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Holidays

Use our Travel forum for recommendations on everything from day trips to the best family-friendly holiday destinations.

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Original poster

Orlando theme park

14 replies

Carrie76 · 24/08/2019 18:48

We’re going to Orlando at midterm, kids are 4,7&8 and are wondering whether to do a park or not. My eldest would love universal as he’s a big HP fan but am I right in thinking there’d be very little for the 4yr old? I’m thinking LEGO land might be a better option. We did Disney and legoland in California a few years ago and they loved both. The cost for 1 day in universal/Disney is eyewatering!

OP posts:

Fluffymingo · 24/08/2019 21:23

To get the most out of HP you would have to go to both Universal parks, which would bump the cost up. There are loads of rides for little ones though, particularly at Islands of Adventure.

OneEpisode · 24/08/2019 21:28

Lands like Dr Seuss at universal would be fab for the young ones?

Ilikethisone · 24/08/2019 21:31

Universal is fab for young kids.

I have taken my 2 from 1 upwards. But you need both parks.

It would be a massive shame to miss out on HP if he is a huge fan, imo.

Verily1 · 24/08/2019 21:35

Why are you going to Orlando if not for the theme parks? That’s its raison d’etre!

OneEpisode · 24/08/2019 21:39

Legoland isn’t in Orlando —it’s at the cypress gardens site a good long drive away. For Brits the distances in the USA can be a bit disorienting..

Musicalstatues · 24/08/2019 21:39

My youngest is 4 and there is loads for him to do at Universal - we’ve just spent 2 weeks there. Agree with the pp who said you need to do both parks really to get the most out of Harry Potter though.

StripyPaperBag · 24/08/2019 21:50

We were happy with just one of the Universals - the one with Hogsmeade and Hogwarts (amazing ride') and Seuss. They were also better than Disney for having provision for one of your adults waiting with the 4 year old then having their go (they had a concise way of saying this!).

DanielSpaniel · 24/08/2019 21:58

We did Islands of Adventure as well as the Disney parks. The Hogwarts ride was fantastic and as others have said there’s Dr Seuss land for younger kids. This was our favourite park, much preferred it to Disney, but you get soaked on the water rides so take ponchos!

StripyPaperBag · 24/08/2019 23:32

Oh yes, very wet! Wise people had changes of clothes... my knickers were still not dry by the end of the day (tmi!) and that was with ponchos...

We did Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Islands of Adventure and Kennedy Space Centre - all good in different ways but if we could only do one it would probably be KSC (cos we're a bit geeky and it's cheaper, don't forget your passports), then Universal.

Aragog · 25/08/2019 05:00

Universal Studios has changed a lot over the past few years and there is now a lot for younger children, as well as having the bigger rides for older ones too.

The Curious George water play area is great. There's Seuss land and WoodyWoodpecker land too. The ET ride is suitable for little ones. The Hippogriff rollercoaster has a low height restriction in Harry Potter - Dd rode it, pre Hp days at age 2 and little ones often live the HP train rides.

However to get the best from the HP you need to visit both parks with a hopper ticket. You can get even more done with an Express Pass too, but they're not particularly cheap. When paying for them we've done one day with Express and one day without and we ensure we do all the 'big queue' rides and HP on the express day.

Aragog · 25/08/2019 05:02

Ha ha and yes - the water rides and CG area gets you soaked! I don't really ride them as don't like water rides. It dh and Dd do. They take spare pants and shorts. T shirts dry quickly but pants don't! Swim shorts are good. And a micro fibre camping towel if room.

PoptartPoptart · 27/08/2019 17:04

However to get the best from the HP you need to visit both parks with a hopper ticket

I absolutely agree with this. The Harry Potter stuff is spread across both Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. Both are equally fantastic. You can go between the two parks on the Hogwarts Express train which is a fantastic attraction in itself. You ‘disappear’ into the wall at Platform 9 and 3/4, and each station (Kings Cross and Hogsmeade) are unique. But you need a park hopper ticket to do this.

Original poster

Carrie76 · 24/09/2019 13:13

Many thanks for the replies, is it necessary to have the express pass if we’re visitinf off peak? Midweek in October, also can anyone recommend an on-site hotel that doesn’t cost the earth

OP posts:

zafferana · 27/09/2019 18:55

We went last October and didn't have the express pass - just the normal one - and it was fine. October is term-time for American schools. We stayed in a condo a short drive away, so can't help on hotels. If you go early though you don't need to stay on site - we were awake at 4.30am for several days and were at the parks at 8am for opening and they were very quiet at that time.

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