Switching Things Up: A Disney Lover's First Time at Universal - March 2021

[andy_dangg]

Hi everyone!

My name is Andy and welcome to my March 5-7, 2021 trip report! As you can tell by the title, this trip was my first time ever visiting Universal and spoiler alert, I had a BLAST. We spent two nights and three days at the parks so this report will be short but oh so sweet. Expect day by day reports, photos, and SO many food reviews!

I like to start my reports with a little bit of background on myself, my travelling party, and the planning (or lack thereof) that went into the trip. So let's get to it, shall we?

ABOUT US

As I said before, I'm Andy (on the left). I travelled with my boyfriend Jason (with the pink hair). We're both students at the University of Florida, which is a little over an hour and a half from Orlando.

This was my first time ever at Universal, which was shocking to many of my friends considering how much I love theme parks and have lived in Florida since 2005. I'm a massive Disney fan--I've been on countless day trips and a few overnight trips, three of which were last year (check my signature for trip reports)! It's not like I've been avoiding Universal, it's just that every time we decide to go to Orlando, I always want to go to Disney. I'm obsessed with Disney history and lore so Disney has such a strong nostalgic connection for me. On the other hand, Jason like Disney, but not as much as I do. He has visited Universal few times before, but it's been a few years since he went.

TRIP PLANNING

I plan my Disney vacations nearly down to the minute, usually months ahead of time. This trip could not have been more different! I just happened to have a weekend off from work and school was slow, so Jason and I wanted to go somewhere. We actually initially booked a hotel on the beach in the Cocoa Beach/Melbourne area. But then maybe a week and a half before the beach trip, I saw that Universal had a promotion for three months free for Florida resident annual passes. When I proposed the idea to Jason, he was a little taken aback at first--going from a sleepy beach weekend to having annual passes to Universal for fifteen months is a big change! But when we realized that the down payment for the annual passes was just a little more than the beach hotel we booked and that the monthly payments were surprisingly affordable, we decided to go for it!

We chose to purchase the two park Preferred Pass. I was considering the Power Pass, but I didn't want to have to worry about blackout dates and I wanted free parking. The food and merch discounts and EPA access were nice bonuses as well! While we want to visit Volcano Bay, we don't feel 100% comfortable being in a purposely maskless environment, so we just decided it would be best to save the money to get a two park pass and maybe just buy a day ticket to Volcano Bay when we don't have to worry about COVID anymore.

We decided to stay at the Doubletree right across the street from Universal on the corner of Kirkman and Major Road. It was walking distance to the parks which was a big draw because free passholder parking is only valid after the first visit. I wanted to stay at Cabana Bay or Endless Summer, but Universal hotels have a check in age of 21. We won't be 21 until the summer, so those resorts are on the back burner until later this year. Besides, I used Hilton points to book at the Doubletree and this stay pushes me closer to a 5,000 bonus Hilton Honors points, so I wasn't complaining.

In terms of what we planned to do in the parks, seeing Harry Potter stuff and riding rides was about all we thought about doing. Having passes really allows you to tour with no pressure, as you can always come back next time and see what you missed. We also wanted to sample lots of the Mardi Gras food. A work friend told me about the $65 15-item lanyard for annual passholders, so we wanted to take advantage of that. Other than that, we really had no plan whatsoever. It was weird, but freeing!

With all that blabbing out of the way, it's time to get into the report! Up next: our drive down to Orlando, checking in, and stepping foot into Universal for the first time ever!

 

[Daisy7425]

You two are an adorable couple! I've also planned Disney vacations down to the minute! Haha! We will be at Universal for the first time in May. Really looking forward to your trip report.

 

[andy_dangg]

DAY 1

I had volunteering from 8a-11a this morning, so after I got off, I went over to Jason's apartment. We made a quick breakfast/lunch of Just Eggs (so good btw) and sausage before grabbing some Dunkin and hitting the road!

