So we leave in a week for an 8 day stay and I'm stressed!

[RJstanis]

We'll be there next week too, so if you need any help (you shouldn't) feel free to reach out!

 

[grapefruitjellybean]

I'm feeling the same way as you except I'm super stressed about my upcoming Disney trip! Can I see and do EVERYTHING in 14 days (10 park days)???? I booked UO for the end of the trip, (3 full park days) and I have labelled those days as relaxing because I'll have so many perks and I won't have to be glued to my phone worrying about Genie and ILS.
I haven't been to Disney or UO in years but I can guarantee you will have enough time. You will have express pass and early access so you can bang out Hagrid's and Velocicoaster first thing in the morning or late at night. You're also super close to the parks and you can walk to the park in less than 15.
I hope you have a great trip.

 

[rotlex]

I'm feeling the same way as you except I'm super stressed about my upcoming Disney trip! Can I see and do EVERYTHING in 14 days (10 park days)???? I booked UO for the end of the trip, (3 full park days) and I have labelled those days as relaxing because I'll have so many perks and I won't have to be glued to my phone worrying about Genie and ILS.
I haven't been to Disney or UO in years but I can guarantee you will have enough time. You will have express pass and early access so you can bang out Hagrid's and Velocicoaster first thing in the morning or late at night. You're also super close to the parks and you can walk to the park in less than 15.
I hope you have a great trip.

Regarding your bolded statement. My wife and I were just talking about this over breakfast! I cannot even imagine being a first time visitor to WDW in this day and age. It just seems like there is so much to try to cover, lol. With that said, even back in the the day, talking 20 years or so ago, we never expected to be able to do it all in one trip. Heck, even after 20+ trips, I think there are things we have not seen or done!

Hope you have a great trip as well!!! Just being away from work is going to be a huge plus for us!!!!

 

[grapefruitjellybean]

Regarding your bolded statement. My wife and I were just talking about this over breakfast! I cannot even imagine being a first time visitor to WDW in this day and age. It just seems like there is so much to try to cover, lol. With that said, even back in the the day, talking 20 years or so ago, we never expected to be able to do it all in one trip. Heck, even after 20+ trips, I think there are things we have not seen or done!

Hope you have a great trip as well!!! Just being away from work is going to be a huge plus for us!!!!

You have no idea. I started planning this trip in October 2019 and I have rescheduled 3 times. The original plan was one day per park and zero rest days. Lol how things have changed in the last 3ish years.
8 years ago my partner and I were in Orlando for a work conference. We decided on our last day to extend the trip and booked 2 days at Disney and 2 days at UO. We didn't know anything about anything and managed to do it all. We rolled up to restaurants and we seated within 10 minutes. I think the longest we waited was for Soarin' and that was 45 minutes because the ride kept breaking.

 

[kbelle8995]

Take a deep cleaning breath. You will be fine. You have plenty of time to do as much as you want. Portofino is a Beautiful hotel. Make sure to make some time to spend at the resort. And you have the express pass. Have a great time

 

[UOAP-Naples]

We're actually here now and have a similar situation to yours -- as in only Disney -- this is our first trip to Universal. We have 4-day 3-park passes with Express pass. After reading all of the responses I just want to say that our experience with Express pass has been mixed. I know it is a very busy time so I understand there will still be a wait with it, but I read so many positive reviews of it that I think my expectations were unrealistic. There are definitely still some waits. For example, we waited 40 minutes for Minions with it while the regular wait was 60 minutes. The line for Dudley Do-Rights today was also close to that as was Kong (although our wait for that one was probably closer to 30). On the other hand, it was a big time saver for Forbidden Journey, Gringotts, and Hulk. I'm not saying it's not worth it because I still think it is, but just be prepared to wait on some attractions. Velocicoaster has been about an hour later at night. We were in line at 7:45 this morning and waited 90 minutes to ride Hagrid's (the posted wait was 100 minutes by the time we got there). The line actually moved pretty quick but you might want to get there a little earlier. As everyone says, all the Harry Potter stuff is amazing. Hagrid's and the Velocicoaster are worth planning for, but I have no desire to do any of the screen rides again (and neither does anyone in my family). Anyway, we're having a good time and I'm sure you will too!

Dudley do Right is just a slow loading ride. It's not a people mover. We've had some 20-30 minute waits for it with express.

Kong is usually short with express so your experience is unusual there.

Minions can be the longest express line in the park or super short depending on when you hit it. There is only one theater for Minions so the line in general doesn't move really quickly. The good thing is that you can see the express line. It's the outer line along the road. If it's longer than 30 people or so, we'll skip it and come back later.

