Universal part 2

Diagon Alley was awesome!  Small walkway (and the fact that nothing else was open) made the area feel very crowded and claustrophobic.  Even the shops were wall to wall people.  We quickly made our way to Gringott’s Escape to what was a fair wait-about 30 minutes, even though the posted wait time was 10 minutes. 

Of course, first we put our bags into the free lockers, and then proceeded to inside Gringott’s.  Since I left both my camera and phone I got zero pictures of the areas that we were allowed to.  We actually went through this area pretty quickly.  Even my husband was impressed and he has not seen a single Harry Potter movie…ever! I loved the way you were immersed into the story.  Once you get past this part, the waiting was not so nice.  Both in length and atmosphere!

Several things to talk about here (without giving away too much of the magic).  Let’s start with the hokey elevator.  I really don’t want to spoil it for anyone, but I will warn you to hold on!  And, let’s not forget the mandatory pictures!  I never even saw what they looked like…bummer.

Stairs, stairs, and more stairs!  ‘Seems’ like we went back up all those flights the elevator took us down!  Finally we reach the point of loading into the ride.  One note here, not for people with long legs!  It holds you in place by getting you in the shins!  The bar clamps down on your shins as much as your waist.  My 6 foot husband had major problems with this part, and it hurt me at only 5 foot 10 inches…

But, (at least to me) it was worth it!  The ride is not smooth.  The jerky motion was something my husband was not fond of (and it may have been the bar cutting into his shins).  But the motion did not bother me and my vertigo.  Remember, my husband has never seen a Harry Potter movie so it was completely nonsense to him!  Me and the kids LOVED it!

Once the ride was over, we retrieved our bags and wandered around Diagon Alley for a minute or two.  Then we discovered the rest of the park was now open, so on to the rest of the park.

Yes, we know that we missed a lot of things in Diagon Alley, but since we knew that my daughter and I would be coming back this summer,  and the boys had zero interest in the area, we decided to leave the rest of the exploration to another time. 

First the boys rode/experienced Transformer.  Considering my son loves Transformers I figured he would give a rave review…not so.  He said it was ok.  Not great not bad…just ok.  Husband said something along the lines of…’if you’ve seen one 4D ride you’ve seen them all’. 

Next up was the Rip Ride Rockit.  Now, we did have the AAP but the posted wait time was only 20 minutes, so we chose not to use it.  My daughter and I don’t do roller coasters (well, not me anyway) so we sat this one out.  From the time the boys left until they came back was closer to 45 minutes!  They both exclaimed it to be a fantastic ride!

Next, we rode Men In Black.  Again, posted wait time was 10 minutes, but it was closer to 30.  The boys loved it, and the teenaged girl said it was ok.  But this mom said it was pretty lame!  I spent the whole time trying to keep my vertigo under control (translation…keeping my eyes closed). 

Suddenly we discovered it was lunch time!   Being a big fan of American Graffiti, my husband wanted to eat at Mel’s Diner.  The outside atmosphere was great.  The cars were awesome!  I wish I could say nice things about the inside or the food, but honestly, it was the worst meal we have ever eaten on vacation…and that is saying a lot!

From there we strolled back to Diagon Alley to take Hogwarts Express to Islands of Adventure.   Again wait time was terrible.  Standing for thirty minutes in a hot line was not fun.  Next time we get the Express Pass!  There are several twists and turns of the line that are very claustrophobic.   At least, after we got farther into the line where we were back outside it was much better.    Even though there was only a few minutes between trains it seemed like an eternity!  Finally we boarded.  The cabins hold up to 12 people.  I think they were really stretching it with our group.  My 14 year old was the smallest person in there and he is a large boy.  My claustrophobia was really doing a number on me.  But, once we got moving it was wonderful!  I won’t spoil it other than tell you that you MUST ride it both ways!

