TL;DR - go to Florida in February
I have memories of visiting Universal Studios when I was a kid and having lots of fun with my family, then visiting again as an adult and having a good time. But also being hot. And being crowded by people. And waiting in long lines. These trips all occurred during spring/summer.
I now know that the time to visit Florida is February.
We arrived in Orlando on Tuesday afternoon, got to our hotel around 4:30 and by the time we go to the park, it was probably 5:30. We figured we could pop in and maybe wander around, plan our attack for the next day. But when we noticed that the wait for The Simpsons Ride was only 5 minutes, we decided to take a spin, thinking this would be a rare occurrence. We walked right up the winding path where the line should have been and we were on the ride in a matter of minutes.
That was fun, we thought, continuing our wandering and made our way to "London" and found the secret entrance to Diagon Alley. I had my first butterbeer, an overly sweet carbonated beverage that didn't quite sit well with my empty stomach (it tasted a bit like root beer and cream soda with some kind of whipped milky stuff poured on top. It was good but a whole glass was too much). We continued walking, sipping our drinks. I can't remember how we did it, but we ended up at Islands of Adventure, the other park, and found the original Harry Potter world. Having finished our drinks, we did a double take at the Hogwarts sign telling us the ride had a 5 minute way. How could we resist!
In retrospect, riding a crazy motion ride with no food in my stomach and just bubbling beverages in there wasn't my best idea. I didn't feel fantastic after we got off the ride even though it was so amazing and fun. But this point in time it was dark and we made our way to the CityWalk to go find food. We decided to try CowFish, which had caught our eye while browsing the website. Unfortunately, the food was a huge disappointment and I felt ill anyway so we went back to the hotel and crashed.
The next two days were a blur of awesome rides. Our hotel let us enter the Harry Potter parks an hour early so we walked into Islands of Adventure and went directly to Hogsmeade, then hopped onto the Hogwarts express, delivering us to Diagon Alley and a mere 10 minute wait for the Gringotts ride. And that was how the rest of the day was - no lines, no waits, just walk in and ride. It was INSANE!! I didn't even know you could have days like that at Universal! I am never going to those parks in the summer ever again!
ANYWAY - THE RIDES! LET ME TELL YOU!
[one word: amazing.]
I don't like roller coasters at all. I cannot convince my brain that my stomach going into my throat is fun. I cannot tell my brain that we are falling but it's okay because it's on a track and "totally safe".
This is why I love Universal Studios. I love the way the rides are built, with enough action and suspense for me to have fun but just enough awareness that the nagging part of my brain that usually screams "WE ARE ALL GONNA DIE!" sits back and says "oh this is just fun!"
The two new Harry Potter rides are these most amazing rides I have ever been on. The way the ride technology has advanced is fantastic. You can tell that Universal's designers took a good hard look at what has worked and what has not on other rides and tried to do the best they can. You can tell they knew that kids and adults would want to ride. You can even tell that they thought about how INSANE lines could be at Universal and designed a waiting area that would keep everyone entertained.
For Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, riders sit on "enchanted benches" which must be on some kind of arm mechanism which is on a track. It is a brilliant mix of huge screens that trick your brain and practical special effects and puppets that pull you into the world. The chair tilts, tips, and even leans so far back you are almost upside down! The main cast of the films recorded new scenes for us and it feels like you are on an adventure with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. I gasped and screamed and ended the ride feeling overjoyed at how much fun it was.
10 points to Universal for providing FREE LOCKERS for your purses and backpacks for these rides, not forcing us to hide items or pay to stow them. And I was fascinated by the fingerprint technology (even though similar tech must be used to make my iPhone lock work LOL)
Also 10 points to the marketing genius who hid the magic spells all over the Harry Potter world for people with wands to activate. I loved watching kids and teens wave their wands over and over, trying to make the mandrakes wiggle.
Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts takes place at the same time as when they break into Bellatrix's vault to find the Horcrux. You are just some poor, innocent visitor trying to find out about opening a vault, but you happen to bump into Charlie Weasley while waiting in line. When he accompanies you into the vault, all hell breaks loose! This ride has a more traditional roller coaster seating since you are in the Gringotts mine cart (though it seats twelve instead of the three of the movie lol). This doesn't take away from the thrills though, as, again, the designs mix special effects and sets to make you really feel like you are in the ride.
The care and love taken with building both of these areas of the park (and then bridging them with the Hogwarts Express line which will make any Harry Potter fan giddy) really shows. I know it's a cash cow for the park, but I feel like they really took great care with the product.
