Why should I do Disney over Universal?

[xipotec]

Most of you know me pretty well, and know I am a huge Disney Freak….

BUT….

My last experience at DL , while always fun, was draining and stressful also….Between Genie, App surfing and reservations for parks and ADR’s…..I am just worn out of it all.

My wife and I are celebrating our 24th wedding anniversary , and we figured a long weekend at WDW would be great. (no kids!!!)

BUT

I just cannot get into all that comes with it. We wanted to be spontaneous on park choice, ride what was new and the old favorites, but it seems just overwhelmimg to try to plan right now. Normally I love the planning aspects, but its all just becole too much. A have a 4 night stay at a value with 3 day base, for 1500.00 in my cart, and I cannot seem to pull the trigger.

Conversely, I have a 5 day value at US, with 4 day base hopper , and 1 day express pass… for 1480.00….The only day I had to plan was the express pass day at US.

Someone tell me why I should goto Disney? I do want to, but cannot justify the work involved. I love WDW, but really just tired of the whole deal that goes with it.

So torn.

 

[Schneewittchen37]

Whelp, I am gonna tell you to go to Universal instead. Because you can actually be spontaneous and have a fantastic time.

 

[Fely the 1st]

Go and enjoy your time at Universal. You wonˋt regret it. I feel like you but prefer Universal much more at the moment.

 

[Gehrig1B]

I have never found Universal that interesting (and I am a thrill-ride junkie). Long lines (if no Express Pass) and just another theme park(s) for me.

Better food, better shows, better service, better nighttime spectaculars at Disney, and much more to see and do... but that is me.

I have never understood the spontaneity argument either... no one is making you keep your nose in your smartphone at Disney. The experience at Disney without a smartphone would be similar to what you get at Universal.

Smartphones just make Disney easier in my opinion. Big fan of mobile dining, mobile checkout, virtual queues, and mobile check-in for resorts and dining. None of that takes more than 60 seconds on the phone.

I miss the days of Fastpass+ too, 3 minutes on the phone and double-digit FastPass lanes throughout the day.

 

[Magical2017]

You should do what you want for your anniversary--whatever makes you happy. If that's a weekend at the beach, the lake, Disney, or Universal, enjoy!

You are going to get all types of advice, but I'll throw my two cents in. If I were going to chose between the two for an anniversary trip, I'd narrow it down to Portofino Bay at Universal or somewhere near Epcot and then spending my time there. We have become a Universal family but as a couple, we might select Disney/Epcot just to have time to explore World Showcase.

Things we liked about Portofino Bay/Universal:
I feel that this property is lovely and there are great options for dining.
You can take the water taxi or walk to the parks and City Walk.
Literally no planning ,except I did make reservations at Mythos and the Chocolate Emporium on our last trip over Memorial Day weekend.
I am a Harry Potter fan and love the theming. It is really well done, and riding the Hogwart's Express is fun
I also enjoy the thrill rides at Universal. It's comparing apples to oranges, because Disney is a different experience, but I like the Universal ride experience better. Looking forward to the new park!
The room price includes express passes. We are currently booked at Hard Rock with an AP discount for January so we will see how we like that property.

 

[georgina]

I still like both experiences, although I spend more time at Universal and have an AP there. OP you don't sound like YOU want to go to Disney. Agree with Magical2017 that Portofino Bay is a great place to celebrate an annivesary

 

[xipotec]

I should add those quotes are for 4 nights at Disney and 5 nights at US.


We were planning on Epcot and maybe MK, as we wanted a more laid back experience.

I kinda am leaning to US, but thats based off price and spontaneity.

I have no reference for lines or breakdowns at US as its been 6 years since we have been there.

We are foodies , and will miss Epcot for that part if we do US, which is mostly terrible for food. But we at least have CW for that.

I do want to goto WDW more, but the planning has me bummed out. Last trip to DL in August was tough with breakdowns and lines. Still had a blast, but after 11:00am it was a slog till 8pm.

Trying to avoid that….

 

[lockets]

Does it need to be either/or? Maybe stay at Universal. Go to US primarily. One day only at Epcot for food. Something like that?

 

[georgina]

I have not found Disney food to be vastly superior to Universal, but I am not a "foodie". I go to Universal for the great theming and the thrill rides. The Universal resorts have some decent upscale restaurants I hear, not my kind of places. We are more casual diners and have had good meals at Lombards, Finnegans, and Mythos in the parks.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I kinda am leaning to US, but thats based off price and spontaneity.