Next up was Dragon Challenge.  This had a 30 minute posted time and it was exactly 30 minutes.  The boys gave it a thumbs up, and my son declared it the best ride …EVER!  My husband said he could feel the blood leaving his legs and the effects of the g forces…(whatever that means) and declared it a great ride!  My daughter and I just starred at each other in disbelief.

At this point, my son wanted to ride the Jurrasic Park River Adventure and went off to find it.  They were gone all of two minutes when I realized that ride was closed, but they insisted they found it and were in line…so we waited a few minutes and decided we might better find out where they were.  They had walked all the way over to Duddley do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls!   The girls took a leisurely stroll over there and discovered ….this was NOT a ride I wanted my child on!  Oh my…that drop was a lot more than I expected!  They managed to survive the ride and only got very wet…not extremely wet! But both decided it was something they would love to ride over again….

I managed to get a picture of MY guys riding it.

Jurassic Park

By this time it is late and the boys are wet, and it is hot!  OK, not late but after 3.  We were all tired and felt we had a good idea of what Universal had to offer and decided to head to the gate.  Of course, we had to stop at Spiderman.  There was zero wait, and they boys went right in.  Daughter and I sat and people watched.  It seemed like only seconds and the boys were back.  Mixed reviews. 

Now it is time for a snack…can you say yummy CinnaBons?  Oh my…. They were delish!

As we headed towards the entrance to the park, I glanced at the Doctor Seuss area.  I can’t wait to take my granddaughter there!  She was crazy over Dr Seuss and the Cat in the Hat when we went on the Carnival cruise a year ago.  She would love this area.

Suddenly we are back in City Walk.  Then going down the escalator to the waiting bus.   At this time our plan was to go back to City Walk for dinner later in the day.  Back in the room we took a short rest.

After a long and hot day in the parks, I was not overly ready to hop back on the bus and head to City Walk for dinner, so we decided to have dinner in the food court.  We were pleasantly surprised by not only the amount of food but the selection and taste as well.  I have never ordered salmon at a fast food place and been happy before.  This was beyond my expectations!  Perfect texture, moist, and tasty!  Practically melted in my mouth.

After dinner, we did a tad bit more exploring around the hotel.  To end off our night, we grabbed a Starbucks and headed to the room.  Yes, we did feel like slackers, but husband and I are old!  We need our rest to get ready to head back home in the morning!

Next morning we were sad to leave, but we all managed to have a great breakfast at the food court while watching more ‘Vintage’ commercials from the 50’s and 60’s.

Cabana Bay was really a nice place to stay.  It exceeded my expectations.  My only complaint is you don’t get the Express Pass with staying at this hotel.  But overall it was a better value than staying at the lowest price resort in Disney.

While we didn’t see and do everything in the parks, we did see and do all that we had set out to see and do.  I think a second day would have been more than enough to see and do everything, while at the same time I think 3 days would be overkill.  A very strong Harry Potter fan would enjoy the third day to revisit their favorites, but I would rather spend the third day at the water park.

Universal part 1

Universal

While I am obsessed with planning, some of our most memorable trips were done with little or no planning!

During the brief period of time between older kids and younger kids we would often take off with just a few hours’ notice.  Just get in the truck and go!

Now, that type of trip gives me anxiety!

So, with that in mind, let me tell you how I mentioned to my husband on Friday that we should take a trip the next week  (since the kids were out of school); and it turned into us leaving Monday morning for Universal!

On Saturday morning, husband asked how much it would cost to go to Universal for a few days.  I crunched some numbers and he decided we should just stay home.  Then, that pesky weatherman kept mentioning snow in our future.  See, the past three years we have done Disney in February while here at home they have dealt with snow and ice.  By Sunday morning, husband was liking the idea of going to Universal more and more. I reminded him on the way to church that if I booked it this late, it would be non-refundable.  By lunch time he had decided to go for it.

