Glass Slippers and wizards and DisBrides, oh my! A PHM trip report **Complete**
- Thread starter librarygeek
- Start date
librarygeek
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2011
Ahhhhh Harry Potter! Love it! I have to agree with you, the level of theming they have for both parts is just outstanding and blows me away. Kind of makes me wonder why they seemingly slacked off with the rest of the park! I loved Gringotts as well, though I don't think I could pick one or the other.
You really got a lot done in your day so far! We didn't make it to the ice cream parlor, so I guess I'll just haaaaave to make a return tripOh, and I LOVE your shirt! Perfect for Universal!
Thanks! I know, they've done so well with Harry Potter that now they really need to step it up in the rest of the park! You definitely have to go back to try the ice cream, I mean it's Harry Potter ice cream!
Very true - we wanted to see it so we sucked it up and paid for the Universal ticket, but with a Disney annual pass it was definitely a difficult thing to bite the bullet and do it. We're actually talking about doing a trip just to Universal once my Disney AP expires to get the most out of it. We might wait til they open but the new water park.
Butterbeer ice cream is definitely the one I'm going to try next time we go back! I thought I'd heard about other people getting samples, but either they weren't doing it that day or they've stopped doing it. It's probably just a crowd control thing, there was a pretty long line and they don't want people tasting everything trying to make a decision. And thanks!
Thanks! I was super impressed and had a great time!
mdsouth
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 15, 2005
Thanks for sharing your experience at Universal. My daughter is reading the series now. She is on the fifth book and loves it. She has been talking a lot about wanting to visit Universal next time we go to Florida. So, I am sure we will someday. I loved Harry Potter too and it has been fun talking about the books together. We have been watching the movies after she finishes each book. I had not seen any of the them except the first. I am happy that the movies have followed the books so well.
librarygeek
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2011
If she is into the books she will LOVE Universal! All of the little details they've captured are just so amazing. That's great that you can read the books and talk about them together!
librarygeek
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2011
The rest of Universal
A bit reluctantly, we left the Harry Potter area and ventured into the rest of Universal. I had been there once as a teenager but my husband had only done Islands of Adventure up until this point, so he was eager to see what else there was. We did Men In Black first, which I remembered as one of my favorites as a teenager. It's still a lot of fun, especially if you're a fan of the movie. It's a shooting style ride similar to Buzz Lightyear's Spaceranger spin.
Next we headed into the Simpsons area, where we rode the Simpsons ride. This made me so nauseous. DH really enjoyed it as he is a Simpsons fan. Though he recognized that a lot of the enjoyment came from references to episodes, so if you hadn't really watched the show (like me) it wasn't that great. I'm glad he liked it though. I discovered that so many of the rides in Universal are 3D simulator type rides that I was getting a bit sick to my stomach, whereas that normally doesn't happen to me in theme parks.
We were passing by ET and I wanted to do that but it was down at the time, so we agreed to come back later. Since we both love roller coasters we got in line for Rip Ride Rock it, even though it was quite a long wait (maybe an hour?). This roller coaster is supposed to have a neat effect of a soundtrack playing while you rode. I was so excited to try it, and to pick out my song. And then it didn't work at all. They said that even if you didn't select a song it should play one randomly, so I don't know if our speakers were broken or what, but nothing was playing. I have to say that I was so disappointed about this that I didn't even really enjoy the roller coaster without the music.
We thought about doing the Minions ride but the wait was crazy, so instead we just went back to ET, which was open again. This was very cute!
By that time I was pretty much done with rides. My stomach just couldn't take any more. I felt awful because I knew there was still a lot DH wanted to do (like the Mummy), but there was no way I was up for that. He was fine about it but I know he was disappointed. We have talked and decided that we will go back to Universal someday for a trip just there (not Disney!). Stay at a Universal hotel and get the express pass so we can fully enjoy all that the park has to offer, instead of feeling like we have to cram it into one day. Now that they've announced Volcano Bay water park, we'll wait til that opens and then check everything out!
For dinner we went into Citywalk and decided to try Cowfish. This place was so cool! I liked the vibe of it, and the food was totally different and tasty. The concept is that it is supposed to be like a burger/sushi fusion place (hence the "Cowfish"). They have a variety of burgers, and they have a variety of sushi, but then they also have their "burgushi" menu which mixes up the two! I got a sushi roll that used burger like ingredients, and DH got a "burger" that was actually ahi tuna on a bun with some other sushi type ingredients. It was so much fun! And the milkshake we got for dessert was incredible. I'll have lots of details when we got to this spot in my dining review!