I had checked in the previous morning on the Hilton app and selected my room from the map. This is my favorite feature of the app. I love choosing which way my room is facing and where it's located. I was able to snag one of the few Universal view king bed rooms. One of the employees over the phone said they only have about 50 king rooms out of over 700 rooms in the hotel. I read some complaints on TripAdvisor of the Universal view rooms being a side view, so I wanted one directly facing the parks. I ended up picking room 1630 on the 16th floor in the north tower:

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What's great about the online check in is that they send you a notification as soon as your room is ready and you can head straight to your room with the digital key on your phone. When we were at the halfway point of the drive, we got a notification that our room was ready! This was at about 1:30p which is much earlier than the posted check in time of 4pm.

Before we went to the hotel, we had one stop to make. Jason had bought a new Macbook the day before. He was originally going to get it shipped to his apartment, but then he realized that we could just pick it up in Orlando. Since our room was ready, we thought it would be a good idea to grab the laptop then head to the hotel so it wasn't sitting in the car while we were at the parks.

The Mall of Millennia was maybe five minutes from our hotel, so we chose that Apple Store location. I've been to the Florida Mall before and this one was much more beautiful and more on the upscale end.

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The pickup was so quick and easy. The mall wasn't busy and pandemic precautions have made going to the Apple Store a much more sane and organized experience.

It was a super short drive before we got to the hotel. The parking lot is controlled by gates, which you can open with the Hilton app. One interesting tidbit: parking at the Doubletree is normally $23 a day. I chose that I needed parking on the app and it showed the price. However, I was not charged on my statement at the end of the stay. Additionally, when I asked for some physical keys at the front desk, they didn't work with the parking gates--only the app did. I'm thinking the parking wasn't activated on the cards by the front desk so I wasn't charged. Can't guarantee this will work for you, so I'm not complaining!

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Like I mentioned before, I stopped by the front desk to grab a pair of physical room keys. Sometimes I don't like to fiddle with my phone to get in the room so it's nice to have a physical key. We also got some of the famous Doubletree cookies...which I can't eat due to a walnut allergy. However, Jason enjoyed them thoroughly.

Our room was really nice! The bed was large and comfortable. The hotel was definitely on the older side, but it looks like the rooms have been renovated recently. I especially appreciated all the outlets for charging devices and the nice walk in shower.

(excuse my weird face)
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However, by far the best part of the room was the floor to ceiling windows that faced Universal! While the parking garages were slightly in the way, we had a great view of both parks. We were able to see a bunch of roller coasters, Hogwarts, the Men in Black thingies, and the resorts! The Volcano Bay volcano was also off in the distance. I feel like most people wouldn't be blown away by the view, but for a theme park nerd like myself, I loved it! It also looked a lot closer in person than it does in photos.

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Jason got his computer set up while I got settled in and freshened up and enjoyed the view for a bit. After about 20 minutes we headed downstairs to walk over to the park!

Up next: park time!!!

 

[DL1WDW2]

!!! A trip to Universal Orlando and Mall of the Millenia !!!
Hope you have fun with your new 15 month AP offer (that expires soon)

 

[Chaitali]

Following along. Sounds like a great start to the trip!

 

[macraven]

I’m in for the read !

 

[andy_dangg]

!!! A trip to Universal Orlando and Mall of the Millenia !!!
Hope you have fun with your new 15 month AP offer (that expires soon)

Following along. Sounds like a great start to the trip!

I’m in for the read !

Welcome guys! Thanks for following along!

 

[schumigirl]

You caught me at Mall at Millenia.......our favourite mall!!

Nice start and look forward to reading along....looks like a fun trip you have ahead of you.

