Universal Movie Marathon PTR ...IS NOW A TRIP REPORT

[coastgirl]

Ohhh, thanks for clarifying. I already have the app on my phone so I will delete it. (It was free.) I need to find a good app...I know they are posted somewhere, but like at Disney, I'm not walking more than a yard in a direction I don't need to, in the August heat. I also have crowd calendars from about half a dozen sources, but honestly there's not that much variation day to day in the time we're there. (Second week is better than the first week, as it gets closer to the end of summer--but that's the same across every park.)

Nope, we won't do EE either. Ds and I are determined to do Duelling Dragons this time, but only because of the HP connection.

 

[CariMccandless]

I'm loving your report. And, your pictures are great. I will definitely make sure we don't miss out on the Mummy when we go next month. I am a little grossed out by the crickets.

Btw, I was only mostly kidding about getting everyone up at 3am to prepare for the trip...mostly.

 

[Nancy for Disney]

Ohhh, thanks for clarifying. I already have the app on my phone so I will delete it. (It was free.) I need to find a good app...I know they are posted somewhere, but like at Disney, I'm not walking more than a yard in a direction I don't need to, in the August heat. I also have crowd calendars from about half a dozen sources, but honestly there's not that much variation day to day in the time we're there. (Second week is better than the first week, as it gets closer to the end of summer--but that's the same across every park.)

Nope, we won't do EE either. Ds and I are determined to do Duelling Dragons this time, but only because of the HP connection.

When using Undercover Tourist website they have the park days color coded. Red (avoid) Yellow (ok but not great) and green (best choice) They were 100% on target.

I'm loving your report. And, your pictures are great. I will definitely make sure we don't miss out on the Mummy when we go next month. I am a little grossed out by the crickets.

Btw, I was only mostly kidding about getting everyone up at 3am to prepare for the trip...mostly.

Glad you are enjoying Cari.

 

[Nancy for Disney]

Day 2.

Did we make to opening the next day??? Nope, not even close. I was out voted and everyone said they wanted to sleep in. We didn't even make it to the park for lunch. We had lunch at the condo so no food porn quite yet. I just went to Publix and got a sandwich from their deli and some frozen dinners. I think we arrive at around 1:30. We were all kind of cranky. As a matter of fact at some point as we are walking in the park I threaten to leave them all and just do single rider on my own for the afternoon.

.Also as we walk in I tell them to wait up because I want to change our reservation at Mythos from Wednesday to that night. I talk someone in the front. They tell me that they "think" I should go to guest relations. I do this. There is someone in front of me who I can tell must have given guest relations a rough time. GR is apologizing and explaining how they can now go from park to park. The man the apologizes for being so hard on them. At point in the conversation I figure out that these people were upset because they had entered the wrong park in error and didn't realize it. I figure that this could be an easy mistake. After they leave a co-worker asks the person who was helping the family what time they had arrived in the park. They arrived at 8:15. We all conclude that them thinking they were in the wrong park for that long is fairly unlikely.

I then ask to make a reservation at Mythos. It was obviously not something they do often and the worker had to call someone to get the code for Open Table. It took quite a while. I told them that I would be willing just to take my chances. After all if they are having that much trouble then reservations my not be needed. They insist on finishing the task. After they are close to finishing I notices I have about ten missed calls on my cell phone. Turns out no one heard me telling them to wait. I call and they tell me where they are at.



I ask if they thought I might have actually left them for the single rider lines. They say, yep!

We head to Dr. Seuss's Landing since we didn't touch it the day before.

We do Cat in the Hat first.





Then the carousal.






And my new facebook profile pic..




After Dr. Seuss you would not believe what I do next.....

 

[dizzyr]

After Dr. Seuss you would not believe what I do next.....

I promise I'll believe you if you promise not to leave me in suspense again!!!

 

[Nancy for Disney]

All right no more suspense. DD19 and DS talk me into riding this....



My knees are shaking as we are in the line. It is about a 20 minute wait. We near the front and I almost ready to chicken out. They tell me I will be fine. Deep down I know if DD19 likes the ride then it can't be too bad so I get on.

After "the longest continuous scream ever" (quoted from DS) I find that I really liked it. It was very smooth. There was no slow moving upward ride to the top of the coaster. I did keep my eyes open most of the time.It was way better than Mr. Freeze at Six Flags which I consider it to be the worst 48 seconds of my life and would prefer the 36 hours of labor required for DD19. It was a hit! I was so proud of myself for facing my fear.

