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[maslex]

We'll be heading to Disney in July of this year. We do have a one day/two park hopper ticket to Universal. We will be going to Universal first thing in the morning and having a late lunch/early dinner around 3pm at Hard Rock Cafe. We then have tickets to see the Blue Man Group at 6pm. I'm just wondering if it's even worth it to jump over to IOA after the show (which I think is like an hour and a half) From looking at their time schedules, I think the park closes at 11pm. I don't plan on doing everything at both parks but I would like to see a few of the main attractions. We will be 4 adults and 3 boys ages 10-11-11. Just wondering if this is possible or wishful thinking.

[iamgrumpy]

i think myself personally would be too tired to do all 3 things in one day but its probably doable if you are up to it.

[BarryH]

Here's how I see it...

Your Hard Rock meal will probably take 1 to 1 1/2 hours, depending on how busy they are and how fast or slow you eat. Then you have to enter IOA and you might be able to do a ride (maybe 2 if the lines are short). More than likely, you'll probably be riding something in MSHI or Seuss Landing since they are the closest to the entrance. Then you have to head over to the Blue Man Group entrance. You'll probably want to arrive at least 30 minutes before showtime to get refreshments, use the bathroom, find your seat, etc. You might be able to do IOA after the show, but I would suggest doing USF. The Blue Man Group theater is right next to USF. You might be able to do a few rides and watch Universal 360.

I would recommend hanging around Citywalk and browsing through the shops if you have time between HRC and Blue Man Group.

[BostonTeaParty]

I think it's possible, and the boys would probably love it- depending on how much energy you use up at US in the morning. At the very least you could take a walk around and check the place out- maybe even grab a quick bite after the BMG show. At the very least you could jump on Spiderman. It's a fantastic ride, and not that far into the park. It sounds like you have a fun day planned, whatever you decide to do.

[maslex]

Okay, I haven't been to Universal in about 6yrs and never been to IOA. So here is what we'd LIKE to do in both parks. Would some Universal expert be able to tell me the best possible way to see both parks? Meaning, which one should we do first? Don't forget we're eating at HRC around 3p and the BMG at 6pm.
(I'm assuming I'm choosing all rides that need an express pass of some sort or a huge wait in line, correct?)
IOA
Ripshaw Falls
Bilge-Rat Barges
JP River Adventures
Sinbad Stunt Show
Dueling Dragons
Flying Unicorn
Spider Man
Storm Force
Hulk Coaster

Universal
Shrek
Jimmy Neutron
Mummy
Twister
Terminator
Men in Black
Jaw
Beetlejuice
Earthquake

Now, I realize that we won't be able to see everything on that list but I just thought I would let you know what we would be interested in and if someone could give me an idea of what is possible to see in one day. And really not even a full day if you consider HFC and BMG. I was thinking of maybe going to IOA first and doing what we can from opening until 3pm, then go to BMG then hop over to Universal and do whatever we can from about 7:30 to closing (which is 11, right)?

Any suggestions?

[coffeechef]

We did IOA & USF on the same day in December. The Parks were open from 9an -6pm. we did many rides more than once. Like ripsaw falls We did it like 4 times. We had counter service for lunch. We started a IOA with the The Hulk , then Spider man, RIpsaw Falls, working are way around the park. The one we waited for the longest was the Suess train ( 15 minutes), everything else was a walk on. Then we wet over to USF around 1 pm ish. We started with ET & worked our way around doing several attravctions more than once, Did Mummy like 5 times. PArks were very slow & most everything was a walk on or maybe 5 minutes. Start on one end & work your way around. It was just two of traveling , myself & 14 yr old nephew. The Thriller rides had the shortest lines. The Lines that young kids could do had the longest. I would imagine its very busy in the Summer & the Queue line sizes we saw were not wishful thinking on Universals part. We commented on how long the queue staging area were for some rides. I think you can make a dent in in both Parks. Maybe pick out the must do. How adventurous are the boys. I know when my nephews were in that age group only one of them would do every ride. One would have been limited to...... well .... a couple rides at Universal & probably Suesslanding. One would have done no coasters. Make sure the kids meet the height requirements too.
I would say at Universal you might get in 4 or 5 of your choices. If you get there at opening you should be able to do all the ones at you chose at IOA but it will be tight. If its really busy that day it will be tough.