 

[andy_dangg]

The walk from the Doubletree to the parks is really easy. I wish I took more photos to show the steps, but I'll just narrate! So when you exit the lobby, walk all the way to the end of the hotel parking lot until you reach Kirkman. Take the pedestrian bridge across the street (super convenient as it is a eight lane road) then turn right onto Universal property. Follow the path until you reach the crosswalk, cross, and continue following the path. There are also signs that tell you which way to go! Keep following the path until you reach the valet parking loop. Go through the tiny and quick security checkpoint, take the escalator, and you're in CityWalk! All in all, the walk took us a little over than ten minutes. We are both fast walkers and didn't have kids in tow, so it might take a little longer. But it's a really easy and safe walk.

While enjoying the beautiful weather I was impressed by the beauty of the waterways and resort grounds. They seemed really quiet and lovely. The boats navigating the waterways were so cute! Of course this made me talk to Jason about staying at Portofino or Royal Pacific on a future visit...and even he was talking about staying at Cabana Bay or Endless Summer with friends this summer! And this was all before we had even step foot in the parks!

After the quick security and temp check we were in CityWalk! It seemed to have a lot of energy. It was a bit more chaotic than Disney Springs, but it had a cool vibe. I'm thinking its function as a thruway to the parks added to the more frenetic feel, but it was a fun way to get hyped for a day in the parks!

Finally seeing the iconic globe was so cool!

We purchased our annual passes online, so we had to exchange our printed confirmation for our physical passes. The process was quick and easy and we were in the park by 3:30p!

Immediately upon entering I loved the vibe of the park. It felt similar to Hollywood Studios...which makes a lot of sense. It was such a cool feeling to be in a new theme park. Everything felt so fresh and different. It didn't hurt that it was an absolutely gorgeous day!

Since the last thing we ate was iced coffee from Dunkin back in Gainesville, our blood sugar was low and we were super dehydrated, considering that coffee was hours ago! Before we hit the rides we grabbed a Coke and just soaked up the atmosphere of the park. On a Disney trip I would be stressed we were not making the best use of our time, but as minutes-old Universal annual passholders, we were enjoying taking it slow.

After seeing the lift hill from our hotel room, I decided to ride Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit first. Jason likes most roller coasters but still gets nervous with some larger roller coasters so I wanted to ride it first so it wasn't taunting him all day. The wait was only 20 minutes so we made our way over and hopped in line!

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I was surprised to see metal detectors in the line for the ride. The locker system with scanning your ticket is really convenient. I appreciate it's free and is more secure than leaving your belongings in a bin in the ride station.

We only waited about 15 minutes. The line was moving very quickly. I found the spacing between parties was greater at Universal than Disney--it seems they left more space to account for large parties. In terms of the ride, I personally enjoyed it a lot, while Jason wasn't the biggest fan. We both found it to be a little rough, but Jason had a slightly more painful experience because he closed the restraint a little too tight. Personally though, the vertical lift and drop were so thrilling and I loved how long the ride was. The music choices were a little outdated, but we chose the No Doubt song and enjoyed it. I'll have to take a look at those secret songs next time I ride--might be a little bit before I can get Jason on it again though!

At this point, we were pretty hungry as we never really ate an actual lunch. As I mentioned in the trip planning section, we wanted to sample allll the Mardi Gras food so we bought the 15 item annual passholder exclusive sampler for $65 plus tax. This is honestly a great deal--it comes to less than $5 an item, and most are in the $6-7 range with some almost $10! This is by far the best deal I've had at any theme park food festival--Busch Gardens is slightly more expensive and Epcot is definitely pretty pricey.

Our first item was the muffuletta sandwich. We wanted something filling and this looked pretty substantial. We got the food and sat in the big courtyard in front of the stage to eat.

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This was pretty tasty! The olives added a lot of flavor and as someone who is really picky with chips, these were great! Interestingly I feel like the sandwich wasn't salty enough, which is the exact opposite complaint I usually have with lunchmeat. However it was still a good size and value--definitely recommend!

 

[andy_dangg]

We were still on the hunt for some food after eating the sandwich, so we made our way over towards the New York area. I absolutely love arepas, so when I saw the Colombian booth was offering arepas, I knew I had to get one.