Sunday afternoon, at about 2:30 I booked the trip.  By 2:45, the first load of laundry was started and the luggage was brought up from the storage closet in the basement.  By the time we left for evening services 99% of the packing was complete and our GPS was given our destination information.  By the time I went to bed Sunday night at 9, all research was done, an itinerary (such as it was) was printed and ready to go, van was packed and snacks were bought.   We were ready to head south bright and early at 6 am Monday morning!

We left that morning with temperatures in the low 30’s.  An hour later we were in Macon with temps in the mid 40’s.  Didn’t take long to be in Florida with mid 60’s!  The best part about winter trips to Florida has to be the warm temps!

A stop at our favorite Cracker Barrel in Ocala for brunch and we were almost there!  Arriving in Universal by 2:00 I was very glad I had reloaded our SunPass on Saturday—just in case.

My first impression – So MUCH construction!  This is to be a recurring theme on our vacation.  Finding Cabana Bay was fairly easy, and the people stationed at the entrance to the parking lot were very helpful in finding us a place to park.

Lobby

Construction view from our room

Check in was a breeze.  Quick and efficient.  The only hiccup was with the parking.  Due to all the construction, the parking lot we were supposed to use was being used for overflow Valet Parking. While the check in itself was well done, the person who was helping us did a poor job of explaining to us the process for parking.  No worries.  People at Valet Services did an outstanding  job of explaining that Valet Services was free for us (due to the construction).  They promised less than 15 minute wait for our car when we needed it and gave us a number to text before we left the room and it would be ready.  Easy Peasy! It was really hard for my husband to relinquish control of the car, but he did … and was GLAD he did!

One thing to remember about Universal.  There is a parking fee.  Currently it is $12 at Cabana Bay and includes Valet Parking (due to the construction).  Other hotels have a different fee, and charge for Valet Parking. (another difference…Disney calls the hotels resorts, and the parks…parks!  Universal calls the parks resorts and the hotels….hotels!  Confused?)

Of course, husband’s first stop was Starbucks! (while I was still checking in!)  Then we made the trek to the room. We were in the Americana wing.  The hotel is laid out with the lobby and food court in the middle with four wings and two pools… sounds easy, but it was a bit confusing.  I did manage to figure it all out by our last day!

Our room was nice.  The first thing we noticed was the height of the ceilings.  They made the room seem even more spacious.  The next thing we noticed was our view…of a construction site!  Seriously!

Comfy beds!

Bathroom

Entry door

Large closet

Cute Shower curtain

Alarm clock! (didn't keep correct time!)

On the TV, they had a welcome screen...thought it was kind of cute!

After unpacking, we walked around the hotel for a while.  There was a lot to see.  One pool had a lazy river, and the other had a sandy beach area to play in.  While both pools were between two wings of the hotel, you got the feeling that you were in a much larger area.  The use of landscaping made it seem to be a tropical beach.  Loved it!  There were lots and lots of outdoor seating, a lot of it in the shade. 

The hotel is themed to make you think you are back in the 50’s and 60’s staying at a road side motel at the beach.  For MY generation, this means something.  For my kids’ generation this means NOTHING!  My 15 year old called the décor modern.  It was complete…down to the old cars parked in front of the lobby and the look of our shuttle bus! 

To avoid any crowds the next morning, we went ahead and had our tickets printed.  There is a desk in the lobby that prints them out.  All you need is your eticket certificate (email confirmation) and some form of ID.  Technically you are supposed to have the credit card you charged them on, but I just showed my drivers license, and we were all set!

After getting familiar with our hotel, we decided to head to City Walk.  Only having dealt with Disney’s transportation system (which I am NOT a fan of) made me nervous to try Universal’s.  We headed through the lobby and out to the bus stop.  Not one, not two, but THREE buses were waiting.  All going to City Walk.  With only about 15 people in front of us, our wait time to get on the bus was zero minutes.  The ride to City Walk was… less than five minutes long.  Next thing we knew we were under the parking garage.  Which isn’t exactly accurate, because the parking garage for City Walk was beside us, but we were under a structure.  The bus driver, who was most polite and pleasant, told us to go straight up the escalator. 