Good luck & have fun... It was good diversion for us to go there in December. Hopefully domeone who has gone in the Summer can help you out with crowd issues in the Summer

[Ace]

If you're going in July, the parks close at 10pm. On a 1 day/2park ticket, I'd start at USF and hit Jimmy Neurton, the Shrek, the Mummy, Jaws, MIB, ET, & Terminator. Check the times for Horror Makeup to see if you can catch it quickly in between rides.

Over at IOA, hit the Hulk, then Spider-Man, bypass Toon Lagoon because you'll be soaked for the day. Next up Jurassic Park River Adventure, Dueling Dragons, maybe Flying Unicorn, and if you're still up to Seuss, try Cat in the Hat. AVOID Pteranodon Flyers. The line will be way too long and not worth it.

The express pass will help A LOT come July. If you're not coaster people, you can elimiate The Hulk, The Mummmy, and Dueling Dragons. Flying Unicorn is a great starter coaster. If you ARE coaster fans, cut Flying Unicorn since it's more of a kid's coaster.

I've added most things in, because it can be done. You'll be exhusted, since you must get it all in before 6pm showtime. We've been able to do ALL of USF and part of IOA in one day with an express pass in early June. We actually rode Spider-Man 3 Times, Jaws twice, MIB 3 times, and Jimmy Neutron twice, all by closing. We were exhausted and crashed afterwards.

[GoofyMom]

I've never been there in July, so I can't help you with whether it's doable due to crowds and stuff, but I have a couple of tips. Get Express Passes. And arrive early. Before the parks are due to open. More than once I've been through the gates and strapped into a ride before the official opening time.

[Shell_of_the_South]

We've been twice in July, and the best advice I have is get there early. For some reason Universal visitors tend to be lazier and arrive at the parks later, or at least that has been our experience. At US I would walk straight to the back of the park and hit MIB first and work your way back towards the front. Unless Shrek is your main desire, you might want to see him first.

[SHEANA1226]

If you have the energy and time I say go for it. Spiderman and The Hulk are not to be missed! We loved IOA!

[BarryH]

Originally Posted by maslex

IOA
Ripshaw Falls
Bilge-Rat Barges
JP River Adventures
Sinbad Stunt Show
Dueling Dragons
Flying Unicorn
Spider Man
Storm Force
Hulk Coaster

Universal
Shrek
Jimmy Neutron
Mummy
Twister
Terminator
Men in Black
Jaw
Beetlejuice
Earthquake

If you're going in July, I would do 1 day each at IOA and USF. I'd recommend arriving about 45 minutes before opening and do these rides in this order as soon as the gates open:

IOA:
Spider-Man
Hulk
Dueling Dragons
Flying Unicorn
Jurasisc Park River Adventure
Ripsaw Falls
Bildge-Raft Barges
Storm Force Accelatron
Sinbad show

Spider-Man and Hulk's line get long pretty fast, so try to hit these first thing. Do the water rides in the other of wetness (from least wet to most wet): JP River Adventure, Ripsaw Falls, Popeye's Bildge-Raft Barges. With your preferences, you'll probably hit the waters at around 10:30 or 11 am. By that time, it will start getting hot and you want to definitely cool down. Also, if you finish all the rides and make it back to Marvel Super Hero Island for Storm Force, see if the single rider lines for Spider-Man and Hulk are open. If they are open and it's around 11 am or so, you might be able to get on the rides with a short wait. The normal waits will be probably be approaching an hour for those rides.

Storm Force rarely has a long line. The longest line I've seen for it is 20 minutes. The Sinbad show will probably have a 11 am and 1 pm show. You can do lunch after your rides and then watch the show.

USF:
Jimmy Neutron
Mummy
Shrek
Jaws
Men in Black
Earhquake
Terminator 2: 3D
Twister
Beetlejuice

Jimmy Neutron and Mummy's lines get long quickly, so do these first. MIB's line can get long, but if you want to ride it again and the line is long, do the single riders line. You'll get on pretty quickly. Even during the busiest time, I've never seen a wait for Twister longer than 30 minutes. T2 and Earthquake can "eat" (or has a large capacity) a lot of people. The Beetlejuice shows will probably start at around 11 am and have another one around 1 pm. Have lunch before the show.

I don't think you'll need to buy the Express passes if you're doing 1 day for each park. However, if you want to do both parks in 1 day, but a 1 park Express pass for the park you'll hit in the afternoon. You can probably do IOA in the morning and USF in the afternoon. If you want to do this, buy only the Express passes for USF and save some $.

Have fun!