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This arepa was so delicious! It wasn't quite as good as some I've had some local restaurants in the Orlando and Tampa areas, but for a theme park arepa, it had so much flavor. It was also $9 which makes it a great deal for the lanyard. Jason got the Brazilian coconut curry-type dish, which was good, but small. We liked it but wouldn't order it again. Sadly I did not get a photo!

With some food in our bellies we felt like we were ready to take on Revenge of the Mummy. Jason rode this before and was excited for me to ride it for the first time. The line was pretty short as well, posted 20 minutes and it ended up being a little less than that. The queue was well themed and I think ancient Egypt is super interesting so it was cool! The ride itself was awesome! It did a great job of building suspense and I loved the roller coaster portions--super smooth and thrilling. I loved how the ride combined dark ride and roller coaster. The coaster part reminded me a lot of Space Mountain, but with more theming and a storyline. The fire effects were terrifying but SO cool. Awesome ride!

At this point, it was a little after 5p, and Universal Studios was closing at 6p, which was oddly early. Islands of Adventure was closing at 7p, so we thought we would make our way over to Diagon Alley to ride the Hogwarts Express.

By the time we got to Diagon Alley it was only 5:15p so we figured we'd walk around a bit to check out the atmosphere before getting in line for the train.

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I was stunned at how immersive Diagon Alley was. You really felt like you were transported to a different place! I think it was also awesome how unassuming the entrance was. I honestly only knew about it after reading article online. Jason even thought it was further down the path and initially walked past the entrance! I thought the tunnel into Galaxy's Edge was transportive, but this is on a whole other level. It felt so cool to have such a vibrant land hiding in plain sight.

I just loved the atmosphere of Diagon Alley. We got to see the dragon breathe fire just after we entered the land and it was such an awesome moment. We just strolled around the streets, peeking inside shops and getting acquainted with the lay of the land. I can't wait to explore this area more in depth!

Thought this was just a cool photo op until an actual (human) team member emerged from behind the goblin...
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After milling around Diagon Alley for a bit, we got in line for the Hogwarts Express.

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As someone who loves airports and all things travel, I found the train station themed queue to be so fun! I loved the on-theme signs and ads. The wait was posted at 50 minutes. It took us about 40 minutes to get from the entrance to the loading platform, so I'd say that 50 minutes was pretty accurate. I did hate how the line moved in big chunks instead of more steady. At one point we didn't move for 15 minutes! Sadly, we didn't get to see the 9 3/4 effect. The parties in front of us were very spaced out and walked too fast so we didn't get to see it.

I was so surprised at the size of the train station, it was pretty breathtaking when we entered.

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At this point, I was kind of geeking out. I'm by no means the biggest Harry Potter fan out there, but I would still classify myself as someone who loves the franchise. I read and loved all the books but have only seen a few of the movies. It was so cool to see these worlds that I had in my head manifest themselves in person. I remember reading the books and thinking that riding the Hogwarts Express was the coolest thing ever so to be able to actually see this and touch this thing that had previously only existed in my imagination was just awesome.

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Boarding the train, I was so surprised at how real it felt. The logical side of me knew I was boarding a theme park ride, but it was just so amazingly themed. The train was weathered, massive, and felt just like a REAL.

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Now for the journey itself. I really loved the projections on the door. Harry, Hermione, and Ron walking outside our door was just so cool. When the dementors were on the train I got chills! On the other hand, the screen on the train window was alright. I understand the train passes a lot of backstage areas, but I have to admit the screens did not feel as realistic as the rest of the experience. Jason even thought it would be cool to see the backstage areas, even if it ruined the immersion. However, we both thought it was cool that the movement and turns of the train were synched with the video.

It was such a cool feeling to get off the train in a completely different park. I love that you can stay immersed in the Harry Potter magic while utilizing park-to-park transportation. Even if we weren't the biggest fans of the screens, we loved riding the Hogwarts Express and the ability to park hop while never really leaving the parks!

Up next: the last hour in the parks and the rest of our night!

