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Universal Studios Florida

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willow
First Reviewer
4 out of 5
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98
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Editor Pick

Universal Studios

  • June 30, 2006
  • Rated 5 of 5 by frehley77369 from Mount Juliet, Tennessee
This is definitely the park the whole family can enjoy. It has big and small rides, movies, shows, superb special effects, and good deals on food packages.

The Mummy ride is possibly the most ingenious rollercoaster ride there is. I won't spoil it for you.

Shrek 4D is possibly the best 4D show at any park. I've been to all the big parks and have seen all of the 4D movies, so I can honestly say that it's my favorite.

The BeetleJuice show was actually funny and entertaining, not lame whatsoever.

The food was great, but I had to buy 3 meal deals for my family of 5. I'd get the first 3 plates for free then immediately go back in the line with my oldest son and get 2 more plates. It cost $50 for my family to eat and drink all day long (free refill cup is a must). The highlight of our Orlando trip.

From journal Disney

Editor Pick

Universal Studios Escape: Islands of Adventure

  • April 19, 2006
  • Rated 5 of 5 by bigbertha8067 from Lafayette, Louisiana
Universal Studios Escape: Islands of Adventure

With the addition of this theme park, Universal Studios is no longer just a one-day visit, but is rather a vacation destination of its own. This theme park is innovative, modern, wonderfully themed, and well worth a visit. Give yourself an entire day to spend at this delightful vacation spot. The earlier you get there the better. They often allow guests to enter the park much sooner than official opening time. Take advantage of this opportunity!

Much like Disney's Magic Kingdom, the park features several themed lands surrounding a central hub. Undoubtedly the first land to hit is Marvel Super Hero Island. First, get your morning started right by doing the Incredible Hulk Coaster. Be aware that this ride, as well as several others requires you to stash any and all bags in nearby lockers. Next, do the Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man. No other theme park has any ride quite like this. Do NOT waste your precious time on Dr. Doom's Fearfall. It is as slow as molasses and the ride experience is a joke. The tower propels you upward quickly, but merely dangles you around for a bit without ever actually dropping you.

There are some fantastic water rides here that, in my opinion, far surpass those at Disney World. Jurassic Park River Adventure allows you to encounter dinosaurs and at the end escape them by taking an 85-foot water plunge. Dudley Do Right's Ripsaw Falls is my favorite. This log flume ride has two water drops. Although the drops aren't as long as Jurassic Park's, the boats are significantly smaller making the drops seem much more intense. Finally, Popeye and Bluto's Bilge-Rat Barges gets you soaked to the core as you travel in your large circular rafts. These are all great fun, but will leave you soaked! Be prepared and try to wait until the hotter part of the day to experience these.

My favorite land is The Lost Continent. The theming is impeccable. This land combines castles, dragons, bazaars, caves, gods, and ancient civilizations. My favorite ride of the park, Dueling Dragons, is housed here. This ride is actually two suspended coasters that "battle" and come within inches of each other on three separate occasions. Both coasters are great. To me, the Ice coaster is jerkier with more twists and inversions. I think I preferred the faster-feeling Fire coaster. You can't ride one without the other. In fact, after you unload one, you are allowed to take a shortcut and board the next one without waiting in long lines.

The final land is Seuss Landing. The architecture and atmosphere here are superb. The rides, shops, and eateries are great fun. You can even have an authentic Green Eggs and Ham sandwich! Beware though, this land has very little shade and becomes unbearably hot.

I highly recommend this park! It has something for everyone. Thrillseekers will enjoy many of the rides and those who prefer tamer experiences will be enchanted by the theming, shops, and eateries.

From journal Disney World

Editor Pick

Universal Studios

  • March 12, 2006
  • Rated 4 of 5 by bigbertha8067 from Lafayette, Louisiana
Come "ride the movies" at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. This theme park is great fun and well worth a visit. People often wonder how this theme park differs in comparison to Disney. In my opinion, while great, this theme park lacks that distinct magical feeling that only Disney can give. The plus, however, is that this park is so much more manageable. There is a lot less walking and the crowds are much smaller.

For our day at Universal, we arrived very early. This proved to be well worth our while. Oftentimes the theme park will let you in much earlier than its posted time. In our experience, they let us in 30 minutes before the official time. This is an amazing experience! The park feels as if it is deserted for a while and you can walk onto any attraction without absolutely no wait. Here is an account of the attractions we did in order. I highly recommend following a very similar pattern since we experienced little to no wait the entire day.

First, hit the Revenge of the Mummy Coaster. This is a fairly new addition to the park. It is a thrilling indoor coaster themed to the Mummy films. It packs quite a punch but does not go upside down and is relatively tame in comparison to other coasters. Next, we visited Men in Black. This is like being placed in the middle of a video game. You and five other guests shoot aliens with laser guns to earn points. I consider this to be the best attraction in the park. Each time you ride, the experience is different. The Back to the Future simulator was next followed by Jaws. I considered the Jaws ride to be quite outdated and cheesy, and I would certainly skip it if you are running short on time. Next, we saw Shrek 4-D and did the Jimmy Neutron simulator. Both are great attractions for kids. We did ET next. Later, we hit Earthquake, which is a combination of movie making insight and a quick ride on a subway experiencing a mock earthquake. Finally, we did Twister: Ride it Out. This was a great disappointment. We actually had to wait in a bit of a line for this, when all you do is stand in a room and experience some rainfall and winds.

Throughout the day, we also managed to catch some shows. I highly recommend the Animal Planet Live show and the Horror Makeup Show. Fear Factor Live is mediocre and Beetlejuice's Graveyard Revue is torture.

Universal is great fun and can easily be done in a day or less. My biggest tip would be to get there very early to beat the crowds! Also, try not to bring too much stuff with you. Many of the attractions will not allow you to carry anything on, so you must place your things in a locker before riding.

From journal Disney World

Universal Studios Florida

  • March 6, 2006
  • Rated 4 of 5 by Milja from Waterloo, Ontario
Universal Studios Florida

Universal Studios is a great park—we spent 2 of our 4 days at this park. One great thing is that the height restrictions are pretty low, the kids can go on most rides, indlucing our 2-year-old who loved the Woody Woodpecker roller coaster, Jaws, and Earthquake. The adult rides are good, but those at Islands of Adventure are better. One thing we really appreciated was the decent prices in the parks. Food was excellent—a great variety of really delicious food, and at a really good price. An adult could eat for $7 or $8 and be very full.

From journal Orlando in February

Universal Studios Orlando & Islands of Adventure

  • February 28, 2006
  • Rated 5 of 5 by izrobertson from Ridgewood, New York
Universal Studios Orlando & Islands of Adventure

I think that for adults, Universal is better than Disney. It has many more rides, and Citywalk makes it a party atmosphere. You can do both parks in one day, but I suggest getting a 2 day, 2 park ticket, so that you can do everything. Citywalk is totally cool. You have your choice of restaurants to satisfy even the pickiest eater. At night, the place comes alive, with glow in the dark drinks, dancing at the clubs, and live performances from popular bands. There is also a huge movie theater. I love Universal! Another good thing about staying at a Universal hotel is that you can walk from your hotel to the park, there is no need to get back in the car.

From journal Orlando - January 2006

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