Florida & Disney
Discussion
toastyhamster said:
I've seen Universal tickets a bit cheaper but there seems to be a general push to sell multi-day tickets which is not really our experience of European parks. So many options! I see a day per park in Disney and then longer where the more extreme rides are.
Thanks for the previous advice, be amazed if we do any water parks, got one non-swimmer and one poor one, none of us would get much value out of them but I'll take a closer look at Discovery Cove, ta. Long days in theme parks are what we do, so we've probably more stamina than most, and if we do flake we've got the Villa. My only concern is the heat, but that comes with lower queue times, we've been monitoring last few days and queues are very acceptable.
Research continues.
Also remember that with the heat comes hurricane season and ride closures / delays when there is risks of storms for all outdoor rides - even when there are the reduced tropical storm warnings or less. Thanks for the previous advice, be amazed if we do any water parks, got one non-swimmer and one poor one, none of us would get much value out of them but I'll take a closer look at Discovery Cove, ta. Long days in theme parks are what we do, so we've probably more stamina than most, and if we do flake we've got the Villa. My only concern is the heat, but that comes with lower queue times, we've been monitoring last few days and queues are very acceptable.
Research continues.
I’ve just come back again from another 10days in Orlando and I never waited more than 30mins for any ride at either universal park doing at least one park every day and both parks on at least 4 of the days but did also experience a lot of delays and closures too.
Discovery cove is excellent.
Typhoon lagoon with the giant Wave brilliant. Check out youtube.
We went 4 times over 3 years a few years back.
We used this booking company -
www.attractiontickets.com
Highly reccomended.
So many nice memories.
Typhoon lagoon with the giant Wave brilliant. Check out youtube.
We went 4 times over 3 years a few years back.
We used this booking company -
www.attractiontickets.com
Highly reccomended.
So many nice memories.
sugerbear said:
Didn't ride on Tron but that looked good.
Tron is one of the most boring rides I’ve been on. Reckon you could take a nap on it. Not sure if they’re still doing it but to ride you have to wake up at 7am click some buttons very quickly on your phone and hope you get a time slot. Our time slot was then park opening so rush over get stuck on the i4 then just made the slot to find the virtual line allows you to join the 1hr line to the actual ride. 60 seconds of feeling like you’re hardly moving and it’s all over.
Guardians of the galaxy on the other hand was superb and the most thrilling of all Disney rides.
Trustmeimadoctor said:
Universal 2024 is 345 per adult for 3 park ticket or 138 per day based on 2.5 days
Disney is 555-579 per adult in August 24 Disney is 115 per day based on 5 days 1 day each park and 1/2 each water park
Best value by far is the discovery cove ticket at 248 in August of 71 per day based on 3.5 days of stuff to do
We would get Universal 3 park (14 day) tickets and visit the parks multiple times. I can't say I would spend only half a day in a water park. It's a full day for us whenever we go. That's why Universal tickets are the best for us (and we prefer them to Disney).Disney is 555-579 per adult in August 24 Disney is 115 per day based on 5 days 1 day each park and 1/2 each water park
Best value by far is the discovery cove ticket at 248 in August of 71 per day based on 3.5 days of stuff to do
Each person is different though.
Trustmeimadoctor said:
imho no that isnt enough time you will be run ragged
fly
magic kingdom
animal kingdom
hollywood studios
epcot
busch
seaworld
ioa
universal studios
kennedy
typhpon lagoon half day
blizzard beach half day
aquattica half day
volcano bay half day
fly depending on time your not doing anything that day either
thats using everything you will have had tickets for
thats 13 days without going back or getting rained off out of 15
Disney's latest cost saving exercise is only running one of their water parks. BB stays open whilst TL is shut and then they switch. fly
magic kingdom
animal kingdom
hollywood studios
epcot
busch
seaworld
ioa
universal studios
kennedy
typhpon lagoon half day
blizzard beach half day
aquattica half day
volcano bay half day
fly depending on time your not doing anything that day either
thats using everything you will have had tickets for
thats 13 days without going back or getting rained off out of 15
However, both of those water parks now look a little lacking compared to Volcano Bay now.
If you're wanting to hit all the parks, including water parks, and Kennedy/Busch Gardens, I would suggest 3 weeks is needed.
Last time we went (pre covid) we stayed in a rented apartment nearby and got a hire car. Granted parking is expensive at the parks, but having a car makes it alot easier to get around and gives alot more freedom.
Last time we went (pre covid) we stayed in a rented apartment nearby and got a hire car. Granted parking is expensive at the parks, but having a car makes it alot easier to get around and gives alot more freedom.
Just come back from two weeks in Florida, our first time there with our 11 year old (we previously visited in 1999!). Some random feedback that might help your plan:
We did 2 nights in a Universal Hotel (Royal Pacific). This came with Universal Passes.
