Universal Studios

[BA Hogwild]

Ive been to Disney World but never to Universal Studios. Im taking the family and was wondering what rides u guys like. Any good eating places?  Going in June.

[jkelly107]

Gotta try the Dueling Dragons very smooth double loop rode it 4 times spiderman was cool to. We all liked Universal better than Disney and the only place I really remember was the Knights dinner show kinda like the Dixie Stampede in Branson. Be safe and have fun

[HognotinMemphis]

Do all the rides. They are all great.

[Tomhog™]

I loved the King Kong ride and the Back to the Future Ride.  Men in Black was interactive and quite awesome.  Come to think of it, the Twister 'ride' was cool too!

[peakhog]

Bubba Gump Shrimp!!

[moley_russells_wart_hog]

 the one my son made me was was dr doom,
if you go on the spiderman ride try to get in the 1st row

[jorgito]

We just back. The Spider-Man ride is awesome. You can do both parks in 1 day. They are not as large as Disney. If you have older kids they will enjoy both parks.

[JDHogg]

Two parks there are 1) Universal and 2) Islands of adventure.

You will be there at the BUSIEST time so be prepared for BIG crowds especially leaving at night, hang onto those kids!!

The Islands park is more typical rides and Universal is more entertainment interaction.  If you like coasters, etc, go for Islands; if you prefer high tech, interactive go for Universal.  You can do both, but you will need to get the ultimate park pass to get through the lines in time.

My faves:  Spiderman, Hulk coaster, log ride, Dueling dragon coaster.
Also at Universal: Back to the future, Shrek.  Check out the shows like Fear Factor.

Source:  My family went June 2006.

[msudawgs64]

Do all the rides. They are all great.

agreed...

[94 Hawg]

don't miss the mummy ride, fantastic theming and a heck of a roller coaster to boot.

[Lando Calrissian]

Crap, how did I miss this thread.

There are two Universal parks:  Universal Studios and Universal Studios: Islands of Adventure.

I don't know if you are planning on going to both, but if I had to pick one, it would be Islands of Adventure by a long shot.

The Universal Studios park is a bit antiquated.  There are still some nice ride there, but they do not compare to the stuff at Islands of Adventure.

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Give me a bit more information on what you want to know, and I will divulge all.  My grandparents used to live about an hour south of Orlando, so I had about a decade of "Orlando theme park" training.

[BA Hogwild]

Crap, how did I miss this thread.

There are two Universal parks:  Universal Studios and Universal Studios: Islands of Adventure.

I don't know if you are planning on going to both, but if I had to pick one, it would be Islands of Adventure by a long shot.

The Universal Studios park is a bit antiquated.  There are still some nice ride there, but they do not compare to the stuff at Islands of Adventure.

---------------------------------

Give me a bit more information on what you want to know, and I will divulge all.  My grandparents used to live about an hour south of Orlando, so I had about a decade of "Orlando theme park" training.

Thanks. Im taking my 2 boys. They are 6 and 4. I know they are a bit young but we will have plenty to do. Im also going to take them to Sea World and over to Animal Kingdom. We will be busy enough for them. I wanted to go sooner but job and school wouldnt let me. Im thinking about taking them to Medievel Times also. Any good rides for the kidos i need to hit first would be helpful. Thanks again

[PIGINAPOKE]

The Flat Wallet ride gets me all the time. I still have it after my trip..A Flat Wallet. Kidding..I have been to the one in L.A.  Great times.. Skip  Med Times, Really, A Cornish game hen dinner and two guys jousting is a waste..Spend the cash elsewhere..Enjoy the trip, The kids and you will love it!! Be safe.

[Seconds]

I'm going to Disney and Universal with the family for the first time the second week of June. I don't think this week would've worked very well for us at Disney . Learned some good info from everyone's posts. Thanks a lot. And pay no mind to that ramblin' red dirt rastabout named POKE!

[Lando Calrissian]

Crap, how did I miss this thread.

There are two Universal parks:  Universal Studios and Universal Studios: Islands of Adventure.

I don't know if you are planning on going to both, but if I had to pick one, it would be Islands of Adventure by a long shot.

The Universal Studios park is a bit antiquated.  There are still some nice ride there, but they do not compare to the stuff at Islands of Adventure.

---------------------------------

Give me a bit more information on what you want to know, and I will divulge all.  My grandparents used to live about an hour south of Orlando, so I had about a decade of "Orlando theme park" training.

Thanks. Im taking my 2 boys. They are 6 and 4. I know they are a bit young but we will have plenty to do. Im also going to take them to Sea World and over to Animal Kingdom. We will be busy enough for them. I wanted to go sooner but job and school wouldnt let me. Im thinking about taking them to Medievel Times also. Any good rides for the kidos i need to hit first would be helpful. Thanks again

At that age, I would recommend taking them to MGM studios over Universal Studios (or Universal Studios Islands of Adventure).

There is enough stuff, restaurants, rides, and otherwise, to keep you and your kids at that young age entertained there.

The Universal Studios parks are definetely aimed at teens/young adults, so if you're taking 6 & 4 year olds, I would wait a few before you go there (although the Universal parks are definete must-sees at some point).

As far as Disney goes, with kids that age, I would skip Epcot.

The Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and MGM Studios all would be perfect, though.

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The rides/attractions at the respective Disney Parks pretty much speak for themselves. 

Your kids, at that age, should be able to enjoy most, if not all, of them.

As far as recommendations, my favorite restaurants at all of the theme parks in Orlando are in MGM Studios.

[94 Hawg]

re: restaurants
Epcot has a great mexican restaurant just to the left of the lake (looks like a pyramid)

just outside of downtown disney there is a Chevy's tex mex (excellent food)
in downtown disney is a rainforest cafe, the kids will love it. make reservations or expect a loooong wait.

[HogNuttz]

Two suggestions:

1) Skip anything Disney and go to Sea World.  The crowd offsets anything special Disney has to offer because you will spend soooo much time in lines.  And Sea World is cheaper.

2) Buy my Orlando vacation from me.  There is another thread in the Travel and Vacations forum for it.

And a third nugget for free.  Buy the best and highest SPF sunblock you can find.