Probably not going

[lovetheparks]

Sounds like it just going to come down to a personal decision. Any park around Thanksgiving is going to have very long waits and as others said, Disney's are usually a little longer (more people longer wait)

Are you going to the park multiple days? If not I would suggest just buying an Express Plus for everyone in advance. That way you know you won't be waiting too long regardless of crowd size or time of day. If you are going multiple days just go very early, and go back in the evenings when it's started to thin out.

Congrats on one year seizure free!! Sounds like you have a very strong little guy there.

 

[merryweather's twin]

Hi.. I also have a child that has chalanges.... PDD AdHD and speech issues. I have a Dr slip from our Dr explaining his disabilitys becouse to look at him you would never know. I have never had to use it!!! I love the theme parks because it is the one place that he fits in..... I think you will be suprised.

 

[phamton]

You can believe your neighbor or you can believe me. I go to Universal and IoA at least 3 times a week. I was there yesterday and will be there tomorrow.

Yesterday, I didn't get there until noon. I didn't see any express pass machines closed. MIB gave out all their express passes by around 2 PM though. Back to the Future was even giving out express passes at 5:00 PM and the parks closed at 7:00 PM, Jaws had a 10 minute wait at 5:00 PM.

The day before yesterday, I got to the parks at 10:00 AM and the parks were empty. The line for MIB was non-existent. The only rides that had long lines yesterday afternoon were the water rides at IoA because it was so unbearably hot.

If you get to the parks at opening, you will be able to walk on most rides. I'd get an express for Mummy when you first get there. Then go ride Shrek and ride Mummy. Then you'll still have the express for Mummy to use later. At IoA, get an express for Spiderman, then ride Hulk. After riding Hulk, go ride spiderman and save your express for a second ride on Spiderman.

Last year, I went to IoA and Universal the week of Thanksgiving. The lines were very, very short (10 minutes or less) and the parks were not crowded at all. Even Thanksgiving day was empty. But the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving day were a madhouse! I heard they were even worse at Disney those days.

Bev

Edited to add: To be fair to your neighbor, July and August were very busy at the parks. The parks are getting less crowded each day now since school is starting. Thanksgiving week is much less crowded than the summer, except for the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving. Orlando schools will have school on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving so there won't be many locals there. I was really surprised how empty the parks were the week of Thanksgiving. Disney seemed very busy that week.

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

Thanks phantom....plus you never know they could exaggerate just to make their story more dramatic....remind me to not tell them about the disboards lol....but seriously it did cross my mind that they did go in august...first week actually and how that is in the dead of peak season. the other neighbors went in July.

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

Originally posted by merryweather's twin
Hi.. I also have a child that has chalanges.... PDD AdHD and speech issues. I have a Dr slip from our Dr explaining his disabilitys becouse to look at him you would never know. I have never had to use it!!! I love the theme parks because it is the one place that he fits in..... I think you will be suprised.

Thanks I never thought of that good idea.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I haven't had to go through this, but if I were you I would have a note from the dr just in case you need to get the GAC. It should mean less explaining, especially if your son doesn't look handicapped.

If you decide to go, do what others have mentioned and get there early. Very often Universal will open before the official opening time. We've gone spring vacation a couple of times before and they opened around 1/2 hour early, but I don't know how typical that is. You should be able to do a lap around the park before it gets crowded. Try to go before Thanksgiving and have fun, no matter what you decide to do!

T&B

 

[goofy!]

We do Universal every year the 1st week in August. So, we were there again this year during the first week of August and yes, it was very, very crowded. More so on the weekend (8/7, 8/8) than during the previous week.

However, the lines seemed manageable - as long as you had a sensible touring plan. Your big rides in the morning and evening and the shows and smaller rides in the middle of the day. No different than planning a day at WDW.

Although we did have FOTL, this time we did look at the wait times on the regular queues because we were deciding whether or not to use our 1 time before 3pm FOTL. It was late morning, early afternoon before the lines became long. And only on the biggest rides. Most were in the 10-30 minute range.

And we pulled Hulk express passes on one of the busiest days at about 1:30pm. (Gave them away because return time was after the 3:00 FOTL deadline). When we passed Hulk again about 3:00 on our way out to go to Mummy, the machines were shuttered. So they did run out of express passes by 3:00pm, but certainly not by 10am. But heck, on that day, it was so packed, even the FOTL line on Mummy was 45 minutes. I know because we were crazy enough to stand in it In the 6 days we were there, that was the only day where the lines were huge in both the FOTL and Regular queues- and only in the middle of the day. Morning and evening were fine.

I also suspect that for some people, the line might seem longer if they tend to get irritated seeing FOTL people getting right on a ride. One day, on Jaws, the regular queue was not at all bad at less than 15 minutes. We went in the FOTL line, which queues right next to the regular line. We were the only ones in the FOTL line, so walked right up and were first in line for the next boat. A family in the regular queue was berating us that it wasn't fair that we could walk right on, they had been there for at least 45 minutes(impossible), yada, yada, yada. So, perhaps, as you said, your neighbors were embellishing their story a bit to make it sound worse than it was and maybe they were just ticked at the FOTL lines.