Also, the entire visit the park staff was AMAZING! So polite and helpful, smiling and talking with us. Beckie's hair is red and she was asked if she was related to the Weasleys LOL. I even had a few compliments to my pink streaks. And this wasn't just in Harry Potter world but the entire park.
The rest of the park was a blast too. The new Transformers ride was also action packed and you felt like you were speeding down the highway at some insane speed then flying through the air. The 3D technology on all of the rides was so good, I found myself leaning back in my seat and dodging shrapnel I knew wasn't real. This has spoiled me for all 3D movies. (and don't worry, the 3D goggles are VERY large and will fit over glasses, no problem. Even hipster frames, as I was informed by one of the park employees).
Despicable Me Minions was as cute as the movies and the perfect ride for younger kids who have never ridden anything like this before. Unlike the other rides, the Minions is set up as a large open theater and you can see all of the little carts in the room. This did NOT detract from the ride at all, which may not have been as intense as The Simpsons but still had me squealing with delight as we sped through Grue's lab and lair.
We did ride E.T. because E.T. is one of my favorite movies of all time. The ride shows its age. It is the last original ride in the park. It is 100% practical special effects, with animatronic scientists popping out from trees and a very "it's a small world" feel when you arrive on E.T.'s planet. I will be sad when it's gone but boy does it need to go. Actually, no they should just re-do it with the technology they have used on Harry Potter. And I think they need to do the same for the Jurassic Park section, which is BEGGING to be fixed up, especially with Jurassic World about to be released. Shrek 4-D could also use a bit of spiffying up, though it is one of the few low-impact rides that little kids can enjoy, though the 3D isn't as good as the new rides.
Disaster and Twister can safely go though. They are cute but not worth the wait they both have because of their format. And Toon Lagoon is just a mystery to me since so many of the comic properties in that area of the park are so old and outdated that I doubt very many park-goers remember them or, at least, care about them.
Dr Seuss land is fun but those rides need some TLC, especially the Carousel and the interactive "If I Ran the Zoo" area, which had a few broken pieces.
And I can't help but wonder how much longer the Marvel Superhero Island can exist now that Disney technically owns a lot of those properties (though they did have giant Thor and Captain America statues in one store...).
Anyway, the whole trip was a blast. I'm already plotting, trying to figure out when we can go back. There was definitely some kind of construction going on so I'm sure something new is already on the horizon. I had been to the park maybe 6 years ago and I was SO impressed by how much had changed since then.
TL;DR -- go to Universal Studios, get the 2-park pass, go in February! No one is there!!!
Photo album here, if you're interested.
I now know that the time to visit Florida is February.
We arrived in Orlando on Tuesday afternoon, got to our hotel around 4:30 and by the time we go to the park, it was probably 5:30. We figured we could pop in and maybe wander around, plan our attack for the next day. But when we noticed that the wait for The Simpsons Ride was only 5 minutes, we decided to take a spin, thinking this would be a rare occurrence. We walked right up the winding path where the line should have been and we were on the ride in a matter of minutes.
That was fun, we thought, continuing our wandering and made our way to "London" and found the secret entrance to Diagon Alley. I had my first butterbeer, an overly sweet carbonated beverage that didn't quite sit well with my empty stomach (it tasted a bit like root beer and cream soda with some kind of whipped milky stuff poured on top. It was good but a whole glass was too much). We continued walking, sipping our drinks. I can't remember how we did it, but we ended up at Islands of Adventure, the other park, and found the original Harry Potter world. Having finished our drinks, we did a double take at the Hogwarts sign telling us the ride had a 5 minute way. How could we resist!
In retrospect, riding a crazy motion ride with no food in my stomach and just bubbling beverages in there wasn't my best idea. I didn't feel fantastic after we got off the ride even though it was so amazing and fun. But this point in time it was dark and we made our way to the CityWalk to go find food. We decided to try CowFish, which had caught our eye while browsing the website. Unfortunately, the food was a huge disappointment and I felt ill anyway so we went back to the hotel and crashed.
The next two days were a blur of awesome rides. Our hotel let us enter the Harry Potter parks an hour early so we walked into Islands of Adventure and went directly to Hogsmeade, then hopped onto the Hogwarts express, delivering us to Diagon Alley and a mere 10 minute wait for the Gringotts ride. And that was how the rest of the day was - no lines, no waits, just walk in and ride. It was INSANE!! I didn't even know you could have days like that at Universal! I am never going to those parks in the summer ever again!
ANYWAY - THE RIDES! LET ME TELL YOU!
[one word: amazing.]
I don't like roller coasters at all. I cannot convince my brain that my stomach going into my throat is fun. I cannot tell my brain that we are falling but it's okay because it's on a track and "totally safe".
