“Everything I learned I learned from the movies.” - Audrey Hepburn
Christmas is a great time for family, friends, presents, turkey, and rollercoasters. This Christmas, Will and I went out on a wild hair and decided to take a trip to Universal Studios and Universal's Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida. I'm going to do something a little different. Instead of making this one GIANT post of both parks, I'm going to write 2 smaller posts of each park. This should make it a little easier to follow as to what is in each park.
First things first, theme parks are notorious for being SUPER busy the week of Christmas. I can personally let you know how TRUE this statement is. You want to talk about some crowds. Y'all. For real. I would suggest waiting until January or going early enough in December to avoid the Christmas rush. What I LOVED about going when we did was the decorations! Both parks were beautifully decorated for Christmas! Lights, garland, wreaths, holiday themed parades, etc. It was beautiful!
So before I dive in to what Universal Studios has to offer, I'll start with what I packed in our bags. What you take into these parks can save you money, time, and your sanity!
General Luggage: The most important thing that you can take to any amusement park is a good pair of shoes. Islands of Adventure has three water rides that will literally soak you to the bone. For that park, I packed a pair of flip flops and changed into those before the water rides to save my sneakers from getting wet and not drying out before our flight home. There is nothing worse than stomping around all day in some wet shoes! Constantly check the weather leading up to your trip. If you are planning on staying in the park from open to close, you may benefit from renting a locker and stocking your extra shoes/jacket in there so you don't have to carry it around all day. Pack a spare change of clothes for each day you are at Islands of Adventure. The rides at Universal Studios are mostly simulation and contain no water rides so you don't have to worry about getting wet. However, Islands of Adventure are all rollercoasters and 3 (like I mentioned before) super-soaking water rides. You can say you won't ride them but once you get there and see them you'll want to. You can always just bring a poncho or buy one at the park, however, I don't know how much that little trash bag of a raincoat is going to keep you dry. If you don't want to bring extra clothes, wear waterproof clothes. Will wore his swim trunks and a dry-fit style shirt and he was fine after getting soaked. I did not care to wear a bathing suit under my clothes all day, so I just brought a change of clothes.
Park Bag: Instead of toting around a big purse all day, my suggestion is a backpack. You can fit more in it and it's easier to tote around. It's also a great place to stuff souveniers. In our backpack I packed the following items:
- Wet Ones hand sanitizing wipes
- Kleenex
- Gum
- Sunglasses
- Chapstick
- Wallet
- Cell Phones (don't forget the charger- you can usually find an outlet somewhere!)
- Change of clothes
- Dirty laundry bag: I have a reisenthel brand Travel Laundry Bag. It's only $4.99 at The Container Store. The bag itself is made for travel and stores inside this tiny keychain bag (see the picture here) but it opens up to a huge bag that can hold your clothes from the park with no problem! This is seriously a MUST HAVE for travel!
- Flip flops for water rides
- Hair brush and ponytail holders
- Snacks: I saw SO many people whipping out snacks left and right! I did not realized this was allowed or I would have done the same thing. Pack that bag full of bottled water and snacks- it will save you a FORTUNE in the park!
- Poncho (for water rides if you don't want to bring extra clothes)
- Sunscreen (depending on the time of year you are there)
- Hat (if you don't want to deal with sunglasses)
- Some form of entertainment while you wait in line...seriously some wait times were 3 hours long!
A common misconception about these parks are that they are affiliated with Disney, they are not. You will not find Mickey Mouse walking around these parks! I'm going to provide a list of rides and describe my personal opinion about it- here we go!
The Rides
- Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit: First off I did not ride this ride. I like rollercoasters, but not GIANT, scary rollercoasters like this one!! This is THE RIDE to ride at Universal Studios. It's pretty incredible just to watch. This ride was made popular on youtube when Kevin Hart and Jimmy Fallon rode it together. Check it out here...you'll see why I didn't ride it!! Hopefully one day I'll be brave enough to!
- Revenge of the Mummy: This ride was surprisingly AWESOME. This was the last ride we rode and after experiencing simulation after simulation ride, we were not expecting this thrilling coaster! Other than Rip Ride Rockit, this is the only other true rollercoaster at Universal Studios. There's special effects (fire that is FOR REAL hot), twists and turns, drops, and its dark. There's also some cool digital effects as well. It is definitely worth the wait!
