The DarkSide's not so Dark after all....

[ArwenMarie]

Awesome night out. Looks like so much fun! I love when doing something new like that is a big success

 

[ocalla]

This is such a great trip report!!! thanks so much for sharing.

and......is pool hoping for all onsite guests?

 

[clsteve]

I promise I am not stalking your TR! Ummm well yeah, I guess I am.... Excited to pool hop to HRH (I have teens). Even more excited to book BMG! Love stalking.. I mean reading along

Reading (stalking) is completely allowed! I would have loved the HRH pool as a teen- they'll enjoy it (and the others).

 

[clsteve]

bmg rules.......

Most definitely!

This is such a great trip report!!! thanks so much for sharing.

and......is pool hoping for all onsite guests?

PBH, RPH and HRH share the ability to do so. The new Cabana Bay, won't have the same privilege, it seems. However, it sounds like they're building a pretty impressive pool complex, themselves...

 

[wen8jr]

Looks like you all had a blast! Your boys are cute!

The Mummy is one of our top rides as well.

BMG is a very unique and cool experience, really unlike anything we've ever done. It is certainly hard to explain in words.

We also absolutely love Sals. The pizza there inspired me to start making pizza from scratch and now we can't eat any other pizza without being disappointed.

Your trip report is getting me sooo excited for our next trip this year in May. Look forward to more.

 

[Dutchie Guy]

DA looks very special. We had a nice "surprise" Day Three with the train that really got the kids excited.

Oh, I've been lucky to spent a lot of time in your neck of the woods! Had an office for years not too far from Schiphol Airport- walking distance from the Radisson. A good friend I worked with was from Utrecht- another great town. Would love to get the family out there, some day.

Oh that's coincidence. I obviously live near Schiphol so I know what you're talking about. Yeah, there is definitely some things to show here to your family and kids once they're a bit older and perhaps more interested in sightseeing and culture.

I've only been out of Europe twice. Both times to the US and both times visited Orlando.
Because of short days we only visited Universal and SeaWorld (and Bush Gardens during our trip). Knew Disneyland from Paris so we were definitely more interested in the thrills and Harry Potter. Needless to say we felt like we made the right choice, the stay was brilliant!

This was in 2010 and 2011 so the urge to go back there is enormous but hard to arrange with limited holidays time and funding. But once Diagon Alley is built I'll definitely be back... Till then I'll try to get my dosage from tripreports lke yours I guess.

Even better a report from someone that also loved the Simpson-ride-jokes and writes with a lot of humor.

 

[damo]

Man, oh man. You'd think with all the time I spend on the Universal Boards I'd know to check the trip reports out more often.

This is truly a great one!!!

 

[schumigirl]

Ok.......I admit I am the person that doesn't like BMG.......well, I suppose there's got to be one right

But glad you all had such fun at it and more lovely pictures, that sunset is beautiful

 

[clsteve]

Man, oh man. You'd think with all the time I spend on the Universal Boards I'd know to check the trip reports out more often.

This is truly a great one!!!

Thanks, that's very kind. And I don't know how you could hit the TR's more, with all the good stuff you're doing on the other forums

Ok.......I admit I am the person that doesn't like BMG.......well, I suppose there's got to be one right

But glad you all had such fun at it and more lovely pictures, that sunset is beautiful

Nothing wrong with being in the minority! Remember, we're the family that enjoys spending more time in DHS and EPCOT than in MK - that's borderline blasphemy to some.....

 

[macraven]

dhs is my favorite too.
i think i have every type of pins that have mgm on them.....
took me ages to quit calling it mgm.

 

[bcrook]

I enjoyed those sunset pictures.

The pool bar sounds great.

You posted some classic pictures in this report. Your DW shooting aliens, ds8 in the mummy headdress at gift shop, and the Ds10 grin with the blue man and mummified brother are most amusing.

The theming looks fantastic.

 

[cmaee]

Nothing like joining in on your TR on page 7, but I am really enjoying reading your TR.

I decided to add Universal to our Disney vacation this year and have been reading TR's trying to learn all about this park I know nothing about. With the whole FP+, MB, and MDE, I am thinking about dropping even more Disney from our trip and adding more Universal. So far, I can completely see the advantages of doing just that. BMG wasn't something I was planning on, but not now. I will be working in it our schedule.

On a side note, that will seem completely stalkerish, when I read the start of your TR, I kept saying to myself, "Holy cow, they live in ...." I lived on the mainland part of the county for 7 years. I have rode that ferry many, many times for day trips to the beach in the summer when they have four ferry runs instead of driving to the beach. It was so much cheaper to pay for the ferry than it cost in gas to drive to the beach. I learned the lesson the hard way once on making sure I was in line on time to get back on the last ferry. My children and I moved away from there at the end of Dec. 2011. It is a beautiful place to live, and I certainly miss the proximity to the beach, as we live many states away now.

