Don't compare: What do you LIKE about USF/IOA? About This Page:

[WillCAD]

In the thread below, Comparing US and WDW, a lot of folks compared the two destinations, and most of them had all positive things to say about Disney and mostly negative things about Universal.

But while I also think Disney is superior in a lot of ways to Uni, I also think there are some things that Uni is most definitely doing RIGHT, that I absolutely love about the Uni parks and resorts.

So, no comparisson, just tell me what things you LIKE about Universal. What do they do that's good customer service? What's smart business practice? What attractions can you simply not skip when in Orlando?

[karmic]

US/IOA is a must for us every trip. Our son is 15 and thinks most of the rides at Disney are too tame. He loves all the coasters and he, my DH and DD loved the Mummy! I think the movie sets are far superior at US compared to MGM. Shrek 4-D and Jimmy Neutron were lots of fun. We had front of the line access as we stayed at Hard Rock- What a perk! We have found both of the parks well themed, clean and friendly.

[WillCAD]

I'll start with the things I like about Universal:

I like that both Uni parks, CityWalk, and all three resorts are litterally walking distance from each other. Park hopping and visiting out-of-park restaurants was never so easy!

I'm a movie person; most of the attractions at USF are from movies that I dearly love, like Terminator, Back to the Future, the Mummy, Twister, Jaws, the late lamented Kognfrontation, and Shrek. Movie-themed attractions are my ultimate escape from reality.

I love the huge number of 'face' characters at the Uni parks. Spider-Man, Lucile Ball, the Marx Brothers, and of course the Blues Brothers, are all found regularly wandering the streets. I have run into John Hammond and Ian Malcolm in Jurassic Park and have seen the Blues Brothers perform many times.

I love the many specials that Uni has always run on admission. In the old days, there was a '2nd day free', now it's a '3rd day free', plus they have 5-consecutive day passes for the same price as the 2day passes, and Uni's AP price of $183 can't be beat. When I bought my Uni AP earlier this year, I also got a second year free. What a bargain!

Uni AP discounts are excellent; 15% at ALL the restaurants, 20% off merchandise, and even 10% and 15% off park passes for your friends who don't have APs.

Front-of-Line access for on-site Guests is the best.

Uni has Velda chocolate milk!

[RobDVC]

I think the front-of-the-line feature for resort guests is their "can't be topped" feature.
I love the proximity to each other the parks have, and also like how things are laid out in the two parks.
Don't like how it seemed that rides would break down an awful lot (Kong & JAWS especially). The parks are definitely geared more towards thrill-seekers, which is a great benefit for those families that have children in different age ranges.

[LisaJ]

Wow, WillCAD, I'm ready to go to USF/IOA!

I've never been, and it sounds as if they ARE doing some things right.

You really have to love all of the ticket prices and perks that you mentioned. Now that's some good value for your money spent!

[Skatetigger]

I just went for the first time to USF/IOA this past October. Dh2b really likes these parks and wanted to go in addition to our Disney portion. So anyway we stayed at HRH and loved it.

I totally agree that having everything within a reasonable walking distance is great. It does make it much easier to Park Hop and go back to your room for naps/swimming.

I loved the Men in Black Ride, went on it like 5 times. Liked ET, loved the Dudley Do Right Ripsaw falls got soaked. Loved Shrek, Jimmy Neutron and Spiderman.

Skipped the coasters though as not my thing but DH2B likes them a lot.

I also loved having that Front of the line access. That's how we got to go on a bunch of rides more than once.

I really enjoyed eating at Tchop Chop at the Royal Pacific, and there is a great restaurant called the Kitchen at the Hard Rock Hotel. And of course Emack & Bolio's at HRH, awesome ice cream.

Although I don't drink Alcohol, it was nice to see that you could get it very easily at the parks if you want it.

Overall I think it's a great place. We are definitely going back on our next trip. Dh2b has to ride the Mummy now that it's open

[goofy4goofy]

The Spiderman ride was one of the best rides I've ever been on in my life.

Margaritaville. LOVE that place.

Kelly

[BabieeMelly]

I absolutely LOVE Islands of Adventure! I've never been to Universal Studios (we're going to go next year, in July), but from the video and pictures I've seen it looks unbelievable. Islands of Adventure was truly AMAZING when I went in 2001. The rides are top-notch, first-class attractions, both full of over-the-top thrills and amazing theming. Disney may be first in Orlando for customer service and overall theming, but if you come to Orlando you can't miss Universal! Even the restaurants are great - great food, great prices and great theming! You have to give Universal a try, you may even find you like it better than Disney...

[DisneyFanatic]

I think Revenge of the Mummy, Men in Black, ET, and Spiderman are all FANTASTIC rides. Universal is always a must for us. This year I am taking my bf to Universal for his first time

[TracyA]

What does the spiderman ride do exactly? I don't like anything that spins a lot.

[AmyAngel]

I keep wishing they'd move Hulk, Dueling Dragons and Spiderman over to WDW. (I know, different companies...)

Spiderman is the best ride anywhere ever, and I like the rest of IOA, too. I love Hulk and Dueling Dragons, and the theming for the line into Dueling Dragons is great! I like all the Hobgoblin stuff in the store outside Spiderman (even though the cashier said it was Green Goblin, and that the walkaround character of Hobgoblin signed as Green Goblin. What?!? Hobgoblin has no GREEN on him! And this was before the movie came out! That's like Sleepy signing autographs as Dopey! I'm not that big of a Spidey fan but I know my goblins!)