We still had a little time to kill before the bus picked us up, so we wandered around the shops at Citywalk. We tried on some silly hats. I also bought a Ravenclaw lanyard to keep my work ID on - I work in a library so having a Harry Potter lanyard seems appropriate!
Once we got on the bus, our bus driver back to the hotel was hilarious! He started out the drive by telling us that Mickey was quite angry with us for going over to Universal, and that we would have to answer some Disney trivia questions in order to be allowed back into Disney. He was full of knowledge and funny too. We stopped at Sea World to pick up one other family, and he instructed us that when they got on the bus we all had to clap and cheer wildly as soon as they boarded to confuse them. Well, they definitely seemed very confused - and I don't think they spoke English, so they had no idea what was going on! When we finally got back to Disney he announced that Minnie had talked Mickey into letting us come back, and we were allowed off the bus. He made an otherwise boring ride really enjoyable. I wish I had gotten his name, but we did give him a very generous tip for being so awesome. Then it was into bed after our long Universal day to get ready for our final day at Disney! And if you know me, you know I rarely let a Disney trip go by without hitting up Animal Kingdom, so that's where we would be off to next!
A bit reluctantly, we left the Harry Potter area and ventured into the rest of Universal. I had been there once as a teenager but my husband had only done Islands of Adventure up until this point, so he was eager to see what else there was. We did Men In Black first, which I remembered as one of my favorites as a teenager. It's still a lot of fun, especially if you're a fan of the movie. It's a shooting style ride similar to Buzz Lightyear's Spaceranger spin.
Next we headed into the Simpsons area, where we rode the Simpsons ride. This made me so nauseous. DH really enjoyed it as he is a Simpsons fan. Though he recognized that a lot of the enjoyment came from references to episodes, so if you hadn't really watched the show (like me) it wasn't that great. I'm glad he liked it though. I discovered that so many of the rides in Universal are 3D simulator type rides that I was getting a bit sick to my stomach, whereas that normally doesn't happen to me in theme parks.
We were passing by ET and I wanted to do that but it was down at the time, so we agreed to come back later. Since we both love roller coasters we got in line for Rip Ride Rock it, even though it was quite a long wait (maybe an hour?). This roller coaster is supposed to have a neat effect of a soundtrack playing while you rode. I was so excited to try it, and to pick out my song. And then it didn't work at all. They said that even if you didn't select a song it should play one randomly, so I don't know if our speakers were broken or what, but nothing was playing. I have to say that I was so disappointed about this that I didn't even really enjoy the roller coaster without the music.
We thought about doing the Minions ride but the wait was crazy, so instead we just went back to ET, which was open again. This was very cute!
By that time I was pretty much done with rides. My stomach just couldn't take any more. I felt awful because I knew there was still a lot DH wanted to do (like the Mummy), but there was no way I was up for that. He was fine about it but I know he was disappointed. We have talked and decided that we will go back to Universal someday for a trip just there (not Disney!). Stay at a Universal hotel and get the express pass so we can fully enjoy all that the park has to offer, instead of feeling like we have to cram it into one day. Now that they've announced Volcano Bay water park, we'll wait til that opens and then check everything out!
For dinner we went into Citywalk and decided to try Cowfish. This place was so cool! I liked the vibe of it, and the food was totally different and tasty. The concept is that it is supposed to be like a burger/sushi fusion place (hence the "Cowfish"). They have a variety of burgers, and they have a variety of sushi, but then they also have their "burgushi" menu which mixes up the two! I got a sushi roll that used burger like ingredients, and DH got a "burger" that was actually ahi tuna on a bun with some other sushi type ingredients. It was so much fun! And the milkshake we got for dessert was incredible. I'll have lots of details when we got to this spot in my dining review!
We still had a little time to kill before the bus picked us up, so we wandered around the shops at Citywalk. We tried on some silly hats. I also bought a Ravenclaw lanyard to keep my work ID on - I work in a library so having a Harry Potter lanyard seems appropriate!
