Stupid Question

[ahartchic]

This is my first time here at this site so please accept my apology for asking a stupid question on a first time visit. I am in the process of making reservations for our upcoming Orlando visit, first part of June. I have been doing a ton of research on WDW and have all my plans ready to go. Yesterday it was brought to my attention by a co-worker that maybe I should check into Universal Studios INSTEAD OF WDW....we do not have the time to do both, nor can we afford to do both. I would like some advice from you, the experts. Do I skip WDW this year and do all 4 days at Universal? I am at a loss of what to do. My children are ages 16, 15, 11 and 3. My 3 year olds favorite cartoons/characters are BARNEY, SPONGEBOB, BLUES CLUES, SPIDERMAN, DORA, WIGGLES, just to name a few....and my 11 year old prefers Nickolodean to the Disney channel, most of the time. Just wondering if I will be totally disappointed if I decide to change here at the last minute and do Universal instead of WDW....HELP!!!!

 

[Anthony1971]

Universal is mostly thrill rides
the older kid will most likely enjoy universal more-if thrill rides are liked
the younger ones will like Disney more.
that is not to say that there are no thrill rides at Disney-there are enough to keep anyone happy.
Hands down I would go to Disney if i had to choose
I also stronly feel that Universal is no where near as family oriented as Disney
In my opinion Disney is an experience and Universal is just a theme park.

 

[marknj05]

After just returning from US/IOA last week and having been to Disney a few years ago, this was a great question. My vote based on the ages of your children would be Universal. I asked my own children DD15 DS11 and they both concurred that while they liked Disney "they had more fun" at Universal. Here is some of my thoughts. This is just my opinion:

1. If you stay on-site, I found getting around to the parks a lot easier. Disney transportations was great, but you often lost time waiting for it. Also some of the parks take a while to reach. If you wanted to leave the parks and go back it could be time consuming. We stayed at the Poly, which did makes things easier by being next to the TTC, but from the RPH we could be at any park within 15 minutes. Also the two parks are close enough that many days we hopped from one to the other.

2. The rides and attractions are geared towards older children (there are of course exceptions Shrek, Jimmy Neutron, Seussland etc.) My children reported that the rides were much better at Universal/IOA.

3. On site guest get FOTL, which is worth every penny spent on the lodgings. While Disney Fastpass is useful, you don't waste ANY time waiting in lines at Universal.

4. Hotel wise we much preferred RPH to the Poly. Ecah has a tropical theme.

5. The atmosphere(especially Citywalk) made it feel like it was my vacaction as well as my kids. Not that I'm a lush but I also enjoyed being able to get Margaritas to go! We also enjoyed the many great restaurants at Citywalk and in the parks themselves. In my opinion the food was much better at Universal.

6. That being said... we did enjoy Disney. The choice was tough. Disney blows away Universal on theming. The parks are beautiful and you can really appreciate the attention to detail, something sorely lacking at Universal. If you are anything like me, planning your trip has been work and I'm not sure that I would be wanting to change plans midstream. A disney vacation is a MUST if vsiting Orlando. I just think they are two different vacation experiences. Why not ask the kids what they think?

Either way have a great vacation. You can't go wrong with either choice!!

 

[marknj05]

Forgot to mention Dora Blue Spongebob Barney and Spidey are all at Universal

 

[marybet]

If you only have 4 days I would go to WDW, you have your plans made so don't change them. If you had 5 or 6 days you could add Universal.

We are going to the Hard Rock with the grandchildren, 11 and 12, for 4 days. We plan to take advantage of FOTL and spend time at the resort. When we took the whole family 2 years ago we rented a house and planned 4 days at WDW and 2 at Universal. The crowds were very low and we only did 3 days at WDW and had one free day, which worked out well because you really do need a break from all day at the parks. I would say that the kids liked all the parks, our grandson liked the thrill rides at Universal but liked WDW too.

Don't know that I've helped you much.