Since you are staying at DVC, perhaps you could split your days - do a couple of mornings at Universal (the get 5 days for the price of 2 is a great deal) and do your afternoons at Disney. That way you take advantage of the morning slow times at Universal and can still pick up your FP's for Disney afternoons.

BTW - our DD16 has special needs and didn't have a problem at all with that very busy week.

You will have a great time whatever you decide. But listen to phamtom and the rest of the "regulars." They can give you the real scoop.

 

[BarbOKW]

DisneyNut, I'm a DVC owner too, but with the FOTL access we switch to the Hard Rock for the last night or two of our vacation. It's always a Friday and/or Saturday. And the added benefit is that I save all those high weekend points. I've bought enough points so I didn't have to move weekends but we love the Hard Rock so it's worth the move. Now I have to work at using all my DVC points!

 

[disneyfreakk]

why are you planning your vacation by what your neighbor told you?? are these people good friends, or are they maybe jealous that you guys are going to have a better vacation than they did?? ( not being rude, just some ppl are like that )

my MIL and FIL have missed out on so much because ppl they know tell them that something is too expensive, not any good, or ............ everyone's tolerance / expectation are different.

i think that if you qualify for the GAC then you should get one. no one will think bad of you if you use it. it sounds like your family has enough to deal with at home, why not make it easier on you guys for vacation??

 

[Pkdcoastrs]

Don't NOT go to Universal! Going by what your friends who visited once have said versus a lot of us who have gone multiple doesn't make sense. I assure you that the lines you meet at Universal are no longer then anything you will have at Disney during the same dates. When we went to Universal, even though we stayed onsite, we would look at the waits of the rides and during August (first week and second) the lines were definetly barely there on the 4 days each time we went to the parks!

Go to Universal, enjoy yourself!

I mean if you are going to cancel because of lines, I guess Disney is definetly off the list also just kidding

I demadn you go :

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

Originally posted by Pkdcoastrs
Don't NOT go to Universal! Going by what your friends who visited once have said versus a lot of us who have gone multiple doesn't make sense. I assure you that the lines you meet at Universal are no longer then anything you will have at Disney during the same dates. When we went to Universal, even though we stayed onsite, we would look at the waits of the rides and during August (first week and second) the lines were definetly barely there on the 4 days each time we went to the parks!

Go to Universal, enjoy yourself!

I mean if you are going to cancel because of lines, I guess Disney is definetly off the list also just kidding

I demadn you go :

HAHAHA ok then LMAO!!! Hehehe...You are right. My neighbors mean well and they have a daughter with health issues so it may have just been all around hard for them KWIM? But you guys are really helping me

 

[Cindy B]

I just got back today. We were at the parks all last week from Sunday to Friday afternoon. On Friday, we got to USF early a little after park opening. (8:45 ish) We were walk ons at MIB, and rode it five times in a row, 3 times without opponents. We then walked on Back to the Future (we had onsite, but the wait time was posted 5 minutes)., we then did Jaws (walk on/5 min posted time), and then Mummy four times! --the posted wait time on Mummy was 25 minutes, but they also had single riders going.

We then walked over and did another last round of MIB. We looked at some shops, and such, took some pictures.

We walked out before noon.

There were no lines on Friday.

 

[Slacking]

I was at USF today, grabbed a Mummy Express pass at 10:30, and it was a pass for 1:55-2:55. Mummy express passes were probably all handed out by Noonish. Other than Mummy running out of passes by 11:30-Noon, you shouldn't have any problems with the other attractions. But, I usually feel more limited by Univ. Express than with Fastpass (hate them both though.)

A combination of getting to the parks early and riding rides the first 2 hours its open and utilizing Express for the other attractions will secure yourselves a day with minimal waiting, especially if you go earlier in that week.

 

[Kimberlyfamilyfv]

your child was a special needs child in that case I would contact universal about your options.

I remember reading that parents with special needs children (depending on the disability ) can get special passes to shorten the wait on many or most of the rides. I believe there is a section on this boards call disabilities. You might want to look for it. I would also check universals website for any info.

I have friends at work that received special passes for their family because of their child. a sort of express pass


Kimberly

 

[ILOVEPOOH1]

I agree, the lines aren't worth it at USO... not much on thrill rides anyway.
Also, just have to ask... JT3000- Do you ever have anything positive to say? Every post I've read of yours seems to have attitude. Must be a US worker...since you don't show much Disney magic!

 

[phamton]

Originally posted by ILOVEPOOH1
I agree, the lines aren't worth it at USO... not much on thrill rides anyway.
Also, just have to ask... JT3000- Do you ever have anything positive to say? Every post I've read of yours seems to have attitude. Must be a US worker...since you don't show much Disney magic!

