Skip AK to go to Universal Studios?

[Ilovem&m]

I am planning a Disney trip for myself and 2 kids aged 11 and 8 at the time of travel. My plans are to go at the end of August or in the month of Sepember and stay in Disney. We are only going for 3 nights and 4 days so I'm thinking 3 parks unless we can squeeze a 4th. I've been doing some reading and I think my 11 year old will benefit most from Universal Studios. I was reading that AK and DHS can be done in a shorter time frame. I definitely want to plan a full day at MK. I was then thinking Epcot and Universal Studios. If, depending on flights, we have enough time to visit a 4th, I was thinking DHS. Maybe on the day we arrive or leave as we will have less time.

Also is there free of charge transportation from the Disney resort to Universal S? We plan to stay in a Disney hotel.


Can someone with experience provide their opinion on whether or not this plan makes sense? Am I not thinking of something? Is this even doable?

Thanks in advance and I'm sorry if this question has been asked before.

 

[Farro]

There is not free transportation to Universal Studios from a Disney hotel.

My own opinion is that I would never skip Animal Kingdom for the Universal Parks. I find Animal Kingdom to be the best park in Orlando, it's a true wonder.

That said, you know your daughter best. But I'm not an expert, can you get through Universal in one day? I would think you'd need 2 days there to really see the parks.

Have a great trip whatever you decide!

 

[Animal]

Tacking on a Universal day to a Disney trip isn’t a great value.

 

[martikus]

You aren’t going very long. I’d concentrate on Disney only. That makes it more economical too. We find 5 days at Disney barely enough. I can’t imagine throwing universal in there too.

We save universal for its own visit. If not enough then one could add a beach visit etc to it.

 

[dawnnikol]

I agree with what everybody else has said so far. I'd skip Universal for this trip. I've done Universal in one day, but we didn't get to do everything. We focused mostly on HP, with a few other on IoA, but if you're already staying on Disney property, I'd just stay there. Our kids, ages 3-13 at the time all had fun all DHS, so toss that into your plans, IMO.

However, it's your vacation, so if grabbing an uber up to Universal is going to make your trip magical, totally do it! We loved Universal, but after going there for only one day last time, our next trip will be 3.

 

[disneygirlsng]

I LOVE Universal, but if I were only going for that short time, I would pick one or the other. AK is by far my favorite park (agreed with the PP that it's the best park in Orlando), so I could never imagine skipping it. I would also pick HS over Epcot, especially with those ages. While you can definitely choose to spend 1/2 day at HS or AK, there is more than plenty at each of those parks for full days.

 

[rteetz]

Animal Kingdom is also my favorite park. I would never skip it for universal.

With Star Wars opening August 29th crowds at DHS and AK are still going to be high so you may not get what you want done in a short period of time like that plus universal.

 

[Jadyreen1282]

AK is my favorite too. Just sayin.

 

[Ross Powell]

Former cast member and annual pass holder of both Universal and Disney. Disney does not offer free transportation to Universal. I choose Disney over Universal every time. September starts to slow down so I would rope drop AK to get on Flight of Passage.

 

[Hopefully]

No way I would ever consider doing that.
4 days is barely enough time to manage Disney.
Don’t even consider both

 

[SG131]

Al is my least favorite of the 4 Disney parks (not an animal person) and I still would not do what you are considering. There is def no free transportation since they are competing entities and once you include tips the cost of Uber adds up. That would be a lot of rushing.

Keep in mind a lot of people that you read saying HS is a half a day park for them go to Disney every couple of years. In that case some of the things especially shows get a little old. Indiana Jones has been running since I was a kid, but if you’ve never seen it before I would definitely recommend it. If you go in August you will be fine, if you go in September Star Wars will be open so I would expect increased crowds and waits throughout HS.

Also, AK is the hottest park and also fairly large. If you try to run around like crazy to do it all in half a day, you will be exhausted and not want to go anywhere else afterwards. Plus if you try to spend one day in two parks, you will only have FP for one of those two parks and end up having to spend more time in line and won’t be able to do as much. For such a short trip stick to Disney. I just did a half day at AK in Feb and was satisfied, but that was after a day and a half during a much longer trip in Dec.

 

[BOST99]

I would do as others suggested - I would do either Disney or Universal. If Disney, I would probably skip Epcot based on your kids ages.

With the length of time you are going, it might be perfect for Universal. Staying at one of their resorts, you may be able to see more there vs Disney.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I am planning a Disney trip for myself and 2 kids aged 11 and 8 at the time of travel. My plans are to go at the end of August or in the month of Sepember and stay in Disney. We are only going for 3 nights and 4 days so I'm thinking 3 parks unless we can squeeze a 4th. I've been doing some reading and I think my 11 year old will benefit most from Universal Studios. I was reading that AK and DHS can be done in a shorter time frame. I definitely want to plan a full day at MK. I was then thinking Epcot and Universal Studios. If, depending on flights, we have enough time to visit a 4th, I was thinking DHS. Maybe on the day we arrive or leave as we will have less time.