This is why I love Universal Studios. I love the way the rides are built, with enough action and suspense for me to have fun but just enough awareness that the nagging part of my brain that usually screams "WE ARE ALL GONNA DIE!" sits back and says "oh this is just fun!"
The two new Harry Potter rides are these most amazing rides I have ever been on. The way the ride technology has advanced is fantastic. You can tell that Universal's designers took a good hard look at what has worked and what has not on other rides and tried to do the best they can. You can tell they knew that kids and adults would want to ride. You can even tell that they thought about how INSANE lines could be at Universal and designed a waiting area that would keep everyone entertained.
For Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, riders sit on "enchanted benches" which must be on some kind of arm mechanism which is on a track. It is a brilliant mix of huge screens that trick your brain and practical special effects and puppets that pull you into the world. The chair tilts, tips, and even leans so far back you are almost upside down! The main cast of the films recorded new scenes for us and it feels like you are on an adventure with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. I gasped and screamed and ended the ride feeling overjoyed at how much fun it was.
10 points to Universal for providing FREE LOCKERS for your purses and backpacks for these rides, not forcing us to hide items or pay to stow them. And I was fascinated by the fingerprint technology (even though similar tech must be used to make my iPhone lock work LOL)
Also 10 points to the marketing genius who hid the magic spells all over the Harry Potter world for people with wands to activate. I loved watching kids and teens wave their wands over and over, trying to make the mandrakes wiggle.
Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts takes place at the same time as when they break into Bellatrix's vault to find the Horcrux. You are just some poor, innocent visitor trying to find out about opening a vault, but you happen to bump into Charlie Weasley while waiting in line. When he accompanies you into the vault, all hell breaks loose! This ride has a more traditional roller coaster seating since you are in the Gringotts mine cart (though it seats twelve instead of the three of the movie lol). This doesn't take away from the thrills though, as, again, the designs mix special effects and sets to make you really feel like you are in the ride.
The care and love taken with building both of these areas of the park (and then bridging them with the Hogwarts Express line which will make any Harry Potter fan giddy) really shows. I know it's a cash cow for the park, but I feel like they really took great care with the product.
Also, the entire visit the park staff was AMAZING! So polite and helpful, smiling and talking with us. Beckie's hair is red and she was asked if she was related to the Weasleys LOL. I even had a few compliments to my pink streaks. And this wasn't just in Harry Potter world but the entire park.
The rest of the park was a blast too. The new Transformers ride was also action packed and you felt like you were speeding down the highway at some insane speed then flying through the air. The 3D technology on all of the rides was so good, I found myself leaning back in my seat and dodging shrapnel I knew wasn't real. This has spoiled me for all 3D movies. (and don't worry, the 3D goggles are VERY large and will fit over glasses, no problem. Even hipster frames, as I was informed by one of the park employees).
Despicable Me Minions was as cute as the movies and the perfect ride for younger kids who have never ridden anything like this before. Unlike the other rides, the Minions is set up as a large open theater and you can see all of the little carts in the room. This did NOT detract from the ride at all, which may not have been as intense as The Simpsons but still had me squealing with delight as we sped through Grue's lab and lair.
We did ride E.T. because E.T. is one of my favorite movies of all time. The ride shows its age. It is the last original ride in the park. It is 100% practical special effects, with animatronic scientists popping out from trees and a very "it's a small world" feel when you arrive on E.T.'s planet. I will be sad when it's gone but boy does it need to go. Actually, no they should just re-do it with the technology they have used on Harry Potter. And I think they need to do the same for the Jurassic Park section, which is BEGGING to be fixed up, especially with Jurassic World about to be released. Shrek 4-D could also use a bit of spiffying up, though it is one of the few low-impact rides that little kids can enjoy, though the 3D isn't as good as the new rides.
Disaster and Twister can safely go though. They are cute but not worth the wait they both have because of their format. And Toon Lagoon is just a mystery to me since so many of the comic properties in that area of the park are so old and outdated that I doubt very many park-goers remember them or, at least, care about them.
Dr Seuss land is fun but those rides need some TLC, especially the Carousel and the interactive "If I Ran the Zoo" area, which had a few broken pieces.
And I can't help but wonder how much longer the Marvel Superhero Island can exist now that Disney technically owns a lot of those properties (though they did have giant Thor and Captain America statues in one store...).
Anyway, the whole trip was a blast. I'm already plotting, trying to figure out when we can go back. There was definitely some kind of construction going on so I'm sure something new is already on the horizon. I had been to the park maybe 6 years ago and I was SO impressed by how much had changed since then.
TL;DR -- go to Universal Studios, get the 2-park pass, go in February! No one is there!!!
Photo album here, if you're interested.