Saturday March 19th, 2011

Universal‘s Islands of Adventure

Today was our first day to visit a theme park and we chose Universal‘s Islands of Adventure. So it was up and early this morning (6:00 a.m.) to get ready for an early start. Rather than leaving Keisha behind without knowing when we would be back home, we decided to bring Keisha to the Park because they provide a kennel service ($15.00 for the day).
After a stop at Waffle House for a good breakfast, we entered the parking area (another $15) at the Park and were directed to the Kennel area. We registered Keisha and settled her in a very nice air conditioned kennel! She was not a happy dog, but we felt better knowing that she would be taken care of.

We finally got going toward the Park itself by 9:00. We had to walk quite a distance before we entered the gate of Islands of Adventure. In this Universal Park there are six themes; Marvel Super Hero Island, Toon Lagoon, Jurassic Park, World of Harry Potter, the Lost Continent and Seuss Landing.

First Stop - Marvel Super Hero Island.

In addition to a number of stores selling everything you would need to complement your collection of Marvel Comic characters collection such as Spider-man and Incredible Hulk this section there are four rides.
We decided to try the Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man. This was a high tech 3-D thrill ride which required the passenger to wear 3-D spider vision glasses! It was a great ride and Dee and I gave it an A+!
We also tried the Storm Force Accelatron which is basically a saucer type ride that spins you around a circle. We rated this one a C.

As for the other two rides, the Incredible Hulk Coaster and the Doctor Doom’s Fearfall, the wait time was in excess of an hour each and we both did not have the stomach or guts to try them! They seems awesome, but not for us!

Second Stop – Toon Lagoon

There are two water rides. The Popeye & Bluto”s Bilge-Rat Barges and the Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls. After observing the rides and seeing the passengers get totally soaked, we decided to skip these rides. We could not see ourselves doing the remainder of the tour in wet clothes! Next time we will bring a change of clothes.

Third stop – Jurassic Park

Universal did a great job creating this site. With the special sounds and sights you could feel that you were in this prehistoric era. There was the Jurassic Park River adventure ride that again had a lengthy wait time and a good soaking so we skip that one. The ride we both wanted to really try was the Pteranodon Flyers ride but we were not allowed because the ride was for kids only! We did not pass the height test! Duh! It looked so cool. We visited the Jurassic Park Discovery Center which is a hands-on interactive area. You can scan dinosaur eggs, see one hatch! And check your DNA against a dinosaurs DNA – guess what? We were both a No-Match(duh).

Fourth Stop – The Lost Continent

We were planning to next see the World of Harry Potter but because it is very popular, and there are so many people there, the Park limits the number of visitors at one time in that area. We were issued our “pass” to enter the World of Harry Potter. We had a two hour wait! So on to the Lost Continent in the meantime. We decided to take in the Eight Voyage of Sinbad Stunt Show. The show last about 30 minutes and a cast of character act out this adventure. I am certain the kids would love to see this show, lots of pyrotechnics and fire, and sword fights, and monsters! There is also a seating section where you will get splashed with water. It was a nice rest from walking and it was worth taking it in.

Fifth Stop – The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

This section is the star of the Park. Walking in this area you feel that you are in Harry’s world. When you see the school of Hogwarts you would think you are in the Harry Potter movies. Very impressive! The wait time for the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey (a high tech thrill ride) inside the school was 75 minutes when we got there so we decided to try the Flight of the Hippogriff ride. This is a short 30 second roller coaster ride that spiral and dives around the pumpkin patch and swoops past Hagrid’s hut. That ride was enough to convince both of us that we would skip the Dragon Challenge. Its two simultaneous rides that twist, loop and nearly collide in a high-speed intertwining roller coaster chase! Also we would be upside down most of the track. Maybe after lunch we could try it, NOT!

We were hoping to get into a store where you buy the magic wands. It was packed and you could barely move! They also had a show were a group of 30 people at a time are allowed in and one person is selected and in a ceremony like the sorting hat, this person is put through a process to determine the type of magic wand is appropriate for him or her. Again the line-up was unreal! We did find the outside cart that sold the different wands and yes Nicola and Antoine, you are both going to be able to cast spells.

We decided to have lunch so we were able to get a reservation at Mythos for 3:30 an hour wait so we decided to visit the last section. This restaurant is inside the Lost Continent building that you will see in the pictures and was voted the #1 restaurant in all theme parks. The prices were very reasonable as well.

Sixth Stop – Seuss Landing.

This is the most kid oriented part of the Park but also the one we enjoyed! Dee got to go on a carousel! I have pictures to prove it. The Cat in the Hat ride had a 30-minute wait time so we decided to try it. You are twisted and turned through the pages of Dr. Seuss’s Cat in the Hat story book. After all this excitement we headed to the restaurant.

Mythos Restaurant

The decor of this restaurant is based on mythical gods and looks like a craggy grotto as if it’s been carved from the rock by the very gods whose images are etched into the walls. The menu is very limited but the food is good. We met a couple that had just returned from World of Harry Potter and in our conversation found out more about the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride. It’s the only ride that you cannot use the Express pass! They did the 75-minute wait and said it was worth the wait! Dee and I decided to return there after our dinner.

It was 4:30 by the time we finished eating and we returned to the Harry Potter site only to find that there was now a 90-minute wait! Oh well, maybe in another life we will try it. After spending nine hours at the park and walking many miles we decided to call it a day and head for home. We picked up Keisha at the kennel! She was happy to see us!

Imagine - tomorrow we get to do this all over again at Universal Studio! This is another theme park that has more movie interations. Movies such as Men in Black, Shrek 4-D, Twister, Beetlejuice and ET.

As we visit the theme parks we are compiling a list of things we learned that may be useful to those who might visit Universal and Disney World. We will post them at the end of our visit.

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