Our Universal Resorts Florida Experience

 We recently went on an epic family holiday vacation to Orlando, Florida. I have several posts to write covering our trip. Here is the first one dedicated to Universal Resorts Florida. Thank you for reading!

Hearing about the newly built Diagon Alley over at Universal Florida caused quite a bit of a stir for my avid Harry Potter fans–which not only includes my two young sons, but their Dad as well. Back in July 2014, we decided, okay, let’s plan a Christmas Holiday vacation to Orlando! Our main focus would be of course, Universal Resorts which includes Universal Studios & Islands of Adventure…two separate theme parks connected by a large shopping area they named City Walk, a shared parking structure & now, for the first time, a train system connecting the two Harry Potter worlds–Diagon Alley & Hogsmeade–in an appropriately named transportation, The Hogwarts Express.

Hogwarts Express Platform 9 & 3/4

 I guess I can’t really go any further in talking about our experience at the two theme parks without going ahead & describing Hogwarts Express first.  It is disguised as mere transportation between the two parks but what it really is, is an experience. Without giving too much away–because really, nothing is better than checking it out first-hand with minimum spoilers–the experience begins in the line while waiting to board the train. I recommend entering Universal Studios first, and taking the train there to Hogsmeade. Remember, you must get some kind of flex pass or pay for the two parks in order to board the train.  If you’ve watched the movies, you know that the platform & the train are hidden from muggle (the mere mortal) eyes. A wizard must simply find the correct special platform (9& 3/4) and run into a solid wall. Sounds great & is easily accomplished in the movies with some fabulous special effects. Universal has managed to create a way for us park goers and avid fans to somehow participate in this experience. If you have little ones (or not so little ones–like maybe a childlike husband) get your video cameras ready so you can capture this magical experience on film. The train itself entertains you with adventures through London. After all, anything can happen in the wizarding world–the weather can be ominous, evil may be lurking behind a tree, wizards may be flying on broomsticks–I mean, I don’t know….like I said, anything can happen.

 Now, let me address Diagon Alley & Hogsmeade themselves. I have to commend the creative team at Universal for their obvious hard work in making the Harry Potter world come to life. If you’re inclined to, grab yourself a wand (they start at about 40$, but don’t hunt me down if they raise the prices) at Ollivanders and walk around several interactive stations to cast spells. Magic is everywhere.

Does that book have teeth? Yikes! Have your wands ready & cast those spells.

There are also plenty of things to entice you to spend money. The shops sell Hogwarts robes for a little (or maybe a lot) over $100.00, they sell house identifying beanies, scarves, gloves as well as a wide array of coffee mugs and the usual lot of souvenirs like key chains & magnets. But they also sell special Wizarding World candy like the famously sought after “Every Flavored Beans” or “The Chocolate Frog” among many other varieties. There are plenty of options for amazing souvenirs to burn a hole in your pocketbook. But what I recommend you absolutely must try is the very delicious varieties of Butterbeer which comes in the form of a regular hot or cold drink, a frozen drink & ice cream. We tried the frozen and the ice cream and absolutely loved them both. It is very sweet and I don’t even want to know how many calories it may contain (if you’re interested, look that up yourself, because I don’t want to know.) They also have pumpkin juice which, in my opinion is just a glorified apple juice & not particularly tasty, but they come in these cute bottles with pumpkin tops that my boys & husband felt they “needed” to have. I’m not a fan of how overpriced it is (I almost choked on the drink when I realized we paid about 8$ a bottle), but sometimes you just have to suck up the complaint in the name of vacation fun.

Pumpkin Juice and Butterbeer. Must-tries. Although beware of the prices.

 Along with all these treats, there are also ride attractions.

What? Is that a dragon? Yes!! And it breathes fire! Don't get too close!

Inside Gringotts Bank are many goblins. 

In Diagon Alley they have a ride called “Escape from Gringotts” which takes place in a Wizarding bank run by goblins. The line to get to the ride is a feast for the eyes because of the magical decorations, the detailed architectular designs and the animatronic goblins that run the bank. The ride itself is filled with nostalgia for the book & movie fans since it features a few of the most beloved Harry Potter characters. It’s an adventure filled ride and 3D glasses are provided. The main visual attraction is a giant fire breathing dragon on top of Gringotts bank…wait for it…it’s awesome & you can really feel the heat it breathes out.  Over at Hogsmeade, there’s “Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey” which is an adventure ride, “The Dragon Challenge” which is their grown-up roller coaster offering, and “Flight of the Hippogriff” which is the roller coaster offering for the younger or less adventurous set. There are also live shows on the outside stages in both areas.

