Welcome, Foolish Muggles! IoA/US/MK/SW *July 2013 Trip Report Link*

[BC/YC Pool Noodles]

And I think you've made DisBoards history with the first Follower comprised of a family of inanimate objects!

You know, Pastina tells me I have the personality of an inanimate object, especially when we are at parties, but then this is the same woman who leaps at the chance to impress people at her yoga parties with her "planking*" skill after a couple of pinot grigio's!

* = http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/planking#.TiTt-qgrUZo

I was going to use the word inanimate, but I didn't know if that was PC and I was afraid Paul would be offended, so I used the term non-human instead. The members of the Noodle family are definitely animated!

No offense taken. We pool noodles think you humans are much MORE animated..... after all, you're having a conversation with a pool toy.

Paul Noodle

 

[pixarmom]

The hotel looks lovely but I also think I would choose Hard Rock for my family. The pool does look nice! Now if only my kids would grow tall enough for the rides....

Amanda

Ditto on the hotel. Ditto on the Hard Rock. Ditto on the pool. And ditto on our youngest growing tall enough for HP! He stayed with family for a few hours on Saturday night while we took our older boys to see Deathly Hallows, and he was excited to play with his cousin, so he accepted the following explanation: "We're going to see a show about a boy for big kids." But that won't fly for the Wizarding World!

Dee, great details and great photos, as always!

And a P.S. regarding page one: Of course it's wrong to use your Disney Visa to buy Universal tickets.

 

[mainelyj]

Enjoying your report so far.

BTW there are Dunkin Donuts in Orlando. I do recall one being on the main road near Downtown Disney.

 

[natebenma]

Now if only my kids would grow tall enough for the rides....

Amanda

And ditto on our youngest growing tall enough for HP!

And a P.S. regarding page one: Of course it's wrong to use your Disney Visa to buy Universal tickets.

I think it is wise for the two of you to wait until your youngest kids are older/taller for your trip to these parks. Ben, who is 10, would not try a lot of the more extreme rides, so it was a pain when we had to split up. A couple of years ago, I think Nate would have had issues with some of the rides, but there is no stopping the boy now!

Well, Universal had no issue taking my money!!!

Take a pic of the "before" and "after" and let the pics be your review of how you liked the dish! Food porn at its best!

I'm more a traditional purveyor of Food Porn. I prefer pictures of pre-consumed meals.

Enjoying your report so far.

BTW there are Dunkin Donuts in Orlando. I do recall one being on the main road near Downtown Disney.

Thanks for the heads up. Since we don't have a car on vacation, we have to settle for whatever is around us.

No offense taken. Paul Noodle

Thanks! All are welcome here!

 

[natebenma]

* note: this is a sign at the entry of IoA. Sorry for any confusion.

After checking out our room and dropping our luggage, it was time to head over to Universal Studios. We figured that Harry Potter land at Islands of Adventure would be mobbed by the time we arrived, so our plan was to visit first thing tomorrow (Tuesday) morning. As resort guests, we are able to enter WWoHP at 7 am, an hour before the park opens to the general public.

On the way out, we stopped by the club lounge for some bottles of water and granola bars and bags of Terra chips to go.

There is a path that runs along the canal that takes you from the Portofino to City Walk, the entry way to the two parks. I had been checking out the Universal boards for a few months and a veteran poster over there, Bubba’s Mom, put together great instructions (including photos) of a shortcut through the Hard Rock Hotel parking lot that shaves about 5 minutes off of the walk. I copied the instructions into an easy-to-follow map. Miraculously, we did not get lost. I am severely directionally challenged, so I was a little afraid of where I might lead my family!

In about 10 minutes, we saw this:

I guess we are going the right way!


Since most of you here are familiar with Disney rides and attractions, I will try to describe the things at Universal by relating them to their Disney counterparts.


After entering US, we took a right into the Hollywood section of the park. The first attraction we did was Terminator 2: 3-D, A live show where the future of humanity is in your hands.