Once we got on the bus, our bus driver back to the hotel was hilarious! He started out the drive by telling us that Mickey was quite angry with us for going over to Universal, and that we would have to answer some Disney trivia questions in order to be allowed back into Disney. He was full of knowledge and funny too. We stopped at Sea World to pick up one other family, and he instructed us that when they got on the bus we all had to clap and cheer wildly as soon as they boarded to confuse them. Well, they definitely seemed very confused - and I don't think they spoke English, so they had no idea what was going on! When we finally got back to Disney he announced that Minnie had talked Mickey into letting us come back, and we were allowed off the bus. He made an otherwise boring ride really enjoyable. I wish I had gotten his name, but we did give him a very generous tip for being so awesome. Then it was into bed after our long Universal day to get ready for our final day at Disney! And if you know me, you know I rarely let a Disney trip go by without hitting up Animal Kingdom, so that's where we would be off to next!
NinePoundLemon
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jun 19, 2014
I really enjoyed reading about your Universal day (except for the part where you waited an hour for Gringotts and then had to leave and cried....that was sad!).
We went a few years ago when Hogsmeade first opened. My husband LOVES everything Harry Potter (he spent like an hour picking out a wand, was extremely excited about it, and has it on his desk at work). I watched the movies and enjoyed them, but I'm not a diehard Harry Potter fan. We thought it was really cool, but because of my crappy motion sickness I couldn't go on Forbidden Journey. My husband went on it alone to see if he thought I could take it, and he said I would have been sick for sure. So I'm guessing I probably wouldn't be able to go on Gringotts without getting sick...which is terrible because I really want to go on it! Oh, and I LOVED the frozen Butterbeer!! That ice cream you had sounded really interesting, too bad the flavours weren't stronger. So we really want to go back to see Diagon Alley, but knowing I can't go on the Harry Potter rides makes it hard to justify the costs, especially when adding it on to a Disney trip. We might do what you mentioned - wait until the new water park opens, and do a trip to just Universal and Sea World or something. It would just be so hard to be that close to Disney and not go!
Cowfish sounds so interesting, I'm really looking forward to your review! I obviously know what you're talking about when you said your stomach couldn't take any more rides, so I'm glad you were able to recover enough to have such a fun dinner! When we went to Universal a few years ago I really liked City Walk. We ate at Bubba Gump's and enjoyed it a lot. I think we could spend a lot of time there if we did a several day Universal trip.
We went a few years ago when Hogsmeade first opened. My husband LOVES everything Harry Potter (he spent like an hour picking out a wand, was extremely excited about it, and has it on his desk at work). I watched the movies and enjoyed them, but I'm not a diehard Harry Potter fan. We thought it was really cool, but because of my crappy motion sickness I couldn't go on Forbidden Journey. My husband went on it alone to see if he thought I could take it, and he said I would have been sick for sure. So I'm guessing I probably wouldn't be able to go on Gringotts without getting sick...which is terrible because I really want to go on it! Oh, and I LOVED the frozen Butterbeer!! That ice cream you had sounded really interesting, too bad the flavours weren't stronger. So we really want to go back to see Diagon Alley, but knowing I can't go on the Harry Potter rides makes it hard to justify the costs, especially when adding it on to a Disney trip. We might do what you mentioned - wait until the new water park opens, and do a trip to just Universal and Sea World or something. It would just be so hard to be that close to Disney and not go!
Cowfish sounds so interesting, I'm really looking forward to your review! I obviously know what you're talking about when you said your stomach couldn't take any more rides, so I'm glad you were able to recover enough to have such a fun dinner! When we went to Universal a few years ago I really liked City Walk. We ate at Bubba Gump's and enjoyed it a lot. I think we could spend a lot of time there if we did a several day Universal trip.
elphie101
Left my heart in Tomorrowland
- Joined
- Sep 30, 2008
I selfishly hold a grudge at The Simpsons for giving Back to the Future the boot (we did it once as kids and my brothers and I called each other McFly for about a week!) but like you I also don't watch the show so I have nothing really tying me to the new area. I suppose I'll try it out more another time (like you, in a Universal-exclusive trip). Your dinner looks really yummy!
Your driver back sounds pretty hilarious! Always nice to see those with a pixie dust sense of humor outside the Disney bubble.
Your driver back sounds pretty hilarious! Always nice to see those with a pixie dust sense of humor outside the Disney bubble.
librarygeek
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2011
I know what you mean - I'm trying to figure out if there's a way to curb the motion sickness, because so many of the rides at Universal seem to make me sick (unlike other parks). I've heard people recommend something like Dramamine, but that stuff makes me so tired I usually pass out asleep for hours after taking it! I don't know if there's a non-drowsy motion sickness medicine to take.