One of the few stage show performances they present.

If you’re fans of the books and movies, the performances are very entertaining so make sure you check for showtimes.  There are themed restaurants, “Leaky Cualdron” at Diagon Alley & “The Three Broomsticks” in Hogsmeade. Both restaurants offer British style dining–fish & chips, beef stew etc.  It is amusement park food so the portions are not huge & the prices are high. Again, the experience is factored into the price (at least that’s what I try to convince my frugal self so she won’t throw a tantrum right there in the dining area–that would just be embarrassing).

Our youngest was qualified to go on every ride to the delight of his Dad.

 And yes, there is the rest of the park to cover too. Universal Studios offers much more calmer rides such as an ET ride, Transformers, and a Minion Ride. They also have show-type attractions like Twister & Terminator and a Shrek Show.

My tired legs needed to take a breather so this Simpson character kept me company.

They do have a roller coaster called Hollywood Rip Ride Rocket which from the looks of it is very intimidating, but according to my guys (who are adrenaline/roller coaster junkies) it’s pretty tame. I’m not a big fan of super roller coasters so I went with my own instinct and judgement & refused to go on the ride. Risk taker I am not. The Mummy Ride falls under their mediocre roller coaster offering. It has some pyro special effects & it can get pretty hot (which was a big complaint for my 9 year old because he doesn’t like being hot at all). But it’s entertaining & a big favorite with The Husband who rode on it as many times as he could–short-ish line, there he went!  Other attractions include a Men in Black ride and a whole section devoted to The Simpsons. At the time we were there, right smack dab in the middle of Holiday Season, there were parades going on periodically throughout the day. I didn’t actually get to sit & watch one, but it looked lively & entertaining–big floats & dancing characters.

 Moving on to Islands of Adventure, this theme park offers more satisfaction for the adrenaline seeking crowd–no surprise that my three guys love this Park. It’s separated into themed sections–”Islands”–offering entertainment, rides, shopping & food dedicated to said themes. Marvel has a whole section with the most intimidating looking ride, “The Incredible Hulk” & no, I did not partake. Seeing it & hearing the loud tracks along with the screams are enough to give me a panic attack. Ok, maybe not, but like I said, find me nice bench and my trusty Kindle & I’ll wait for my Crew.

The Incredible Hulk--loops and speed. My 9 & 11 year old, lead by their Dad, couldn't get enough. On a busy day, check back later in the day for possibly shorter lines.

 Along with other adventurous rides like Spiderman and Doom Fall, there are also visually stunning large pieces of art depicting Marvel Super Heroes. You can & should spend some time just taking pictures. There are also live characters who come out and take pictures with guests. We saw XMen characters such as Storm, Cyclops, and Wolverine along with Spiderman on motorcyles after a picture taking or autograph signing (I don’t get that, but to each their own) session. They look pretty cool and would make a great addiction to your Travel Scrapbook.

And the Oscar goes to...

There is also a comic book section called “Toon Lagoon” that is great for picture taking. There are big thought bubbles you can stand underneath of & make funny postings on your Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. I mean, social networking is the constant chase for the unique picture (well at least it should be).   Overall, this area needs a bit of an overhaul. It’s outdated and the younger set can’t relate to the old-time characters. Heck, even I don’t know some of the characters. There are a few water rides in this area as well. My guys report that they are not too rough (since I didn’t go on them myself), but there gauge on “scary” and “not scary” is different from mine (but they’re adrenaline junkies, and I’m a chicken–wait, let me find a better word, gentle seeker, yeah…that sounds better.)

I mean...really? They may need to share an Oscar with their Dad.

Jurassic Park, named from the motion picture movie, is another themed section. The main attraction here is a River Adventure ride with the disclaimer “you may get wet”. But wait, cross out the “may” and replace it with “definitely”. And depending on where you are seated on the boat, you may even be soaked. That means your clothes could end up dripping with water. How do I know this? Yeah…you guessed it, front row, soaking wet. There’s a finale drop in the end that is the culprit for all the water chaos. We went early in the day though & luckily with the hot weather I was able to dry towards the end of day. I did go into the restroom and ring out my pants though to help the drying process along. Geez, this blog thing is really allowing me to reveal more than I would ever consider. The ride itself is very entertaining though and unless you’re absolutely against the drop at the end or getting wet, allow yourself the experience at least once. A change of clothes or a poncho can easily alleviate the worry about walking around the rest of the park wet.

