What is the best advice you could give to someone who has never been to Universal?

[mzmickey]

Finally going to Universal and I am not sure what to expect! I just booked our trip yesterday, 3 nights at the HRH and then 4 nights at POR in Disney.

I am so excited.

My husband and I went to Disney for our honeymoon 2 years ago and had an awesome time, i have been bugging him to go back ever since. He finally agreed but he wants to stop in at Universal.

I know what to expect in Disney and have already begun to make plans and dinner reservations. But I don't have a clue about Universal.

So what is the one thing that you found out that you wish you knew about the first time you went there?

Thanks,

Darci

 

[pathubia]

You've already done the most important thing, in my opinion, staying onsite!!!!!!!!!

It's the best.

Get your park tickets from AAA, big savings there, I think they have a buy 2 days get 3rd free special going on now.

Patty

 

[MikeBW]

You are going to love FOTL. When you get to Disney, you will be complaining about fastpass.
Rides to not miss: Spiderman, Men in Black, Hulk Coaster

 

[mzmickey]

The more threads I read on this board, the more excited I become. How will I ever wait these next 6 months.

Already got the tickets through AAA, length of stay passes.

And Mike, my husband has decided that the Hulk Coaster will be the first ride we go on when we get there.

Thanks for the great advice, keep it coming!

 

[gschmerl]

If your husband likes coasters, make sure he rides in the FRONT ROW of the Dragons. You will also REALLY love Spiderman. Not a coaster , but one of the best rides ever!
Make sure you eat at Mythos in Islands of Adventure.

 

[WebmasterBarry]

Do the back row of the Hulk. Also lift up your legs when you are launched and inverted. Also lift up your legs after the mid-course brakes.

 

[yoopermom]

resort and pool hop. Each is sooooo beautiful in it's own way! Make sure to take time to see HRH lit up at night, it really does become the "Hotel California". And take the boat at least once to the parks, even though it's "slower", it's a beautiful, relaxing trip.
Terri the Yoopermom

 

[PaulAllensMom]

We are also going to Universal for the first time, in about 9 days, and I think I remember reading in one of the trip reports about a shortcut from the HRH pool to the parks, but can't find it now. Does anyone know anything about that? Thanks to everyone who posts so much information on this board, it has really been helpful.

 

[MikeBW]

There is a path to the parks from the HRH pool - follow the signs. It is about a 5 minute walk.

 

[antmaril]

My advice would be to stay at Disney first and then go to Universal. If you do FOTL first, you will not enjoy Disney as much. If you do Disney first, you will have FOTL to look forward to. FOTL is the BEST!! You will love it.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[Robinrs]

Originally posted by antmaril
My advice would be to stay at Disney first and then go to Universal. If you do FOTL first, you will not enjoy Disney as much. If you do Disney first, you will have FOTL to look forward to. FOTL is the BEST!! You will love it.

I TOTALLY agree. One of my worse mistakes was doing like what you're doing. Last year I booked the Dolphin for 7 nights. After reading everything here I tried for the Ent rate at the HRH for the weekend of Memorial Day. No such luck. Sooo I booked the HRH for the first two days of my trip and the Dolphin for the last 5.

MISTAKE!!

After getting SPOILED by the Universal Express perk I was let down royally by standing on line in the heat at Disney. My son was so disappointed, it really was hard to wait 45 mins at EPCOT after just walking on the rides at USF.

I promised myself to always save the USF on site hotels for LAST.

That being said, get there early get on Hulk, Spiderman, Hulk, Spiderman, Spiderman, Spiderman, then the rest of the park!! Ooops, that's MY itinerary!

Enjoy!

 

[mzmickey]

Thank you so much! You guys are great! This is the stuff that you can't get out of a guide book.

I was beginning to wonder about doing disney for the first part of our trip, I'll have to see if I can get them switched around. But I also remember from our previous trip, that Disney is not too crowded that week in December, right after Thanksgiving, so we never had too long of a wait. And sometimes, waiting in line with my DH can be the best part

Thanks again!

Darci

 

[nhrenee]

Plan a long lunch at Mythos. Take a sloooow walk through Port of Entry in IOA, look up, down and around. There's alot of neat details in this part of the park (it is the very first part of IOA, obviously you will not do this on your first day, you'll be headed for Hulk!)

Ride MIB twice in a row (at least). Ride Popeye and Bluto's Bilge Rat Barges even if it's chilly, bring a change of clothing and a towel.

Have a picture drawn by one of the characature (sp?) artists in Port of Entry, IOA. This is my favorite souvenire's from our couple's only trip!

 

[Dancind]

Tip 1: My DD had her caricature done by a young man stationed across the street from the Earthquake attraction at Universal. We finally decided to let her have it done because we noticed that he was doing "nice" caricatures, we saw so many that were drawing huge foreheads and tiny features, etc. This one is so cute, my DH wants to hang it in our hallway! Sorry, I don't remember his name. He had dark hair and likes dogs!

Tip 2: You're going in November, but still dress to get wet. Especially at IOA. We invested in Tevas, CoolMax t-shirts, and "rafting" shorts. It's so much nicer not to walk around soggy all day, and you don't have to worry about the dousings!

Tip 3: Go over to PBH and get pastries and coffee at the deli. I want to stay there again, mainly for the berry croissant I had. Oh my, it was good! Actually, all the food we had at PBH was wonderful.

Tip 4: If you go to the Poseidon show and use Express, don't do as the the CM tells you when you enter the first room. You will be first in, and he/she will want you to go the stage area to the right. Go stand opposite, this will put you first out of the room so you can get front row in the next two rooms. It's hard to see anything from the back.

I'll probably think of more, we just got back. Diana

 

[IowaGirl]

The boats to the resorts from the parks dock right in front of City Walk. Save a dinner for over there instead of eating inside the park. We ate at a NASCAR restaurant for two nights and loved it--$1.50 draws of bud or bud light
Also, if you want to eat at Emirils make reservations early!!
I did not eat there, but as I was at conceirge in the a.m. three people came by begging to get in. So if that is important to you, do it now.