Universal or Disney Quest???

[edk35]

Okay we are going to WDW in Nov. We arrive evening of the 17th for 9 nights..departing late afternoon of 26th. My oldest son...age 12 would like to go to Universal this trip. Well....the problem is that my youngest son is 6 and will not ride most of the stuff there. My parents are going to meet us at WDW on the 19th for the rest of the trip. They will not ride that stuff either. My 15 year old daughter would probably ride most..but I also heard most of this park involves water..NOT that hot in Nov. So....I am trying to entice them to do OTHER WDW things...like maybe DISNEY QUEST. My son has also always wanted to do that. So which would you do..and HOW IS DISNEY QUEST for these age kids and would my parents get anything out of that Disney Quest..since you have to pay to get in. TIA


Denise

 

[crow11ad]

Okay we are going to WDW in Nov. We arrive evening of the 17th for 9 nights..departing late afternoon of 26th. My oldest son...age 12 would like to go to Universal this trip. Well....the problem is that my youngest son is 6 and will not ride most of the stuff there. My parents are going to meet us at WDW on the 19th for the rest of the trip. They will not ride that stuff either. My 15 year old daughter would probably ride most..but I also heard most of this park involves water..NOT that hot in Nov. So....I am trying to entice them to do OTHER WDW things...like maybe DISNEY QUEST. My son has also always wanted to do that. So which would you do..and HOW IS DISNEY QUEST for these age kids and would my parents get anything out of that Disney Quest..since you have to pay to get in. TIA


Denise

I say do both. In November the weather is still pretty warm. When we were there in Dec, the weather was in the 80's except at night and early am. Yes Universal has some water rides, but get panchos. They have some other cool things that I am seeing. We have never been and will going this time. As far as DQ goes. Do that. The elevator is great. Who would have thought to have a movie playing in an elevator. There are games for all ages. Do your parents like computers. DQ has computers that you can send email. Games from the 80's as well as virtual reality games. It's great.

 

[SamRoc]

My son loves Disney quest, he could stay there all day. He loves all the classic video games and the virtual reality ones there. Its great, you just pay one price and do anything you want. I just got a little dizzy while doing the Aladdin flying carpet one, but the kids had a blast.

 

[allie&mattsmom]

Well, I have to disagree with the idea that most of the park involves water. We just got back from USO/IOA last week (we switched our WDW trip to USO/IOA at the last minute) and WE ABSOLUTELY HAD A BLAST!!! My kids had such a great time that I'm actually afraid that we will have a hard time getting them back to Disney! I felt like there's a lot to do at both Universal & Islands of Adventure for all ages. I would say go for it! You may be surprised at how much you'll love it!

 

[mattsdragon]

I wasn't all that impressed with Universal and IOA. We both enjoyed Universal more than IOA, but the big rides are at IOA. It's a real toughie. I'd say go, and do the rides, but be prepared for over crowded, narrow walkways and a dirtier park.

 

[AspiringCindy]

Do Universals!!!!

 

[AStamm]

Haven't been to Universal since our first family trip in December 2003, but went to Disney Quest with our 4 year old DS last summer and hated it. There was WAY too much virtual stuff for our enjoyment. DH and I both wanted lots of old video games and while there were some on the top level, it certainly wasn't worth the extra cost to us.

If you've never been to Universal, you might be surprised how much there is to do for you and your younger son at the original park. Shrek 4D, Jaws, Tornado, Earthquake, ET, and Men in Black to think of some off the top of my head. I'm not a huge fan of Universal just because it isn't as clean as DW and the workers are not nearly as friendly, but for one day, try it. You'll make your older son very happy and will find plenty that you and the others can ride as well.

We'll be at DW next month and the plans are for everyone to do Universal for one day and then have my DH and aunt & uncle go back another day while my DS, best friend, and I head to a Disney park. The compromise is making everyone happy!

 

[dahess]

We went to Dsieny Quest a few years ago & were done in about 2 hours. 1/2 of the games were broken down or closed or did not just work right. We thought it was a huge waste of money!!!! Would never go there again & would never recommend!!

 

[hockey mom]

Do Universal!!!

My kids are 11, 15, and 16 and while they had fun at DQ they were bored within a few hours. All 3 could spend all day at Universal. Your little one would love Jimmy Neutron(no water), Shrek 4D ( a little mist), Men In black(no water), Woody woodpecker play area(easy to stay away from water aspects), Barney(no water), jaws (if you sit on the one side no water), E.T ( no water), and the coasters if he is up to those. If you are going to IOA the Suess landing area is adorable.

 

[KLAIT]

I would definately recommend Universal over Disney Quest..Although my son likes Disney Quest, I don't think that it is a full day attraction. Let me tell you, we did a few things that were really fun such as the Virtual Pirates game, then I sat with a cup of coffee and then another cup, and then another...bored out of my mind. My family stayed for maybe 3 to 4 hours and were more than ready to go. Add that to the fact that there are not that many places to sit and wait....

Universal, on the other hand, has lots to do and I think you may be surprised at how much your family will be able to do together. As the other poster mentioned, most things at Universal are not water rides...except Jaws...and if you sit on the Right, you probably will not get wet...!!

 

[jgrahamiii]

Comparing DQ to IOA/Universal is comparings apples to Watermelons. One is a 1/2 day of neat games, and the other is two full sized theme parks. It will also cost you twice as much as IOA/Universal as well (and maybe more, since some tickets include DQ). My parents (68) liked DQ for an hour or two, but they spent three days at IOA/Universal. Your teen could probably spend a few hours at DQ, and your 6 year old will enjoy it too. In fact, you could probably drop your teen off there for the evening (or maybe an afternoon when you could do Fantasy Land type rides he might not appreciate). He might enjoy being trusted being left alone for a few hours. We dropped our two 14/16 year olds one year, had a really nice dinner as a couple, did some shopping, and met them at a specific time. We all enjoyed ourselves more because of it. They even made friends with some other kids who were younger. Note, cell phones did not work in the DQ building, so beware.

Teenagers generally like IOA/Universal better than the WDW theme parks (generally, I said, YMMV). It is generally more adult and more realistic and for this reason may be too scary for your younger child. The Earthquake ride is much scarier than the backlot tour, for example. Men In Black blows the pants off Buzz Lightyear (of course, MIB was built from scratch, and BL is a recycled ride from Eastern Airlines).

There are certainly things your younger child will like at both these parks, but how much depends on his/her fear level. Some six year olds I know love Universal better than WDW, but I would think that the majority would love WDW better. Universal is kind of like MGM Studios, only bigger and more realistic. IOA is a themed amusment park. Spiderman is about the best ride anywhere, but most of the rest are thrill rides and may have significant height restrictions. There are rides for younger kids (Cat in the Hat, One Fish Two Fish) and some shows they might enjoy, but it is geared for teens.

Couple of things. Looks like you will be there around Thanksgiving. One thing to consider is that at Universal/IOA, if you stay at one of their three onsite hotels, your room key gives you front of the line access to most rides. One day at their hotel is two days of front of the line access (one day at each park). Or, you can buy a book of front of the line passes (one per ride). Note, they can sell out of these on any given day).

 

[bytheblood]

Universal.

 

[mommaU4]

I would do Universal. When we lived in CA. we were about a 15-20 min. drive from Universal Hollywood and so we always had APs. Even when my kids were little we always went there. Maybe it's different since my kids grew up going there so they were never scared or anything, and I know the Universal in CA isn't exactly the same as the one in FL, but they are similiar and I agree with the others that you'll be pleasantly surprised as to what you can all do there.