Oh Lord, what's Eddie gonna do? He went to Disney and Universal too! Updated! 1/19/10

Does universal do anything to accommodate special needs guests like Disney does?

Great Trip report!

As crazy as this sounds, I didn't ask because due to the FOTL access you get with your onsite hotel room key, I never had to wait in any line. That's one of the big pluses to staying at one of the 3 onsite hotels. I bet I didn't have a wait of more than 5 minutes on any ride.

I'm sure if you need some other type of assistance, the guest services area located at the entrance to both parks, would be able to accommodate you.
 
Does universal do anything to accomodate special needs guests like Disney does?

Great Trip report!

Universal provides excellent service for those with special needs.
there are various "cards" based on the needs.

you go to guest relations and discuss it with a TM there for the appropriate card.

they treat their guests in the way to guarantee a fabulous trip at the parks.
 
Our first night at RPR we had no problem finding sleep and we developed a routine that would last through the entire trip. I didn't bother setting the alarm because I have a habit of getting up fairly early and with the FOTL feature there's no reason to be at the parks when they first open. I got up around 7:45 each morning like clockwork and would let everyone else sleep while I got showered and got the morning started. I would be dressed and have a cup of coffee while reading the USA Today that was delivered at the doorstep. This way it gave my wife plenty of time to get ready without no rush and leave the monsters alone to sleep a little longer. Vacations are hard to come by in my household and I also don't feel getting up at the crack of dawn to rush to a theme park whether it's Disney or Universal Studios, is the way to enjoy one. It's one of the big reasons why I stay onsite when I go to Universal. That room key allows me to go at my pace and I don't feel rushed.

Once my wife and I were all ready, I would wake the monsters and push them towards the shower. While they were taking turns and hogging the bathroom we had everything packed for a day we would need in the parks and were just waiting for the kids to get done. Almost always we were heading out the door for breakfast around 9:45 or so and it worked out great for us. For the next 4 days we repeated this routine and the Islands dinning room had a great breakfast buffet which is one of the best bargains for a resort meal in Orlando, IMHO.

The breakfast buffet that RPR has is great food, all you can eat including beverages of your choice, and the food is top quality. Not once in 4 days did I have anything bad or did it upset my stomach. For $6.95 a kid and $16.95 for adults, it was a heck of a lot cheaper than what we had at WDW. FYI, I'm not trying to imply that 16.95 is cheap for a buffet in my area, but for a restaurant in a top quality hotel like the RPR in Orlando, it's the best we found. It filled us up nicely and we didn't have to stop for lunch. The kids might get a snack around 3, but we found that eating around 10am actually saved us money in the long run. My wife and I were good until 5 and only would stop for drinks along the way. That's my tip and I'm moving on.

With breakfast out of the way we made our way to the boat dock to get to get to CW and we decided our first full day would be spent at Universal Studios. I passed by this sign so many times on our way to the boat dock and thought it was cool, so I'm posting it.


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The boat dock area.

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We got off the boat and made our way to US we stopped and took the mandatory picture everyone does.:rotfl:

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I posted the required picture Universal Globe picture so you won't see it again, promise.;)

We got into the studios with no problem and with the exception of my son Dean who has an addiction to every gift shop there is, we follow our regular pattern and go on Jimmy Neutron. This was the first ride we ever went on when we did US in 07 for two quick days and it's a family favorite. We liked it of course, but found the chicken dance ending to be way harsher than we remember. It was uncomfortable and my wife said it hurt her shoulder and back a bit. We moved onto Shrek which is still great and after that made our way to Twister which my son Sam loves and I could do without, but we went on it anyway. Don't get me wrong, I like the ending, but find the pre show to be lame and tiresome. Universal needs to do a upgrade to this attraction,IMO.

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The air brakes were being tested on Hollywood Rockit and it was loud to say the least. When I used the bathrooms by the Twister building, I snuck over the barrier and took this shot.

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It amazes you when you're up close and see the size of this thing. I have more pictures but it's now been a month and much more construction has taken place, so it wouldn't be anything new. Anyway, we make our way over to the Mummy and this is one of the rides I missed out on last time, along with Disaster and Jaws.

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Thanks Eddie! I've been patiently waiting for more bedtime reading :).
 
Ok, I'm taking your advice and sleeping in! I am so psyched not to have to be there the second the turnstiles open. We're staying at PBH in a few weeks, so FOTL here we come!

Maria :upsidedow
 
I think we're going to do the Islands Dining Room breakfast for the first time on this trip. I'm not a big breakfast eater but my friends want to do it.

I can't wait to hear your thoughts on Mummy!
 
I enjoyed the ROTM, but one son Dean got a little scared of it and had some words with me over it. Now mind you the kid talked non stop about this and other rides before the trip, but something spooked him. After the mini meltdown we went outside and talked to my wife and got past it. My son Sam liked it enough and so did I, so we went on it again and this time I picked up a lot more of the details of it. Very good dark ride and I was surprised I fit in the seats as well as I did. After the ride we saw the Blues Bros show which was cool and made our way to Disaster.

