Touring Plan Help - please

[cc-atl]

My wife, kids (9&7) and I will be visiting Universal in a few weeks and I am looking for some planning help.

Here is some background info

- We will be arriving in Orlando late on Friday 2/8 and driving home on 2/16
- We are staying at a Disney resort the whole time (we got a free dining offer and are using the extra credits to eat in the Castle, a signature restaurant on Valentines Day, etc)
- We will not have early entry or the express associated with staying onsite
- I'm open to buying an express pass but play it by ear
- My wife is from New Orleans and she and my kids love Mardi Gras so we want to see the Mardi Gras parade
- My son is a big fan of the Harry Potter books.
- We did the buy two get a third day free (2 park) tickets

The attractions we want to experience are:

Universal Studios
Despicable Me
ET
Men In Black
Shrek 4-D
The Simpsons Ride
Woody Woodpeckers Coaster
Animal Actors
Fievels Playground
Curious George Play area (maybe - do not want kids to get wet)
Revenge of the Mummy (just me as a single rider)

Island of Adventures
Olivanders
Forbidden Journey
Flight of the Hippogriff
Spider Man
Storm Force Acceleration
The Cat in the Hat
Caro-Suess-el
Seuss Trolley Train
Camp Jurassic
Jurassic Park Discovery Center

We will likely avoid the water rides and my kids are very wimpy when it comes to scary things. I am hopeful I can get them to ride Forbidden Journey and Spider Man, but even things like Disaster and the Horror Make-up Show will be too much for them. Harry Potter stuff is definitely the focus of the visit.

My current plan is:

2/8 - arrive late, check in and sleep
2/9 - Disney park during day, US at night for Mardi Gras parade
2/10 - all day at US/IOA
2/11 - early part of day at US/IOA, afternoon go to Disney park
2/12 - 2/15 - Disney parks
2/16 - drive home

My questions are:

Saturday 2/9
- do you getting in to the park (parking, entry, etc) will be very crowded if we do not arrive at US until about 5pm? Should we plan to arrive earlier?
- is there a particular spot you recommend we stake out for parade viewing?

Sunday 2/10 - Monday 2/11
- What are your thoughts about what order we should visit attractions in for these two days?


Thanks in advance for your responses and for reading my lengthy post.

 

[bumbershoot]

I don't have any sort of comprehensive answer for you, just a few thoughts.


Do Ollivanders first, if it's a priority. The line can get long and the line is boring. The line for FJ gets long, too, but it's not boring. On the other hand, it is *dark*, so if boring is better for your kids than standing in a dark castle for longer than necessary (no matter how fabulous it is), do FJ first.

Shrek 4D can be spooky. It involves a ghost, and every time the ghost shows up there's a cool breeze that blows through and a whooshing noise. If the kids are tall enough to really get that effect on the back of their necks, it might worry them. It's amazing FUN, though, so I hope they'll be able to enjoy it!


If the kids don't want to get wet but want to play in the ball area *behind* the Curious George play area, follow the footprints on the ground. It skirts the water areas and takes you back to this awesome soft-soft-soft ball area. You can shoot balls at each other, go upstairs, vacuum up balls (it always seems the women end up doing this, LOL) which sends them to a hopper where they can fall down on people....they are super-soft and don't hurt when you're hit by them, and it's really great.


The JP Discovery Center is pretty amazing. Make sure you have time to explore it!


Camp Jurassic is big, and it's easy to lose people in there. But there's only one entrance/exit, so if you park one parent there, they won't get out. And you'll have the "fun" of watching the poor Team Members having to explain the simple but complex height restrictions of Pteranodon Flyers over and over and over again (it's got to be just about the worst job, IMO).


We're thinking of going to U Studios on the 16th from WDW (we'll have been onsite at UO from the 10th through the 12th) for Mardi Gras festivities, and we were considering heading over around 4 but that was making me nervous that it would be too late! But I've never done any sort of MG stuff there so I don't *know* if I'm right to be nervous about it.

