Review of WWoHP~

As we are waiting on Dirk's decision, I thought I would post a review of the opening weekend of WWOHP.

ttp://www.disunplugged.com/2010/06/20/harry-potter-opening-weekend-universal-orlandos-dark-mark/


 I have also made a blog column to the right for various blogs I follow related to WDW. Yes, the one about food is my favorite, especially this series about cupcakes (which we can "purchase" using our snack credits).

http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/disney-world-cupcakes/

Stay tuned for a new Touring Plan Tuesday tomorrow!

7 minutes of Awesome... and I don't know why~

Possible New Deal: Cancel Marty?

Okay, so I just found this deal that may help us when it comes to Universal. Essentially, if I buy tickets through a certain website, we can get travel to/from Universal for FREE! We would get a 1 day, 2 park ticket (meaning we can park hop between Universal and Islands of Adventure) that day in addition to transportation by the Mears (the same company that does the Disney Magical Express buses).

Mears would pick us up at Port Orleans French Quarter and they will take us back. We will call 24 hours in advance to arrange pick up. We can also call from Universal and arrange pick up 90 minutes before we want to be transported back.

The tickets are the same cost as a one park, two day ticket-- so we would get transportation free. You could also look at it as if we are still  "paying for transport" but getting to access the other park for around $10 a person. Now, I wasn't going to buy a two park, one day tickets for us at Universal, but for essentially $10 extra per person-- having that option is tempting.

Here is why -- I don't know how many "must dos" IoA really has. There are three lands that I really care about: Harry Potter (of course), Marvel Superhero Island and Seuss Landing.  The Toon Lagoon has a couple of cool looking rides as well.

Here is my list of must dos at IoA. I am wary of the Hulk coaster, though, because I get claustrophobic and freak out when these shoulder straps are on me.

BTW,  I don't really know what kind of wait times they have in Sept. Today is considered non-peak day, but probably a bit busier than it will be in September. As of 2:00 p.m. EST (five hours after the park opened, meaning all the "sleepy heads" are there already) , here are the wait times for these "must do" rides. 

The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman -- 35 min
Incredible Hulk Coaster -- 25 min
Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls-- not available
Popye & Bluto's Bilge Rat Barges -- not available
Jurassic Park River Adventure-- 20 minutes
The Dueling Dragons (HP Ride: Dragon Challenge, which Evan might not be able to ride because it is a coaster attached above and not below. He is too tall for those).  -- NA, HP opens 6/18
The Flying Unicorn (HP: Flight of the Hippogriff).   -- NA, HP opens 6/18
Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey -- NA, HP opens 6/18
The Cat in the Hat -- 5 min
The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride --10 min


These are the other things I would do. These are mostly "explore areas" for kids
Me Ship, The Olive --  none 
Jurassic Park Discovery Center--  none 
Camp Jurassic--  none 
If I Ran the Zoo--  none 
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish --15 min

Looking at Universal, there are a few more "must do" rides if I had the opportunity-- although I didn't like the Aerosmith ride at DHS, so I probably won't actually go on the "Rockit Roller Coaster".

Rip Ride Rockit Roller Coaster -- NA
Shrek 4-D -- 35 min
E.T. Adventure -- 15 min
Terminator 2:3-D -- 45 min
Universal Horror Make-Up Show -- 15 min
The Simpsons --NA
Men in Black: Alien Attack -- 30 min
Revenge of the Mummy-- 15 min

Obviously we need to keep in mind that we will need some shopping time at HP world and time to eat. I am a bit torn on this decision.  We will be there approximately 9-10 hours. If we are there are opening opening, we could probably get the HP rides done, the Marvel rides done, and the Seuss rides done in about 3 hours (7 rides, 3 hours)-- that is without shopping time at HP though and not including the Cartoon Lagoon "soak you to your bones" water rides and Jurassic Park. By the time we get done with those and eat and shop, I would estimate 5-6 hours? Maybe?

What we could do is ride all the important things at IoA, hop on over the Universal and do to big rides there, then go back to IoA to shop and play at the different playgrounds. The two parks are right across from each other. Thoughts?

Universal: Transportation Secure!

One of my main concerns this trip was transportation to/from Universal. I don't know why, but it made me so nervous. I thought about a cab, which is great-- except we have 6 people, meaning we would need 2 cabs. $20 each way for each cab seemed okay, but I wanted us to ride together. Additionally, we would have to lug carseats all the way from MT. Hayden doesn't need a car seat for the buses or plane, and Ginny is a lap child.

On the Disney discussion boards I frequent, Marty's transportation company came recommended. He has a van that will fit all of us-- as well as a booster for Hayden and seat for Ginny (included in the price). He was prompt to return my email, answer questions, give suggestions, etc.

His quote compared with the other taxi rates and was cheaper than the buses/shuttles that run from Disney resorts to Universal. Why take a bus from the hotel (one which will stop at several different hotels, which takes forever), would cost $17 per adult and $15 per child (round trip), and one where we would have to conform to their scheduler? Too expensive, too much of a hassle. Taxis were out of picture, not because of the price-- but because of having to split up and the lack of car seats (as mentioned before).

Anyways, we have Marty reserved! He will pick us up at our hotel 8:00 on our Universal day (so we are at Universal by 8:30 a.m.). At the end of the day, he will pick us up in front of Universal at 6:30 p.m. (the park closes at 7 p.m.). We will be dropped off at Downtown Disney so we can get dinner and take the boat back to the hotel.

Now I am much less nervous about the trip. This was my biggest concern and it is taken care of. YAY!