A Scot's on his way.

[UAN17]

We both had Fitbits on and we didn't walk as much in the theme parks as I had thought we would, we averaged about 20,000 steps a day but since we couldn't wear them to the water parks, I don't know how much we walked but I would certainly say it was on par with the theme parks and maybe even more tiring due to the countless floors climbed. I'm hoping that there's another option besides stairs once Volcano Bay opens.

I know exactly what you mean about the differences in parks between theming and rides, the order you visit in can completely change the feel of a park depending on your previous few days.

One thing I had wished we had done but always seem to do this way, is do Magic Kingdom later in the holiday and Busch earlier. The reason we always do Magic Kingdom early is because I think it sets the tone for the holiday, once you visit the castle, you know you're at Disney. The reason I wished we visited later is that it's a long day and once the jet lag kicks in, it's a nightmare at night once the night time parades and fireworks start. A few members have suggested staying in the park for an hour after the fireworks finish as it allows the park to empty out, the queues for the monorail/ferry to die down and the rush to be over in the car park plus it's a nice way to relax after a busy day. The reason I've always left Busch to later in the holiday is to get more comfortable driving before driving an hour from Orlando. I felt far more comfortable driving this year than I ever have and it would have been nice to use the early morning jet lag rises to get to Busch early.

I think going to Food and Wine completely changed the feel of EPCOT this year. If you're driving, I'd recommend getting an Uber to the park and having a few drinks around World Showcase.

We did MK first too for those reasons but held off on Universal for 4 or 5 days to spread the top parks around a bit. Tempted to do Busch early this trip but not day 1...I don't like the idea of travelling to the USA to do more travelling to get to a park straight away. We may even skip it this trip and swap it out for Discovery Cove.

 

[WAJAS]

We both had Fitbits on and we didn't walk as much in the theme parks as I had thought we would, we averaged about 20,000 steps a day but since we couldn't wear them to the water parks, I don't know how much we walked but I would certainly say it was on par with the theme parks and maybe even more tiring due to the countless floors climbed. I'm hoping that there's another option besides stairs once Volcano Bay opens.

I know exactly what you mean about the differences in parks between theming and rides, the order you visit in can completely change the feel of a park depending on your previous few days.

One thing I had wished we had done but always seem to do this way, is do Magic Kingdom later in the holiday and Busch earlier. The reason we always do Magic Kingdom early is because I think it sets the tone for the holiday, once you visit the castle, you know you're at Disney. The reason I wished we visited later is that it's a long day and once the jet lag kicks in, it's a nightmare at night once the night time parades and fireworks start. A few members have suggested staying in the park for an hour after the fireworks finish as it allows the park to empty out, the queues for the monorail/ferry to die down and the rush to be over in the car park plus it's a nice way to relax after a busy day. The reason I've always left Busch to later in the holiday is to get more comfortable driving before driving an hour from Orlando. I felt far more comfortable driving this year than I ever have and it would have been nice to use the early morning jet lag rises to get to Busch early.

I think going to Food and Wine completely changed the feel of EPCOT this year. If you're driving, I'd recommend getting an Uber to the park and having a few drinks around World Showcase.

Did you know that Busch offers a free bus from SeaWorld there and back? All you have to do is reserve a spot. I use it every time I plan on going to the park because I enjoy the rides more.

 

[Jon84]

Great reviews Scott. It's nice to read something so balanced about Universal.

Nit picking is not an issue for me, I do it all the time too. The small things can be so easily fixed, but so easily overlooked at the same time. Seems to me all the parks need a budget in their yearly planning for the small things and actually get it done (Setting a bin clearing rota/priority, analyzing Wifi usage and adjusting coverage, clamping down on security processes to stop Pizza Leaflets etc etc)

45 Days till our trip, can't wait!

 

[AzaJ12345]

Last year was our first time to Orlando for a few years. We did MK on the 11th day of 14 and tried to mix every few days with a water park, we had breakfast reservations at BOG for 08.45 and dinner at Tony's Italian for 8pm, needless to say it was a VERY long day when you throw in travelling to and from the parks and fireworks etc. Personally, I'm not a massive Disney fan but there really is something to be said about walking down main street and seeing that beautiful castle at the end. It's almost money can't buy.

We went to Busch pretty early on in our trip and it was absolutely dead, everything was a walk-on, you almost wanted to queue for some things after a while as we'd done it all in 3 hours and my head had been thrown about all over the place.

We go back this time next year for our honeymoon (actually 1 year from today ), this time we're going for a more chilled out time as doing 11 parks in 14 days there really wasn't much downtime. We'll probably end up staying on-site at Universal (Sapphire or RPR, help needed to decide which one...) instead of I-Drive and just do Uni, IOA and Volcano Bay with HHN too.