We absolutely love new and interesting dining experiences so when I heard about Cowfish I knew we had to go there! Totally different than anything else we've had! I like Bubba Gump too, we had some really fun servers the last time we were there. I also went to the Rising Star karaoke one night on a past trip and it was sooo much fun. Their karaoke has a live band and backup singers!
Yeah, all those 3D/simulator rides were too much in one day! I need more "regular" rides to break it up lol.
I'm really bummed I never got to see Back to the Future (the ride I mean, not the movies - I've definitely seen those!). I would have much preferred that than the Simpsons.
We were so entertained on the trip back, it was nice!
DISNEYMOON10121991
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Feb 13, 2012
Just wanted to say I love reading your reports! I've been reading since your wedding. You have so many great trip. I do not run ,but enjoy seeing how much fun those marathons are for you. Very cool. I am just living through everyone else until we can go Oct 2016. Glad to see parts of your Universal trip. We haven't seen any HP yet and plan probably 2 days there so that we can take our time to see plenty of old & new things. We don't want to rent a car just for getting over there but we're nervous about what other transportation to use. Please explain how and what you use and if you don't mind how much $ ? Thanks!
Back to waiting for your next update and adventure
librarygeek
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2011
Glad to see parts of your Universal trip. We haven't seen any HP yet and plan probably 2 days there so that we can take our time to see plenty of old & new things. We don't want to rent a car just for getting over there but we're nervous about what other transportation to use. Please explain how and what you use and if you don't mind how much $ ? Thanks!
Aww, thank you so much for following! I'm actually a travel agent so I booked a deal through my agency for Universal. We did a 1 day 2 park hopper ticket plus transportation to/from Disney. It was $164 per person that way. I think a regular park ticket was around $140 so adding on the transportation wasn't that much extra. We were picked up in a shuttle in the morning and got a bus on the way back. I believe the transportation was through Mears and they were very good - easy to use. We called day or two ahead of time to set up pick up time, and then also arranged a time to leave Universal. However, we decided we wanted to leave earlier that day and just called again to adjust it. Very convenient! If you want more info about it feel free to message me
librarygeek
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2011
Animal Kingdom
This was our last day in Disney, but we had a late flight so that meant almost a full day in Animal Kingdom. We arrived at the park right around opening, and stopped to watch the lovely DeVine, whom DH had never seen before:
Then we decided to head over and do Dinosaur, since that was the one "big" ride that we didn't have a FP_ for. There was almost no wait so we got right on it. DH makes silly faces on purpose:
I also found this guy to take a picture with!
Because there had been no wait for Dinosaur we still had plenty of time before our first 9:45 FP+. Since we were in the area we decided to cross off another ride from the list of ones I hadn't done yet, and we rode triceratops spin. I was looking forward to the view of AK, but really disappointed that our up/down stick didn't work! Our dino just stayed in one spot the whole time so it was kinda lame. Here's one of the views though:
Then it was time for Everest, which was a blast as always! Next we headed to the safari, but we stopped along the way to watch the monkeys swing around. I don't know what it is about them, but I just find them fascinating - the way they move and swing so easily. I could watch them for a long time.
Since our FP time wasn't quite ready we did the Maharajah jungle trek on our way, where I was excited to see that one of the tigers was actually moving around! We usually just see them sleeping. But this guy (girl I think) was actually pacing a bit.
We also did the Pangani trail before hopping on the safari. This time around the elephants seemed to be the most active and interesting:
By then we were hungry for lunch. None of the counter services places at AK held much appeal, so on a whim we decided to do sit down at Yak and Yeti. With my Landry's card I got "premium seating," which means we were okay without a reservation and were seated right away. We decided to get some drinks and a bunch of appetizers to share, which was a delicious choice. Here's a look at our spread:
Then after lunch we decided to meet Mickey and Minnie in their safari outfits!
We had a FP+ for Festival of the Lion King and got to see the new theater. It's very nice and I like the area. The show is still the same, which is to say amazing as always! Although funny enough this time there was a malfunction and one of the floats wasn't moving out on the beginning, so it got a little awkward! Timon was doing his spiel but wasn't even on the stage so some of his lines didn't make sense lol. And there was a lot of dancing around and singing that was thrown in that isn't usually there and the performers handled it wonderfully, but I could tell there was just a tiny bit of panic haha. Some guys in tech outfits came out and got it going in a few minutes and then it was all good.