 

[ahartchic]

thanks for the great advice....glad to hear the pros and cons. I have been to Disney 4 times, the last being probably 6 years ago so have never seen AK...my children, with the exception of my 3 year old have also been, but my 11 year old doesn't really remember much about it. I have put a ton of hours into planning hte Disney trip so that is the main reason I am having a difficult time , i think, switching here in mid-stream. I just don't want to be disapointed once i get to universal having made the switch. I remember Disney, as well, for its high attention to customer service, its cleanliness, and just sitting and being amazed at the technology and wondering HOW DID THEY DO THAT!!!!!! Asking my kids would be the best idea, and i would guess that my older ones would probably say Universal, but not certain...HOWEVER, I am doing this part of our trip as a surprise to them. my only fear with disney was that my teenagers would think "thats for kids!!!" which i totally disagree.....I have less than a week to make my decision as to which park we will do, as my deposit will be due in full next week. thanks again...i will consider all your advice

 

[harmonize4me]

I agree. After spending so much time planning your Disney trip, I say stick with Disney. The kids are already invested in the idea of going to Disney and between all the parks there's always something new and there's something for everyone. Why not save Universal for the next go around. Then you can plan on it from the start, do your research and everyone can look forward to something a little different.

 

[calena]

Ask the kids. Let them choose and then no going back and no regrets! Either place is great. That being said, Disney is Disney. There is no getting around it. It is magical with the mouse, the princesses, just the feeling of happiness. I loved Universal, but if I was going on one trip to Orlando, it would have to be Disney. I do think your kids would love Universal, as we did, but we also went to Disney on our trip because it just doesn't seem right to go to Orlando and not go to Disney. The one thing I don't like at Disney is the crowds/lines. At Universal we had hardly any crowds or lines to deal with and that was GREAT!!!!!
There is fun stuff for the older kids to do at Disney too and once you get there you get into the magic of it anyway and just enjoy the spirit of the place.
Why not do Disney this year and Universal the next trip?

 

[ahartchic]

I would love to ask the kids, but I am really wanting to keep this part of the vacation a SURPRISE. we will be heading to the beach after leaving orlando, and they know about that part of the vacation. They have no idea we are going to Orlando for a few days prior to the beach so they will be surprised with either place we decide to go, i am certain. thanks.

 

[robvia]

Welcome aboard. No question is dumb, and the people here don't flame.
Since you haven't been to Disney in 6 years, just stay with it. The 2-3 thrill rides at each park will be enough for the big kids. If you wanted to visit IOA for a day, then the best idea is to rent a car for your stay, and drive up early one morning. Most people pass on this idea, take a limo to Disney, and never leave the property. That's how Disney wants it, they don't want you leaving. But the rental car gives you complete freedom to drive up and take a visit if you want. Most visitors on this forum like to relax and take their time, often spending an entire day at each Disney park. On the flip side, I go in commando mode, visiting a park in the morning, hitting the thrill rides, then moving on to another in the afternoon. It can be done, but getting that many people up early in the morning is probably hard to do.

Do Disney, have a great time, then plan a USF trip staying at the HRH for 2 nights and you'll be impressed.

 

[muttngeff]

TWICE! and still managed to find out which parks they were most interested in by browsing thru Orlando books and then just "leaving them out"...the kids would pick them up and dream about which park they would love to visit and which rides they would do first. A little subtle eavesdropping and problem solved. (we also had the videos from US and WDW so we could "dream" but I don't know if they're available now)

FWIW the first time we ended up doing ALL the parks plus some we did have 14 days tho, but it was still nuts!