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We had a 15 minute wait until the next showing and I didn't know what to expect. We made our way into the pre show area and it began. I didn't care for some of the humor that was used during the selection of audience members for the film and the few times the cocaine reference and Lindsay Lohan was mentioned. I understood it, but IMHO, it felt out of place. Moving on. On a scale of 1 to 10, I give this attraction a solid 5 and it was neat at times, but nothing I want to see every trip I make. Good special effects on the Christopher Walken charcter. Two attractions I never rode before, down, two more to go!

We made our way to Jaws and the weather and crowds were perfect. Only a 5 minute wait to get on Jaws! Thank you FOTL feature!

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Mandatory shark picture alert.

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I liked Jaws and it's a mix of corny and nostalgia and being a kid in 1975 when it came out, it brought back some memories. I remember seeing the original film at the drive in when it first came out and what a huge deal it was. We moved onto MIB which beats the pants off of the Buzz Lightyear ride in MK, IMO. We liked so much we rode it 3 times in a row to improve our scores. Once again, thank you FOTL.:cool1:

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I love the whole look and concept of this ride and think it's one of the best dark rides in the entire world! I would like to see Universal turn the Fear factor building into another E ticket type attraction that would be as awesome as MIB or close to it. Never can have enough E ticket rides/attractions in my book.

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We made our way to the Simpsons ride and I have to say, I was just as excited as the kids because it was still under construction when I was there in 2007.

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The Simpsons didn't disappoint me, that's for sure and I bet we rode it at least 6 times during the whole trip. It was great and not one complaint from me.

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We rode again and then made our way toward the front of the park. At the last minute we decided to do the Animal actors show and usually I avoid stuff like this like the plague but what the heck. While we waited for the next show my family took a break outside the building. My wife and I had a beer and the kids had one too. My sons love a ice cold Bud.... just kidding, they had a coke.;) We made our way into the building and the show was ok and here's a picture before it started. I was surprised the show went really quick.

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Here's one of the animals performing.

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Here's another.

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We left and decided on one more ride and that was ET. After that I could see the kids were getting tired and it was getting close to 5pm. We made or way toward the gates and saw the Simpsons and their RV.

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We left the park and headed over to Jimmy Buffets for dinner and then back to our hotel to regroup, rest up, and over to the Hard Rock for a swim.
 
I think we're going to do the Islands Dining Room breakfast for the first time on this trip. I'm not a big breakfast eater but my friends want to do it.

I can't wait to hear your thoughts on Mummy!


The food is great and the omelet station is awesome. I had one every morning along with other breakfast stuff. The food was top notch, IMO. If you do the way I did, you don't have to stop for lunch. Plus it;s cheaper to do the buffet because the juice, milk, and coffee has free refills. If you order breakfast ala carte, you have to pay for the drinks separately


The Mummy is a great ride and I rode it a total of 4 times this vacation and found the details to be very good. It's on par and can stand toe to toe with any Disney E ticket attraction there is.
 
Ok, I'm taking your advice and sleeping in! I am so psyched not to have to be there the second the turnstiles open. We're staying at PBH in a few weeks, so FOTL here we come!

Maria :upsidedow



Good for you and with FOTL you have no reason to rush at all. Take your time and be sure to soak in the ambiance of the PBH, it's an awesome hotel. I swam there one night on my trip and the villa pool is so nice and it's the true definition of relaxation.
 
I heard it mentioned so many times....and I feel like such an idiot for asking but it's doing my head in!

What is an E-ticket ride?

Thanks!!

Irish Blonde x
 
I heard it mentioned so many times....and I feel like such an idiot for asking but it's doing my head in!

What is an E-ticket ride?

Thanks!!

Irish Blonde x



Here ya go!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E_ticket

Since the 1950s, the phrase E Ticket (or E ticket ride) has referred to an unusually interesting, thrilling or expensive experience. It derives from the tickets used at Disneyland and Walt Disney World theme parks until 1982.
 
Thanks!! I thought there were some special tickets rolling around the place that no-one had told me about!! haha x
 
Eddie, this is a great trip report and is getting me excited for my upcoming trip. We leave in 10 days:woohoo: also staying at RPR. I sent you a question via PM. I would love it if you got a chance to reply. TIA
 
I'm 10 days out and I need more Trippie to keep me sane! :scared: Take pity on me, Eddie, let's see more! :goodvibes

Maria :upsidedow
 
I think we are going to be in Universal at the same time! Our first three days are in Tampa at my SIL's then we move to PBH and the Darkside 6/21 - 6/28. I can't decide what I want to ride first, it will probably be The Simpsons, since we've never been on it!

Maria :upsidedow
 
I think we are going to be in Universal at the same time! Our first three days are in Tampa at my SIL's then we move to PBH and the Darkside 6/21 - 6/28. I can't decide what I want to ride first, it will probably be The Simpsons, since we've never been on it!

Maria :upsidedow
Yes it looks like we are and never a big problem what to ride first for me cause I head strait for the mummy :scared1::lmao:
 

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