Enjoy!! We just did 2 weeks there and we had a blast!
Their bowling is expensive and they don't take reservations per se but you can call the minute they open to reserve a lane for the day. It's a lot of fun on a non park day in the evening after spending the day in the lazy river!! Keep in mind you DO have to pay to buy the tubes for the lazy river but they are awesome and make lounging all day awesome! They also do not take cash, just CC or Room Charge. I believe it was just over 80.00 for 5 of us. If you get the resort mugs, remember that the icees are included, that alone makes them worth it. The mugs do not work for drinks in the park, but ice water is free, so if you take the mugs on the bus after breakfast, bring a bag or tote to keep them in and refill them with ice water all day and then you can also get a drink on your way back to your room after the park and bus ride.
They sell smore kits in the shop for the nightly fires, bring your own stuff to enjoy more and just buy the skewers there. Skewers are 2.00 for 4. Their smores kits make 2 smores for 8.00 and then 2.00 for the sticks. A fun way to end your non park days after bowling!
We've done all of the above. We have eaten at the resort and it was really good, think moderate Disney food court and around the same prices. You can do mobile order for the Harry Potter resorts and often can get a table right away. Eat at off times to make your wait shorter. We have 5 people in our family and we are divided 2 in favor of Three Broomsticks and 3 in favor of the Leaky Cauldron. Prices were the same, atmosphere was so cool at both.
In City Walk we ate at Margaritaville, The Hot Dog Stadium Place and Panda Express. The best of these was surprisingly Panda! LOL!!! Our food was just Meh at Margaritaville and for that price, I was not thrilled. Drinks were good though!! The Hot Dog place was better, just pricier but a cool place to sit! We loved Mel's a lot and the shakes were on par with Wendy's so nothing special but just fun. Today Show cafe was not bad either.
We don't at all, that's because the parks close early and the evening hours are when you can just walk onto the rides. We tend to sleep in, have a late breakfast or early lunch and hang out and then head over to Universal. Both parks are small enough that you don't need to be there all day to do it all and see it all. When the lines do get too long, we take snack or drink breaks and that's always enough for us.
On our non park days, we did notice that the pools were busier in the afternoon but died around 2-3pm. I will say though that there is a big cold front coming in and expected soon, so that will help the lines in pools and parks. We are still in the area until the end of December and take advantage of the cooler days, because it tends to keep people away. We are from the Midwest, so even the 60s weather is not cold to us.
Yes, but their delivery process leaves a lot to be desired if you go with
Amazon, I would stick with Instacart and Doordash and just meet them at the main entrance, much easier that way.
Possibly, but it would have to be the side with the slide and more than likely close to opening when there will only be a random few people around.