 

[bchbetha]

Was this already mentioned? Sorry if it was. Butm have you done the math to see if upgrading to a season pass (at least 1) works out mathematically for you? 5 day tickets have to be getting close! I am not savvy on the blackouts and restrictions but there are usually discounts on hotels and other stuff in addition to the unlimited park entry.

 

[GoofyDad_4427]

It's been mentioned a few times already here, but i will echo the comments about looking to upgrade to an annual pass. If you've already paid for 5 days, the AP can't be much more. Having that will give you the flexibility to enter the park for 1-2 rides on your non-park days. We found that really valuable during a trip shortly after Hagrid's opened, when it was down for a few days but then opened on a day we werent planning to be in the parks. We ended up heading over around 5pm and were able to jump in line and ride it then, then left the park. Just beware that it will become very tempting to plan another trip once those APs are in hand.

 

[rotlex]

Post trip follow up for those interested! We actually left Univeral last Saturday and spent 5 days at Clearwater Beach. (Really good time there). Just got home last night!

At a high level, my wife and I both asked ourselves why we took so long to do this. We had an absolutely fantastic time, with only a few minor complaints.

Overall impressions:
- We stayed at Portofino Bay for 7 nights. We absolutely loved it. I rank it up there with our two favorite Disney resorts, the Wilderness Lodge and the Poly. From a service perspective, even better. We were treated like true guests throughout the entire stay from check in, bell services, pool area, housekeeping etc. Wonderful wonderful service all around. We were also treated to a free upgrade in the form of a balcony room which was fantastic!
- Only resort complaint was the cost of food. Crazy, crazy high. Like $16 for a chicken wrap with no sides pool side high. Needless to say, we ate mostly in the parks, and did breakfast via iHop pick up a number of mornings. (We had car)
- Transportation to the parks via the boats was awesome. The boat ran every 5-10 minutes and we never Waited more than that. We also enjoyed the ability to walk back and forth from the parks tremendously - especially after a day of eating, lol.
- The parks themselves. We loved them as well. We are huge Disney Parks fans, and while I must admit Universal is very small in comparison, the quality of the attractions left nothing to be desired. We enjoyed everything we did, and we did do it all a number of times. As Harry Potter fans, we were simply blown away by the theming and rides in those areas. Our families favorite attraction being Forbidden Journey, followed very closely by Hagrid's which we were able to ride 3 times during our stay. (Having express pass for everything but Hagrid's and Velocicoaster made things VERY efficient)
- Speaking of Velocicoaster. Wow, just wow is all we have to say. I'm a coaster junkie along with my kids, and honestly, I think I just found my new all time favorite. Simply breathtaking in every way..
- Volcano Bay. Was not sure what to expect but we love water parks. We loved it too. Didn't really care for the Tapu Tapu system initially, but once we got used to things, we had a very fun time.
- Everything outside of what I mentioned above was fantastic from the food to the shows. Kong really surprised us and turned out to be a real favorite for our group, along with Transformers. (We actually preferred it over Spider Man).

Negatives:

- As I mentioned above, resort food prices. Just WAY to high to eat there on a regular basis. Luckily that was offset by good food with decent prices in the parks.
- The size of the parks. We had a 5 day ticket with Express pass. We literally saw everything in both parks in two days and then some. (Used Volcano Bay as a mid week change along with a resort only day). Not a HUGE negative, but by the end of an 8 day trip, we were ready to go. Something we never say at Disney even after two weeks.

That's about it. Tried to keep it condensed as a first time visitor. We will be back for sure, but not for a few years. Maybe once Epic Universe opens. In closing I'd say to anyone who is even thinking about doing a first time Universal trip, just do it. You won't regret it. The fun factor is high, the service level just as high and I think if you are a theme park fan, you will love it!

 

[maverik85]

Great to hear it was an amazing trip. Toy our one pseudo-negative about being small, I'm really hoping Epic Universe (and a potential fourth park) help with this. I have just gone for a half week or so at a time but usually feel like I'm ready to go or do something else. The addition of Volcano Bay and now Epic Universe I think will help this a lot. Plus it seems they are adding back of house space to try to clear up office areas in the other parks for potential expansion as well there.

 

[AngieInOH]

Thank you so much for reporting back. We're headed to Universal for the first time in Feb. Also staying at Portofino for 6 nights. Sneaking a day at Epcot then 4 days at Universal.

So good to hear a positive review from a Disney fan!! I'm hoping we like it also!!

 

[disny_luvr]

I’m glad you had a great time! My boys went to Universal for one day on their Disney trip with the marching band and they absolutely loved it! DH and I have never been, but my boys really want to go back so we are thinking of going for a few days before our Disney trip.

Two questions:
1. Did you purchase the Express Pass for Volcano Bay?
2. We’d have a little more than 1 1/2 days for Universal and IoA. If we have the Express Pass, do you think we can do most things in both parks in that amount of time?

Thank you!