 

[clsteve]

Nothing like joining in on your TR on page 7, but I am really enjoying reading your TR.

I decided to add Universal to our Disney vacation this year and have been reading TR's trying to learn all about this park I know nothing about. With the whole FP+, MB, and MDE, I am thinking about dropping even more Disney from our trip and adding more Universal. So far, I can completely see the advantages of doing just that. BMG wasn't something I was planning on, but not now. I will be working in it our schedule.

On a side note, that will seem completely stalkerish, when I read the start of your TR, I kept saying to myself, "Holy cow, they live in ...." I lived on the mainland part of the county for 7 years. I have rode that ferry many, many times for day trips to the beach in the summer when they have four ferry runs instead of driving to the beach. It was so much cheaper to pay for the ferry than it cost in gas to drive to the beach. I learned the lesson the hard way once on making sure I was in line on time to get back on the last ferry. My children and I moved away from there at the end of Dec. 2011. It is a beautiful place to live, and I certainly miss the proximity to the beach, as we live many states away now.

That's awesome you know where all of this is! The Mainland is getting about six to seven inches of snow today - we're getting about 4 to 5. Luckily, it's one of those great fluffy snows you can have fun in- not the ice storm we had early last week. I'm going to try and get, at least, part of Day Three up later tonight, btw. But, as you well know, they're treating it like the end of the world around here. So schools are out- must be time to take the kids out to Boogey Board down the dunes! PM me if you ever head back out this way- I'll try to hook you up with a deal or 2......

We had a great time, and I'm sure you will too. These boards really helped us out and there are some great posters with a lot of knowledge, more than happy to answer any questions. Think hard about the "poncho" section for BMG! It's truly a blast

 

[clsteve]

I'm a little late on this one - Too much weather going on around here the past few days, and the kids out of school... But:

Day Three's for Favorites and Shows and more Mummy Dust!

It was a late night for the family, between BMG and dinner at Sal's. So, we figured we'd let the kids sleep in a bit, but both begged to do early entry for WWoHP before they went to bed. Remember, - they asked for it.....! We had always planned for Day Three to be more laid back -- hit IOA sometime in the morning for a few favorite rides and souvenirs, lunch at Mr. Buffett's on CityWalk, then fave's, shows, and shops at US. So, off to Sal's I head for our morning fuel and light stuff. As I hit the outside, it's a beautiful, sunny, and breezy day.... but Cold! Back upstairs, the wonderful piece of technology known as IPhone is showing 39 degrees, with a high of 52 degrees expected and winds 15-25 mph. We were prepared for that, so we got everyone bundled up and off to the boat.

An early wake-up call always sounds better the night before......




We get the 7:45am boat, just as it's pulling in. One note- if it's cold (or rainy) try to get the bow seats, just in front of the captain: they're completely protected from the wind and are much more comfortable when it's cold. It's now after 8am when we get to the gates. So, I'd expected to be behind a throng of people already there for Early Entry. Nope! It seems chilly, brisk and breezy is even better than rain at keeping people in bed .


Port of Entry




We head straight to WWoHP.




I think I said Early Entry is worth every penny as an on-site perk in the 1st post of this TR. Well, Early Entry is worth every penny as an on-site perk. I could be going out on a limb, here, but it might be even more important when DA opens this summer.






It's funny, visiting in the early morning, with such light crowds, on a brisk and chilly day, the theme-ing really jumps out. With snow on the roofs, icicles hanging from the eaves, it was great -- except DW thought it made the temperature seem more like 5 below than the 42 degrees it really was.






In case it's not obvious from the pictures, I'm enthralled by The Castle. I've been lucky enough to visit more than a few real ones. But, I must say, they really hit it out of the ballpark with Hogwart's. The depth of perception, as you walk through the gates, the level of detail, even down to the, um, bird "deposits" on the rocks (and they're fake... I checked... don't ask how...), it really sets you up for the level of immersion just ahead of you in the queue. We rode for our last three times of the trip, taking a lot more time to slowly walk through the queue (letting others by, of course!). If it's slow, or you have the option of taking the castle tour, take the time to experience it- it's an attraction all on its own.

We exit for the last time into the gift shop. Theme Parks must love cold days, btw. I think half the EE crowd were in there buying Gryffindor gloves, scarves and ski caps. The other half were buying sweatshirts .

And yes, so did we.....




There must have been a special "magic" in the Harry Potter gloves and hats that made them Sooo much warmer than the ones we brought with us, go figure......