 

[Worfiedoodles]

I'm enjoying your TR, your enthusiasm is palpable! What a great start

Maria

 

[andy_dangg]

I'm enjoying your TR, your enthusiasm is palpable! What a great start

Maria

Thanks for following along! Glad you're enjoying, I was unsure if I was going to write a report about a two night trip but we had such a good time that I felt like I should

 

[macraven]

You are doing a great job !
All your pictures you are sharing with us are fabulous!

 

[andy_dangg]

After we got off the train, it was time to venture into Hogsmeade! I wasn't AS impressed with Hogsmeade as Diagon Alley, but it was by no means boring! It had a completely different vibe, which was really cool.

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By far the best part of Hogsmeade is Hogwarts itself! I gasped when it came into view. The forced perspective here is awesome!

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With only a ten minute wait posted, we decided to ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. It was weird seeing such a short wait time for a ride I know originally posted hours long waits. All of the time we spent in the queue was spent walking. It was such a long walk! Sadly, we wanted more time to enjoy the queue, but the people behind us were RIGHT on our tails. We both agreed that we will have to ride again when there's a longer line so we can soak up all the details! This had to be one of the coolest queues I've been in, bar none.

Unfortunately, as cool as the queue was, I was not able to get photos because my phone died. So sadly, there are no photos for the rest of Friday, but I'll try my best to narrate!

I had read what the ride system of Forbidden Journey is like, but refrained from watching videos beforehand so it was a surprise to me. I'm glad I did, because this ride blew both Jason and me away! The ride pulls you into the story so quickly and is one of the most unique rides I've ever ridden. I loved the blending of screens and physical sets. Both were extremely well done--the screens felt 100% immersive and the size and detail of the animatronics was awesome. It was really unique how close you felt to the dementors and Whomping Willow, it seemed they were so close I could touch them! I must say, some of the screen portions made me slightly motion sick, but they usually ended as soon as it got the be a little too much. Regardless, we both thought this ride was absolutely amazing and couldn't wait to ride it again.

At this point, it was nearing park close. We were thinking of maybe getting in line for Hagrids, but we were tired and still had some errands to run outside of the parks. So we decided to call it a night and made our way back to the front of the park. I wanted to walk through the Jurassic Park area, but we couldn't find the way over there so we ended up taking the Seuss Landing route back. We thought Seuss Landing looked like a cute area was such a huge contrast from Hogsmeade.

Although our time in IoA was short, it felt like a fun preview considering we'd be back again the next morning at 7a for Early Park Admission! It had a very different feel than USF, almost a mix of the contrasting lands of Magic Kingdom and waterfront vibes of Epcot if that makes sense?

We made our way out of the park into a pretty crowded CityWalk. I'm guessing most people were either heading their way out or looking to continue their night after a day of the parks. Interestingly, there were some people coming in from the parking garages as well.

The walk back to the hotel wasn't bad, but a little more painful than the way there. At one point we started jogging so the walk would be over sooner!

We went back up to the room to grab my car keys and for Jason to finish setting up his new computer. Then, we took a short drive over to Whole Foods, which was maybe ten minutes away on Turkey Lake Road. The directions took us through Universal property which gave us a different view of the parks and hotels which was pretty cool.

I'm sure there was a Publix a little closer to the hotel, but we were looking for a healthy-ish and cheap dinner option. I work at Whole Foods in my college town, so I get a employee discount and I'm also super familiar with our products, so it was a nice, predictable option. We ended up grabbing some frozen breakfast bowls/burritos, juice, and two heated sandwiches from the prepared foods area. My store does not heat sandwiches so it was a nice change

We went back to the room and relaxed and enjoyed our food while watching TV. After showering we were pretty exhausted and fell asleep around 11pm. Since we would be waking up before sunrise, I left the curtains open when we went to sleep and we had such an amazing view of the lights of Universal. Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit as well as a few other attractions were all lit up and it was just so awesome to lay in bed and look over such a great view. I definitely recommend the Universal view rooms at the Doubletree--the floor to ceiling windows make it so worth it.