- Transformers: The Ride- 3D: Oh, Transformers. This was our 3 hour wait ride. This is the longest line. You go through room after room thinking the next room is going to be where you board the ride, and it's not. I will say that it is a cool ride and one of their newer rides so the effects are top notch. I will also say that no ride is worth a 3 hour wait.
- Men in Black Alien Attack: This is one of the older rides at Universal Studios, however it's one of the better, older rides. I loved this ride because as you wait in line it's as if you are walking through the MiB agency. It's definitely an entertaining wait. When you board the ride, you sit in a 4-seater car where you have your own laser gun. As the car guides you through an elaborate set you get to shoot at the aliens. At one point your car will be running parallel to another car. If you hit that cars target, it sends their car spinning. There is a display screen in front of you that keeps up with your points as you hit each alien or team car. It's a very fun and interactive ride, great for kids and adults!
- The Simpsons Ride: If you are a Simpsons fan, you will absolutely love this part of the park. Not only does the Simpsons have a ride, they have a whole land within the park. It's big, colorful, and carnival themed. There are tons of places to eat and there are carnival style games. You can also actually get a Duff Beer! There are tons of props to take photos with and if my memory serves me right, I believe at one point their were characters walking around to take photos with. There are two rides in this part of the park: Kang & Kodo's Twirl 'n' Hurl and The Simpsons Ride. The Twirl in Hurl reminds me of the Dumbo ride at Disney. You board a spaceship and can control if it goes up and down as it spins you around. The Simpsons Ride is a simulation ride. As you wait in line there are TVs playing parts of episodes of the Simpsons which is quite entertaining. There's a circus tent feel as you are traveling through the line. Once you get up to boarding, you get in lines with four people in each line. They then send you down the hallway into one of four rooms (either to the left or the right). Once you enter the room they close the door and play an instructional video that's again entertaining. An elevator like door opens and you walk into another room where you board the car which mimics a large rollercoaster car. As you sit and wait, I had the feeling of anxiety because you aren't really sure if the bottom is going to fall out, you go flying forward or what. Suddenly you slowly start to rise up and you are in what appears to be a giant theater. There is a HUGE screen and as you look around there is stadium like seating of these giant cars. The ride again is simulation and it's a pretty long ride. There are special effects (fog and water) and it's 3D. Again, if you are a Simpsons super fan you will absolutely love the ride and the whole Simpsons area of the park.
- E.T. Adventure: Bless little E.T. This is probably the oldest ride that is still in operation at Universal Studios. If you are looking for something relaxing and air conditioned, E.T. is for you! As you walk in, you give your name and at the end of the ride, you get a personal message from E.T.! The waiting in line area is actually really cool. You are in a giant forest and it's beautiful. There's typically not a very long wait for this ride so we rushed through this part, but it was actually really well done to be such an old ride. As you board the ride, you get on your own "bike." Again, for it to be so old, it's a pretty cool car that you ride in. This is like a monorail type ride, not simulation. You glide through and there are mannequins and real life objects as opposed to it being digital. It was nice to get out of the digital rides and to be immersed in a more "real life" ride. It's definitely old, some may think a little cheesy, but you gotta do it.
- Other rides that were there but we didn't ride:
- Shrek 4-D
- Despicable Me Minion Mayhem
- Fievel's Playland
- Curious George Goes to Town
- Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster
- Hogwarts Express- King's Cross Station
If you are a fan (or even if you are not a fan) of Harry Potter, your head will explode when you step into The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. This area of the park is so incredibly well done and beautiful it steals the show of the whole park. Will is a huge fan of Harry Potter. I mean read all the books, seen all the movies, knows all the technical names of everything, etc. He introduced me to the movies the first Christmas that we were married and we binge watched them all and I became a fan as well. Having just seen the movies, stepping into this area of the park, I felt like I was in the movie. I can only imagine having read the books how it feels. Will was like a kid in a candy store. It's really mind-blowing how well done it is. You can easily spend hours in this area of the park, especially at Universal Studios.
What is awesome about The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is that there are two different areas in the two parks. At Universal Studios there is Diagon Alley and at Islands of Adventure there is Hogsmeade. To get from park to park, you take the Hogwarts Express. You have to have tickets for both parks for the same day in order to ride. We did not have the hopper pass, so we unfortunately did not get to ride it. Whomp whomp.
Diagon Alley
Diagon Alley is breathtaking. As you walk into the entrance you feel as if you are being transported into the Harry Potter movies. The details are incredible. Diagon Alley is much larger than Hogsmeade at Islands of Adventure. I think that Universal was smart in doing this because as you will read in my Islands of Adventure post, there is already SO much to Islands of Adventure that if they had the larger of the two Harry Potter parks at Islands of Adventure it would just be too much. Also, with Universal Studios being more dated with the movies represented, having the more prominent Harry Potter park there really adds a lot to Universal and gives it more value.