FYI, we did find out that PhotoConnect gives you the chance to get an 8x10 FJ ride photo (soft frame) for only an extra 2 dollars (normally $29.99). They had it printed and sent to one of the gift shops in the Port of Entry for pick-up. They also did it very quickly, since it was there when we left IOA around 12:15pm that afternoon.

Hardly anybody was in line for the Flight of the Hippogriff, so we let the boys ride it by themselves four or five times before heading off to pick out some wands. If I could just get the opportunity to own the wand franchise at WWoHP and the new DA...... I would be a very happy man. Mickey Ears would be the only other one to top it, I would think. Choosing a wand is a very serious and time consuming process, it would seem - at least by how long it took in the shop. If I'd known just how long a process, I think I would have tried to do this exercise in the afternoon, since the Hog's Head (and the Tennant's, and the London Pride) is right across the street- just an FYI for some of you Dads out there.

The Chosen Ones




Both DS10 and DS8 were finally "chosen" by their wands. I was actually surprised at how detailed and sturdy they turned out to be, however - and the price point's not bad at all for a theme park at 32 bucks. They'd brought their own money, just for wands. I'm sure Dumbledore's very proud of the both them....

DS8 and I hit Dragons' Challenge a couple of times, then the family had one last round of Butterbeer (had to get the souvenir glasses, of course!). We head out for Cat and the Hat, Spidey, and the Hulk one more time before lunch. Each of us got a giggle out of the Cat in the Hat Ride, btw. It's a nice little dark ride with some spin to it. Nothing fancy, but still some good fun. Dr. Seuss was a big part of both boys'; childhood, his being the first books they ever read back to us. I can easily see how we would have spent A LOT of time in this area 4 or 5 years ago. I'm still a little surprised DW didn't buy the "I'm with Thing Two" t-shirt in the gift shop. It's a hilarious gift shop. They had a little preemie onesie (ladies, am I spelling this right?) that said on the front: "My First Thing" with a picture of Thing One on it. Both our boys were early preemies and I would have found that a great and hilarious gift during those stressful times.




DW and the boys then hit the Merry-go-Round. Both DW and DS10 are huge fans of these. This one is "perky", to say the least – fast and the Seuss characters go up and down rather quickly. The boys hopped on two of the Seuss characters while DW sat in one of the stationary benches right behind them. Very bad idea. With the speed, her sitting stationary, plus watching the 2 boys go up and down quickly while she wasn't (for 2 rides) she got motion sickness. The boys had a blast, though.

Please, don't get me wrong here, I'm in no way a physician (and I'm going to post this before the rest of the family gets a chance to read it, since they're now Butterbeer fanatics). But, the only time DW got motion sickness (twice) was after consuming that "elixir of the gods", then riding more than one motion ride within ½ an hour, or so. For example, Day Two at US, we rode one time on Transformers, then The Mummy, 2 times on The Simpsons, the Twirl-n-Hurl, followed by several MiB's, all in rapid succession- not a hint of motion sickness. Maybe it's a blood sugar thing. But, since I've read a lot of posts about motion sickness on the board, I just thought I'd point it out.

We hit Buffett's place at CityWalk for lunch, before heading to US. DW and I had been here way back in '99 and had also tried a couple of his other spots- in NOLA, for example. It wasn't crowded, we were seated right away, had an excellent server, and a very nice lunch. The Asiago Crab Dip was the highlight- lots of crab meat, and the crostinis were broiled with melted Asiago, as well. DW had the Taco Salad- very fresh, as was the guacamole (she's half South American and judges guac' on as hard a scale as a Vermonter judges cheddar cheese). The toasted tortilla points instead of the usual fried tortilla bowl were a nice presentation. I had the Blackened Grouper- it was fresh and not overcooked like can easily happen when blackened. The boys had the fish tacos- also very good. DW and I each had a hand-made Margarita (I mean, it would be like going to Ben and Jerry's and not having ice cream, right?). Both were very good- but DS8 was concerned that they came out the volcano that erupts margarita mix every 45 minutes- that got a very big chuckle out of our server, who assured him that was not the case. 3 ½ stars for our meal and we would go back again. It's a fun atmosphere, unless you don't like Buffett, of course. Living on an island, we're completely immune to it, since it would be impossible for us to go out for drinks and/or dinner without hearing at least 3 or 4 Buffett songs.

Btw, the changes being made at CityWalk are moving along quickly. The new Mexican Restaurant, Antojito's, is going up right next to Buffett's place. You can't miss it, since they seem to have decided to use the whole color palette on the exterior. It looks pretty impressive and they have the menu out for viewing. It will most definitely be on our list to try when we come back.

