Thanks (Universal/IOA trip update)

[wb3690]

Hi all!

Well we just spent two fun filled days at Universal/IOA and I had THE best time. I love WDW and wasn't sure how this would compare, but honestly I think these parks suit our family better.....I have a 15 year old and a 7 year old and there was tons for each of them to do. It was fantastic.

Saturday we arrived at IOA at about 720am to go to Guest Services. My 7 year old has sensory issues and is on the autism spectrum. I had spoke with my friend and my doctor here and they mentioned a Pass we could get for him. It's like the express pass however it can't be turned down at any ride and you can ride anything over and over.....thus avoiding long lines and possible meltdowns from my son. We were given the pass and off we went back to the WWOHP. I LOVE that place. The details are amazing.....we rode FJ first......(if you want to do Olivanders do THAT first.....seriously). We bought my son a wand the night prior at City Walk and they just wanted on a ride. The FJ ride is amazing......I loved it. I think we rode that ride probably 6 times in two days.....

then we just did WWOHP. We rode the other rides, shopped in the shops, had butterbeer (so good), poked around, looked at everything and then noticed how crowded it was. If you can get into the WWOHP take pictures BEFORE 10am.....it's so crowded then. So we left WWOHP and went on our way to other parts......

We had a blast....everyone was so friendly and helpful....We rode pretty much everything we could in 2 days...ate at the Three Broomsticks, met Dr. Doom, The Green Goblin, The Simpsons, Spiderman......had ice cream, took silly pictures, saw a raptor hatch in jurrasic park and were able to take things slowly. I didn't feel rushed like i do at WDW. I really enjoyed it.

If we didn't have that assistance pass for my son's austism I would DEFINITELY stay on site (if you can afford it) and use those passes. Sometimes I felt a little guilty using our pass, but it made my son's trip much more enjoyable. I can't imagine having to go back to Universal or IOA and stand in line for hours. I think the longest we stood in line was on Saturday and that was for Spiderman. Really those passes might seem like an extra expense, but they are invaluable and lines are where kids get stressed out and have tantrums and where adults WANT to do the same. LOL.

My older son turned 15 that weekend and we were treated really well for him too.

It was a fantastic trip and now since we only live 2.5 hours north we're thinking of buying annual passes for the family. It was a GREAT great weekend!

 

[Metro West]

Thanks for sharing your experiences.

I'm going to move this thread over to the Trip Reports board.

 

[CamdenScott4]

We also have a DD7 who is ASD and were debating going by Guest Services on the way in to see what services they had available for her. I know some of the general queues are loud and dark and she doesnt do well for that. My question is were you there at rope drop, if not - when? And how long did it take you at Guest Services? Reason I ask one person said if you are there at RD, you wouldnt need to go to GS - you could ride everything by the time you got the Express Pass and got to the park. What was your experience?

 

[wb3690]

We also have a DD7 who is ASD and were debating going by Guest Services on the way in to see what services they had available for her. I know some of the general queues are loud and dark and she doesnt do well for that. My question is were you there at rope drop, if not - when? And how long did it take you at Guest Services? Reason I ask one person said if you are there at RD, you wouldnt need to go to GS - you could ride everything by the time you got the Express Pass and got to the park. What was your experience?

We were there are rope drop. We got to the park both days at 720-730ish in the am. Guest Services at the front entrance of IOA was not busy at all.....honestly the reason we did it like that is because we didn't want to walk all the way back to the front of the park from WWOHP which is in the very back of the park to get the assistance pass. It just made the most sense to get the pass right then isntead of back tracking which for my son would have made him so angry to have to go back, passing rides he wanted to ride to get that pass.

it took us no time to get the pass and then we got back in line with the rest of the people and went into the park. FYI they would let everyone in and then stopped us all at an archway right before the Hulk(to your left) and Dr. Seuss (to the right) and we had to wait there. Then lots of people RAN to WWOHP, but we didn't. LOL....I wasn't about to run.

We could have done all those rides without the assistance pass with that extra hour in the park, but it seemed silly to back track. Hope this helps!

 

[CamdenScott4]

Well we def need to look into then. It has been so long since I have been to IOA (10 yrs + easily) I dont really remember where GS is. I was picturing in my mind that GS was inside the park and not available until they opened the gates. But GS did email my wife and encouraged us to come by to see them so maybe we will. Thanks for all the useful info!

 

[czycropper]

I'm so happy to hear that you were able to get a pass and that it helped with your son. I'm going to let a friend of mine who's son is on the spectrum as well, loves HP and she was concerned about how the crowds would affect him, so she's been trying to figure out a good time to go down. They always go to WDW during the slow season.