Also is there free of charge transportation from the Disney resort to Universal S? We plan to stay in a Disney hotel.


Can someone with experience provide their opinion on whether or not this plan makes sense? Am I not thinking of something? Is this even doable?

Thanks in advance and I'm sorry if this question has been asked before.

Keep in mind, this is a WDW forum, not a Universal forum.

We love Universal and go often. I can't say which experience you would value more, because that is personal.

Before you decide, make sure you know the prices.
If you are already spending 3 days at WDW, adding AK will cost less than a day at Universal.
You will need transportation, and that will cost $. You can go with something like an Uber, there are also buses (I don't suggest), shuttles , and you could also get a rental car for the day or week.

While a rental car costs the most, it can sometimes be partly offset by a trip to the grocery store. A case of water at the grocery store costs $5 or less(24). Bottled water in WDW costs something like $2.50/bottle. So just buying one case of water in a store vs. buying 24 bottles in the parks = a (potential) crazy savings of $55.

One offsite meal can also cost less than onsite. It isn't for me to say that any offsite eatery = a princess buffet, but we often feel offsite meals offer better quality for less $. Mind, we only eat one or two meals offsite, like on the way to the airport, not every meal, because:

Time is $.

It is totally doable to go to both WDW and Universal. If your family loves HP, then the HP lands are both just super-amazing.

As WDW has 4 parks, Universal has 2. If you are trying to decide on one of the 2 Universal parks, and HP is a big factor- then I suggest choosing Diagon Alley (The Universal Studios side of US) over the park called Islands of Adventure.

I have been to both places many times...so maybe not a newcomer. Universal and WDW are a little ways apart, but we often do WWD split stays. It isn't all that hard to go form one to the other, as long as you have priced out both options.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

With Star Wars opening August 29th crowds at DHS and AK are still going to be high so you may not get what you want done in a short period of time like that plus universal.

A few other folks have used THIS as a reason to choose Universal over HS.

I imagine the Universal parks will be a bit less crowded.

Though it is worth noting Universal is also getting a new HP ride. (Important to note: the newest HP ride will be located in the Islands of Adventure).

 

[rteetz]

A few other folks have used THIS as a reason to choose Universal over HS.

I imagine the Universal parks will be a bit less crowded.

Though it is worth noting Universal is also getting a new HP ride. (Important to note: the newest HP ride will be located in the Islands of Adventure).

Yes but the poster still wanted to fit in DHS in addition to universal so with Star Wars opening I feel that could work even more against the poster.

 

[rdaky]

We love both places but to me it doesn't make sense to cram Universal into such a short trip, especially if you're staying on Disney property without your own transportation. There is plenty to do at all 4 Disney parks with an 11 year old, and I imagine she's going to want some pool time, too. I'd save Universal for another trip when you can get in a couple of days there.

 

[Dr.Mickey]

As long time Disney fans, we recently did the opposite (four days at Universal, one day at Epcot). It worked for us mostly because we had been to Disney so many times we were just looking for highlights. In my opinion, I think it would be pushing it to try to work in Universal as a new experience in such a short trip.

Question: What is your primary interest at Universal? Is it Harry Potter? If so, the World of HP is incredibly well done, especially Diagon Alley at the Universal side. But, if you only buy a 1 park pass, you will miss out on the Hogwarts Express (both directions) and Hogsmeade and the Forbidden Journey. But wow, those 1 day hopper passes are expensive if you want both. But I think the World of Harry Potter is as good as anything Disney has done. Now, as far as the rest of Universal? Maybe it was just us, but the rest of it came up a bit short of our expectations.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Yes but the poster still wanted to fit in DHS in addition to universal so with Star Wars opening I feel that could work even more against the poster.

Well, the OP kinda said they were considering a day at HS as their 4th park day.

As I said though, other folks have said they are opting to go to Universal to avoid the SW crowds.

That's kinda my take as well.

I went to Epcot when Frozen was all the rage. The line to see Ann and Elsa was crazy. At park opening, it was kinda like the running of the bulls. Within minutes, the wait went form zero to 4+ hours.

The wait to see SW likely be worse.

So...

Spend all day in line to see 1 new ride...

Or - from the perspective of the OP - see 17+ new rides Universal Studios.

I'd easily take 17 attractions over 1 attraction.

 

[SaintsManiac]

I feel like Universal deserves more time and a stay on property. I would focus on Disney for such a short trip.

The going back and forth and trying to cover that much territory adds fatigue and a bit of a stress. No need for that for just 4 days.

 

[Brett Wyman]

3 nights and 4 days is barely enough to do two of the Disney parks, if that. And universal is two parks if you want to see all things Harry Potter(did you check the ticket price on that for one day!). I’d stick to Disney so you aren’t rushed and save universal for another trip. AK is an amazing park. Book an entire day there.