While we were off on our little adventure DD12 and DH take this photo.



They did the flying fish ride (One Fish, Two Fish?) and the trolley ride.

We then head to The Lost Continent. We were going to do Poseidon's Fury but it has a 45 minute wait. I say we wait because I thought it was a show that started every 45 minutes. I figure we do something else and then come back. We see the fountain talking. It was cute.



We the get invited in for a magic show which was basically a show to sell us stuff. DS was very impressed with the flaming wallet but since you have to be 18 and he is only 17 AND we really don't want to mess with the insurance company when our house catches on fire it was a no sell for us.

After this we head back over to Poseidon's Fury. It was down to a 30 minute wait. I didn't realize that you wait inside in a queue line as it appears to have a very long empty queue outside. It is also a very boring queue line but yet a very cool air conditioned line. After waiting about 20 minutes I notice the express line filling up with wet people and people wearing ponchos. We are told it is raining. It is obvious that this is a good place to be when it is either hot or raining. We enter the attraction and it was not at all what I was expecting. For some reason I had the impression it was a bunch of statues talking. It is more of a show with special effects and you move into various rooms. One child was very scared that it was all real and we were really stuck at the bottom of the ocean for eternity. He screamed the entire time. Poor thing. I must say I was pleasantly surprised with this and unless you have a kid that really really scares easily it should be a "must do".

After this it is about 20 minutes before our reservation. I think our reservation at Mythos was at 5:15. We are all starving so ask if we can go ahead and eat. The place is fairly empty so it is not a problem. So glad I spent 10 minutes making a reservation.

It is a nice place and we enjoyed our dinner. Better yet, it was less than $100 for the five of us which was nice since I budgeted $125.

I started off my meal with a sangria.



DH and DS had the Pad Thai



I had the beef. Which was wonderful.



DD had the Beef Panini. She liked it ok. I was surprised she ordered this but proud that she tried it. As a matter of fact I got the beef because I knew she would like that just in case she hated this.



DD12 got the kids cheese pizza and some fries. She liked it which is amazing because she if very picky.



Dessert shots. I think one was coconut cream and the other was orange dream.



That's it for now. Sorry no suspenseful ending. You can probably guess were go to after dinner.

 

[JMCDAD]

Enjoying your report
I love WDW and US
I am weird like that
we've only been to WDW twice and US once, (a few years ago before HP ) but vowed to go back someday. Just hasn't happend yet, alot of beach vacations in between though
One of the things I suggest to anyone going to US was to stay on site. The ability to walk to everything and the FOTL access was awesome, but we are also a family of five so I understand the complexities and $$ that go along with that especially as they get older
Also we loved eating at Mythos I thought it was excellent and not overly expensive. Also loved spiderman and mummy (loved them even more when we walked on with no wait and walked back on 2 or 3times with no wait
There is so much new stuff since we went that I can't wait to discover it all again, maybe next year
Look forward to reading more of your report and thanks for writing it I know its alot of work

 

[Nancy for Disney]

Enjoying your report
I love WDW and US
I am weird like that
we've only been to WDW twice and US once, (a few years ago before HP ) but vowed to go back someday. Just hasn't happend yet, alot of beach vacations in between though
One of the things I suggest to anyone going to US was to stay on site. The ability to walk to everything and the FOTL access was awesome, but we are also a family of five so I understand the complexities and $$ that go along with that especially as they get older
Also we loved eating at Mythos I thought it was excellent and not overly expensive. Also loved spiderman and mummy (loved them even more when we walked on with no wait and walked back on 2 or 3times with no wait
There is so much new stuff since we went that I can't wait to discover it all again, maybe next year
Look forward to reading more of your report and thanks for writing it I know its alot of work

Thanks!

 

[Nancy for Disney]

I am sure you guessed it. We went back over to WWoHP. Duh!

DD12 wanted to ride Flight of the Hippogriff. But the wait was 45 min.




However FJ had a 20 minute wait.




DD12 decides she is ready to give it a try. She was scared but she liked it.



DS, DD19 and DH run off to do Dueling Dragons again. DD and I wander around. We watch the Tri-Wizard folks pose for pictures. I am sure they have an official name but I don't know what it is) DD gets her photo taken with them by herself. For the life of me I don't know where it is. Maybe for some reason I took it with my cell. They were funny and one of the guys made mean faces at her which creeped her out in a funny way.



Soon everyone comes back so we stand in line for our one and only family photo of the trip.