Do you like the Universal attractions? I don't really care about any of them, so even if it was free and no lines, it's free and no lines stuff that I don't feel like doing in the first place.

 

[Skywalker3]

Ooh, that's a tough one. They're both such great fun. We've loved our last year of APs at Universal, and several fun trips. Also loved our time at Disney, Guardians ride, Star wars, food festivals at Epcot, etc. Didn't use Genie +, except for 2 days buying ILL for GotG. Otherwise rope drop, and late nights. Ditto at Univeral. 1 trip at a premier hotel w express. the other times, no express. Both have such great things to offer. If you've not been to Universal in a while, there's great fun there to be had for sure. Maybe that, and 1 or 2 days Disney?

 

[xipotec]

Do you like the Universal attractions? I don't really care about any of them, so even if it was free and no lines, it's free and no lines stuff that I don't feel like doing in the first place.

Oh yeah, we have been before, and really enjoyed HP worlds, Simpsons, and the entire movie feel of US.

Not as crazy about Islands of Adventure, but definitely like it.

It will never have the place in my heart MK has….and as much as I love HS I cannot see trying to go there right now with the crazy lines and G+ madness.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Oh yeah, we have been before, and really enjoyed HP worlds, Simpsons, and the entire movie feel of US.

Not as crazy about Islands of Adventure, but definitely like it.

It will never have the place in my heart MK has….and as much as I love HS I cannot see trying to go there right now with the crazy lines and G+ madness.

Have you used Genie+? I find the "madness" of it to be way overstated online.

 

[fireflyer]

If it were me, I would use “lockets”’ suggestion,… do a split trip. But that reflects my love for maximizing. My last trip was split.

SHOULD YOU VISIT DIS?
Con: Disney will have a lot more strollers to weave thru.
Pro: Disney has MemoryMaker and photographers around the park taking your photo. We ended up with nice group photos at Disney. I don’t think UO offers that, can’t remember.
Con: Genie+ added a lot of stress to our day, in addition to having to start the process at 7am to get full advantage.
Con: The contents of your Disney cart aren’t the final cost, if you intend to shorten some line-waits. Genie+ has a daily charge. Is $17 today but was $29 for the past few days… you can’t know the charge until day-of. And 1 premium ride at each WDW park requires an additional charge per person per day if wanting a shorter wait. (Although my Rise Resistance wait was still 50min despite paying the charge.)
Neutral: Disney charges hotel guests for parking, even Value hotels. UO always has. Disney Value is $15/day. UO Value is $15/day. (But two of them are called “Prime Value” at $18/day.)
Con: Disney’s street performers haven’t yet come back in full swing at Epcot. That’s what made Epcot enjoyable for me, so I’m not going back until more performers come back.
Con: Disney doesn’t have Wizarding World of Harry Potter!!! Definitely a negative! Okay I’m biased.
Pro: WDW has better immersion theming in my opinion, while most of UO has an industrial “feel”; I.e movie sets. Except Potter, where UO excels.
Con: A larger % of Disney attractions are “kiddie”, than at UO.
Con: Walkways were much more crowded at WDW than UO last spring.
Con: Disney was plagued in a big way with ride breakdowns this spring… not sure if that’s abated, but it was causing tons of people to wait in the I.T Booth line for refunds for reservations that got screwed up because of breakdowns. I never experienced ANY breakdowns at

2-3 days at UO will probably suffice rather than 5, especially if you use Express Pass to do all the long-wait attractions the first day, and everything else the 2nd. You really need a 2-park ticket at UO to get the full Wizarding World experience, since 1ride requires it.
Ultimately, the bigger the Harry Potter fan you are, the more you’ll love UO. If you haven’t yet, you should watch all 8 movies, it’s addictive. Just imo.

My vote is 2 days base Dis, 1 day park-to-park w/ Express at UO and 1 day base at UO. Check the cost on that.

 

[fireflyer]

Have you used Genie+? I find the "madness" of it to be way overstated online.

I found the “madness” of Genie+ to be way UNDERstated online. And my experience with it was BEFORE they delayed purchase ‘til day-of and BEFORE they increased the price. It’s a topic for a different thread, but using Genie+ for 2 days was worse than reading about using it.

