Should they split up? (On vaca not in real life lol)

[chrismb22]

What is your opinion on this? sister and husband have two kids -- eight year old boy and a girl, 3 (closer to 4) at the time of our trip.

Eight year old is a Potter fan so they are allowing one day for one of the Universal parks. Sister was considering sending her husband to Universal and staying at WDW with niece for a few reasons:

1) time -- we are all staying at WL and won't have a car so this would take up a lot of time

2) expense -- we already are on DDP and have our magic your way passes etc. so that's paid for. They. Would need four Universal tickets, transportation and food money etc.

3) enjoyment -- will the 3 year old get enough out to it to warrant the trip? FWIW we will be in one park that day (prob an extra MK day) so she can tag along with us and our then 5 year old son.

Also, they are going to make this decision that week, in case the day they plan turns out to be a rainy one. They aren't going to order tickets until night before or anything. Is that even possible? I am their unofficial travel agent and I know NOTHING about Universal. Haven't been since 1997!

Thanks for your replies.

 

[jimandami]

I took our DS8 to US two years ago while DH and DD stayed at WDW. We spent well over $300 just to go for the day so I didn't see the point in taking DD3 when there wasn't much over there to hold her interest. DH and DD had a daddy/daughter day and did Akershus breakfast and some other princessy stuff. As far as tickets, we ordered ours through Dreams Unlimited and it included Mears transportation from our WDW resort and back. I am unsure if you can do that last minute though.

 

[Nanajo1]

I say split up. Guys day and girls day unless your sister wants to see the Potter stuff. They already have WDW tix. The Mom and daughter should stay and do the rides the brother might not enjoy, visit with princesses etc.

 

[MUFFYCAT]

For just the day? Of course!

 

[CNYDisneyFan]

I don't see why not. When my Dad took me and my younger siblings in October 2012, he took them to Universal to see Harry Potter World while I was at Downtown Disney.

 

[chrismb22]

That's what I'm thinking -- I am going to lean her in that direction. Thanks guys. I just felt uncomfortable since I know basically NOTHING about Universal. I think my niece would have much more fun (and it would be a lot cheaper for them) if they stayed at WDW.

Always know I can count on you for answers

 

[Jupiter]

I agree. Splitting up for one day is not a big deal. They will save money and each child will have some magical alone time with a parent. I am sure the older one will always remember it.

And only having 1 day in Universal, it will be easier to move around quickly with just two people.

 

[gatorfreud]

Splitting up each with a kid for the day (or even part of a day) is a great idea! The kids feel special, and it takes away a bit of the sibling tension. And Universal doesn't have much for little kids...

 

[GoMegGo]

I think splitting up for the day is a good idea, but I also wanted to make a note that Islands of Adventure has a great Dr Seuss area that your niece might enjoy. I agree that Universal doesn't offer much for little ones, but this area is made for them. There are 4 Seuss themed rides and a play area. It's certainly no Fantasyland, but if they decide to stick together that day, there will be a few things for their daughter.

 

[thevolcanogod]

Going to offer the dissenting opinion on this one. Firsts are very important to me as a father. I want to be there the first time my daughters go to the zoo, Disney, see a movie, eat an ice cream cone etc etc. Part of the delight of going to the parks with my children is seeing the reaction to all of the new things. To me, missing that to save $300-ish would be unacceptable.

If that 4-year-old is like mine, it really doesn't take much to keep them excited. Just walking around and seeing all of the stuff should easily keep them going. Plus as has been said, there are some things for kids to do in the Dr. Seuss Land at IOA. And if you want some "alone" time with the kids, it's easy to split up for a while once you're in the park.

I'm assuming that both children haven't been to the Universal parks before (since their parents are taking your advice and you haven't been since 1997 - otherwise I'm sure they would know). If this isn't a "first" for either child then I guess it could go either way.

 

[chrismb22]

Going to offer the dissenting opinion on this one. Firsts are very important to me as a father. I want to be there the first time my daughters go to the zoo, Disney, see a movie, eat an ice cream cone etc etc. Part of the delight of going to the parks with my children is seeing the reaction to all of the new things. To me, missing that to save $300-ish would be unacceptable.

If that 4-year-old is like mine, it really doesn't take much to keep them excited. Just walking around and seeing all of the stuff should easily keep them going. Plus as has been said, there are some things for kids to do in the Dr. Seuss Land at IOA. And if you want some "alone" time with the kids, it's easy to split up for a while once you're in the park.

