First ever Trip to Universal/Orlando February 1-8 2022!

[ClubsKing]

Hi Everyone!

February 1-8 2022 I'm finally getting to head down to Universal for a full 7 days staying at The Dockside! I am a complete newbie to Universal or any Orlando parks at all; yes that means I've never been to Disney either, don't hurt me lol. I'm a massive Harry Potter fan, so I always wanted to visit Universal. However, originally I was planning on splitting my trip between Universal and Disney, until I saw the prices at Disney. I just couldn't justify those prices to myself so Universal only this time! I'm heading down by myself so any tips, tricks or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

 

[macraven]

You will enjoy the Darkside !
Read up on some of the threads and check out the trip reports for Universal!

Your trip is at a good time period

 

[ClubsKing]

You will enjoy the Darkside !
Read up on some of the threads and check out the trip reports for Universal!

Your trip is at a good time period

Thank You, I will look at those threads!

The time period worked out well for me, I booked the room and the next day Universal announced Mardigras during my stay, I got very lucky with that.

 

[macraven]

Oh the fun you will have !
I did hit UO a few years back during Mardi Gras


It was great!

 

[ClubsKing]

Oh the fun you will have !
I did hit UO a few years back during Mardi Gras


It was great!

I can't wait!

All I'm doing now is keeping an eye on the AP hotel thread to maybe score a discount! You were right about checking out the trip reports thank you.

 

[ClubsKing]

Just a little update. With the AP rates for early February released it turns out they weren't any cheaper than the rate I booked with so I'm just sticking with my original booking. The good news is the original price was a decent price anyway so I'm happy with that. Now I'm just waiting for Universal to release the Mardi Gras concert lineup, I'm happy that I'm able to get to be at Mardi Gras on opening day.

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

I do recommend if you don’t mind spoilers looking at some POV s of rides but they are a lot of fun! Shame Volcano Bay will be closed for winter refurb as it is so much fun.
On City Walk I highly recommend Big Fire and Antojitos for dinner! Voodoo doughnuts also stay fresh for a while so I recommend those as well. Definitely do mini golf as well.

I would also take time to enjoy the resort and maybe hop to the other resorts! Take your hotel bus to city walk and then take the boats around to the hotels on the boats! I believe bowling is back at Cabana Bay but I could be wrong.

You will love both US and IOA. Make sure you have a park hopper to do the Hogwarts express. I truthfully would spend one whole day there in the wizarding world. Leaky Cauldron has amazing food for both breakfast and lunch(dinner menu haven’t tried but similar to lunch), just know breakfast you have to reserve and pre pay for. Also recommend the Granny Smith apple (soft serve) or Earl grey and lavender ice cream from Florean Fortescues in Diagon Alley. Simpsons fast food boulevard is great for lunch and considering you are there quite a bit you might be able to try something from each of the storefronts! Confisco at IOA is also very good. If it is hot and they are open and you are up for water rides both Dudley Doo right and Jurassic Park river adventure are must do’s!
Also Central Park in US is a great place to sit and have a snack and just relax! And you will be there for so long you can see all the shows they offer!
These parks are so much fun-I hope you have a blast!

 

[macraven]

Early February is a tad cold for doing water rides

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

Early February is a tad cold for doing water rides

Ding dang. My northern state self would do at least one of them cuz I’m in hotter climate haha. But I’d also bring a change of clothes especially after Dudley do right my last trip-I got soaked!

 

[ClubsKing]

I do recommend if you don’t mind spoilers looking at some POV s of rides but they are a lot of fun! Shame Volcano Bay will be closed for winter refurb as it is so much fun.
On City Walk I highly recommend Big Fire and Antojitos for dinner! Voodoo doughnuts also stay fresh for a while so I recommend those as well. Definitely do mini golf as well.

I would also take time to enjoy the resort and maybe hop to the other resorts! Take your hotel bus to city walk and then take the boats around to the hotels on the boats! I believe bowling is back at Cabana Bay but I could be wrong.

You will love both US and IOA. Make sure you have a park hopper to do the Hogwarts express. I truthfully would spend one whole day there in the wizarding world. Leaky Cauldron has amazing food for both breakfast and lunch(dinner menu haven’t tried but similar to lunch), just know breakfast you have to reserve and pre pay for. Also recommend the Granny Smith apple (soft serve) or Earl grey and lavender ice cream from Florean Fortescues in Diagon Alley. Simpsons fast food boulevard is great for lunch and considering you are there quite a bit you might be able to try something from each of the storefronts! Confisco at IOA is also very good. If it is hot and they are open and you are up for water rides both Dudley Doo right and Jurassic Park river adventure are must do’s!
Also Central Park in US is a great place to sit and have a snack and just relax! And you will be there for so long you can see all the shows they offer!
These parks are so much fun-I hope you have a blast!

First of all, you’re a rockstar, thank you for all the suggestions! Especially when it comes to the food recommendations, doing research for this trip made me realize all the dining options available at Universal, and that is before I even take the Mardi Gras food options into account! LOL, I am also from a northern state so Florida is going to be at least 40 degrees warmer than here at home so if they’re open, I’ll probably hit a water ride. Thank you again for all the suggestions!