The one ride in Diagon Alley is Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts. This is hands down the best simulation ride at Universal Studios. That being said, don't ride it first like we did. It will make all the other simulation rides seem so dated and low tech. This is a 3D ride as as you enter the ride you are given a pair of 3D glasses to wear. You enter a large car and you will notice that it is on a more roller coaster like track as opposed to some of the other simulation rides. As you wheel into the first scene and the ride begins, the ride will suddenly tilt at an incredible angle. The suspense is THRILLING! When will you drop, how far of a drop, what will happen next?! The whole ride will have you at the edge of your seat! Quick stops, turns, special effects: it is one incredible ride! I cannot write about how the waiting in line experience is. This was one ride that if you have handicap access your are whisked away behind the lines and take an elevator up to the boarding area. With that being the case, there must be stairs involved. I'm sure the waiting area is as incredible as the ride.
After a thrilling ride you will be wanting to wet your whistle at The Hopping Pot. This is a walk up kiosk where you can enjoy a refreshing Butterbeer, Wizards Brew, or Hog's Head Brew. As you initially enter Diagon Alley, you will see The Leaky Cauldron to your left. This is a sit down style restaurant that serves Cottage Pie, Fish and Chips, Bangers and Mash, Ploughman's Platter, and you can also sip on a Butterbeer here as well. Have a dip of ice cream at Florean Fortescue's Ice-Cream Parlour. This is located back towards Escape from Gringott's. Enjoy an ice cream cone or other small treats. The Fountain of Fair Fortune is another Butterbeer shop where you can have it cold or frozen at this location. Here you can also try Pumpkin Juice, Pumpkin Fizz, and Otter Fizzy Orange Juice. This is located next to Pillwinkle's Playthings.
The shops are endless in Diagon Alley! You can't come in without purchasing some sort of Harry Potter souvenir! Quality Quidditch Supplies offers souvenirs and more of your favorite Quidditch teams. How can you be a wizard without a wand? Check out Wands by Gregorovitch to purchase wands that your favorite characters used. If you are searching for a more interactive experience when purchasing a wand, check out Ollivanders. Purchasing an interactive wand allows you to perform spells throughout both Harry Potter parks. It is one way to totally immerse yourself in these parks! Wanting to prank family and friends once you get back home? You have to check out Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes for fun gags and gifts. You've got your wand, now all you need is your robe! Wander into Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions and you'll be looking like a wizard in no time! If you are brave, take a walk down Knockturn Alley (it's seriously spooky!) and check out Borgin and Burkes for a more dark souvenir. You can't forget your owl, Hippogriff or toad! Purchase one at Magical Menagerie. For your writing needs, pop into Scribbulus. You never know when you'll need a quill! Finally, Gringotts Money Exchange is an experience just like the movies! Exchange your muggle money for Gringotts Bank Notes that can be used in shops in both parks!
So, you've walked the park, you've ridden the rides, it's getting late and you're hungry. Where do you go for dinner? As you first enter Universal Studios Resort, you will walk through Universal's CityWalk. CityWalk consists of tons a restaurants and shops. If you are searching for a quick dinner, they have a small food court area that consists of a Moe's, Burger King, Panda Express, and a sandwich shop we ate at called, Bread Box. Awesome sandwiches and fries that are made to order and fabulous. I'm a cheese freak and their grilled cheese was to die for. It's also a cheaper option to the larger restaurants CityWalk has to offer. If you are wanting to spend a bit more and have a nice sit down restaurant, the options are endless: Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville, The CowFish, Bubba Gumps, Red Oven Pizza, Emeril's, the list goes on and on. We LOVE Mexican food so we chose to eat at Antojito's Authentic Mexican Food. Talk about some GOOD FOOD. We decided to split the nachos and they were honestly the best nachos I've ever had. The building on the outside is so colorful and pretty and the inside is just as bright and exciting. There is a HUGE stage where a Mariachi band was playing hits by Madonna and more. It was truly an experience! I strongly suggest eating here, or anywhere in CityWalk as opposed to eating within the park. Better prices, better choices, and better quality food.
I hope I have covered everything you could possibly want to know about Universal Studios. Stay tuned for a post on Universal's Islands of Adventure!
-Cassie