yoopermom
Come join Bravo by the fire...
- Joined
- Sep 27, 2000
- Messages
- 4,409
Cast:
Me, Terri the Yoopermom, turned 35 during the trip, trip planning fanatic
Yooperdad, 39, would rather be in a national park than a theme park
Yooperson, 7, thrill seeker and animal lover extraordinaire
(and joining us later )
DM, who loves WDW, but hates to fly (WDW wins out, I promise)
DSF (whose age enabled us to get a great rate at HIFS)
Day Three: December 28, Universal Studios
After a leisurely sleep-in, the guys went for a swim while I packed everything up for storage while we were at the parks, since we were checking out (sniff). If I had had any idea how much I was going to love the Hard Rock, we would definitely have stayed at least two more nights. I called National about the car situation, and Kathy cheerfully told me that I could bring it back to the airport at any time and exchange it, which was a load off my mind since we had to pick up my parents in a few days, and there was no way the four of us (and luggage) were going to fit in the current car. The bellhop stored our luggage for us, we checked out (were only charged $10 for valet parking our only stay, I dont know why), and got on the boat to the Studios (I know we could have walked, but we loved that boat ride!).
Today was even more crowded even earlier than yesterday was, it seemed. I was thankful time and time again for FOTL, and noticed that the expresses had run out for many of the most popular rides. Men in Black was too much fun, Terminator 3-D was cool, Twister was a little disappointing, and ET we loved, but thought very Disney-ish. DS was thrilled when ET said his name at the end of the ride! Universals food services did not seem to be handling the crowds well, and after yesterdays lunch wait we decided today to just grab popcorn and hot dogs to hold us over. It would have been nice to sit down, but the lines everywhere for food were just unreal. Overall we liked Studios, but thought it paled in comparison to IOA. By late afternoon we took the boat back to the HRH, and were sorry to see that we were going to miss the movie by the pool that night.
We sadly drove back to the airport and exchanged our car for a four-door Oldsmobile Alero (bigger inside, but still a fairly small trunk). If I were to ever do it again, I would definitely rent a mini-van, so as not to have to worry about room for people and stuff. I had gotten a reservation at the Renaissance Airport Hotel through Priceline for $30, so we checked in there, quite quickly, because it seemed fairly empty. I heard a gentleman inquiring about taxi service to the theme parks, and wondered why someone would stay at an airport hotel without a car if they wanted to go to the parks? Obviously doesnt read these boards! The hotel itself was clean, but had an old feel to it (probably due to the Miami-Vice-meets-Golden-Girls color scheme). We were so tired we ordered pizza and ate in the room. The free shuttle would be coming at 5:30 a.m. to take DH to the airport, so we all turned in early.
Me, Terri the Yoopermom, turned 35 during the trip, trip planning fanatic
Yooperdad, 39, would rather be in a national park than a theme park
Yooperson, 7, thrill seeker and animal lover extraordinaire
(and joining us later )
DM, who loves WDW, but hates to fly (WDW wins out, I promise)
DSF (whose age enabled us to get a great rate at HIFS)
Day Three: December 28, Universal Studios
After a leisurely sleep-in, the guys went for a swim while I packed everything up for storage while we were at the parks, since we were checking out (sniff). If I had had any idea how much I was going to love the Hard Rock, we would definitely have stayed at least two more nights. I called National about the car situation, and Kathy cheerfully told me that I could bring it back to the airport at any time and exchange it, which was a load off my mind since we had to pick up my parents in a few days, and there was no way the four of us (and luggage) were going to fit in the current car. The bellhop stored our luggage for us, we checked out (were only charged $10 for valet parking our only stay, I dont know why), and got on the boat to the Studios (I know we could have walked, but we loved that boat ride!).
Today was even more crowded even earlier than yesterday was, it seemed. I was thankful time and time again for FOTL, and noticed that the expresses had run out for many of the most popular rides. Men in Black was too much fun, Terminator 3-D was cool, Twister was a little disappointing, and ET we loved, but thought very Disney-ish. DS was thrilled when ET said his name at the end of the ride! Universals food services did not seem to be handling the crowds well, and after yesterdays lunch wait we decided today to just grab popcorn and hot dogs to hold us over. It would have been nice to sit down, but the lines everywhere for food were just unreal. Overall we liked Studios, but thought it paled in comparison to IOA. By late afternoon we took the boat back to the HRH, and were sorry to see that we were going to miss the movie by the pool that night.
We sadly drove back to the airport and exchanged our car for a four-door Oldsmobile Alero (bigger inside, but still a fairly small trunk). If I were to ever do it again, I would definitely rent a mini-van, so as not to have to worry about room for people and stuff. I had gotten a reservation at the Renaissance Airport Hotel through Priceline for $30, so we checked in there, quite quickly, because it seemed fairly empty. I heard a gentleman inquiring about taxi service to the theme parks, and wondered why someone would stay at an airport hotel without a car if they wanted to go to the parks? Obviously doesnt read these boards! The hotel itself was clean, but had an old feel to it (probably due to the Miami-Vice-meets-Golden-Girls color scheme). We were so tired we ordered pizza and ate in the room. The free shuttle would be coming at 5:30 a.m. to take DH to the airport, so we all turned in early.