- Nice to be reasonably close to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure (10 min walk)
- Universal Passes worked well (and are very straight forward to use unlike Disney Genie+), we didn't have to queue and got on all the rides / attractions we wanted
- Enjoyed both parks, lots of screen based rides but they worked for us
- Harry Potter elements a big hit
- You still need to buy park entry tickets (feels a bit of a rip off)
- Having done a day in each, we did go back for half a day to do a couple of things in each park but 3 days was more than enough to cover both (and we hated not having the universal pass!!)
We spent the rest of the time in a Villa, 10 mins away from Disney
- whilst it means travel time and parking cost for Disney parks, we really liked having the Villa. We could do our own thing for breakfast, make packed lunches if we wanted, didn't have to eat out (although Uber eats was used a lot), chill in the pool etc. Would have hated being in a hotel room for two weeks, when at times you want to chill, get away from the kid, eat something 'healthy' etc - not easy to do in a hotel room!
- we hired a car but think you could just do Uber etc - might work out cheaper (but less flexible)
Disney (we had the 2 week pass)
- Animal Kingdom - worked well for us, queues reasonable apart from the couple of big rides
- Epcot - worked better than expected, rides ok but we enjoyed walking around the 'world' trying food, fireworks etc
- Hollywood Studios - as a Star Wars geek, loved this but big queues / very busy. Easy to spend a fortune on additions
- Magic Kingdom - ok, wasn't really our thing so one day max although dotn miss fireworks
- Genie + / Virtual queue / Lightening Lane - this is a pain - you can ignore them all and do old fashioned queuing but even in a supposed quiet period, queues long for the good stuff. We did use the app / Genie plus - the costs add up quickly and its a pain as you have to be on the app a lot to maximise the benefit (as you check in for one ride you immediately start trying to book up the next for example).
- We did the whole line drop thing a couple of times - complete pain in the arse, stuck in the heat, no shade, no-one actually queues and its just a mad rush. We ended up chilling in the morning and then went in a little later - We did manage to Stack one afternoon fully in Hollywood Studios and that worked a treat
- we the parks 8 or 9 times, sometimes just popping in for the afternoon / evening - the Villa was close enough that this wasn't a pain
Other
- we did Kennedy Space Centre - great day out
- we did Discovery Cove - really good, although the reef was always busy, and way too many screaming kids scaring the fish
- we did a Manatee encounter over in Crystal River - our best day out and only regret is we didn't have this an overnight stay and explore the area more, looked lovely
Not sure I'd go back in August, it was crazy hot - mid to high 30's and felt warmer due to the humidity / lack of shade in parks. Universal is great with lots of free water stations, Disney was crap. When we did a full day it was completely knackering
Sorry for the long post, hope thats of use
We did 2 nights in a Universal Hotel (Royal Pacific). This came with Universal Passes.
- Nice to be reasonably close to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure (10 min walk)
- Universal Passes worked well (and are very straight forward to use unlike Disney Genie+), we didn't have to queue and got on all the rides / attractions we wanted
- Enjoyed both parks, lots of screen based rides but they worked for us
- Harry Potter elements a big hit
- You still need to buy park entry tickets (feels a bit of a rip off)
- Having done a day in each, we did go back for half a day to do a couple of things in each park but 3 days was more than enough to cover both (and we hated not having the universal pass!!)
We spent the rest of the time in a Villa, 10 mins away from Disney
- whilst it means travel time and parking cost for Disney parks, we really liked having the Villa. We could do our own thing for breakfast, make packed lunches if we wanted, didn't have to eat out (although Uber eats was used a lot), chill in the pool etc. Would have hated being in a hotel room for two weeks, when at times you want to chill, get away from the kid, eat something 'healthy' etc - not easy to do in a hotel room!
- we hired a car but think you could just do Uber etc - might work out cheaper (but less flexible)
Disney (we had the 2 week pass)
- Animal Kingdom - worked well for us, queues reasonable apart from the couple of big rides
- Epcot - worked better than expected, rides ok but we enjoyed walking around the 'world' trying food, fireworks etc
- Hollywood Studios - as a Star Wars geek, loved this but big queues / very busy. Easy to spend a fortune on additions
- Magic Kingdom - ok, wasn't really our thing so one day max although dotn miss fireworks
- Genie + / Virtual queue / Lightening Lane - this is a pain - you can ignore them all and do old fashioned queuing but even in a supposed quiet period, queues long for the good stuff. We did use the app / Genie plus - the costs add up quickly and its a pain as you have to be on the app a lot to maximise the benefit (as you check in for one ride you immediately start trying to book up the next for example).
- We did the whole line drop thing a couple of times - complete pain in the arse, stuck in the heat, no shade, no-one actually queues and its just a mad rush. We ended up chilling in the morning and then went in a little later - We did manage to Stack one afternoon fully in Hollywood Studios and that worked a treat
- we the parks 8 or 9 times, sometimes just popping in for the afternoon / evening - the Villa was close enough that this wasn't a pain
Other
- we did Kennedy Space Centre - great day out
- we did Discovery Cove - really good, although the reef was always busy, and way too many screaming kids scaring the fish
- we did a Manatee encounter over in Crystal River - our best day out and only regret is we didn't have this an overnight stay and explore the area more, looked lovely
Not sure I'd go back in August, it was crazy hot - mid to high 30's and felt warmer due to the humidity / lack of shade in parks. Universal is great with lots of free water stations, Disney was crap. When we did a full day it was completely knackering
Sorry for the long post, hope thats of use
bakerstreet said:
Disney's latest cost saving exercise is only running one of their water parks. BB stays open whilst TL is shut and then they switch.