Didn't like US at ALL, hated it in fact, but may have to try again some time to do Mummy and Shrek--those can't help but be good! I think we got the worst aspiring actress ever running our ride on Jaws, though, and the other rides weren't any better. The employees can really make or break those kind of rides.

I haven't been to Universal's Halloween Horror Nights, but I know I would love it. The creepier the Halloween stuff the better. I like MNSSHP, but cutesy Halloween stuff bothers me. Make it scary, please.

[greystone98]

I'm sure I won't do it justice, but there are just too many things we love about US and IOA to list here. A brief recap... we also love movies and US does many of them so well - Twister, Men in Black (makes Buzz Lightyear look like Mattel), T2, Shrek 4D, JAWS, Earthquake... We also love the Beetlejuice show and especially when Beetlejuice joins the Ghostbusters in the streets of NYC.



There's a whole park section at US just for kids, (including ET, a coaster, playground, etc.), a simulator ride (Back to the Future), the Mummy ride, and plenty of other attractions to keep you entertained. And your kids will love participating in the Nickelodeon studio show where it's Kids Vs. Adults and seeing the Slime machine.



CityWalk has some of the best restaurants and there's always some form of outdoor entertainment going on, from concerts to acrobats to jugglers to comedians, etc.



IOA has what was rated the #1 USA attraction two years ago... Spiderman (upsetting the previous winner, T2). It's part simulator, part 3D, and very exciting. Cat in the Hat is cute, but may spin a few too many times for those prone to motion sickness. The Jurassic section is amazing and the kids and I rode the Flying Unicorn over and over (similar to the Barnstormer). We're not really into the more thrilling rides like Hulk and Dueling Dragons but DS enjoyed the drop ride (whose name I've forgotten).



Characters abound at both parks, from Fred and Wilma to Popeye and Olive Oyl to Spiderman and the other heroes to the Grinch to Shrek and Princess Fiona, characters from various movies (the Professor from Back to the Future can often be found riding his bicycle around the streets) and the list goes on.



Finally, the RP resort has been a favorite for the last few trips. The theming is awesome, great food, beautiful accommodations, extremely convenient. You can register online for the Lowes Hotels rewards program and at check-in decide which reward works best for you. It was a pleasant surprise to walk in the room after a full day in the parks and have a huge bowl of mixed nuts and several beers chilling waiting on DH and I.



Obviously the best perk to staying at a Univ resort is the front of the line access. If you've not experienced this, it's hard to imagine the difference and how spoiled you will become to the oh so short waits.



Can you love Universal and still love Disney? Absolutely. There is so much to appreciate at both.

[pmlskr]

Great idea WillCAd!!



We have recently become US/IOA converts.



My DH and 2 DS love the rides. They enjoy thrill rides. They rode the Mummy, Ripsawfalls, Bilge Rat many times. As a family we enjoyed everything at Universal, our favoirtes were Jimmy Nuetron, MIB, Earthquake etc.



The other thing we truly loved about US/IOA is the resorts. We stayed at Portifino Bay, it was awesome. The variety of restuarants overwhelming. I will second the trip to Margaritaville is truly a Parrothead must do. My DH loved that fact that he could get a beer in the park at Finnigans. Mythos, IOA, was a unique dinning attraction.



I can't say enough about the resort FOTL priviledges. On our first day there we were able to ride everything we wanted to with less than 10min from entering queing area to exiting ride.



I firmly believe that one can love Disney and US/IOA equally. We will be spending a few nights here after every trip to WDW. The two can't be compared.



Pam



Besides, PBH has far better coffee, and everyone says "Cioa"!



PS: I forgot to add, that we were upgrade to a deluxe view room, asked if we wanted our room key, at 7:30 am, so that we could relax and unpack before going into the parks, which opened at 9 am. They had a problem processing our debit card, turned out they had the wrong exp. date, they let us check in anyways, and just said that they would try and contact the card issuer. I did solve the situtation. They went to encoded and print the keys, but the machine was down. So the CM, gave us passes for 2 Adult breakfasts on the hotel, which we had already planned to do.



While we were down at the Trottoria Del Porto, the CM and her trainee bought us our keys, including 2 extra for the boys printed with their favorite characters names. They asked us to just come back up to the front desk and they would have bellservices ready to help us with out bags and escort us to our room.



We ordered a ride picture from MIB, it never showed up when it was suppose to. So their Star Services, informed us that they would mail to us, or refund our money, they just needed a copy of the receipt, because they had all the info due to the fact it was charged back to the room. They track to picture down, it turned out it was never sent for hotel delivery. So they had a staff member go to the park to pick it up and deliver it to our room before we checked out. This was fantastic, and helped to firm up our love for US/IOA.

[DrDolphin]

Cheryl and I made our first trip to IOA back in May. If you are a thrill seeker - this is the place for you. We went on a MOnday morning - which was a really good idea. We walked on to the Hulk - love that coaster!!! We also really enjoyed the Jurassic Park ride and Dueling Dragons. If I feel the need for a Roller Coaster fix - IOA will cure it!!

[StephanieS]

I love US/IOA. I've stayed at the HRH 3 times for the FOTL privalidges, which are awesome. My favorite rides are Men in Black, ET and Spiderman.

WillCad-- Have you been on the new Mummy ride yet? We rode it 3 or 4 times this past May during soft openings. -Stephanie