Since the wait wasn't too long we decided to do Everest one more time being before left:
And to end our vacation we decided to try a dole whip with coconut rum. This was delicious!
Then it was back to Pop Century to get on the Magical Express to the airport. It had been a truly great trip!
This was our last day in Disney, but we had a late flight so that meant almost a full day in Animal Kingdom. We arrived at the park right around opening, and stopped to watch the lovely DeVine, whom DH had never seen before:
Then we decided to head over and do Dinosaur, since that was the one "big" ride that we didn't have a FP_ for. There was almost no wait so we got right on it. DH makes silly faces on purpose:
I also found this guy to take a picture with!
Because there had been no wait for Dinosaur we still had plenty of time before our first 9:45 FP+. Since we were in the area we decided to cross off another ride from the list of ones I hadn't done yet, and we rode triceratops spin. I was looking forward to the view of AK, but really disappointed that our up/down stick didn't work! Our dino just stayed in one spot the whole time so it was kinda lame. Here's one of the views though:
Then it was time for Everest, which was a blast as always! Next we headed to the safari, but we stopped along the way to watch the monkeys swing around. I don't know what it is about them, but I just find them fascinating - the way they move and swing so easily. I could watch them for a long time.
Since our FP time wasn't quite ready we did the Maharajah jungle trek on our way, where I was excited to see that one of the tigers was actually moving around! We usually just see them sleeping. But this guy (girl I think) was actually pacing a bit.
We also did the Pangani trail before hopping on the safari. This time around the elephants seemed to be the most active and interesting:
By then we were hungry for lunch. None of the counter services places at AK held much appeal, so on a whim we decided to do sit down at Yak and Yeti. With my Landry's card I got "premium seating," which means we were okay without a reservation and were seated right away. We decided to get some drinks and a bunch of appetizers to share, which was a delicious choice. Here's a look at our spread:
Then after lunch we decided to meet Mickey and Minnie in their safari outfits!
We had a FP+ for Festival of the Lion King and got to see the new theater. It's very nice and I like the area. The show is still the same, which is to say amazing as always! Although funny enough this time there was a malfunction and one of the floats wasn't moving out on the beginning, so it got a little awkward! Timon was doing his spiel but wasn't even on the stage so some of his lines didn't make sense lol. And there was a lot of dancing around and singing that was thrown in that isn't usually there and the performers handled it wonderfully, but I could tell there was just a tiny bit of panic haha. Some guys in tech outfits came out and got it going in a few minutes and then it was all good.
Since the wait wasn't too long we decided to do Everest one more time being before left:
And to end our vacation we decided to try a dole whip with coconut rum. This was delicious!
Then it was back to Pop Century to get on the Magical Express to the airport. It had been a truly great trip!
- Joined
- Apr 26, 2008
That sounds like a great final day for this vacation! You got a lot done at Animal Kingdom. I never seem to be able to fill more than a couple hours there at a time. Yak & Yeti is my favorite as their appetizers are great for lunch! Looks like you had some nice choices as well. I love the way you ended your vacation with a Rum Infused Dole Whip! That really is a perfect ending.
KathyM2
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2011
I don't think I've ever seen DeVine either...must add it to the list for next time.
So cute!!! This is one of the only places you can see them together I heard...
Looks delish!!!
librarygeek
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2011
I think Animal Kingdom has a special place in my heart. I often ride the safari twice and just walk around to look at the animals because I love it, and that can really take up a lot of time. Throwing in a sit down lunch helps to too, I love the appetizers there! I wish I had a dole whip right now...
I don't know if DeVine has exact hours, but if you can catch her she is really cool to see! I know she's often around right a park opening.
I never thought about seeing Mickey and Minnie together, but you're right! I can't think of many other places you can do that.
librarygeek
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2011
Now that one TR is over, another begins! I've just started a TR for my April trip, in which I went with a friend who had never been to WDW before! You can check it out here: http://www.disboards.com/threads/a-...empt-to-vacation-together-april-2015.3430801/
Disneybuckeye
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 24, 2010
Thanks for sharing. Enjoyed reading about your trip and will head over to your new one.
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