So, up the escalator we went and at the top we had the option of going to the parking area or into City Walk.  There was also a small snack area.  This is where my husband got worried.  He always carries a pocket knife, and it was in his pocket.  Since we weren’t going to the parks this evening, he didn’t think about leaving it in the room.  In order to get into City Walk, you have to go through baggage check and a metal detector.  Oops!  A quick stop at the snack bar’s trash can took care of that issue.  Of course, it became a family joke for the remainder of the trip!

After going through the quick check, we saw the moving sidewalk (covered) to get you to City Walk.

So many choices! We were actually a little overwhelmed.  Multi stories of dining and shopping pleasures!

We wandered around for quite some time before deciding on Panda Express for dinner! Some place we could have eaten at home, but it was the main thing Mr D wanted, and no one had a better idea!

Several shops caught our attention.  I can’t wait to go back in June and do some power shopping!  We walked down to the entrance of Islands of Adventures and then over to the entrance to Universal.  I noticed there were no further security to get into the parks.  But then again, no one can be in City Walk without going through security, so it makes sense.

By now it was after 7pm, dark and the parks were closing.  Lots of people were streaming from the parks towards the walkway, making me wonder how hard it would be to get a bus.  By this time we decided to head back to the hotel.  How long would we wait for a bus?  

Zero!

There were two buses waiting and one parked on the side.  While the bus was a bit more crowded than the one we took over to City Walk, and a few people were standing, we had no problems getting seats. Another less than 5 minute ride and we were back at the hotel and realized we were exhausted!

Next morning we were excited to head out for an extra hour of Harry Potter!  I’m not sure how it is decided or even where you can find it online, but there is a sign in the lobby letting you know which park has the early admission.  Most times it is Universal, but it could be Islands of Adventure.  Just check the night before and plan accordingly.  Remember, no matter which park it is, only the attractions in its corresponding Harry Potter themed area will be open.

Husband grabbed breakfast treats at Starbucks and along with coffee we headed to Universal.  But wait!  The bus was already there!  Along with another behind….and one was pulling away! 

NICE!

After our short ride to Universal, up the escalator, and through security, ride along the moving sidewalk – we followed the rest of the hotel stayers over to the entrance to Universal.  We left Cabana Bay at 7:30 so we could have time to stop by Guest Services before the 8am opening.  After a very short stop to get the AAP (Attraction Assistance Pass), we were in line for the opening.  With 15 minutes to spare!  At this time I was thinking, Disney could learn a thing or two here.

Doesn’t appear there was any type of ceremony, like at rope drop for Disney, but right at 8:00 the crowd… stood still.  Yes, zero movement. The process for early admission is painfully slow. First, you stop at the turnstile with ticket in hand, which is scanned.  Then your thumb is scanned (and for those of us with limited hand movement it was difficult to turn my hand in the direction to put my thumb in…) then you listen to the man tell you to have your room key ready for the next station… you stand in another line to show your room key, where they physically read it!  Double checking names, dates, etc…and you have to show your ticket to them so they can make sure the ticket matches the name.  THEN, you can walk into the park!

Of course, since only Harry Potter stuff is open, there is nothing to do except follow the crowd back to the very back of the park.  Don’t worry about getting lost at this point.  There are rope, barricades, and employees making sure you don’t stray off the only path open.  It was a slow and painful process to walk to the back (having a child that wanted to stop at every attraction to see if it was ipen), but arriving at Diagon Alley made it all worth while.

Magic Kingdom and Epcot

Magic Kingdom

Magic Kingdom continues to be my favorite park!  Even with two trips in three days, we were unable to do everything!  We were able to get our priorities, including lunch at Be Our Guest on one day and dinner there on another night.

Ceiling in main dining area (lunch)

Welcome!

