Universal Orlando

[mcgrawfsu]

We are heading there for the first time in probably 20 years. We are only going to Universal and will be staying in a Universal resort. Are there any suggestions on how to get the most out of the park for a day? I have no idea how their fast passes work.

 

[atlseminole]

Paging Tribe......

 

[FSUTribe76]

We are heading there for the first time in probably 20 years. We are only going to Universal and will be staying in a Universal resort. Are there any suggestions on how to get the most out of the park for a day? I have no idea how their fast passes work.

Unlike Disney's needlessly complex system that doesn't really save much time and is really just about tracking your movements and spending so they can bilk more from you, the Universal fast pass just gives you access to an alternative line that is three times or more as fast as the ordinary line. So simple and it works.

As far as getting the most out of the day, the general technique is to save the longer wait rides like gringotts until the end of the day. After 4 or so, all of the people with cranky rugrats are gone so the park is half as full as in the morning and afternoon.

As far as restaurants, the best in the park restaurant anywhere in Florida (Aunt Granny's in Dollywood beats all) is Mythos in Universal. It's surprisingly cheap and pretty high quality, plus the best themed restaurant I've seen inside. For restaurants just outside the parks, City Walk has several great quality restaurants. Vivo is not one you hear a lot about but its the best Italian I've had in Orlando, especially the squid ink and seafood pasta, plus very reasonably priced. Antojitos is pricier than Vivo and about double what you'd pay for Mexican food elsewhere but it's the best Mexican I've had in Otown. Well worth it especially when you can catch the mariachi band that focuses on playing modern English pop hits in a traditional mariachi way. Red Oven is a quality high end pizza place in Citywalk that isn't the best in Otown period but blows away all theme park pizza by miles. Cowfish is the best restaurant in Charlotte NC and their new branch in Citywalk is just as good. It's got lots of good American fusion style sushi and great burgers. Bob Marleys used to be even better but they've streamlined their menu so you don't have as many choices but it's still got some decent Jamaican places. Skip Emerils, Margaritaville and Bubba Gump it's typical tourist %*%*, overpriced TGI Fridays level. The new NBC Sports Bar looks good but it only opened last week so I haven't been yet.

I'll post some more tips later when I have more time.

 

[mcgrawfsu]

Unlike Disney's needlessly complex system that doesn't really save much time and is really just about tracking your movements and spending so they can bilk more from you, the Universal fast pass just gives you access to an alternative line that is three times or more as fast as the ordinary line. So simple and it works.

As far as getting the most out of the day, the general technique is to save the longer wait rides like gringotts until the end of the day. After 4 or so, all of the people with cranky rugrats are gone so the park is half as full as in the morning and afternoon.

As far as restaurants, the best in the park restaurant anywhere in Florida (Aunt Granny's in Dollywood beats all) is Mythos in Universal. It's surprisingly cheap and pretty high quality, plus the best themed restaurant I've seen inside. For restaurants just outside the parks, City Walk has several great quality restaurants. Vivo is not one you hear a lot about but its the best Italian I've had in Orlando, especially the squid ink and seafood pasta, plus very reasonably priced. Antojitos is pricier than Vivo and about double what you'd pay for Mexican food elsewhere but it's the best Mexican I've had in Otown. Well worth it especially when you can catch the mariachi band that focuses on playing modern English pop hits in a traditional mariachi way. Red Oven is a quality high end pizza place in Citywalk that isn't the best in Otown period but blows away all theme park pizza by miles. Cowfish is the best restaurant in Charlotte NC and their new branch in Citywalk is just as good. It's got lots of good American fusion style sushi and great burgers. Bob Marleys used to be even better but they've streamlined their menu so you don't have as many choices but it's still got some decent Jamaican places. Skip Emerils, Margaritaville and Bubba Gump it's typical tourist %*%*, overpriced TGI Fridays level. The new NBC Sports Bar looks good but it only opened last week so I haven't been yet.

I'll post some more tips later when I have more time.

Thanks for the tips. The whole Disney fast pass thing is out of control now. You have to book your rides months in advance.

How are the hotels? At Disney we typically stay at Boardwalk, Beach Club, Grand Floridian, and Animal Kingdom. I'm looking for something similar.

 

[seminoledq]

Unlike Disney's needlessly complex system that doesn't really save much time and is really just about tracking your movements and spending so they can bilk more from you, the Universal fast pass just gives you access to an alternative line that is three times or more as fast as the ordinary line. So simple and it works.

As far as getting the most out of the day, the general technique is to save the longer wait rides like gringotts until the end of the day. After 4 or so, all of the people with cranky rugrats are gone so the park is half as full as in the morning and afternoon.