Terminator is like Muppets 3-D with cyborgs and the Governat-adultorator instead of Kermit and Fozzy Bear, more guns, more explosions and more attitude. I was not aware that anyone “Booed” Arnold, but after seeing this once, I won’t be back.


We continued to the right and entered Woody Woodpecker’s Kidzone. There was not much that interested the boys here, but Mark and I wanted to
check out E.T. Adventure- ride your bike across the stars. Totally Peter Pan!

ETA: I forgot to add this in my original posting, but always reminded me! When you are in the preshow (with Steven Spielberg), you are handed a boarding card. Just as you are getting ready to board the ride, you go to a desk where they ask your name. At the end of the ride E.T. says your name. Or whatever name you give him. Ben used Arnold. We had just come from Terminator.

We entered the next “land”- World Expo: Our next stop was the Simpson’s Ride- Crash through Krustyland. I would call this one “Soarin’ over Springfield”
You don’t wear glasses, but it is a lot like a 3-D experience.

This was our longest wait of the day so far, about 10 minutes. But man, did we feel sorry for the people in the standby line waiting over an hour for this.
It was HOT!

Next door to the Simpsons is Men in Black Alien Attack- Zap Aliens and save the galaxy.
Obviously, Buzz Lightyear’s Ranger Spin with grotesque aliens in the dark instead of a fluorescent background.

At this point we were starting to get hungry for lunch. The International Food & Film Festival was close by, but we peeked in and it was pretty crowded so we continued on to San Francisco/Amity. Is anyone else geographically bothered that US has combined an East Coast town and a West Coast City in the same land?

Please join me in a chorus of “I left my shaaaark… in San Fran-cisco”

As long as we are passing by, we might as well ride Jaws. Go on a “leisurely” boat tour off the coast of Amity.
Jungle Cruise with a little Catastrophe Canyon thrown in.
BTW- best seats on the boat are on the left- you get a lot more action!

Once this ride is over we are REALLY hungry! (Sushi???)

We are close to Lombard’s, a sit down restaurant on the San Francisco Wharf.


Next up: We Dine with the Fishes and 3-D 4-D OD D’OH!

.

 

[DrMomof3]

My kids are thrill-seekers in general but I know I won't spend the $$$ for Universal until I'm sure they can (and will!) ride the E ticket rides.
I LOVE your description of rides with the Disney counterparts. Very informative!

Amanda

 

[mickeystoontown]

I am sure you were thanking Bubba's Mom when you were able to get to the park much quicker than going the normal route. I am all about shaving off a few minutes of walking in order to get to a theme park quicker.

Thanks so much for Disney attraction comparisons. This helped me out a lot since we haven't been to Universal in years.

 

[cindydare]

I've only read the first 2 pages and can tell this is going to be a great read! DD7 wants to go to the "dark side" and Sea World, but we're going to have to wait til DS3 is just a little bit older.

Cindy

 

[jenneth79]

I really cannot believe they thought 100 dollars for a family would be enough for snacks in a Florida theme park! Did they say that was the limit they put on until you asked to be able to charge to your room? How silly!

 

[jenneth79]

You know, Pastina tells me I have the personality of an inanimate object, especially when we are at parties, but then this is the same woman who leaps at the chance to impress people at her yoga parties with her "planking*" skill after a couple of pinot grigio's!

* = http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/planking#.TiTt-qgrUZo

Paul Noodle

My humblest apologies. I merely meant inanimate in the physical sense, but not at all in any way shape or form did I refer to personality.

 

[kraeurb]

I'm loving your report. Also, glad BC is still your favorite resort.

 

[cocofifi]

Great trip report! We really enjoyed PBH. Looking forward to BC in October!

 

[natebenma]

My kids are thrill-seekers in general but I know I won't spend the $$$ for Universal until I'm sure they can (and will!) ride the E ticket rides.
I LOVE your description of rides with the Disney counterparts. Very informative!