There aren't many places you could find a hysterically laughing child being fed to a T-Rex.

Another ride that sticks out in my mind is a Flying ride which involves two riders, one small (there’s a maximum height requirement) and a larger person. If you don’t have a smaller person with you, unfortunately, you will not be able to ride this ride. The husband was thrilled that our 9 year old still qualified for the younger rider and aptly designated him “the passport”.  Surrounding this ride is a great play area we escaped to when the rest of the park was too crowded to maneuver through. Word of warning though, there are water gun areas and even though I told the boys not to get wet, they managed to “accidentally” get soaked. Biggest advice I can give mothers on vacation–don’t sweat the small stuff. Just sigh, shake your head, and let them carry on. There are also great picture spots in this area. Take advantage of them and try to take creative pictures.

 The Lost Continent is another area focusing on Poseidon. There’s a couple of shows you can check out in this area and additional picture spots.

Cute ride. Follow directions so you don't get wet...maybe.

 Seuss Land is another area that’s a feast for the eyes. It is decorated by the strange & quirky characters of the Seuss books. There is a Train Trolley ride (it overlooks the area and I wish it would go a bit slower since I wanted to savor the sights more), a Cat in the Hat ride featuring Thing 1 and Thing 2, and a circling Fish ride (there’s a bit of a twist & surprise in this one). During the Christmas holidays they present a stage musical production of Grinchmas, the musical.

 It’s a fantastic show featuring great music and a colorful set. I enjoy it so much & was disappointed to hear that they don’t have an equivalent production on my side of the world at Universal Hollywood. There’s always hope that may change.

 And I can’t neglect to mention the Port of Entry area where there are additional food options and souvenir gift shops.

I asked the Husband for a grumpy face & that's what he gave me. That's about as grumpy as he gets, I guess. And I love my 9 year old's happy face. ♥

And probably the most unpleasant information to share is the daily parking fee of $17.00 (please remember this was at the end of 2014-beginning of 2015), but the good thing is that you are directed to a nice parking structure (where you cross your fingers you don’t end up at the top where you don’t get shade cover–I think  this only happened to us once and it was an overcast day so it wasn’t too bad). Once you exit your car, follow the crowds or the signs to a long (and I mean long) walkway towards City Walk and the two theme parks. The walking doesn’t lessen as the day goes, so make sure you wear very comfortable shoes.

 If you have an American Express (AMEX) card, you get additional perk discounts–if you spend $50 or more, you receive 10% discount on merchandise and food, and 15% off the same stuff if you spend $70.00 or more. Since I have an AMEX card, I was able to take advantage of these discounts. It might not seem like much but it all adds up since everything is fairly pricey.

 I can’t fail to mention our choice for favorite eating spot inside Universal Studios. It’s called Cafe La Bamba and it’s tucked in an unassuming spot at Universal (consult a park map) so it doesn’t seem to get as crowded as all the other eateries inside the park. They offer Roasted Chicken, burritos, tacos, ribs and salad options. The prices are reasonable with some menu items under $10 with most between 11$-17$. You order at the counter but workers clean up your table. I even tried to throw away my own trash but they didn’t have trash cans available to me. A kind worker told me, “Just leave it all there. We’ll get it”. Nice.

What fabulous memories Universal Resorts gave my family and I. I learned a lot of things about us on this visit. I learned that my legs are a lot stronger than I give them credit for. But I have to give a shout out to my Skechers with Memory Foam. Seriously, I don’t know how my feet could’ve survived without them. I learned that the Husband is an amusement park beast who has endless energy. And I learned that I get very mean & cranky when I’m super tired and I’m a lot less of a night person when I’ve been on my feet all day. And I learned that no matter how tired I feel the night before, when I wake up in the morning & absorb the joyous energy of The Husband and the boys that I can summon the energy for yet another day of walking and standing–and have loads of fun!

 See you again someday, Universal Resorts Florida! XOXO