As far as restaurants, the best in the park restaurant anywhere in Florida (Aunt Granny's in Dollywood beats all) is Mythos in Universal. It's surprisingly cheap and pretty high quality, plus the best themed restaurant I've seen inside. For restaurants just outside the parks, City Walk has several great quality restaurants. Vivo is not one you hear a lot about but its the best Italian I've had in Orlando, especially the squid ink and seafood pasta, plus very reasonably priced. Antojitos is pricier than Vivo and about double what you'd pay for Mexican food elsewhere but it's the best Mexican I've had in Otown. Well worth it especially when you can catch the mariachi band that focuses on playing modern English pop hits in a traditional mariachi way. Red Oven is a quality high end pizza place in Citywalk that isn't the best in Otown period but blows away all theme park pizza by miles. Cowfish is the best restaurant in Charlotte NC and their new branch in Citywalk is just as good. It's got lots of good American fusion style sushi and great burgers. Bob Marleys used to be even better but they've streamlined their menu so you don't have as many choices but it's still got some decent Jamaican places. Skip Emerils, Margaritaville and Bubba Gump it's typical tourist %*%*, overpriced TGI Fridays level. The new NBC Sports Bar looks good but it only opened last week so I haven't been yet.

I'll post some more tips later when I have more time.

Wait, that's what we get when you are pressed for time?

 

[FSUTribe76]

Wait, that's what we get when you are pressed for time?

Yep.

 

[FSUTribe76]

If you want to eat outside of the parks, there's a couple of places I go very nearby that might interest you. I LOVE Nile Ethiopian and it's tops ten minutes from the parks. If you've never had Ethiopian food it's about family sharing, all of the sides and mains (either spicy stewed chicken, beef and other meats or raw/rare if you're a wuss beef) on a giant sourdough crepe they call injera. The crepe serves as the dinner plate, your utensils as you tear off pieces with your hang to use to scoop the other food and as food. Adults love it and kids LOVE!!! it. There's also an Uno Pizzaria (Chicago deep dish) and a Senor Frogs very close by and for late night snacks after midnight there's a Del Taco which is always open (imagine a Taco Bell except it's actually decent).

 

[sumnernole]

Do not, and I repeat do not at at uno's. It is nothing like the Chicago restaurants uno's and due.

 

[skramer100]

Thanks for the tips. The whole Disney fast pass thing is out of control now. You have to book your rides months in advance.

How are the hotels? At Disney we typically stay at Boardwalk, Beach Club, Grand Floridian, and Animal Kingdom. I'm looking for something similar.

Go with the Portifino Hotel. One of the perks of staying there is that you get free Express Passes. So when you take that into account, it really is not that expensive.

 

[FSUTribe76]

Here's some random tips just off the top of my head.

1) Absolutely get a "regular" butterbeer with the foam. The "frozen"/ iced one version is far milder and not worth the price imo but the regular and the hot version (imagine hot chocolate but instead of chocolate it's strong butterscotch flavor) are well worth it. Don't confuse the frozen butterbeer with the butterbeer icecream at Florean Fortescue's they are different. And one of the best things you can eat anywhere is a make it yourself butterbeer float only the insiders and staff know about as it's not on the menu. Go to the shop besides the long line at Fortescue's called the Fountain of Fair Fortune (no lines usually and they only sell regular butterbeer and butterbeer icecream). Order a regular butterbeer and a butterbeer icecream and tell them you want an extra cup to make a butterbeer float, they'll understand. Then mix the two half and half to make the worlds best float, it's amazing especially on a hot day.

2) Speaking of butterbeer, do NOT blow off or scrape off the foam. I see tourons do this all the time and it boggles my mind. It's not mindless foam like a beer, it's actually a specially made foam like a super creamy meringue that's meant to be sipped along with the liquid. You can find knockoffs of regular butterbeer liquid both Dang! And Flying Cauldron butterscotch sodas are quite similar but neither have the fantastic foam. Don't be a touron, drink the foam.

3) Speaking of butterbeer a third time, the hot version is great by itself (you can get it at Leaky Cauldron) but it's even better if you mix in a shot of the Universal proprietary Fire Whiskey. Fire whiskey is basically a hotter version of Goldschlager and works well mixed in hot butter beer and alcoholic ciders.

4) The fishy green ale at Harry Potter restaurants and drink stands is my third favorite nonalcoholic theme park drink after regular butterbeer. It sounds weird and it is, but somehow it just works. It's a green mint tea soda with tapioca balls filled with blueberry purée. The skin on the tapioca balls are thin so it explodes when it hits your teeth. Kids love it. It's much better than the other nonbutterbeer drinks although the freezeray smoothie you get at the drink stand at the concert venue which is a banana smoothie mixed with a lemon lime soda and a little mango purée is quite good as well.

5) All of the proprietary beers (Hogsmeade Ale at IOAs Harry Potter and Wizards Brew and Dragonscals at USO Harry Potter and Duff and Duff Lite at Springfield) are quite good, but the best is not officially available. Ask for a Duff Dry at either Moes or Duff Gardens and you'll get the best chocolate stout I've ever had. It's well worth seeking out.