Amanda

It is really hard not to make the comparison to rides that I know so well!

I am sure you were thanking Bubba's Mom when you were able to get to the park much quicker than going the normal route. I am all about shaving off a few minutes of walking in order to get to a theme park quicker.

Thanks so much for Disney attraction comparisons. This helped me out a lot since we haven't been to Universal in years.

Yes, I'm very grateful to Bubba's Mom.

She also has a hysterical pictoral TR on the Universal board from many years ago. She brought a stuffed Mickey to the parks and photographed him at all the rides, gift shops, restaurants, etc. Very funny!!!

I've only read the first 2 pages and can tell this is going to be a great read! DD7 wants to go to the "dark side" and Sea World, but we're going to have to wait til DS3 is just a little bit older.

Cindy

Thank you so much for your kind comments! The kids will be great ages to enjoy "the dark side" in a few years.

I really cannot believe they thought 100 dollars for a family would be enough for snacks in a Florida theme park! Did they say that was the limit they put on until you asked to be able to charge to your room? How silly!

No kidding!

I'm loving your report. Also, glad BC is still your favorite resort.

BC is my true love. I was just "using" the Portofino for the front of the line and early admission!

Great trip report! We really enjoyed PBH. Looking forward to BC in October!

Not a bad lineup! I don't think I've seen you hanging out on the BC/YC board. Come on over sometime if you haven't visited- the link is in my signature.

 

[bellebookworm9]

I'm joining in! I LOVE Harry Potter-saw DH Part 2 twice over the weekend, and once was at the midnight premiere. I really wanted to go to WWoHP this coming January while we're in Florida looking at grad schools, but it's looking to be too expensive. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to wait until I'm hopefully a Florida resident.

I really just want to visit for the atmosphere of Hogsmeade-the Forbidden Journey sounds like it might be too much for me!

 

[always]

Does ET still say your name at the end?

 

[natebenma]

I'm joining in! I LOVE Harry Potter-saw DH Part 2 twice over the weekend, and once was at the midnight premiere. I really wanted to go to WWoHP this coming January while we're in Florida looking at grad schools, but it's looking to be too expensive. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to wait until I'm hopefully a Florida resident.

I really just want to visit for the atmosphere of Hogsmeade-the Forbidden Journey sounds like it might be too much for me!

I still have not seen the movie yet! ACK!!! It was kind of neat being in Orlando, at Universal during the movie premiere but we had too much going on to attend the midnight showing.

Did you hear that the after the movie screening at City Walk, everyone at the theater was invited to WWoHP from 3 am to 5 am for a complimentary, private visit? *jealous* But then again, I was there just 2 hours later!

Does ET still say your name at the end?

Oh, I forgot that!

Yes, he says your name, or whatever name you give him. Ben used Arnold (we had just come from Terminator)

Going back to post to ETA!

 

[natebenma]

It was around 2:00. Or maybe 1:00. More about that later. No matter what the time, we were a pretty hungry quartet.

We walked into Lombard’s and were seated immediately.

Right here:

Score!

I have been an avid snorkeler for over 20 years. I love tropical fish! This tank kept me mesmerized while waiting for our meal.

Snap! Snap! Snap!

That’s me taking pictures of the fish in the tank. I don’t know how many pictures I took, but I have 24 “keepers”. Don’t worry, I won’t post ALL of them!


The first one below is named Mark.

Food Porn!


Chinese Chicken Salad (Mark and I split this)

Fisherman’s Basket (Mark and I split this too, and Ben got his own)

Lomburger (Nate)

Raspberry Key Lime Shot (Nate) and Chocolate Sabyon (Ben)

Everything was excellent. At least I assume the desserts were excellent. There was nothing left in the glass for me to taste!