The Hogwart's gal is a hoot by the way.

DD buys herself the a T-shirt with a Luna Lovegood quote "I can see them too. You're just as sane as I am."




We then see that Olivander's has a 15 minute wait!

DD19 took photos while we waited. She is the photographer in the family.

We think it is cool that they have fake smoking coming from the chimneys











My personal favorite:


We walk in and they cram you all in a room. Olivander walks out and looks directly and DS. I can't remember what he said but it was one of those moments that he turned and said "who me?" It was a great show but something that only needs to be done once. We of course bought the wand.

We have a lot of fun in the gift shop.



DS buys another butter beer this time with the collector cup. We are told that he has 99 cent refills on fountain drinks throughout the park. With all the time I have spent on Dis this the first I heard of that. We never do get a chance to try it out though as I didn't feel like carrying the cup all day for the remainder of our visits.

Here is a photo of the conductor.



DS also bought a t-shirt. As we leave we do stop by thethe gift shop near the IoA park exit. I forgot that DD19 had purchased a Tree Hugger t-shirt in Dr. Suess. It was made from 100% natural and organic material. I don't think I ever get a picture unless she is wearing it later. We had them send it for later pick up. What does DD12 find but a Dobby t-shirt??? Her favorite. (See my introduction post to refresh your memory of why)



Sorry I don't know the shirt says at the bottom.

The kids are now well suited with their HP attire.



On a side note...The Dobby t-shirt shrinks a lot. Buy it quite a bit larger than what you need.

 

[Nancy for Disney]

This is our 3rd day of going to the parks. It is a Tuesday. We decide (as in I tell everyone that this is what we are doing ) that we are going to hit the parks at opening. I am meeting one of my BFF's from childhood for dinner. We have known each other since moving into the same neighborhood in first grade. She is currently living in the Orlando area. We plan to go to US this day as we had only been there a few hours. Besides Undercover Tourist says this is a "green" day for US with a level 8 for crowds. It was a yellow day for IoA.

Well we don't quite make it before opening. I think we arrived at about 9:15 to the parking garage. We arrive and it is the longest like we see all week at the bag check lines. For those of you that have never been to US it is located before the entrance of City Walk. There was a massive crowd. I am a little worried but after pass City Walk we notice everyone is going right towards IoA and we go left towards US. UT did not let me down again!

DS and I decide to Rip Rocket. The sign said 15 minute wait but it was more like 30 and then the ride broke down just before we were to get on. It was about 10 minutes and they got it going again. Fortunately there were two rounds of people going through the ride before it was our turn. No way was I going to risk being stuck on that climb to the top. I am once again very scared. The worst part of the large coasters for me is the climb up and this time we go straight up.

We time it and know that it does not last longer than 18 seconds. I think I can handle 18 seconds.

I must say it was really only 10 seconds but a very LONG 10 seconds. I am feeling a little shaky with some PTSD as I type this. I felt like I was going to fall out the entire time. DS the brave one said that he felt like he was going to fall out too. I definitely had my eyes closed. After you get over the initial climb it is a wonderful ride. I loved the music. After we ride we wait up for the rest of the crew. I can't remember what they did while we were gone. I think it was Disaster. I know at some point they come back saying that it was very scary and we have to check it out. I of course know they are kidding but couldn't remember too much about what was said about Disaster.

While DS and I wait for them we enjoy The Blues Brothers.





Sorry it is blurry.



I really like this show. DS even dances a little.

After this everything is a bit of a blur. I think DS and DD19 do The Mummy again. As a matter of fact they may do it 2 or 3 more times in a row. DD, DH and I do Twister which did not impress any of us but probably should be done once. I think DH and DS do Rip Rocket at some point. DS says the climb is not as bad the second time but his speaker was broken. I am pretty sure I ride The Mummy again at some point. I know we ride The Mummy A LOT!.

It is not too long before we decide we are hungry. We head over to The Simpson's area for lunch. I know there will be something for everyone there. This restaurant had only been open maybe 3 days at this point. We have trouble figuring out how to get in. There are lots of staff available to direct us since it just opened. They make it very clear that you get your food before finding a table. I like that there are so many options and you go to each station to get what you want and then you check out. Makes it simple when everyone has such different tastes.

I decide to be bold and get the waffle chicken sandwich. The server talked me into a Buzz Cola. It tasted like a cheap cherry coke so I don't suggest it unless you like cheap cherry coke. the chicken sandwich is ok but nothing that I would seek out like Butter Beer.