That concludes our first day at Universal! We had a great time and it got us even more excited for our next two days at the parks.

Up next: our VERY early start!

 

[bobbie68]

Hi enjoying your trip report!! What a great couple you are!!

Glad that you are enjoying your first time. We stayed at the double tree about 6 years ago and liked it. We walked to the parks in the morning but by the end of the night we took a taxi. I agree love both Hogsmeade and Diagon but Diagon does something more for me I could stay there for hours. I think Universal has great prices for their annual passes. We just moved here from CT so I took advantage of the florida resident rate. We go over for a few hours at a time and leave when it gets busy.

We use to ride RRR all the time but you are right it is a little to bumpy for me but the lift and drop are fun. We are enjoying the mardi gras food and think the lanyard deal for AP holders is good.

Looking forward to more...

 

[nouvellefleur]

Really enjoying your report! We're hoping/planning to visit in November 2021 (rescheduled from last November ) and I'm finally allowing myself to get excited about it. Thanks for sharing your trip, you're giving a great recap!

 

[puffkin]

I am enjoying your report! We are a Disney family and made the leap over to the darkside this year, now that my kids are old enough and the AMAZING deals on the AP's. Heading back for our 3rd trip next month and can't wait! I am enjoying seeing your perceptions as a first timer and Disney fan, as many things match ours. Looking forward to reading the rest!

 

[Chaitali]

Sounds like you made really good use of your time! I'm impressed with how much you were able to get done.

 

[Daisy7425]

No butter beer for you in WWHP? You take awesome photos and you sound like such a cute couple. Great report.

 

[andy_dangg]

Hi enjoying your trip report!! What a great couple you are!!

Glad that you are enjoying your first time. We stayed at the double tree about 6 years ago and liked it. We walked to the parks in the morning but by the end of the night we took a taxi. I agree love both Hogsmeade and Diagon but Diagon does something more for me I could stay there for hours. I think Universal has great prices for their annual passes. We just moved here from CT so I took advantage of the florida resident rate. We go over for a few hours at a time and leave when it gets busy.

We use to ride RRR all the time but you are right it is a little to bumpy for me but the lift and drop are fun. We are enjoying the mardi gras food and think the lanyard deal for AP holders is good.

Looking forward to more...

We definitely would have appreciated that taxi at the end of the night, lol! For what it's worth, I read it should be less than a $10 Uber ride to get back to the hotel, which I feel like is worth it if you are feeling really tired.

Really enjoying your report! We're hoping/planning to visit in November 2021 (rescheduled from last November ) and I'm finally allowing myself to get excited about it. Thanks for sharing your trip, you're giving a great recap!

Glad you're enjoying! Hope you enjoy your trip, I'm sure hope things will be better by then! Since my pass lasts 15 months I'm looking forward to enjoying some park time hopefully post-COVID.

I am enjoying your report! We are a Disney family and made the leap over to the darkside this year, now that my kids are old enough and the AMAZING deals on the AP's. Heading back for our 3rd trip next month and can't wait! I am enjoying seeing your perceptions as a first timer and Disney fan, as many things match ours. Looking forward to reading the rest!

Happy you're here! I think for a while I did see Universal as the "dark side" too but after hearing such good things I felt I was much overdue for a trip, and I'm so glad I did! DIsney is obviously very near and dear to my heart but I cannot deny Universal offers an exciting and different experience--some things are even done a little better!

Sounds like you made really good use of your time! I'm impressed with how much you were able to get done.

Since we were only staying two nights we wanted to squeeze as much park time in as possible! We're both pretty flexible so we were just trying to have as much fun as possible

No butter beer for you in WWHP? You take awesome photos and you sound like such a cute couple. Great report.

Thank you so much We kept trying to get Butterbeer but whenever it was convenient we were never in the mood! I know I need to try it though...I love cream soda so I think I will be a fan