Universal Florida Recommendations

[PcMan]

I will be making a 4-5 day trip to Universal Studios Florida.It's been 16 years since I been.
I need professional Recommendations and I'm sure a few of you guys may have some.
I have a place to stay and just need tickets/passes.
I would need a 2 or 3 day ticket and I see they have options like meal and express
passes(are these worth it) ?
I would be going the end of January.

thanks

I also may try to take a day trip to Tampa

[Bubba Z]

We just went for the day and got most of both parks done. It was an add on day to our Disney Trip. We also fit in Sea world as another bonus day.  As for using all 5 days there I think you will become bored.  The day trip to Tampa sounds like an excellent Idea!   Or..like we did , hit up Sea world if you're into animals plus they have Kraken. (Great ride)    Another option is buying a hopper pass to Disney so you can ride EE at Animal Kingdom. 

As for the food passes and etc....  I'm not sure what kind of deal it is.  I went to Mythos first thing when the parked opened and reserved a time. It was pretty nice, but some things were over hyped and could get a little pricey I suppose depending on how many people you are with. The desserts are not to be missed though. Than again, the menu keeps changing and they get rid of the good stuff, so  that could be a toss up as well.  We grabbed a juice and muffin while the park began to open right after the main gates. After that it was back to Disney for Dinner. So again I have no clue about the meal plan. You might just want to pick a resturant at City Walk after the park closes.

[PcMan]

Thanks
I see now on Universal site they have a special the 2 day 2 park pass which goes for $85 is now on sale/special extened to a 7 day pass so I may pick that up.
This trip is a last minute thing for me and I'm staying on Property so I can walk to the park at anytime of the day. The people I'm going with already have the all inclusive passes they get when staying on the property.They may be getting a suite so plenty of room for me  .
I may be heading to Florida again within the next year to hit up the Disney and other  properties if I can't make them this time.

check out this cool airfare site
It also shows when tickets are the cheapest what time of the year

www.farecompare.com and as always you
can't beat Southwest which I got my roundtrip to Orlando for $138 that includes all taxes,fee etc.

[ChuckR]

Have fun Tom! I am going to Disney in late Feb. with Rob and his friend Matt. I just plan on hitting Disney and BGT only though.

[WadeJ]

My recommendation....don't go to Universal LOL

Seriously though, bubba is right, thats way to many days for IOA and US.  Esp. this time of the year, you can do both parks completely in 1-2 days easily.  Get the express pass option add-on if it isn't too much more though because operations have totally sucked recently.  You will also get really pissed watching all the Universal hotel guests walking right past you.

I would do the side trip to Sea World, any Disney park, BGA, or maybe even Cypress to use up those other days.  Obviously, there comes a point where it gets a tad expensive so I guess take your pick and go with it.  And to me, Sea World to me was a total waste of money but if you actually like animals and sea life, then maybe you will get more out of it.

And don't miss Margarita Ville on Ciy Walk between US and IOA.  Its always 5 o'clock somwhere

[Robert T Ackerman]

Busch ahs a deal right now for $85 to get a hopper ticket between BGT and Sea World, which is worth it as both parks are about $60 to get in for a day.

$85 can also get you a hopper for Universal/IOA that is good for up to 7 days.. so you can split up your trip. I'm not sure on express passes, but you might not need it.

Hotel wise, I found a good deal for the HoJo in Kissimee... we got a 2 bedroom suite for under $85 a night.

[GADVwow]

I would be remiss if I didn't add there are lots and lots of animals at Busch Gardens Africa.  There's no way I miss going to that park when I am in Florida.  It and Disney's MGM are by far my Florida favorites.

I loved Universal's Islands of Adventure when it opened...but it has had little done to it since, and by all accounts the service there has been less than delightful of late.  I can't even imagine spending an entire five days there.

[PcMan]

Cool  thanks for all the info.
I'm staying for free at the Royal Pacific (hotel onsite) so I can take my time.
I'm going with Wife and a Handicap person so I may be getting in front lines anyway.
But I hope I can get away with my wife (she takes care of the handicap person,she's working)  but if not I will just relax (going to other parks myself is no fun).
But I see Tampa is only 70 miles away and would love to get over there or Disney/MGM.If not theres always next time. Or I hsve some friends that live in Port St. Lucy catchup with them.

Rob I stayed at a HOJO about 16 years ago when I drove to FL.  can't beat the price

I been reading that Universal has dropped the ball the last few years with nothing new while Disney has added many new Major attrations.
I think the only new major attrataion has been The Mummy.
I will bring my laptop  and try for onsite trip reports.

[WadeJ]

FYI - onsite people get free express pass for the parks with your room key!

[PcMan]

Cool thanks for the info.
Yep they got tickets already with the room which includes the express pass etc.

All this info will be great since it's been around 16 years since I been to Florida, but I plan on going back later this year to hit all the places I missed this trip and all this info will help.

this thread is almost like a Florida trip topic 
thanks again

[ChuckR]

If you have any Florida questions, Wade is the man for that...

[OrlandoRocks]

Royal Pacific is a fantastic hotel. The hotel grounds are fantastic and some of the views you can from your room are amazing. Make sure you ask for a theme park view in your room because you don't want to be stuck staring at I-4 and the lame International drive hotels and attractions. The only two things thing I didn't like about the RP is that they charge to park your car during the length of your stay and the pool is pretty weak. Join the Lowes first club to receive a free gift at check in. What ever you do don?t pick the regional gift !
(http://www.loews-first.com/loewsfirst_benefits.asp)

I would say that you might need three days maximum at Universal since you haven't been there in quite some time. There are a lot of things that have changed since your last visit and it might take some time to view all the attractions. There should be no problems with the lines since you will have the express from the hotel. Just a reminder that sometimes the astonishing queues will be missed because of the express lines are a more direct route to the ride station.

If you decide to go to Busch Gardens stay off I-4 around rush hour. At times that road can be complete chaos !

If you have any more questions about anything please ask.

[PcMan]

Cool
Yes 16 years ago IOA wasn't even there Just King Kong,ET,Hitchcock,Nickelodeon etc.
I will just relax and hit Everything enough so I don't have to go back here for a few years.
I was waiting for you to chime in being that your avatar is Orlando   

[coastermom]

We stayed at the HRH at USF this past summer for 5 days . Way too many days there especially if you stay on site. we had an amazing time at the parks with the express pass. I will say we did buy the meal deal one day at IOA . It was a good deal if you are in the park all day. We even felt like we were over eating just because we could . Enjoy your trip and let us know how it was .

[GADVwow]

This is over on the left hand side, and the Motley Fool prefers you post links rather than quote.  You might want to read this:

GE's Burnt Out Theme Parks:

http://www.fool.com/investing/dividends-income/2007/01/17/ges-burntout-theme-parks.aspx?source=eptyholnk303100&logvisit=y&npu=y

[PcMan]

I seen one cat today at the Royal Pacific Hotel near the lake.
Didn't bother me I like cats anyway.
Park hours are 9am-7pm 
but I can walk to the park and no lines for me.
The coolest thing I seen while in the plane around Delaware was, I could see a "path" of snow on the ground for miles  like how a Tornado wipes out a path it was a path of snow on the crowd from the snow sqwawls we got yesterday.I took so pics, will need to see how they came out. It looked so cool a big white path and no snow north and south of that line.