Cost of Meal with AAA discount ($6.65): $63.79 plus tip

I forgot to mention this earlier-

At almost any restaurant or shop in Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure and City Walk, you will receive a 10% discount if you show your AAA card.

COOL!

Except when you forget to mention it!

There are some exceptions- chain restaurants, NBA or other licensed merchandise, etc. And there are some oddball quirks. You can receive the discount on Butterbeer if you get it at The 3 Broomsticks or Hogshead Inn, but not at the carts in the streets of Hogsmeade. Get it?

After finishing our meal, we were headed for Disaster-A major motion picture ride… starring YOU!

This kind of was a Disaster- the attraction had just broken down and was not operating. We will have to check it out another time.

So we continued on to Revenge of the Mummy- a psychological thrill ride 3,000 years in the making.

I’m not exactly sure how to describe it, but I LOVED it!!! It is a rollercoaster ride that stops in various rooms of a cursed tomb. Lots of stops, starts, turns and reverses. The graphics and animatronics were seriously excellent. It reminded me most of Expedition Everest, but that’s not quite right. Or Dinosaur, but not so jerky.

Did I mention I it?

Ben did not. That was the first and last time for him on this trip.

At this point we split up for a bit. Nate and I rode Mummy again and Mark and Ben headed off to Jaws and Men in Black again.

We met up at 4:00 (or was it 5:00?) outside the entrance of Shrek 4-D- a totally in-your-face fairy tale adventure. I guess this was like It’s Tough to be a Bug, if the seats in the Tree of Life shook back and forth. Once was enough for us on this one.

And then, we made a mistake! We tried to do one last thing. Another go on the Simpsons ride. I wasn’t really feeling this, and I probably should have said something. We were already near the exit after Shrek, but instead we made the long, hot walk through the park to the Simpsons and then back again. I had taken Bonine earlier in the day to fight off motion sickness, but no one else had. I felt fine after the ride, but the other three were a little queasy when it was done.

In the span of a few hours, we have done all of the attractions we wanted to at least once, with the exception of Disaster. Plus had a very satisfying lunch. There were still two shows I wanted to see: Hollywood Horror Makeup Show and Beetlejuice Review. I'll post some pictures of Rip Ride Rocket later. This is a rollercoaster that does not have Front of the Line access. Which is fine, because nobody really wanted to ride it.

Have I mentioned that the Front of the Line for resort guests really ROCKS???

We walked onto rides while others were waiting an hour or more, out in the heat for a 3 minute ride or attraction. Disney does a much better job airconditioning their queues.

But cramming in all of the “multi-dimensional” experiences: Terminator, Shrek and the Simpsons twice on our travel day took its toll. We were at 3-D 4-D OD. D’OH! as Homer would say.

After leaving Universal, we hopped on the shuttle boat back to Portofino. It was time to eat dinner, so we stopped in at Sal’s Deli and Marketplace. While we were there, we also picked up some pastry for the next morning, since we would be heading out before the concierge lounge opened.

After dinner, we went back to the room and I unpacked a little bit. Or I went to the pool for a quick swim and to take some photos. I can’t remember the exact order. We also stopped by the lounge for a sweet treat- coconut cake and cookies.

It was a long, busy, fun and exhausting day. Tomorrow we would be getting up early- The Wizarding World Was Waiting.
7 am opening!

(Almost) Next up: The Early Bird Catches the Snitch

.

 

[mkoerner]

Can't wait to hear about Harry Potter. We're doing 1 day at IOA during our Disney trip 4 weeks from tomorrow!!

 

[DrMomof3]

That's a really long and busy day! I can't believe how much you accomplished. Good tip on the AAA card!

Amanda

 

[aprilisis]

You got some great photos! I'm with you on the Mummy- I LOVE that ride! I also agree about the Express pass- we didn't stay at Universal in May, but we did buy the pass. It was really worth it- I just wish the Forbidden Journey was included. Thank you for the tip about the AAA card & dining- I had no idea about that!