I'm assuming that both children haven't been to the Universal parks before (since their parents are taking your advice and you haven't been since 1997 - otherwise I'm sure they would know). If this isn't a "first" for either child then I guess it could go either way.

Good point I am going to bring this up to them as well. Not sure how much they care about that stuff (I know I am big on "firsts" as well -- but it's easy for me, I only have one). She just has to give me a definitive answer by 6/3 (dining reservation day) or it's counter service for them if they decide to stay at WDW with us

 

[blana]

We split up on our trip this year. DH took DS (8) to Universal IoA for a day while I took the girls to MK. It went well. While I would have enjoyed going to IoA, this way just made more sense for us and we all got to do what we enjoyed. DD1 couldn't ride the big rides at MK that day wince we had DD2 along as well, but she got to ride to her hearts content the next day & we spent the day doing "girly" stuff like meeting princesses, the Ariel ride, etc. so that we could concentrate on rides when DH & DS were with us.

 

[DISNEYWITHCHILDREN]

Universal has a ticket that offers transportation from WDW resorts. I would def go that route. As for the person who was into the firsts-I get that, but the family will still be splitting up at Islands of Adventures. There is very little for a little one to do in HP world.

 

[KimK2006]

I would split for the day....

 

[jensen]

Our friends do this kind of splitting up all of the time while on vacation. They did the exact Harry Potter scenario the OP laid out. In addition, they always set aside two days where they do Dad/Daughter & Mom/Son, then Mom/Daughter and Dad/Son.

They usually go with a larger family group and stay in a Grand Suite. So sometimes the two sisters will go off with the kids, while the guys head to ESPN club. Sometimes, the two sisters will go off on their own and leave the kids with Gma and Gpa... sometimes the couples will go off for dinner and leave the kids with Gma and Gpa... the kids are even to the age now where they will let the kids go to the parks while the adults hang out at the suite or go to dinner or drinks. She sleeps in every day, he likes to get up early and hit the parks for EMH. So, they are coming and going at all kinds of different times and it seems like they are almost never together.

It's all very interesting to me... I want to be with my husband and both kids the entire time.

But, everyone vacations differently and whatever is fun for them is what they should do.

 

[MrsDuck]

I vote for splitting up unless mom wants to see Potter too.

 

[juliebug1997]

I agree on splitting up.

Also, when DH and I looked at going in 2010 (I think), we were going to have to rent a car ($50 if we were lucky and if there were any cars), buy tickets ($80 each), buy their version of FP (I don't even remember how much this would have cost us), food ($40?), souvenirs (well, a lot, because I love souvenirs) and parking ($15?). When I totaled it all up, we were going to be close to $400-500. We decided against it as we already tickets for Disney that day and we decided we'd rather use that money to buy stuff at Disney or do something else (like a massage, which we may have done). When we'd already paid $3k to stay for a week at POR with a dining plan and tickets, that was additional money we had sort of budgeted for but not to that extent.

It truly is beautiful. They did a wonderful job with the theming, even if it is very tight and crowded back there.

 

[KatieCharlotte]

Universal has a ticket that offers transportation from WDW resorts. I would def go that route. As for the person who was into the firsts-I get that, but the family will still be splitting up at Islands of Adventures. There is very little for a little one to do in HP world.

My 5-year-old loved walking through the castle and watching the movie in the child swap area, and sharing a chocolate frog and the every flavor beans. She also enjoyed the Seuss land and the Jurassic Park play area (although be prepared to lose track of little ones in there).

That said, I would probably just send the husband and son to IoA, especially if the 8-year-old is really into Harry Potter and likes thrill rides or superheroes and dinosaurs. It would be a special day for him and his dad. It's okay to not do everything together on vacation.

 

[chrismb22]

I vote for splitting up unless mom wants to see Potter too.

I think Mom would rather put that almost $200 admission towards shopping at downtown Disney shhhh

 

[jason10mm]

I would carefully look at IOAs list of rides/attractions and see how many would be available to you. Even the Dr. Seuss land has surprisingly high requirements for many of their attractions. IMHO, having taken my 1 year old to IOA, it is virtually worthless for little kids. The park is just geared towards older kids/teens. The rides are rough and the attractions have loud noises and flashing lights. That said, I think 3 and under get in for free so at least it wouldn't cost you (other than another adult ticket, I suppose).