DH gets the veggie burger. DS gets a regular burger. DH really likes his veggie burger.



Since there are so many staff there they seat us. She is willing to take our picture so we do have another family photo.




The two girls decide to share some fruit and cheese pizza. I must say for theme park pizza....it was really good pizza. If I ever go back there I am going for the veggie pizza. It looked delicious.



DH also got some hummus and veggies. He shared with me and it was tasty.



While we are there we notice a professional photographer taking pictures. There is a picture that I saw posted on the official Universal Facebook page that I reason to believe was taken while we were about 15 feet away. Cool, huh


That's it for now. More to come later. I will have to say after this day the pictures along with memories will be kind of limited. I am already halfway through all the photos I had uploaded to photobucket.

 

[-Hope-]

Popping in to sub so I can come back and catch up later. We love movie nights so I'll prob start at the beginning, not the trip.

 

[-Hope-]

All caught up!! I'm glad I read the PTR part of the thread- I now have a list of movies to get from Netflix before our trip.

I think we are practically neighbors- you keep referencing places in MO (Silver Dollar City, Six Flags, KC) and we are in south central MO. We've spent lots of time at Six Flags but this year was our first trip to SDC. We really liked it, especially the area with teacups and a flying elephant ride.

I'm relieved to see a family sleeping in and still getting lots accomplished in a day. I just don't think I'll get my kids up early even though we have early entry. But it looks like you guys did okay and that's great to know! I also love all the pics from your trip, can't wait to read more!

 

[coastgirl]

Great update Nancy, thanks. I love all the pics. Good info about the shrinking shirt, too. I will keep that in mind. My kids have been saving their allowances since--oh, Feb. I think--and they both plan on buying lots of stuff at the WW. They're not done growing yet, and I'd like their purchases to last more than a season, so shrinkage wouldn't help one bit...

Looking forward to more.

 

[Nancy for Disney]

Hey all, Sorry it has been a while. We have been very busy although I am not sure with what. Probably mostly watching Season 6 of Burn Notice which just came out on DVD. It is one of my favorites. I am done now so must move on with my life until I can figure out how to get Hulu on my TV so I can watch Season 7-the final season . We don't have cable in our house.

Ok back to Universal Studios.

After lunch we of course head over to The Simpsons ride. I think it was about a 30 minute wait. We really enjoyed the humor of the attraction but I am getting a little tired of simulated rides. US/ IoA seems to have a lot of them. We haven't even been on all of them.

Here is a photo of DD12 waiting in line.



After this I think we decide to head back over to Disaster or at least that is the next picture I have. What a fun show/ attraction. Not really sure what to call it. Definitely very unique. I can't think of anything like at WDW. And guess who gets picked to be part of the show?????



Lights Camera Action!









That was a lot of fun! If it is your first time Disaster is a must do. I was pleasantly surprised.

After Disaster we see a Transformer


In case you haven't noticed we are not ones to stop to get our pictures taken with the characters. When everyone was on The Hulk the first time DD12 and I were going to get a photo with Storm but she was gone by the time we went back to her.

We then wait 30 minutes for Shrek 3D. It was cute. I like Shrek and the humor but I am getting tired of the 3D effects. I did like this from the queue:



We then do T2. Once again nothing like this at WDW. I wasn't expected the live actors who imitated the actors on screen. DD19 did not see the movie and she liked it anyway. I could be a little scary for little kids.

I know my Dr. Who fans so took some shots of all the Dr. Who stuff in the store outside T2.(I am not a fan by the way but my kids are) If you want to skip the attraction but are a big sci fi fan you probably want to stop in here they had a lot of cool stuff.







We then head over to Schwab's Pharmacy for some ice cream.



After this we decide it is time for a show. Animal Actors is going to start soon that is the one we choose. I did enjoy the show.

The bird flew right over my head.



We are told this is the dog from Marley and Me. Does anyone know if this is true?





I forget which movie this dog is from.





It is getting close to time for us to leave but we must do The Mummy one more time. I don't recall how many times we do The Mummy but we do it a lot on this trip.

Fuzzy photo of The Mummy queue.

 

[Nancy for Disney]

We then head off so I can meet my friend. Everyone else goes to get Chinese food at Pearl's. I had a coupon purchased from restaurant.com at a different Chinese restaurant on Sand Lake Rd but it had a minimum order of $45. They were not sure that they were going to spend that much so went back to Pearl's where they spent $43. Needless to say I wasted $10 as we are now tired of Chinese food.