Waiting for lunch!

The Mine Train did not disappoint, and the kids thoroughly loved all the mountains.  


I LOVED the ability to walk to Magic Kingdom!  I wish I had decided to go to a party night while there, but I will plan on making that right on my next December trip.  

Here is a view of the monorail going overhead as we take that short walk:

If your family has not yet enjoyed a cruise on the Liberty Belle, please make a decision to do this!  It is a relaxing ride around Tom Sawyer's Island.  From here you can see the back of Thunder Mountain.  It is one of my best views of that ride.  The way Disney goes all out to carry the theme out is amazing.  Of course if you are a Kingdom Keepers fan you have to be on the look out for the famous teepee!

Epcot

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This park continues to be a large draw for our family.  We have never had a bad meal here.  We have had a few that were less than stellar, but we always enjoy!

Since we eat dinner her on most nights (advantage of park hoppers) we had many chances to see IllunimNations.  It never ceases to bring a tear to my eye.

Restaurants we visited this trip include:

Coral Reef- food great but service - not so much

Garden Grill- food was meh; service was good and character interaction was great.

Akershus- food was good; service was good; character interaction was great.

Biergarten- food was ok; service was non-existent!

Tutto Italia- Food was great; service was great.

See, I told you we eat in Epcot a lot!

The only rides we even consider at Epcot are Test Trak and Soarin’.  I’m really excited about the updates coming to Soarin’ and I really hope it is back up and running when we return in June. I know when they first opened up Test Trak after the remodel, I was one of the few that really LOVED the change!  Just getting to avoid the silly pre show was worth the wait!

I had planned on seeing all the Christmas shows in each country, but somehow we never managed to do that.  However, from what I could see, there wasn’t a lot of change from previous years.  This trip we did a much more relaxed touring style at Epcot.  

Here are a few pictures we remembered to take:

Spaceship Earth (aka the Epcot Golf Ball) at night

Garden Grill

Hollywood Studios review

Knowing it would be my last time to see the Osborne Lights made this a bitter sweet visit.  While change is good, losing a favorite is never fun.  Our whole day was just a filler until dusk!

We still managed to have loads of fun and ride all the rides we wanted, but they just didn’t hold the joy for me that they normally do.  We visited Disney Hollywood Studios twice this trip.  Our first time gave us our best look at the lights, even though it was not planned that way!  Oddly we stood still the whole time.  Yet, somehow managed to see more on that visit than we did on our second visit which was planned around the lights! And we walked through.

Beautiful Tree

Santa is coming to town!

Wall to Wall people!

Seems I underestimated the crowds there specifically to see the lights.  There was no way to enjoy or even to see the lights on our second visit!

We were able to see Lights Motors Action Stunt Show one last time.  At the time I did not know it was closing, but I had heard the rumors.  Since it was my son’s favorite show at the parks I knew we had to see it at least once on this trip.

Lightening McQueen!

Lightening McQueen

Race is on...

We experienced Minnie’s Holiday Dinner at Hollywood and Vine.  The restaurant is not a favorite of mine, but an extra chance to see Mickey and Minnie (and a chance to finally see Fantasmic!) added it to my list!  I was very pleased with the character interaction.  I had heard horror stories that they wouldn’t sign autographs, but they gladly did.  Of course the food was lukewarm (as usual) and the servers were less than attentive.

While we were there, the Star Wars 'stuff' opened up.  Our first day there, nothing, and our second day there, everything!  

Anyone for a new dessert?

The backside of Streets...you can see why it is going...seen from Star Tours

Star Wars Launch Bay

Our first time seeing Fantasmic! did not fail to impress!  Of course, it was the only cool night of our wonderful trip, and the wind made sure we got plenty wet!

Mickey!

Mickey!

I really hate saying that I feel Disney Hollywood Studios is now only a half day park, but until the new areas open up, I honestly think a half day to see and do all that is left is all you really need.