 

[bumbershoot]

I want to add that just BEING in Wizarding World is pretty amazing for a HP fan. During our first trip, my son (who was 6 at the time though I keep thinking he was 7) wanted to BE there, drink Butterbeer, buy stuff, and ride Flight of the Hippogriff over and over. (literally...he talked me into doing it 14 times in a row one morning)

Side note: assuming the child reaches the specific height requirement of the ride, a 48"+ child can ride alone. Wish I'd known that BEFORE the 14th time around on Hippogriff.

Anyway, my point is...even if that's "all" your kids do in Wizarding World, it's OK. It's amazing there. And it's only going to get better in the future. Maybe you will all be hit by the UO love, upgrade to Annual Passes, and take a special trip back to stay onsite and reap all the benefits being onsite has to offer.


This works for my family...maybe it will work for yours. To maximize the bravery, make sure people are not tired, not hungry, not overly hot or cold (it's Feb, you never know!), and aren't jacked up on junk food. Also, hydration is key for happiness. Our family starts to have breakdowns if we neglect our health during trips. With DS that starts showing up in things he won't ride when he wanted to ride them before. And in being easily spooked. Plus, I get motion sick on FJ if I'm overly full or overly hungry. It's a fine line!


Butterbeer mugs make a great souvenir that you can use every day at home, by the way.

 

[Metro West]

My questions are:

Saturday 2/9
- do you getting in to the park (parking, entry, etc) will be very crowded if we do not arrive at US until about 5pm? Should we plan to arrive earlier?
- is there a particular spot you recommend we stake out for parade viewing?

Sunday 2/10 - Monday 2/11
- What are your thoughts about what order we should visit attractions in for these two days?

I think the Studios will be very crowded by 5pm. With Lifehouse playing that night, they will bring in lots of people. If you get there around between 3-4pm, you would be better off especially if you want to eat dinner in the park. As far as the parade goes, we don't know what the route will be with all the construction. I usually stand around Mel's and get lots of good pictures but we'll need to wait until the route map is available to get a better idea. The parade is a blast and the floats are beautiful. Not to mention the amount of beads you can grab.

Play the attraction order by ear and see what happens. You should definitely try to get to the parks as early as possible if you want to make it a full day. I don't think the Studios will be a problem with with HP and the related crowds, you might need to check periodically to see what the wait times are.

 

[cc-atl]

Thank you all very much for the very helpful thoughts and comments.

 

[cc-atl]

I think the Studios will be very crowded by 5pm. With Lifehouse playing that night, they will bring in lots of people. If you get there around between 3-4pm, you would be better off especially if you want to eat dinner in the park. As far as the parade goes, we don't know what the route will be with all the construction. I usually stand around Mel's and get lots of good pictures but we'll need to wait until the route map is available to get a better idea. The parade is a blast and the floats are beautiful. Not to mention the amount of beads you can grab.

Play the attraction order by ear and see what happens. You should definitely try to get to the parks as early as possible if you want to make it a full day. I don't think the Studios will be a problem with with HP and the related crowds, you might need to check periodically to see what the wait times are.

FYI - it looks like the 2013 parade route is available here

 

[Metro West]

FYI - it looks like the 2013 parade route is available here

Oh good...not the best route especially along the main drag. From Shrek past Twister it will be really crowded so get there early if you want to take pics.

 

[keishashadow]

OP just wanted to give u for a well-thought out request for touring plan that clearly listed your objectives.

couple of observations:

Allow yourself ample time to arrive at Universal/park/and that long walk to gates and your fellow guests waiting to access especially at park opening (as in a good hour from your disney resort). It all depends on traffic and route you take. Consider avoiding I-4 and taking surface roads during peak drive times.

Hit HP area as soon as permissable, onsite guests will have a jump on you, or later in the day when it seems to clear out a bit.

Kids getting wet: there are so many great water-based attractions at Universal that can be enjoyed if the kids are 'under-dressed' in bathing suits and wearing board shirts/crocs, etc. or you could take a change of clothes.

Disaster - I don't really consider it particularly scary, although you know your kids best. IMO a good learning experience to explain that it's how they do the special effects in the movies to de-mystify the process. If your children do the MGM version (name escapes me), the water feature is somewhat similar but other parts are bit more intense.

Single rider Mummy - Perhaps the rest of family could do one of the attractions you're least interested in at that point and you could meet up at pre-arranged spot.