6) Speaking of Springfield, when you order a Buzz Soda ask them to use regular Coke instead of the Coke Zero they typically use. The Buzz additive is a cherry flavored energy booster that can go in anything not just the official "Buzz Soda" which is the additive plus Coke Zero.

7) Also speaking of Springfield, you'll be tempted to get a Clogger which is two Krusty burgers coated in cheese and Krusty sauce but I don't know if anyone can finish it. Stick to the regular Krusty Burger and even better, the Korean tacos from Beemans taco truck. The cupcakes at the Springfield food court are surprisingly good especially the peanut butter and jelly version but the large donut is just pretty to look at it, it's not really that great.

8) There are three live shows at Diagon Alley running alternating every thirty minutes and all three are worth it but the best is the puppet show about the three brothers and death. The second is a song and dance featuring new songs written by Rowling herself and the third is a puppet show about three witches a knight and the fountain of fair fortune which is just so-so.

9) As far as the dragon in Diagon Alley all of the tourons, stand around at the entrance for a dead on shot but the best shot is sideways standing next to the Fountain of Fair Fortune. Wait until the dragon growls them you have thirty seconds before it shoots out fire (this happens every 15 minutes on weekends usually and 30 minutes on the weekday), then you'll get the stereotypical "great shot" at Universal.

10) Make sure you go down Nocturne Alley while in Diagon Alley, it's the best themed area anywhere on the planet blowing Disney out of the water. And if you or your rugrats have the expensive wands there's a lot of "secret" magic you can perform there. It's definitely worth having one expensive wand in your party as a lot of the "magic" is quite neat. If you have a kid under say 8, it's well worth going to Ollivanders to have the wand "choose" the kid.

11) There's three new shows on the streets of Universal Studios in the NY and San Fran area that just started. The best is a funny rap show where they do lots of freestyle rap with the audience next to a parked food trick. There's a stomp ripoff In a construction zone and the third and worst one imo is the glee ripoff where a pretend tourist has to take on a glee group in a sing off ala Pitch Perfect.

 

[noleville]

If you're staying at the resort they usually give you a free fast pass. This time of year the lines are much MUCH smaller, so the fast pass will really only be needed for the Harry Potter rides.

2 quick bits of advice (I had season passes for years until damn Harry Potter killed it).

1) This time of year it cools down, the water at least. Go on the water rides last if you can.
2) Don't buy the meal ticket.

As for the "fast pass", I think it's horrible that they have a "special" ticket that can cost as much as the park ticket just so you can cut the line. That makes the poor chumps that can't afford to buy it wait twice as long.

 

[SWFNole]

Unlike Disney's needlessly complex system that doesn't really save much time and is really just about tracking your movements and spending so they can bilk more from you, the Universal fast pass just gives you access to an alternative line that is three times or more as fast as the ordinary line. So simple and it works.

As far as getting the most out of the day, the general technique is to save the longer wait rides like gringotts until the end of the day. After 4 or so, all of the people with cranky rugrats are gone so the park is half as full as in the morning and afternoon.

As far as restaurants, the best in the park restaurant anywhere in Florida (Aunt Granny's in Dollywood beats all) is Mythos in Universal. It's surprisingly cheap and pretty high quality, plus the best themed restaurant I've seen inside. For restaurants just outside the parks, City Walk has several great quality restaurants. Vivo is not one you hear a lot about but its the best Italian I've had in Orlando, especially the squid ink and seafood pasta, plus very reasonably priced. Antojitos is pricier than Vivo and about double what you'd pay for Mexican food elsewhere but it's the best Mexican I've had in Otown. Well worth it especially when you can catch the mariachi band that focuses on playing modern English pop hits in a traditional mariachi way. Red Oven is a quality high end pizza place in Citywalk that isn't the best in Otown period but blows away all theme park pizza by miles. Cowfish is the best restaurant in Charlotte NC and their new branch in Citywalk is just as good. It's got lots of good American fusion style sushi and great burgers. Bob Marleys used to be even better but they've streamlined their menu so you don't have as many choices but it's still got some decent Jamaican places. Skip Emerils, Margaritaville and Bubba Gump it's typical tourist %*%*, overpriced TGI Fridays level. The new NBC Sports Bar looks good but it only opened last week so I haven't been yet.

I'll post some more tips later when I have more time.

Too funny that you don't think Universal works to get as much cash from you as possible.

 

[FSUTribe76]

Too funny that you don't think Universal works to get as much cash from you as possible.

Of course they do but it's in a more pure way. They've been constantly improving the rides and experience including food designed around the experience (which Disney only started recently with their Beauty and the Beast area and their failed animal poop bakery), while Disney wasted more money than several high quality rides on a system designed only to track its customers.