Even though this is the DisBoard, this forum is a Universal/IoA board. We post here because we are love Universal and IoA. No one likes lines whether at WDW or Universal but we, who post on this board, think the rides at Universal are completely worth the wait. We don't have to show Disney magic here as there are over 24 other forums on the DisBoard devoted to Disney and only 3 devoted to those "other" parks. We may be the step-children here but we still love Universal. Many of us also love Disney but not everyone here. We talk about Universal magic here and save our Disney discussion for the other 24 plus boards.

I didn't see that JT3000 was negative. All he did was point out that Disney has lines also, which it does. I myself have seen longer lines at Disney attractions than I ever seen at Universal although your mileage may vary. I don't think many of the rides at Disney are worth waiting in a long line for.

Insinuating that any one with an attitude must be a Unversal employee is insulting to those of us who have family members who are employees of Universal. Some of the nicests employees I have ever met have been at Universal including Dark Marauder who posts here with very helpful advice. We also have PAP's to WDW and like Disney but are understandably partial to Universal/IoA. I don't know whether JT3000 is an employee or not, nor does it matter to me. We are all fans of Universal or we wouldn't be posting to this Universal/IoA forum. We save our Disney magic for the other 24 or so forums. Those who don't find any magic at Disney probably never venture off this Universal board. I did a search on JT3000 and only saw 3 posts on any of the Disney forums (2 were about Hurricane Charley and one about Mission:Space) so it seems any negativity he may have towards WDW is not spouted on the Disney forums.

Bev

 

[Notatourist]

Bev-

Have I mentioned lately that I heart you!



Maam, please, please, please check with Universal about your child. You should quailfy for a pass, use it. It will help.


Thanks!

 

[rhysd2]

sounds like these guys have pretty much sewn you with enough advice but i'll throw my 2 pence in here all the same.

I've been to universal/disney twice during what i call the MEGA packed season(july time) when both the brittish and american children are on holiday for the summer and orlando is packed with tourists.

I've NEVER seen a fast pass booth run out before 2pm except once(disney epcots fast track). while i was there the only universal ride i saw run out of fast passes around 2-3pm was MIB. that was the year it opened so it was mucho popular. but running out before 10:30am? doesnt sound right to me. no disrespect to your neighbours but they must have it wrong some how.

its no secret that like disney some of the more popular rides and US and IoA will have longer lines than others but if you plan a little bit in advance then you can get fast passes for those or pick the times of day when their less busy.

i would say you should have zero problems taking your son there as the lines really arent that bad as even when they are busy they seem to move fast(except spiderman and MIB) and with the right planning and fast passing you can avoid the lines all together.

 

[kazzie]

Hi,

I just wanted to reiterate the suggestion to ask advice on the DIS abilities boeard they are very helpful.

I have only used a pass for special needs assistance in the UK and DLP not at Universal as we try to get there very early.

My son has Asperger's so doesn't 'look' disabled so I take a letter saying I receive disabilty living allowance (probably a UK thing?) and that is sufficient proof. I have had the odd look off someone when we don't have to queue,but if it improves your son's enjoyment of the day who cares.Kids with special needs have a diffficult enough life let them have the odd perk that makes a day a bit easier.

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

Originally posted by kazzie
Hi,

I just wanted to reiterate the suggestion to ask advice on the DIS abilities boeard they are very helpful.

I have only used a pass for special needs assistance in the UK and DLP not at Universal as we try to get there very early.

My son has Asperger's so doesn't 'look' disabled so I take a letter saying I receive disabilty living allowance (probably a UK thing?) and that is sufficient proof. I have had the odd look off someone when we don't have to queue,but if it improves your son's enjoyment of the day who cares.Kids with special needs have a diffficult enough life let them have the odd perk that makes a day a bit easier.

((((KAREN))) Hugs sweetie It has been a rough few years for my little poopie and he has overcome so much. Chris has seizures( although not technically epilepsy yet since his Neuro wants to see what happens in the future with it) BUT with that said we made it almost a year seizure free. Of course after I posted the other day e started havibng very small petite mals. 1-2 seconds maybe every other day BUT I am hoping a med changes/dose will get them controlled again. But you are right they do go through alot and if this perk will help him enjoy it then I will look into it. Plus a child having a meltdown in line at a park cannot be pleasant to others either.

But now to brag. We took him to Six Flags Great Adventure Friday and he waited in line wonderfully. Once was even 60 minutes and the other doosy was 45 minutes. He was GREAT with it. It seems like 30 minute waits are a piece of cake for him. The longer it goes he gets antsy but he did good. The thing is we had a friends family meet us there and she has a six year old and they kept each other busy. Even so he waited so well, he actually shocked us!

BUT and here is my BUT if the height requirements are different at universal than WDW then we may have to go to WDW. I was shocked that rides that were 41 inches at Disney for example "Tower of Terror" were 44 inches at Six Flags "Freefall". So there were alot of rides he wanted to go on that he has been on similar ones at WDW but he missed the minimum height. So he left crying alot of times when he would get to the measure thing and be too short. So I am heading off to UIOA site right now to see what the height requirements are. We may just go next year to be sure he is tall enough. If they are like disney and have the 41" requirements then we should be ok.