Scott/UK folks who are looking to head out for September/October next year I don't want to hijack this thread so I can set a new one up if the demand is there for it but who do you tend to book with? Do you fly/drive or book a package? Anyone looked into booking with Loews directly? I've built a small scale automation that scrapes certain websites on a daily basis to keep an eye on the prices but any tips would be greatly appreciated?

 

[Jon84]

Last year was our first time to Orlando for a few years. We did MK on the 11th day of 14 and tried to mix every few days with a water park, we had breakfast reservations at BOG for 08.45 and dinner at Tony's Italian for 8pm, needless to say it was a VERY long day when you throw in travelling to and from the parks and fireworks etc. Personally, I'm not a massive Disney fan but there really is something to be said about walking down main street and seeing that beautiful castle at the end. It's almost money can't buy.

We went to Busch pretty early on in our trip and it was absolutely dead, everything was a walk-on, you almost wanted to queue for some things after a while as we'd done it all in 3 hours and my head had been thrown about all over the place.

We go back this time next year for our honeymoon (actually 1 year from today ), this time we're going for a more chilled out time as doing 11 parks in 14 days there really wasn't much downtime. We'll probably end up staying on-site at Universal (Sapphire or RPR, help needed to decide which one...) instead of I-Drive and just do Uni, IOA and Volcano Bay with HHN too.

Scott/UK folks who are looking to head out for September/October next year I don't want to hijack this thread so I can set a new one up if the demand is there for it but who do you tend to book with? Do you fly/drive or book a package? Anyone looked into booking with Loews directly? I've built a small scale automation that scrapes certain websites on a daily basis to keep an eye on the prices but any tips would be greatly appreciated?

I'm heading out 13th October 2017 for 8 nights. We're staying at Disney, so that is booked with free dining and $200 credit. But booking flights separate. I think it's a case of doing what you are doing already, just keep checking the prices till you are happy. Alot of the big sites wont have dates available yet, so it's not so competitive right now. I've seen some crazy deals on Travel Republic in the past, £30 a night for a suite at CBBR, but it turned out it was so limited the booked to cancelled after making it.

 

[Scott W.]

Did you know that Busch offers a free bus from SeaWorld there and back? All you have to do is reserve a spot. I use it every time I plan on going to the park because I enjoy the rides more.

I've looked at it but I really don't mind the drive and I don't like working to somebody else's schedule with how unpredictable the weather can be. This year, we were done in Busch in about 3 hours, if we had taken the bus, we would have had to wait a good few hours before getting home.

Last year was our first time to Orlando for a few years. We did MK on the 11th day of 14 and tried to mix every few days with a water park, we had breakfast reservations at BOG for 08.45 and dinner at Tony's Italian for 8pm, needless to say it was a VERY long day when you throw in travelling to and from the parks and fireworks etc. Personally, I'm not a massive Disney fan but there really is something to be said about walking down main street and seeing that beautiful castle at the end. It's almost money can't buy.

We went to Busch pretty early on in our trip and it was absolutely dead, everything was a walk-on, you almost wanted to queue for some things after a while as we'd done it all in 3 hours and my head had been thrown about all over the place.

We go back this time next year for our honeymoon (actually 1 year from today ), this time we're going for a more chilled out time as doing 11 parks in 14 days there really wasn't much downtime. We'll probably end up staying on-site at Universal (Sapphire or RPR, help needed to decide which one...) instead of I-Drive and just do Uni, IOA and Volcano Bay with HHN too.

Scott/UK folks who are looking to head out for September/October next year I don't want to hijack this thread so I can set a new one up if the demand is there for it but who do you tend to book with? Do you fly/drive or book a package? Anyone looked into booking with Loews directly? I've built a small scale automation that scrapes certain websites on a daily basis to keep an eye on the prices but any tips would be greatly appreciated?

This year I booked through Virgin Holidays and I wouldn't recommend it. The only reason I booked with them is that I had about 80,000 air miles that I was hoping to upgrade my seats of use as a voucher which made them cheaper than every where else. They were a nightmare to deal with, especially with upgrading our seats on the plane.

Usually, I'll book everything separate but it's always worth while keeping an eye for packages as every now and then, a good deal will come up. In 2012, I managed to get a Thomson's package, flight and hotel (Rosen Inn Pointe Orlando) for £600. It was working out more to the book the flight itself by the time you added your meals and luggage. So, it's always worthwhile having a look.

I always use: Orlando Attraction Tickets - Cheap deals for Disney Universal parks for the park tickets. Some times getting as package isn't the cheapest way to buy the tickets. For example, we didn't want to do Aquatica this year but it was cheaper to buy a 3 park SeaWorld ticket than a 2 day park ticket plus the 3 park ticket had free parking.


I had thought I wouldn't be returning to Orlando for at least 3 years but due to some recent developments, it looks like I may be returning next year. Looking to do something different, we might go on a Disney cruise. Spent a week at Disney, then a 5 day cruise and then 3 days at Unversal.