Off to US

We had planned the afternoon around catching the Horror Make-up Show and The Blues Brothers. So, we first headed over to New York . Beetlejuice was closed for re-furb, unfortunately, because campy humor mixed with 80's tunes are right up our alley. We had some time until the next show, so DS8 and I hit The Mummy while DW and DS10 hit the shops. One note on The Mummy: we unanimously enjoy the very back more than the front. The effects have more time to develop, so you see everything, and you can get some serious airtime, right out of your seat! I know that may not appeal to some, but DS8 and I thought it was excellent.




Mummy-Dust Time!

We meet DW and DS8 in one of the shops close by. I decide to head over to the restrooms just around the corner from the rock-climbing wall. I'm not paying much attention when I turn the corner, but hear this "whoosh!". When I look up- what do I see but the Hogwart's Express moving down its track! It stops after a few yards and about 20 hardhat wearing TM engineers get out and start inspecting the Train and the track. I turn right back around and run to get the family. The engineers had re-boarded by the time we all got back, so they missed the engineers doing their thing, but they did get to see it move a bit and snap a couple of pictures:






It looks really amazing, and is going to be very impressive moving back and forth between the Parks. Very exciting for the boys and it pretty much sealed our return to Universal next year – if not sooner. Now, I have no idea how it was moving- it could have been the mechanism they will actually use for the ride, or maybe it was just being pushed along in order to check and measure its track placement in small increments (don't know, because we couldn't see the very end of the train from our vantage point). Although, something made the "whoosh!" and I could swear there was a tad bit of smoke from the smokestack. Either way, it was like a celebrity sighting for the kids and very cool overall.

The Blues Brothers





Really a lot of fun and the female singer was amazing. How she's not on Broadway, I don't know. We loved the "NY Street Party Feel." It fits --- everybody's standing up, dancing a bit, and having a good time. Like most guys my age, the first Blues Brothers Movie (emphasis on first) was a big deal when it came out. So, I had to go over and check out the Blues Mobile - and yes, they drove up in it for the Show. Nobody was around it, so - what the heck?




Very cool !!! and, it's themed to a "T" - with broken glass on the floor, empty Marlboro and Newport packs on the dash with an 8-track player (yes, I'm that old),to-go containers and an empty pizza box in the backseat .... really nice attention to detail.



I would say I want one, but DW would just ask "How is that old police car, with a huge speaker on top, ever going to get in the garage since it's never going to be parked outside where people can see it?" It's tough to argue with that kind of logic -- and I think I just had an imaginary conversation with DW and agreed with her. Well trained, I am.... well trained.....

Well, we're still in the middle of this winter storm that's hitting the Southeast and the power's getting a little bit iffy. So, I'm going to have to leave Day Three here and pick it up later.

On Deck: The Rest of Day Three and: It's all the Boys' Fault........

 

[macraven]

i'm so enjoying your trip report.

i have a soft spot for the blues brothers.
they are absolutely kewl.


your boys are so cute!

 

[schumigirl]

That is one tired bubba in the first pic!!

We have never made EE yet..........may consider it this year though.....maybe.

Your pics are lovely......I love the area around The Mummy in the Studios......nice.

And nice seeing the HE

 

[clsteve]

i'm so enjoying your trip report.

i have a soft spot for the blues brothers.
they are absolutely kewl.


your boys are so cute!

It is a great block party kinda thing - lotsa fun!

That is one tired bubba in the first pic!!

We have never made EE yet..........may consider it this year though.....maybe.

Your pics are lovely......I love the area around The Mummy in the Studios......nice.

And nice seeing the HE

HE will rock, no doubt. And I tell ya, I was shocked at the number of engineers we saw working on all of DA while we were there - morning to night. Really nice to see.....

 

[mrsabbott]

Love it!! Hubs is also a huge Blues Brothers fan and is looking forward to seeing the show! I'm a huge Lucille Ball fan and am looking forward to that. We are also a big fan if Dr. Seuss and I know it will be a blast for the kids!

Can't wait to read more!

 

[mesaboy2]

Good stuff, enjoying the read!

Color me dumb, but it never occurred to me that the HE would be elevated. Kinda obvious, now that I put just an ounce of thought into it.

 

[clsteve]

Good stuff, enjoying the read!

Color me dumb, but it never occurred to me that the HE would be elevated. Kinda obvious, now that I put just an ounce of thought into it.

You know, me too- I'd thought, since the windows of the HE were part of the attraction- it'd probably run in a mostly enclosed environment, for many reasons.

Much better to have it raised so little Sally and Johnny can go - "I want to ride!"
and they can still get to all of the backlot access points and areas. It'll be interesting to see just how much of the run will be visible from the Parks...