 

[ClubsKing]

Update/Rant: First, I want to once again thank the people that have reached out with suggestions and that have read this trip report. Now I don’t know if this is the right place for this rant, if it’s not I’ll remove it. Here we go, don’t book flights with Spirit. Like I said before this will be my first ever trip to Orlando, in fact, it’s my first vacation ever and my first time on a plane so I’m new to airlines. I guess I’m naive because I saw how cheap Spirit was, so I booked the flight, then come to find out they canceled my flight and didn’t even inform me. It took me double-checking my departure time to see they had changed my departure to a day earlier and my return date to a day later, with no explanation. I understand sometimes things happen and flights can be canceled for many reasons, but to change those dates entirely, and not inform me frustrates me so much. I should have done better research because come to find out Spirit is known for this. Then when I contacted Spirit for a refund, they seem confused that I couldn’t change trip days because of my job. Luckily, I was able to book with Southwest for about the same price even if I have to go to an airport that’s farther away. OK, rant over. LOL. Thanks for taking the time to read this I just needed to vent a little. I am still excited for this trip and come hell or high water I’m taking this vacation LOL

 

[macraven]

When I lived in the Chicago area, I got burned by Spirit also

So I know what it is like what you went through

Switching your flight to use SW was a wise thing to do!

Hope all goes smooth for you for your travel and time at UO.

 

[ClubsKing]

When I lived in the Chicago area, I got burned by Spirit also

So I know what it is like what you went through

Switching your flight to use SW was a wise thing to do!

Hope all goes smooth for you for your travel and time at UO.

Thank you, I appreciate that! I just had to shake it off lol

 

[JaxDad]

LOL, I am also from a northern state so Florida is going to be at least 40 degrees warmer than here at home so if they’re open, I’ll probably hit a water ride.

Just FYI, there are three water rides in Islands of Adventure. You will get soaked to the skin on Popeye & Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges. You may get get soaked to the skin or just moderately drenched on Dudley Do-Rights Ripsaw Falls. You might escape with a light drenching or mild splashing on Jurassic Park River Adventure.

 

[nouvellefleur]

Update/Rant: First, I want to once again thank the people that have reached out with suggestions and that have read this trip report. Now I don’t know if this is the right place for this rant, if it’s not I’ll remove it. Here we go, don’t book flights with Spirit. Like I said before this will be my first ever trip to Orlando, in fact, it’s my first vacation ever and my first time on a plane so I’m new to airlines. I guess I’m naive because I saw how cheap Spirit was, so I booked the flight, then come to find out they canceled my flight and didn’t even inform me. It took me double-checking my departure time to see they had changed my departure to a day earlier and my return date to a day later, with no explanation. I understand sometimes things happen and flights can be canceled for many reasons, but to change those dates entirely, and not inform me frustrates me so much. I should have done better research because come to find out Spirit is known for this. Then when I contacted Spirit for a refund, they seem confused that I couldn’t change trip days because of my job. Luckily, I was able to book with Southwest for about the same price even if I have to go to an airport that’s farther away. OK, rant over. LOL. Thanks for taking the time to read this I just needed to vent a little. I am still excited for this trip and come hell or high water I’m taking this vacation LOL

Ugh Spirit. A close friend was similarly burned a few years ago, so I've never actually flown with them myself. I hope you managed to get your refund out of them! So good that you were able to book with Southwest instead, they're generally just so reliable in my experience. (though it also depends on where you are I guess - I've never had a problem with Delta, and they were extremely helpful when I had to cancel and rebook a flight three times when my dad was ill - but I know several people who swear they'll never fly Delta again after a bad experience )

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

First of all, you’re a rockstar, thank you for all the suggestions! Especially when it comes to the food recommendations, doing research for this trip made me realize all the dining options available at Universal, and that is before I even take the Mardi Gras food options into account! LOL, I am also from a northern state so Florida is going to be at least 40 degrees warmer than here at home so if they’re open, I’ll probably hit a water ride. Thank you again for all the suggestions!

You’re welcome! And I hope you enjoy your trip!

 

[ClubsKing]

Just FYI, there are three water rides in Islands of Adventure. You will get soaked to the skin on Popeye & Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges. You may get get soaked to the skin or just moderately drenched on Dudley Do-Rights Ripsaw Falls. You might escape with a light drenching or mild splashing on Jurassic Park River Adventure.

Thanks for the info, I'll be sure to plan accordingly!

 

[ClubsKing]

Ugh Spirit. A close friend was similarly burned a few years ago, so I've never actually flown with them myself. I hope you managed to get your refund out of them! So good that you were able to book with Southwest instead, they're generally just so reliable in my experience. (though it also depends on where you are I guess - I've never had a problem with Delta, and they were extremely helpful when I had to cancel and rebook a flight three times when my dad was ill - but I know several people who swear they'll never fly Delta again after a bad experience )

Thankfully Spirit didn't fight me about a refund, I think they realized they messed up. Honestly, Southwest is already a better choice just based off the info they provided unprompted after booking. Thanks for taking the time to read this trip report and responding!

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

We flew Spirit once because it's one of the only carriers that offers direct flights between our closest airport and Orlando, but even though Jetblue will get us in after dinner time I would rather fly with them and have the kids eat late. It's maybe good for young solo travelers on a backpacking budget but for families, by the time you pay all the little upcharges for bags and to sit together, you might as well go with one of the main carriers.

 

[disneyseniors]

Sorry to hear of your trouble with Spirit!
We have never flown with them, and now I am glad.
We always fly Delta and have been doing that for several years.
We have never had a problem with them at all. They have reliable flight times. We have never had our flight be late. Maybe we've been lucky over the past several years, but we will stick with them. Minneapolis is the "hub" for Delta.