 

[rotlex]

I’m glad you had a great time! My boys went to Universal for one day on their Disney trip with the marching band and they absolutely loved it! DH and I have never been, but my boys really want to go back so we are thinking of going for a few days before our Disney trip.

Two questions:
1. Did you purchase the Express Pass for Volcano Bay?
2. We’d have a little more than 1 1/2 days for Universal and IoA. If we have the Express Pass, do you think we can do most things in both parks in that amount of time?

Thank you!

Hi and thanks! For your questions:

1. We did NOT purchase the express pass for Volcano Bay. We DID take advantage of early entry as resort guests, 8am on the day we went, and found we were able to get a great seating area, and also do pretty much everything we wanted in the water park. My wife and I wound up spending a LOT of time in the fearless\raging river. We LOVED it.
2. I would say you can see everything pretty easily weather depending of course. (Two full days, at least in my opinion, would be ideal). Hagrid's might be tough if the line exceeds 3 hours. We watched the wait time all day and happened to catch it right around dinner time with a 60 minute wait, twice. We never waited for Velocicoaster more than 45 minutes, and everything else was very quick with Express Pass!

 

[disny_luvr]

Hi and thanks! For your questions:

1. We did NOT purchase the express pass for Volcano Bay. We DID take advantage of early entry as resort guests, 8am on the day we went, and found we were able to get a great seating area, and also do pretty much everything we wanted in the water park. My wife and I wound up spending a LOT of time in the fearless\raging river. We LOVED it.
2. I would say you can see everything pretty easily weather depending of course. (Two full days, at least in my opinion, would be ideal). Hagrid's might be tough if the line exceeds 3 hours. We watched the wait time all day and happened to catch it right around dinner time with a 60 minute wait, twice. We never waited for Velocicoaster more than 45 minutes, and everything else was very quick with Express Pass!

Thank you so much for your help! We have watched countless videos on Volcano Bay and we are so excited for the raging river. It looks like so much fun! Any good suggestions on where to find chairs in a good location?

My boys were fortunate enough to ride Velocicoaster twice when they were there for the day. They absolutely loved it! I won’t ride it, but my husband will. My boys didn’t think the wait was bad for that ride. They never got on Hagrids but we plan on going there as soon as the park opens. I’m sure everyone else has the same plan, but hopefully that will cut down on our wait time. If that doesn’t work, we’ll keep on eye on wait times throughout the day. That’s usually how we get on RotR. We just watch the wait time and once it gets to/near 60 minutes we jump in line.

 

[rotlex]

Thank you so much for your help! We have watched countless videos on Volcano Bay and we are so excited for the raging river. It looks like so much fun! Any good suggestions on where to find chairs in a good location?

My boys were fortunate enough to ride Velocicoaster twice when they were there for the day. They absolutely loved it! I won’t ride it, but my husband will. My boys didn’t think the wait was bad for that ride. They never got on Hagrids but we plan on going there as soon as the park opens. I’m sure everyone else has the same plan, but hopefully that will cut down on our wait time. If that doesn’t work, we’ll keep on eye on wait times throughout the day. That’s usually how we get on RotR. We just watch the wait time and once it gets to/near 60 minutes we jump in line.

For your bolded question on chairs. We went in the main entrance, and immediately to the "right" side of the volcano. We wound up finding a good spot on the right side of the volcano\on the beach\right in front of some palm trees that provide shade! We also found a spot up from that same area, near "Ika Moana" tube area that was almost like a secluded zone with a good number of chairs and such. There is a LOT of seating available, and I would say it would have been fairly easy to find a good spot up until around noon. (Unlike what we have experienced at Blizzard Beach and Typhoon).

And ya, to add on the raging river thing. It is a really, really fun, lol. I think you will really enjoy the whole place once you learn your way around a bit!

 

[georgina]

A fair point about 7 nights at PB being more than needed. I have a 3 park AP, and while I sometimes do a split stay CB with 2 night express resort, most trips I just do 4 or 5 nights at CB. I spend part of 2 days at VB, I pool hop to PB Villa pool for part of a day, I might go to a movie in the afternoon, just have a relaxing time at a value resort price.

 

[disny_luvr]

For your bolded question on chairs. We went in the main entrance, and immediately to the "right" side of the volcano. We wound up finding a good spot on the right side of the volcano\on the beach\right in front of some palm trees that provide shade! We also found a spot up from that same area, near "Ika Moana" tube area that was almost like a secluded zone with a good number of chairs and such. There is a LOT of seating available, and I would say it would have been fairly easy to find a good spot up until around noon. (Unlike what we have experienced at Blizzard Beach and Typhoon).

And ya, to add on the raging river thing. It is a really, really fun, lol. I think you will really enjoy the whole place once you learn your way around a bit!

Thanks for your help!