 

[phamton]

My suggestion after seeing your kids ages and also their interest in Nickelodeon characters would be:

Magic Kingdom one day(everyone needs to go there at least once)
MGM one day
Universal Studios one day
Islands of Adventure one day

If you are interested in what the younger child can do at Universal/Islands of adventure, I'd read these two articles:

Kids at Universal

Kids at Islands of Adventure

 

[hannahouse]

Given your childrens ages, theres a strong possibility they would prefer Universal (the 3 year old will have a blast wherever you go!). My kids - 15,9 and 6 picked Universal hands down. Still concerned I'd scar them for life by going to Orlando and NOT doing disney, I've grilled every child I know - suprisingly most older (8 and up) kids prefered us/ioa. Adults (like me!) are more prone to Mickey nostalgia

 

[JessicaR]

With kids 15, 16, and 11 it would be a Universal/IOA vacation for sure! I agree that the 3 year old will be happy where ever you go. The 3 year old will LOVE Suess Landing with all the pretty colors and distractions!

Have you and the kids been to WDW? If so...try something new, they are at wonderful ages to do so. On top of everything else that would appeal to them, they already have a Nick interest...that would be my answer right there.

As Hannahouse stated and I totally agree with, us adults that were brought up on Disney have a hard time resolving to give something else a try. Believe me, once you do you will not be disappointed.

About 5 years ago we went to Universal for our first family trip after stumbling upon these boards. I had already researched and paid for a vacation at Disney. I read and read and read and finally was so intrigued, I cancelled out Disney and booked Universal. My kids LOVED it and so did my husband and I. We have ben back as often as we possibly can ever since. In the past 5 years we have only been back to Disney once for a long vacation and a couple one dayers while at Universal.

I hope that if you decide to stick with Disney that you at least allow one Universal day to check it out for a future trip...you will love it!

 

[marknj05]

We have done both. Count me as a Universal convert!!

 

[JessicaR]

Universal is mostly thrill rides
the older kid will most likely enjoy universal more-if thrill rides are liked
the younger ones will like Disney more.
that is not to say that there are no thrill rides at Disney-there are enough to keep anyone happy.
Hands down I would go to Disney if i had to choose
I also stronly feel that Universal is no where near as family oriented as Disney
In my opinion Disney is an experience and Universal is just a theme park.

Universal is mostly thrill rides? Uh no, it isnt, not at all actually. Since not a single one of your posts have ever been over here and since you own DVC, your comments arent surprising at all. They are however untrue. I dont think you can speak for anyone regardless of age as to what they would prefer.

Universal is an excellent family vacation choice, just as much as Disney is. As far as Disney being an experience and Universal just a theme park. They are both experiences and both theme parks...imagine that. Imagine also that an individual could like both.

 

[damo]

I would skip WDW altogether. My kids haven't wanted to go back to Disney since they became teenagers. We do go to USF/IOA at least once a year and they love it. There is so much for everyone.

 

[ahartchic]

Thank you so much for all your interesting posts....I have pretty much decided from this last series of posts to go ahead and switch to Universal. sounds to me like it will be the right choice. Now I am getting even more excited about trying somethin gnew. All but my three year old have been to disney but it has been six years ago so a while. and i think you are right. It has been ME that had gotten all caught up in the idea of Disney. My kids knew/know nothing about this trip so I am 90% certain if i were to ask them which they would rather do they would say Universal. I think it was just me worrying wheter or not I would be disappointed for not going to DISNEY. I will get past that. I think the fact that we will stay onsite will help as well. We will stay at the HardRock which looks to be a whole lot of fun in and of itself. Thanks again for all the posts. I will let you know what we thought when we return.

 

[marknj05]

Your kids will not be dissapointed! Be sure to post some reviews when you return.

 

[phamton]

I am so excited for you! What a wonderful surprise for your kids! And staying onsite! Wow! You won't be disappointed.

Many of us have Disney nostalgia. I grew up going to Disneyland when it first opened and watched with anticipation as WDW was built. We watched Wonderful World of Disney every Sunday night on tv as a family. When I was a child, I dreamed of Disneyworld, with princesses and castles.

Our kids grew up on Nickelodeon, Dr. Suess, Men in Black, E.T., Spiderman, Hulk, Unicorns, Dragons, Jurassic Park, Jaws, Shrek, Terminator, and Barney. They have a different nostalgia than we do. Go and enjoy it through their eyes. You won't be disappointed.