Should we do only Islands of Adventure or US as well?

[Dizneydaz]

Just thinking about surprising DD12 with a surprise trip to WWOHP for her birthday. Her birthday is next Monday and we will be in Florida 10/7 to 10/18.

We will be staying on property at WDW and spending most of our time there and around Florida (beach, etc).

If we do WWOHP would 1 weekday in October be enough or should we do 2 days? Should we get a PH for US or just skip it? We have US Hollywood here and have been there a few times. We are not big on going to shows.

Thoughts? And any tips would be great! I am very experienced with WDW and DLR but haven't done Universal Orlando ever.

 

[rwdavis2]

Personally I would spend 2 days. If you get a 1 day-2 park pass you'll be running too much. HP can have some long waits so do some research on those aspects. There is more to do in US vs IOA but since DD is a Potter fan do IOA first. See what the attractions are over in US and see if they make you want to visit there. We like Shrek, Mummy, Jaws, Men in Black, Simpsons, and The Terminator. We have not yet doen the Rip, Ride, Rocket coaster yet. There are a few more if you have time.

 

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

I would recommend both parks too. I think Uni does a great job too but I'm not sure how many duplicates there are of the Hollywood park. If too many overlap, then it may be pointless.

Currently Uni is closing at 6pm and IOA at 7pm. Expect similar hours during your visit but try to avoid a day when they're running Halloween Horror Nights that evening. It's taking place in Uni which means they might close even earlier.

BobK/Orlando

 

[DOOM1001]

Two days with one day at each park is what I always suggest with a third day if you have the time.But I would definitely suggest doing both parks as there are great attractions at both parks.

 

[Metro West]

You should try to do two days and on the days when HHN is staged, the Studios will close at 5pm as opposed to 6pm which will make a difference. I would decide on the dates and see if any of those days are when HHN is going on.

 

[accumax]

just as others have said. 2 day with one day at each park.

 

[Singinglizzie]

I think it depends on your daughter. I did a 2 day trip when HP opened, and got sick, so I didn't ride many of the rides. Now taking my 11 year old to WDW and we plan to spend 1 day to see HP/IOA. Have decided to do only the one US park, since she doesn't like roller coasters. I think she will like seeing Hogwarts castle and maybe the Hipogriff ride, but I don't know if my dd will like the HP ride itself or the dueling dragons??? We are going to eat at the 3 broomsticks and probably will wait in line at Olivanders and see the shops. Not sure what else we are going to do there? Maybe ride a few of the other rides I missed, like spiderman. Personally, I think $90 for a one day ticket is way to expensive, but there isn't a cheaper way to go unless you buy multi-day tickets which we don't want. You wont see everything in 1 day, but you could see the highlights in both parks on the same day. US isn't disney, so some of the rides IMHO are pretty corny. HP however is very well done and I'm sure your daughter will be excited to see it. Have fun.

 

[SashaFarce]

We usually do both parks in one day, and I think IOA is probably my 2nd favorite Orlando-area park after Epcot. While I enjoy USF a lot I'm sad that a lot of the rides that were there when I was a kid are gone, but there are some great ones out there now and I'd definitely go for the whole shebang this time.

 

[Planogirl]

I would go to the Studios just to ride the Mummy. We also like the Men in Black and Disaster. Those might be different from what you have at USH but I'm not sure. What about Shrek?

You should just check out a list of USO attractions to see what might be different. I don't think that anything is "corny" except maybe Jaws even though we love the goofiness of it.

 

[Harry Potter]

A day at each park sound sensible if your budget permits it.

Otherwise, forget US and just do IOA. That is where the main attractions are.

However, I do agree with Planogirl: The Mummy is an awesome ride and I often visit US just for that (as well as MIB if I canbe bothered to walk that far lol).

 

[Metro West]

Personally, I think $90 for a one day ticket is way to expensive, but there isn't a cheaper way to go unless you buy multi-day tickets which we don't want.

Disney's one day tickets are expensive too and I agree $90 is too much but until people stop paying, Disney and Universal will continue to raise ticket prices.

Just sayin.....