, it seems like you get to know people-and the other day I was at Cedar Point with my kids and thought of how much your husband would enjoy the coasters at that park. Cedar Point has 5 coasters better than any coaster in all of Orlando. Dragster (zero to 120 mph in 3.8 seconds, up 420 feet and back down-it is awesome),Millennium Force (305 feet high, 93 mph), Maverick (think RocknRoller coaster, but outside and better),Raptor (inverted coaster, you are under the track-this might be the ride that scares me the most) and Gatekeeper (almost like your flying).

Also for perspective the HULK coaster is 110 feet high and goes 67 mph.

So what day for the Christmas Party at MK? Thursday the 19th or Friday the 20th? Leaning to Thursday as in theory it should be less crowded than Friday. But Thursday is our first full day in town and we will want to hit Universal also....decisions, decisions.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Think we are leaning towards the Christmas Party. Something different that we haven't done.


Thanks Gina. He is usually only adorable when he is sleeping! Being the littlest of three brothers, he learns ALL the bad habits of the other two!

I think I agree with your logic- we are leaning towards the Christmas Party. Something different that we haven't done. We really like the Osborn lights at HS-but for the difference in price and the other things we will get to see, it is a good trade off.

I don't post a ton on here, but do read a lot--so after reading so many trip reports for ideas, it seems like you get to know people-and the other day I was at Cedar Point with my kids and thought of how much your husband would enjoy the coasters at that park. Cedar Point has 5 coasters better than any coaster in all of Orlando. Dragster (zero to 120 mph in 3.8 seconds, up 420 feet and back down-it is awesome),Millennium Force (305 feet high, 93 mph), Maverick (think RocknRoller coaster, but outside and better),Raptor (inverted coaster, you are under the track-this might be the ride that scares me the most) and Gatekeeper (almost like your flying).

Also for perspective the HULK coaster is 110 feet high and goes 67 mph.

So what day for the Christmas Party at MK? Thursday the 19th or Friday the 20th? Leaning to Thursday as in theory it should be less crowded than Friday. But Thursday is our first full day in town and we will want to hit Universal also....decisions, decisions.

I think you guys have made a GREAT choice on the Christmas party! Hollywood Studios will still be there for your next trip when there's no special events going on (and is a good motivator to get planning the next, next vacation! ) . I would pick whatever night you think works best with your current itinerary and worry less about the potential busy-ness. The whole idea behind the parties is that attendance is capped at a smaller number anyway, so both nights should be manageable crowd-wise (theoretically, anyway). I hope you will do a report with photos when you come home. MVMCP is still on my Orlando bucket list and I simply adore the holiday season in general .

The Cedar Point coaster sound absolutely like Steve's cup of tea!! (and Jake's too.....he's a coaster enthusiast like his dad). Cedar Fair actually bought Canada's Wonderland, our big theme park here in Ontario, a few years back...and have added an impressive selection of super-coasters to their attraction line up as a result. Some day we will have to make the trip to Ohio to experience the theme parks there; the drive is pretty manageable from where we are. And the onsite hotels look really quite nice!

 

[VacaPlanner2012]

Great trip report! We are also from Northeast Ohio (Akron), and plan on doing the platinum passes to Cedar Point next year, we skipped this year. In-laws live near Cincinnati, so spending a few days at Kings Island for "free" adds to the value! The Frontier Airline tickets are awesome! We leave Sep 12 (a tick under $700 for four of us), for a week at Sea World/Aquatica with just one day at Universal thrown in this time around.

We are a Hard Rock family through and through. When you check in, make sure you ask about the kids eating free at the Kitchen with a paid adult. We love the breakfast buffet, but it is a bit expensive. Getting 2 kids for free might make it more enjoyable and affordable. I know you had great success at Bula Bar and Jake's and pool hopping is great, but Beach Club at the Hard Rock pool is similar and quite tasty. Give it a try.

We had a similar trip to yours in early Winter 2013 and headed over one evening to the DIS Christmas Party and an evening to Sea World for their Christmas shows. Both were great. We went over to the Uni parks for a few hours with Express Pass, then headed over in the evenings and it was very manageable. I did something similar with the Halloween party at DIS and it was so different. The Christmas party was nearly empty and Halloween had longer lines than a normal day at MK. Two potential reasons: time of year and day of the week. We hit Christmas on weekday and Halloween on Friday night. Not sure which was the main factor, but Thursday at DIS may make a difference over Friday.

Hope you have a great time!

 

[disneyavonohio]

Great trip report! We are also from Northeast Ohio (Akron), and plan on doing the platinum passes to Cedar Point next year, we skipped this year. In-laws live near Cincinnati, so spending a few days at Kings Island for "free" adds to the value! The Frontier Airline tickets are awesome! We leave Sep 12 (a tick under $700 for four of us), for a week at Sea World/Aquatica with just one day at Universal thrown in this time around.

We are a Hard Rock family through and through. When you check in, make sure you ask about the kids eating free at the Kitchen with a paid adult. We love the breakfast buffet, but it is a bit expensive. Getting 2 kids for free might make it more enjoyable and affordable. I know you had great success at Bula Bar and Jake's and pool hopping is great, but Beach Club at the Hard Rock pool is similar and quite tasty. Give it a try.

We had a similar trip to yours in early Winter 2013 and headed over one evening to the DIS Christmas Party and an evening to Sea World for their Christmas shows. Both were great. We went over to the Uni parks for a few hours with Express Pass, then headed over in the evenings and it was very manageable. I did something similar with the Halloween party at DIS and it was so different. The Christmas party was nearly empty and Halloween had longer lines than a normal day at MK. Two potential reasons: time of year and day of the week. We hit Christmas on weekday and Halloween on Friday night. Not sure which was the main factor, but Thursday at DIS may make a difference over Friday.

Hope you have a great time!

Been buried with sports, work, etc so it has been a while since I posted.

We ended up doing a weekend at Kings Island a few weeks ago and it was a lot of fun. With Platinum passes just had to pay for hotel and food. Not as good a Cedar Point rides, but they had plenty of good rides and a really good area for younger kids.

Thanks for the tip on the kids eating free at the Kitchen--will have to give that a try I think. And we will def. check out the Beach Club by the pool.

I did buy the MVMCP tickets for Thursday Nov 19th. Going to relax in the morning then head over and grab something to eat at one of the monorail resorts and then take the monorail over to the MK (we have done this in the past, anyone know if you can still do this?). Also can you book FP+ for between 4 and 7? I tried in the system and it says I don't have tickets--is that because I am not within 30 days?

 

[Lynne G]

Yes, and I'd park at the TTC, and go to one of the monorail resorts for dinner, than take monorail to MK. Then can take monorail or boat back to the TTC when the party is over. And, yes, you can get FS+ for between 4 and 6:30. I've got 3 before the Halloween party, with my party ticket. But yep, you have to wait until your FP+ time opens. We did the same thing in 2013, but no Disney. We had Super Grover passes and did 2 days at BGT, more than a couple at SW, and 2 days at Aquadica. Spent Christmas Day in DC and had a late dinner at Margaritaville. Driving around was bonkers. Good thing was, my DH likes to drive slow, and waiting in traffic does not make him crazy. We also did have some Disney, as my DH and I flew down a few days before the kids and took a 3 night cruise on the DCL. We had great weather too.

I hope your trip is great. There's so much to do in the Orlando area.

 

[mrsabbott]

Loved your pictures! Your boys looked like they had a great time!