Universal and 4 yr old

[Mickeycrocs]

hello! Long time Disney fan wondering about universal. The last time I went was when I was about 10, so I don't remember much about it. We're going to Disney next year but Mom suggested maybe going to universal on one of our days. Will this be worth it with a 4 year old? Are there many rides he will be able to do? Thanks

 

[pcstang]

How tall is the 4 yr old? I've been taking my three kids since they were 2, now 11,7 and 4 and they prefer it over WDW.

 

[bumbershoot]

If the rest of the party wants to go, you can find enough to do to make it worth it. There are places for kids to play and have fun, and there are rides that littles can go on. In addition, rider switch, unlike at Disney, is done inside the line, near where you go to be seated, so families can stay together for much longer. (on the other hand, for rides like The Mummy that can be super-creepy for bitty kids)

But if the trip is "for" the 4 year old, then it's hardly going to be worth it.

 

[Mickeycrocs]

How tall is the 4 yr old? I've been taking my three kids since they were 2, now 11,7 and 4 and they prefer it over WDW.

He's exactly 3 feet now, but obviously will grow more by next November. Wow that's interesting!

 

[Mickeycrocs]

If the rest of the party wants to go, you can find enough to do to make it worth it. There are places for kids to play and have fun, and there are rides that littles can go on. In addition, rider switch, unlike at Disney, is done inside the line, near where you go to be seated, so families can stay together for much longer. (on the other hand, for rides like The Mummy that can be super-creepy for bitty kids)

But if the trip is "for" the 4 year old, then it's hardly going to be worth it.

Thanks for your advice. It's a big family trip with 11 of us going lol.

 

[pcstang]

Go and have a blast! My 4 yr old just hit 40" and can ride even more now. We go at least 6 times a year and we don't live in Florida. Check out the USO site and the ride heights.

 

[wookiebeck]

Yes, you can find lots of stuff for the young'ins.

I still remember when my 4 year old rode Spiderman. He came out and wanted his face painted like Spidey, then went across the street to meet the web-slinger. All smiles!

I also have video of him crying on Jaws. Good times.

 

[momto2js]

I think it depends, but to be honest if it is a Disney trip, it is hard to justify the cost of 11 one day Universal tickets. I think it depends on your 4 year old. In many ways Universal is louder and a little more intense overall. One of my kids at 4 was super noise sensitive. It was not a good fit for him. The other one was totally oblivious. If you have a really sensitive kid, especially to noise, it may not be the best fit. Universal did a lot of things well for the younger kids. The play areas are amazing, Camp Jurassic is still one of my kids favorite places. My family enjoys all of the Orlando area theme parks, but from an economic standpoint, we do disney trips and then everything but disney trips. It is just to expensive to do combined trips.

 

[princessebird]

We took our daughter to universal last year for her 4th birthday. We didn't go to WDW at all, and my daughter LOVED it. She loved the flight of the hippogriff, spider man, minions, simpsons, MIB, the parade, Jurassic park, and Seuss land. We went to Disney this year and while she loved the princesses, she kept asking when she would get to go on the hippogriff and minions again. And, as others said, rider swap is easier at Universal. She even got a couple of height certificates that say even though she wasn't tall enough to ride, say, Forbidden Journey in 2015, she should go to the front of the line when she brings the certificate back and she's tall enough.

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

We just got back and my son is 4. He said he preferred Disney (the DD6 and DD8 preferred Uni but are big HP fans). He certainly had fun on things but a lot of the rides were more intense than he would like. He's not afraid of bigger rollercoasters -BTMRR is a favorite, but HM is too scary for him and a lot of the rides at Uni have a scary component. He liked meeting Cpt American and Spidey but didn't like the Spider-Man ride. He was clearly bored at times because he doesn't yet like HP. I wouldn't go specifically for a 4 year old but if others want to go, there is stuff to do.