June 10, 2006
Some advice on going to Universal Studios during a Disney vacation
This question about taking a day off from Disney to visit Universal Studios came up on a sports message board and I thought I would share some excerpts with you.
Question: I am planning a trip to Disney World, we will be staying 8 days we are bringing my 7 year old daughter, my wife and I were discussing the possibility of going over to Universal Studios for a day while we are in Disney World...I'm sure people have done this, overall was it worth the time away from Disney? Are both of Universal parks able to be seen in one day? Any other helpful tips about my trip? Thanks.
Answer 1: In my opinion, you can't do both Universal parks in 1 day. However, Islands of Adventure is basically a Six Flags amusement park that can easily be skipped. Being a huge Disney fan, I'd suggest skipping Universal altogether... :)
A different answer: Universal is great and I think you can do both Islands of Adventure and Universal in one day. And your daughter is right at the age when she can probably ride on the Hulk, Spiderman, Fire & Ice, etc. One suggestion is to spend the $15 per person to get a pass where you basically circumvent the entire line and go thru "back doors" to enter all the attractions. It's well worth the money - only drawback is that if they run your card thru their scanner, you can only go on the ride once. Good times there...more fun than Disney, in my opinion.
A third answer: Don't skip Universal. If she is too small for the big rides, you can definitely do both parks in a day. Don't miss Spiderman at Islands of Adventure, or Back to the Future in the other park. Terminator is also very cool... hell, just about everything there is great. It's right on par with the Disney parks, and is better than MGM's "studio" themed park.
The last answer: I agree about the fast pass feature. At Universal, you pay extra and avoid lines. It's not that much more and saves a lot of time. A word of warning though: Universal is definitely geared towards older kids. There are a lot of rides that will be a bit much for a 7 year old (some 3-D rides are pretty intense) and others that have height restrictions. It's also very definitely not Disney. An older, rowdier crowd. You might want to check out their website for some guidance on the suitability of rides. Good luck.
Posted by James Trotta at June 10, 2006 11:12 PM
Being a true Disney fan, I still have to say that I always visit Universal/Islands on my trips to Orlando. Universal is definitely geared towards the thrill seeker. If you visit "off season" both parks can be seen in one day. If your daughter enjoys roller coasters, etc, she'll have a ball.
Posted by: Jim at June 13, 2006 2:06 AMMy husband and I just took our 3 kids to Orlando this past March. We had a great time at both Disney World and Universal - Islands of Adventure. Universal can be done, but depending on the age of your children one park might be better than the other. If you have younger children, more specifically children under 44 inches Islands of Adventure might be a better choice. We found out the height requirements for each of the parks (Disney and Universal) and found more rides that our son (40 inches) could ride were at Islands of Adventure. And we all had a blast. Islands of Adventure is a big Six Flags, but is well worth it. And Universal has great offers all the time. We paid for 1 day tickets and got 2 extra days free. Now I think they have kids' ticket free and if you stay at one of their hotels they are offering free rental cars. No matter which park you choose or if you only do Disney World it is absolutely the best family vacation!
Posted by: leah at June 13, 2006 5:05 AM8 days in Orlando in general would get kind of old with I'm sure some time by the pool just to kill the time. If you planned on doing 8 days in Disney that would get really old fast, so definetly check out Universal. Sea World was a lot of fun and I think a 7 year old would get a lot out seeing the animals there, they also have some rides that I and my family enjoyed. I will admit that I'm a Universal fan as Disney and Epcot were were old after seeing them twice, but that was a while ago and perhaps its all newer now. I guess between those (Disney, Universal, Sea World) you could fill 8 days pretty well, plus the tourist trap dinners like the knights thing, that was fun to do. Hope the weather is nice for your stay! Enjoy!
Posted by: Rudy at June 13, 2006 6:59 AMHi again, another thought. My daughter who was older than 7 hated rollercoasters. I would ask what your 7 year is into. Someone mentioned the Hulk for her, I would disagree (maybe that was a joke). My wife and daughter were both coaster phoebic and definetly would not go on the Hulk (beleive me I tried to talk them on it). I rode in the first row with my 14 year old son and it was very intense (major dizzyness afterward comes to mind). I have done Universal and Islands of Adventure with and without passes and definetly recommend getting the pass. In Disney dont forget to check out Lincoln doing the Gettysburg Address it was the highlight of my trip (sarcasm).
Posted by: Rudy at June 13, 2006 7:11 AMI think Disney World is a complete waste of time. We go to Orlando at least once a year and have been quite happy skipping it. Universal Studios is not nearly as expensive and has more to offer.
Posted by: Sue at June 13, 2006 7:22 AMWe were just in Orlando for 8 days. We did both the Universal parks. Was not impressed with either. Not old enough just to want to "do " the shows, and Islands was too Six Flags. Disney is the best ticket to us. If you take your time and do some of the shows and rides, you can do the Magic Kingdom comfortably in 2 days. The rest of the parks can be done in 1 day. Don't forget to throw in one of the water parks at the resort. We prefer Typhoon Lagoon.
Your daughter is young enough to break the days up. Make sure to see the parades and then in the evening the fireworks show. Don't forget Downtown Disney, it's another option you won't be disappointed with.
Have fun and relax!!
Posted by: Twana at June 13, 2006 11:51 AMSince I pretty much prefer Disney over any theme/amusement park. I would say to just do Disney by itself. Since Disney has alot to do outside of riding the rides, and seeing the shows(miniature golf, water parks). I'm not saying that Univesal Studios is a bad park. But doing both parks can wear you out.
Posted by: Mike at June 13, 2006 9:45 PMMy girlfriend is planning a trip to disney with her 2 year old. I think she is crazy. Does anyone else feel that a 2 yr old is to young to even "get" disney??
Posted by: Missy at June 20, 2006 5:49 AMWell, our family has done both "parks". Disney several times and Universal last year. I would TOTALLy recoommend Universal. If you have never done Disney, go for it you are spending alot of money on the vacation. But, if you have already done Disney recently, then I would suggest taking 2 days to go to Universal. Last year we were able to take a family of 4 for 4 days to Universal for ONLY $200.00 (tickets). My kids then ages 3 & 7 LOVED it, they still talk about it and want to go this Christmas. They rarely talk about Disney which they had been to several times before and most recently one year earlier. They also went to Busch gardens this past June and rarely talk about it. The Islands of Adventure was excellent. I also suggest getting on the Universal website, and letting your daugther decide what looks fun. My kids still go on the website just to remember the fun. GO GO GO
Posted by: Sue at October 16, 2006 8:07 AM