 

[xipotec]

Have you used Genie+? I find the "madness" of it to be way overstated online.

Yea, I used it in DL in August. Not really a fan, felt like I was going from one side of the park to the other….just to use the LL…

Later we adopted the plan of rope drop and stacking LL for later in the day, not perfect but it helped.

Man do I miss FP….even FP+

If we could just schedule G+ it would be much better…

My last experience at US express pass was crazy. So easy and FAST!

 

[kathy884]

Sounds like you've answered your own question. Do which is most appealing to the two of you.

I like the Universal Jurassic Park area and Harry Potter theming, but it's not really a go back to again place for me. I had a good time dancing with Gru and the Minions in the street too, but still that's not enough for me to want to go back. Part of that may be that I'm not a big fan of simulator rides (and that's what so many of their attractions are). If I don't like the ride, why do I even care about the front of line pass. It meant I got everything I wanted to do at both parks done in one day. And for just wandering around (might be I'm going at the wrong time, HP areas are just really crowded, more crowded than I like --if they were less crowded I could see hanging out there longer). Now my nephew has told me that the Volcano Bay waterpark is amazing and the best in Orlando, so for some really into waterparks, that could be a reason to do the Universal family. This is me, though, not you.

Again, this is me, not you. I have a better time at Disney. I just like the vibe more. I especially like the Magic Kingdom. We like to ride the little bus down Mainstreet and wave at everyone (I like to do my princess wave and so many people wave back). We like to (all adult party) go get our pictures taken with one or two of the princesses (I'm always so impressed with their poise and patience). We like to do the pirates scavenger hunt. So many of the rides have a lot of nostalgia for us. At the 50th anniversary, my brothers family was with us and our kids recreated 1971 pictures there of me and my brother. You don't see the fireworks, but if it's party season, I like to go to the MK (regular ticket) on party days as the crowds are so low (people skip that day because they have to leave early and it makes it so nice for those of us who go). I also really like SeaWorld. As for Epcot, if I am down for Flower and Garden I like to go there. Otherwise I skip. I do the Genie +, but I'm not all that glued to it and only use it if it's going to save me 25 minutes or more in line so I don't zig zag that much. If it's not a crowded day, I might even skip it.

It's your vacation dollar, so for sure don't have anyone else talk you out of what you want to do. Go where you think you'll get the best value and fun.

Have a blast and congrads on your anniversary.

 

[iuki]

I have never found Universal that interesting (and I am a thrill-ride junkie). Long lines (if no Express Pass) and just another theme park(s) for me.

Better food, better shows, better service, better nighttime spectaculars at Disney, and much more to see and do... but that is me.

I have never understood the spontaneity argument either... no one is making you keep your nose in your smartphone at Disney. The experience at Disney without a smartphone would be similar to what you get at Universal.

Smartphones just make Disney easier in my opinion. Big fan of mobile dining, mobile checkout, virtual queues, and mobile check-in for resorts and dining. None of that takes more than 60 seconds on the phone.

I miss the days of Fastpass+ too, 3 minutes on the phone and double-digit FastPass lanes throughout the day.

Same here. I’ve been to both and enjoy the Disney Magic that I don’t feel at Universal. To me, it’s worth the planning.

 

[popy]

Hard to find anything wrong with universal,
with Disney that is not the case

 

[Lisse24]

Hard to find anything wrong with universal,
with Disney that is not the case

I've been a UO passholder for two years now. Issues with Universal:

1. Ride capacity is a problem for several rides including Hagrids.
2. The parks have not kept up with capacity to meet the increasing demand of the parks. They need more rides. They need more shows. Openings have not kept pace with closings.
3. Food, even the food touted as "good", is pretty bad, except at a few sit-down restaurants. Plus, is it just me or have the halved the size of the tots?
4. There are many areas in need of major refurbishment - especially the family areas.
5. There's a lot of cheap, paste on theming over at IoA.
6. Rides are not as accessible as one would think. Height requirements make many of the kiddie rides inaccessible to the young kids who'd want to ride them (Looking at you Sky High) and seats for other rides are well known to not accommodate people of certain heights/weights.

That being said, the things I will miss are:
1. The hotels, which blow Disney resorts out of the water in location and price.
2. Transportation to and from the park.
3. The rides that are good are SO GOOD, I will miss Hagrids, Mummy, MIB, etc.
4. The simplicity of the trip.