My friend picks me up at the condo and we decide to go to Café Tu Tu Tango.

We get a bottle of sangria which was delicious.


My friend talks me into trying the alligator bites. She has lived in Florida for quite a while so these are normal for her. I must say they were tasty. They had the consistency of chicken but had a slightly fishy flavor. The sauce on the side was very spicy which is how I like it.




MEDITERRANEAN SPINACH DIP
SPINACH, FETA, TOASTED WALNUTS, OVEN BAKED NAAN CHIPS;
SERVED COLD $7


This was my favorite
PICADILLO EMPANADAS--SPICY BEEF, MANCHEGO CHEESE, CILANTRO SOUR CREAM



Of course we get dessert.
Cheesecake lollipops!



This was by far my favorite meal of the trip. My friend can't believe she has never been here as she has lived in this part of the state for quite a while with many trips to Orlando. Everything is appetizer size. They suggest 2-3 appetizers per person but we got three to share which was plenty. Café Tu Tu Tango had a fun artsy atmosphere with local art for sale. There was someone there doing psychic readings although we opted out. There was also someone making balloon animals or was it card tricks? I can't remember but I gave him a $1 to go away. While it is on I-drive you can avoid traffic by going the back way on Universal Blvd. You turn at the Holiday Inn that is shaped like a castle.

After this we decide to head home. I had been on the go since 9 am and it was almost 9 pm. I would have liked to have enjoyed some night life but I just didn't have it in me. I didn't want a hangover either although it took a lot of restraint not to get another bottle of that wonderful sangria.

Next up is Wet N Wild.

 

[-Hope-]

Oh. My. Goodness! I had NO idea they had all of that Doctor Who stuff!! How can I not have known this?! I may have to figure out how to get some more souvenir money...

I love gator nuggets, haven't had them in years though. There used to be a place in Rolla, Papa Meauxs, that served authentic Cajun god and they were on the menu. DH and I ate there a lot when we were dating and used to get them all the time. Yummy!

So cool getting picked for the show.

I just went back and forth with myself about a restaurant.com gift card and decided against it. The last time I got one it turned into a big deal with people not wanting to eat there, me not wanting to waste the $10... I figured I better keep it more flexible this time but its so tempting!

 

[Nancy for Disney]

I love gator nuggets, haven't had them in years though. There used to be a place in Rolla, Papa Meauxs, that served authentic Cajun god and they were on the menu. DH and I ate there a lot when we were dating and used to get them all the time. Yummy!



I just went back and forth with myself about a restaurant.com gift card and decided against it. The last time I got one it turned into a big deal with people not wanting to eat there, me not wanting to waste the $10... I figured I better keep it more flexible this time but its so tempting!

Wow, didn't know about the Cajun place in Rolla. It is funny that you should say that too. I was at our downtown 4th of July and noticed a Gator Bites food truck. Gator must be making it way into the Midwest. Kind of like all of the armadillo road kill I see that I didn't see 20years ago.

I will probably not ever buy a food gift certificate again for vacation either. I agree that it is important to be flexible.

 

[-Hope-]

Ah yes, the armadillo invasion. They kind of freak me out.

 

[RachelleBeaney]

After lunch we of course head over to The Simpsons ride. I think it was about a 30 minute wait. We really enjoyed the humor of the attraction but I am getting a little tired of simulated rides. US/ IoA seems to have a lot of them. We haven't even been on all of them.

Just my opinion - but I reckon the Simpson's Ride and Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem are the only 'actual' simulator Ride at Universal Resort....all the other rides like Transformers, Spiderman and Harry are hybrids and don't feel like simulators to me as you are moving through an environment! All other rides are indoor coasters, dark rides, water rides or actual coasters...This is of course not counting all their 3D shows which there are a lot of - but they arent simulators either....Loving your report - I LOVE Universal Orlando - equally with Walt Disney World though of course I still think Disneyland is the best resort....

 

[Nancy for Disney]

Ok, I have been neglecting my TR. I have had a lot going on. I am just going to post pictures.

Wet N Wild



I thought I had more. Sorry. It was cloudy and fairly cool. We left at around noon.

It started to rain. We went to the parks anyway. Enjoyed seeing all the people leave as we arrived:






This seems to be the only photo. I will have to admit the rain got to us. We didn't do much.


Dinner was at Toojay's as suggested by MetroWest. Was perfect for my family. Something for everyone.











Cheesecake between two slices of chocolate cake.



Flourless Choc Cake