Texas Dude
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jul 23, 2002
- Messages
- 3
Sorry its taken a few weeks to get this trip report written and posted; returning from vacation was truly a shock to the system. Not to mention a few distractions (Go Astros! Go Texans!).
Anyway, my family of four made our second trip to Universal Orlando in July we first went in 1999, when the paint was still bright on Islands of Adventure. My daughter, now 10, was entranced by the false storefronts and movie street sets on our first trip, so I kind of thought wed be doing a lot of that once again. As usual, I was wrong: both kids discovered a new passion MEN IN BLACK!
Rode it straight out of the gate the first day there, the kids wanted to go back immediately. We had FOTL access thanks to our stay at the Royal Pacific Resort and we were going to go through Express Line queue when suddenly an old, busted black Ford LTD screeched to a halt right in front of us. Two MIB agents jumped out, one an attractive blonde young lady, and immediately started seeking alien suspects. The agents singled out a few people from the crowd, including my daughter ... hmm, I just thought she was just going through some kind of pre-teenage thing. Nice skit, at any rate, the real alien was funny. On our numerous visits back to MIB Alien Attack we caught part of the show again and the cute blonde actress was playing the alien.
Oh yeah, one thing about MIB Alien Attack: when we went through the Express Line in the morning, we were directed through the single riders queue. Not complaining, but doing that you bypass all the cool pre-ride stuff at MIB. My son almost jumped out of his skin when he saw the coffee-swilling worms for the first time, and the MIB headquarters is a hoot, too. Our scores on the ride werent anything out of this world (sorry) but the ride is fun. Weird, though, I had this funny taste in my mouth after a couple of spins on MIB. I think I might have swallowed a little red target dot from the other car thats one way to keep their score down!
We portioned out five whole days at the parks this time, but with FOTL we had pretty much covered everything in both parks at least once after two and a half days. Man, I cant say enough good stuff about FOTL ... stay on-site if you can afford it, its well worth it.
Now when I say we did everything, let me make a full disclosure and reveal that we didnt do the Hulk and Dueling Dragons coasters the kids were a little skittish about the rides. The wife and I just breathed a sigh of relief. And I was doing pack-mule duty and somehow missed Dr. Dooms Fearfall. Thats OK, because I try to stay away from most activities that involve gravity and speed.
For some reason, this time out the kids (and the parents) enjoyed Universal Studios more. Oh, IOA was great, but it seems we just spent more time at the other park. I think we were able to pack more activity in this time thanks in no small part to FOTL including the shows like Beetlejuices Graveyard Revue and Animal Planet Live! The Animal Planet show was the first animal act Ive seen where the performers didnt leave a smelly gift on the stage. Although when they plopped a big fat green snake on the lap of one volunteer from the audience, we may have come close to seeing one from a human.
The kids really dig the souvenir shops at Universal and IOA. My daughter took her time selecting just the right t-shirt (Men In Black, naturally) and my son, age 8, wanted just about every Spider-Man item he could lay eyes on. He settled for a visor, a baseball, some comic books and a Spider-Man dogtag with his name on it. So we get back home, and a co-worker is looking at the photos, and she says I MUST get one of those dogtags! So we did some work on the Net and guess what? You can buy just about anything available in the parks through their mail order department. Call (407) 224-5800 Monday-Friday between 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. (Eastern time) and theyll send you an e-mail catalog.
When we first went to USF in 1999 the mantra was Get there early. You got there early, there was early admission for some ticketholders and you beat the crowds on the most popular attractions. Now the catchphrase is Stay on site. You cannot beat that FOTL access with the hotel card keys. Yeah, the shuttle boats (I only know about the RPR) are kind of spotty but youre there to do some walking anyway. Do some walking around the block at home before you come to Florida. Its good for you, and you get in shape for the best time you will ever have in your life.
Anyway, my family of four made our second trip to Universal Orlando in July we first went in 1999, when the paint was still bright on Islands of Adventure. My daughter, now 10, was entranced by the false storefronts and movie street sets on our first trip, so I kind of thought wed be doing a lot of that once again. As usual, I was wrong: both kids discovered a new passion MEN IN BLACK!
Rode it straight out of the gate the first day there, the kids wanted to go back immediately. We had FOTL access thanks to our stay at the Royal Pacific Resort and we were going to go through Express Line queue when suddenly an old, busted black Ford LTD screeched to a halt right in front of us. Two MIB agents jumped out, one an attractive blonde young lady, and immediately started seeking alien suspects. The agents singled out a few people from the crowd, including my daughter ... hmm, I just thought she was just going through some kind of pre-teenage thing. Nice skit, at any rate, the real alien was funny. On our numerous visits back to MIB Alien Attack we caught part of the show again and the cute blonde actress was playing the alien.
Oh yeah, one thing about MIB Alien Attack: when we went through the Express Line in the morning, we were directed through the single riders queue. Not complaining, but doing that you bypass all the cool pre-ride stuff at MIB. My son almost jumped out of his skin when he saw the coffee-swilling worms for the first time, and the MIB headquarters is a hoot, too. Our scores on the ride werent anything out of this world (sorry) but the ride is fun. Weird, though, I had this funny taste in my mouth after a couple of spins on MIB. I think I might have swallowed a little red target dot from the other car thats one way to keep their score down!
We portioned out five whole days at the parks this time, but with FOTL we had pretty much covered everything in both parks at least once after two and a half days. Man, I cant say enough good stuff about FOTL ... stay on-site if you can afford it, its well worth it.
Now when I say we did everything, let me make a full disclosure and reveal that we didnt do the Hulk and Dueling Dragons coasters the kids were a little skittish about the rides. The wife and I just breathed a sigh of relief. And I was doing pack-mule duty and somehow missed Dr. Dooms Fearfall. Thats OK, because I try to stay away from most activities that involve gravity and speed.
For some reason, this time out the kids (and the parents) enjoyed Universal Studios more. Oh, IOA was great, but it seems we just spent more time at the other park. I think we were able to pack more activity in this time thanks in no small part to FOTL including the shows like Beetlejuices Graveyard Revue and Animal Planet Live! The Animal Planet show was the first animal act Ive seen where the performers didnt leave a smelly gift on the stage. Although when they plopped a big fat green snake on the lap of one volunteer from the audience, we may have come close to seeing one from a human.
The kids really dig the souvenir shops at Universal and IOA. My daughter took her time selecting just the right t-shirt (Men In Black, naturally) and my son, age 8, wanted just about every Spider-Man item he could lay eyes on. He settled for a visor, a baseball, some comic books and a Spider-Man dogtag with his name on it. So we get back home, and a co-worker is looking at the photos, and she says I MUST get one of those dogtags! So we did some work on the Net and guess what? You can buy just about anything available in the parks through their mail order department. Call (407) 224-5800 Monday-Friday between 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. (Eastern time) and theyll send you an e-mail catalog.
When we first went to USF in 1999 the mantra was Get there early. You got there early, there was early admission for some ticketholders and you beat the crowds on the most popular attractions. Now the catchphrase is Stay on site. You cannot beat that FOTL access with the hotel card keys. Yeah, the shuttle boats (I only know about the RPR) are kind of spotty but youre there to do some walking anyway. Do some walking around the block at home before you come to Florida. Its good for you, and you get in shape for the best time you will ever have in your life.