However, both of those water parks now look a little lacking compared to Volcano Bay now.
i know blizzard beach is undergoing refurbishment now and typhoon lagoon was last yearHowever, both of those water parks now look a little lacking compared to Volcano Bay now.
re crystal river i do suggest staying over so you can go back and shower after as honestly a whole day with river water all over you isnt much fun
but swimming with manatees in august how did you manage that?
homosassa state park is a must do imho
the shops in crystal river arnt bad for art stuff and the biscuit barn is good for breakfast then pop along to the archeological state park to see ancient Indian burial mounds or midden heaps i cant remember
lake wales area is also worth it with bok tower gardens and the lake wales history museum
but swimming with manatees in august how did you manage that?
homosassa state park is a must do imho
the shops in crystal river arnt bad for art stuff and the biscuit barn is good for breakfast then pop along to the archeological state park to see ancient Indian burial mounds or midden heaps i cant remember
lake wales area is also worth it with bok tower gardens and the lake wales history museum
Trustmeimadoctor said:
re crystal river i do suggest staying over so you can go back and shower after as honestly a whole day with river water all over you isnt much fun
but swimming with manatees in august how did you manage that?
homosassa state park is a must do imho
the shops in crystal river arnt bad for art stuff and the biscuit barn is good for breakfast then pop along to the archeological state park to see ancient Indian burial mounds or midden heaps i cant remember
lake wales area is also worth it with bok tower gardens and the lake wales history museum
agree you'll need a shower (the company we used had showers available if you're not staying over). There are about 80 manatees that remain in the area including August - so you wont see the numbers but very high chance you will see / swim with them still.but swimming with manatees in august how did you manage that?
homosassa state park is a must do imho
the shops in crystal river arnt bad for art stuff and the biscuit barn is good for breakfast then pop along to the archeological state park to see ancient Indian burial mounds or midden heaps i cant remember
lake wales area is also worth it with bok tower gardens and the lake wales history museum
Rough101 said:
Just wait till the parks charge you 7 bucks for a bottle of water and 20$ for the car park when you’re captive….
Free water on tap has been a thing in the parks for years, so I don't get people complaining about the price of of bottled water when they have probably walked past a fountain in any of the quick service venues. Parking...well, in the era if Lyft and Uber, you can now avoid that and also parking is now $25 too but free at Disney's water parks.
scouseVR6 said:
We are going in early June next year, 2 adults 2 children, these post are very useful as we need to plan carefully to get lots done
If you haven't already, book car via Alamo Brits (google it), as it was cheaper and included all the options. Regularly recheck prices then rebook every time the price drops. I did it around 5 times and by the end the price was half what i originally paid.We went June -> July earlier this year. It was roasting hot and very busy everywhere, barely any rain.
Universal made Disney look quiet. If i could turn back the clock, i would have saved myself $$$ and not bothered with it.
Animal Kingdom by far the quietest of all the Disney Parks. Walked straight on to most of the rides that day.
If you go to the Kennedy Space Centre, try to pick a date where there isn't a launch. We queued for an hour just to get into the car park !
littlebasher said:
If you haven't already, book car via Alamo Brits (google it), as it was cheaper and included all the options. Regularly recheck prices then rebook every time the price drops. I did it around 5 times and by the end the price was half what i originally paid.
Oi stop peddling my advice Cheapest by experience is 6 weeks to 15 days before collection date
Trustmeimadoctor said:
littlebasher said:
If you haven't already, book car via Alamo Brits (google it), as it was cheaper and included all the options. Regularly recheck prices then rebook every time the price drops. I did it around 5 times and by the end the price was half what i originally paid.
Oi stop peddling my advice Cheapest by experience is 6 weeks to 15 days before collection date
We started off at £1600 in November and was down to £790 by April !
This has been a useful read, planning to go next October (SIL 50th, kids will be 9 and 7 and they get a 2 week half term). Main thing is Disney but planning a day trip out to Kennedy Space Center, maybe a day at Universal for my Minions-obsessed son and a few other things.
Going back and forth between a week in a Disney hotel then villa or just doing a villa for the fortnight - what's the realistic time from the close-by villa complexes to the Disney parks with traffic, parking up etc? The Disney rooms are £££ but is it worth it if you can escape the middle of the day, cool off in the pool then go back a bit later?
Going back and forth between a week in a Disney hotel then villa or just doing a villa for the fortnight - what's the realistic time from the close-by villa complexes to the Disney parks with traffic, parking up etc? The Disney rooms are £££ but is it worth it if you can escape the middle of the day, cool off in the pool then go back a bit later?
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