Ok, while I'm here, I'll start asking questions.....
I heard that Universal is more adult oriented, so I was wondering if the kids would have any fun there. I'll reiterate, they are 8,7, and 4. Is it worth spending a day there?
I also heard you shouldn't do MK and Universal all in one trip. Because they are both similar, you should just pick one of the two..is this correct info?
Also, I understand we get spending money. How much do we get and is it enough??
We will be there for six days, but I believe we will only be able to use five of them for parks, because our flight won't arrive until noon.
Advice please!!!!!
In my opinion, Universal Studios (US) is nothing like MK at all. It has some similarities to DHS, but there are definite differences even there. US has some great kid-oriented attractions:
E.T. is really for young kids. It is very visual.
Men in Black Alien attack might possibly scare a young child, but it did not scare Lysi (5) at all, but once was enough for her.
The Barney area is all about young kids.
The Curious George Playground is a water area for kids. Adjacent is the Woody Woodpecker roller coaster.
I thought Shrek was great for kids. The entry is animatronic. We had to explain to Lysi that the 3 Little Pigs were not really trapped in there.
I would stay away from Jaws, Earthquake and Twister as well as the monster shows and Mummy because they could cause fear issues, or nighmares. Mummy is the most intense special effects attraction in Orlando. These rides would be great for older kids, teens or adults, but not for young folks.
One thing about Universal is that the area is more "open" than the other theme parks. It is more like walking down the streets of a real town. The colors are mostly muted.
Islands of Adventure (IOA) is another story. IOA is ALL about kids. It has a "packed" feeling as the attractions are mostly very close together, except in the Lost World. The entry area (comparable to Main Street MK) is very visual with some really neat and exotic building. I wanted to stand and look at them for some time. On your left is the Cartoon-oriented area with comic strip graphics all over the place. The Spiderman Ride is there. The structure of it is like Winnie the Pooh, or the old Mr. Toad Ride, but there are 3-D effects (glasses) and villains coming at you suddenly. However, the graphics are all like a cartoon or comic, not at all realistic looking. The ride is a tad "jerky" at times, but not intense. Overall, I was not impressed compared to the other attractions, but someone who is really in comics would love it. The Spiderman greet across the street is neat. The picture they take comes out as a comic book cover with Spidey and your child or kids.
There are other super heroes around this area and the parade features them.
After that area, you get into Dudley Doo Right and Popeye, with water rides. The cartoon theme there is all about kids. Popeye's boat is a fun interactive area.
Lost World has Jurassic Park, with pretty nice animatronics. It is no where near as intense as Dinosaur at AK. It also has a walk through attraction with water and fire effects called Poseidon. It closes early so we missed it. The outside looked very impressive.
Finally, there is Seuss Landing, which is similar to Toon Town in DL. Everything is Dr. Seuss oriented, including the architecture. Young children will love this area.
IOA has 2 intense roller-coaster attractions, Hulk and Dueling Dragons.
Remember that Wish Trip Kids get a free photo with each character greet at US and IOA, as well as one general shot in the park of your group. You pick these up near the entrane to US before you leave. By the way, the ET character greet is with a manikin instead of a person in a costume. Others are, in US, Curious George and the Man in the Yellow Hat, Scooby and Shaggy, Sponge Bob and Patrick, Shrek and Donkey (WAY COOL!) and in IOA, the Super Heroes are all we saw.
Most Wish Trips allow for only 5 park days, though some folks fit a bit in on the day of departure. We thought about this as we had a day left at US/ IOA, but we were kind of tired. That is a lot of theme parking and village activities day after day. Most families struggle with the idea of having 6 days worth of tickets and 5 days to use them. Some picking and choosing is required. Have only a 3-Day park hopper for Disney helps limit this choice, but there is still a day at SW and 2 Days at US/ IOA. We opted for only one at US/ IOA and were able to do what we wanted to in that time.
We had plenty of spending money for souvenirs and meals. We paid for the Royal Table out of our own funds. With spending money we bought one meal at MK (Columbia Harbor), Epcot (Lotus Blossom), US (Mel's Drive In), AK (McDonalds-which is being phased out) and Sea World (Sea Fire). Since we skipped supper at DHS, we ordered pizza at GKTW when we got back. We had supper at the village on our AK and US days, which were on short autumn hours anyway. To make our souvenir budget stretch, we bought many things at Wal-Mart and the Flea Market across the highway, but we still had enough to buy a few things at MK, US/ IOA, SW and DHS (becuase it rained on us in the evening). I think it is important for kids to be able to get some things in the parks, but don't overdo that as things are cheaper at Wal-Mart and you will get some things at GKTW. My favorite things we bought in the park were Pirate Minnie Ears and a Pirate Minnie Doll, as well as THE medallion from the Pirates movies.
Because you won't be able to get your tickets until evening orientation at GKTW, that day is not an option for parks. On the last day it is kind of hard to pack up, check out and still have time to get in and out of a theme park, return your rental vehicle and make it to the airport screening in time (even if you don't get lost in the airport like we did).
For this reason, I think it is advisable to focus your Village activities on the first and last day (but don't miss Christmas, and, if your kids are really into princesses, pirates of crafts, the Pirates and Princesses Party). Use the other days to focus almost exclusively on the parks (unless rest breaks are essential). It takes some time to get from the village to the parks, so we rested IN the parks in shady, quiet areas or in the Wish Lounge, or, my favorite, on the boat ride from Epcot to DHS.
Bill
Your, "Just Go Where the Magic Takes You," 
will have to become our thread motto, I think.
I suggest it. It can be very helpful. See the link in my signature below for instructions on doing that.
