Universal Studios – Harry Potter, Super Heroes, and so much MORE!

On Tuesday morning, 11/8, we moved the rig just 50 miles to our next stop, a city park only a few miles outside of Universal Studios in Orlando.  Randi and Ryan were due in around 6:30pm so we did some shopping and Rog dropped his bike off to get a new “rock shock” installed and the brakes upgraded. Mountain biking won’t be on the agenda while we’re in Orlando, so it was the perfect time to get it into the shop.

Randi called to check in during their layover in St. Louis and disaster was narrowly averted. They had forgotten about the time change and thought they had time for a leisurely lunch. Oops! They cancelled their order, grabbed some (really) fast food and made a bee-line to their gate. Whew!   Traveling can be stressful, so we were thrilled when they and their luggage all arrived on time.

After lots of hugs, we had dinner and formulated a plan of attack for our first day in the parks. Universal Orlando Resort, as it’s now called, is actually two separate parks – Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. You can walk from one park to the other through Universal’s “City Walk” which is an area of shops and restaurants or take the Hogwarts Express train between the parks. We decided to start in Islands of Adventure which has more thrill rides. We settled in early since we wanted to be at the gates when they opened at 9am. Unfortunately, we ended up having a sleepless night as the election results came in. Nuff said.

Universal has done an excellent job creating attractions and rides for an older, more adventurous crowd. They have awesome rides using 4D simulation and thrilling roller coasters that you just won’t find at Disney. They’ve also done an incredible job creating a detailed, realistic, totally immersive experience for Harry Potter fans. Gotta say, this is my favorite park for fun!

Islands of Adventure is divided into different themed areas – the Wizarding World of Harry Potter™, Marvel Super Hero Island®, Toon Lagoon™, Jurassic Park™- The Lost Continent™, and Seuss Landing. As you walk from one area to the next all the details and even the background music changes. There are areas and rides for littler kids, but a lot of the rides are for older kids (like us!).

Hey, we're in the funnies! Randi & Ryan in Toon Lagoon. 

Fun photo ops abound.

Kong is the new ride at Universal.  You are right in the middle of the awesome action!

There is no real point in trying to describe all the rides – they just have to be experienced. But I will give you the lowdown on the Incredible Hulk, our favorite roller coaster. It’s a 2:15 minute, 3,700-foot-long ride with a top speed of 67 mph that features seven inversions including a zero-g roll, a cobra roll, two vertical loops, and two corkscrews. It reaches a maximum height of 110 feet and the first drop is 105 feet! What I like best is that there is no slow excruciating climb up – the part I hate most!  The Hulk launches you from 0 to 40mph in 2 seconds and the track drops away so it’s just blue sky and blind faith. Whoohooo! Lol. To be honest, I am not a huge coaster fan, but when we came here in 2000 I figured I had to ride with Rog and not wimp out. We ended up riding it six times! We only managed it twice this trip, but it’s still a great coaster. Unfortunately, Randi gets motion sick so, while she rode everything at least once, she opted to sit out repeat performances.

Me and my Hunk with the Hulk coaster is in the background. :)

We decided to save all the Harry Potter areas/rides for Thursday. Universal has recreated Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade. For anyone who loved the Harry Potter books – this is a bucket list item. The detail is phenomenal! Apparently J.K. Rowling visits often to ensure it’s done right. And it did not disappoint. Randi and Ryan loved it and we even had dinner and a Butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks. Lol.

Diagon Alley

The dragon breathes fire atop Gringotts Bank.

Hogwarts

Approaching the 9 3/4 platform for the Hogwart's Express.

Tired puppy with sore feet awaiting the train to Hogsmeade.

Randi & Ryan at the Hogwarts Express station.

Dinner at the Three Broomsticks. The Butterbeer was a hit! 

The dragon is especially impressive at night.

On Friday we started with the rides in Universal Studios. There are more shows and themed areas here too, including a whole irreverent section dedicated to the Simpsons. We all thought the Horror Make-Up Show was hilarious! We had an early dinner in City Walk and then switched parks to do the water rides. Universal has three “wet” rides and we opted to save then all for one day and come prepared! Lol. It was almost dark by the time we got started, but they ended up being Randi’s absolute favorites and we did two of them twice. I’m sure seeing Mom and Dad get drenched just added to the appeal. Lol.

Had to stop here in the Simpson's area. 

Body by Duff. Lol. 

Loved the tropical flowers and landscaping.

Since Saturday was our last day we picked up a few rides we’d missed and repeated some favorites (not the water rides!) and then treated ourselves to the Dessert Foundry – A Toothsome Chocolate Emporium. (No counting calories here!)

Lunch at the aptly named Dessert Foundry- A Toothsome Chocolate Emporium.

After that we called it quits. After four straight days in Universal, Randi was developing some impressive blisters and we have lots more walking to do at Disney. Tomorrow we get to sleep in and have huckleberry pancakes (the last of our berries from Glacier!) for breakfast. Then we move the RV to the Fort Wilderness Campground at Disney and check Randi & Ryan into the All Stars Movie Resort. We had a blast at Universal and are excited to continue the fun at Disney.