WDW (and Universal) in Jan - Are rehabs common?

Post by **subsonic** » May Wed 03, 2006 11:42 am

It seems the plan is to stay at WDW and "commute" over to USF/IOA. What's the best way to do this? Taxi? Is there a shuttle?

Post by **js3901** » May Wed 03, 2006 4:20 pm

I you'd probably have to do taxi, though I think there is a shuttle that runs to the different parks (outside of the normal Disney Transportation). I'll see if I have any other info when I get home. stupid work....

TheGreatGonzo · Post by **TheGreatGonzo** » May Wed 03, 2006 4:47 pm

Depending on the cost of a taxi you may find it cheeper to rent a car for a day. You can do this at a couple of areas in WDW. It may also give you a chance to get to a store if you need to for snacks and such.

AKLRULZ · Post by **AKLRULZ** » May Thu 04, 2006 5:19 am

I think renting a car is going to be your best option - I'm not aware of a shuttle service. Might consider getting that rental for your entire stay so you're not at the mercy of Disney transportation - we definitely have enjoyed having the option of having the car each trip.

Have fun!

Captain Schnemo · Post by **Captain Schnemo** » May Thu 04, 2006 6:51 am

If it's a done deal, that's cool, but I really can't express how nice it is to stay at Universal when you do those parks. The "cheapest" hotels are really quite nice, and are within easy walking distance of the parks. (You might have your fill of walking at that point of the stay, however.) I timed it once and it was 6 minutes from my room in the Hard Rock to getting strapped into the Hulk.

Also your hotel key allows you to go to the front of any line at any time as many times as you want (at least last time I was there, this was the plan). This is an amazing time savings, even when crowds are light.

In terms of the parks themselves, Universal Studios is a fairly crappy park with some very neat things. If it's hot out, I'd schedule some time for the Curious George playground, which has lots of gimmicks that are really quite entertaining for those of us who enjoy soaking the unsuspecting. Regardless of the weather, the area behind the watery zone with the little balls you can blast at friends and strangers is more entertaining than it has any right to be. I mention this place because most people never notice it, and it's right next to some fairly boring stuff.

Men in Black is an OK ride, but the score gimmick will make you want to ride it several times. The Mummy is a must-do. It's not great, but it's a lot of fun.

Much of the rest of the stuff there is sort of blah, but typically worth seeing once.

Islands of Adventure, on the other hand, is a terrific park with a whole lot to do. If you've already been once, you can make it a half day park if necessary, but if you really want to see it all (don't skimp on exploring the Jurassic Park playground!) you need a full, long day.

If you are travelling with any comic book nerds, Marvel Island will blow their pants off. I've been with a couple nerds who happily spent an hour each just wandering around and identifying all the heroes and obscure references. (The same is true of Seuss fans in Seuss Landings.)

And even if you can't tell the Hulk from the Thing, Spider-Man is perhaps the greatest dark ride ever created. The only other thing I would consider in its league is Indiana Jones at Disneyland (although I haven't seen Tokyo DisneySeas).

The rest of the park has attractions of varying quality. All are worth at least one look, some are worth multiple visits on the same day. Note that Duelling Dragons is two separate coasters with different paths and different feels. Sort of like an amped up Mr. Toad with no hell. Even if you don't like coasters, don't miss the queue for that one.

Anyway, blah blah blah, but what I'm trying to say is that I'm a hardcore Disney geek and I think Islands of Adventure is great. I've always looked down on Universal Studios, which to me looks fairly dismal, even in relation to MGM. If you go from one Universal park to another, there's a tangible shift in energy. (Slapping down a bunch of asphault and making realistic streets is just about the lamest possible thing you can put in a theme park.) I always bring friends to the Studios first, because it's a real dump after visiting IOA.

I think you'll get a charge out of the music in IOA. I bought the CD they sell and if they'd make a Volume II, I'd buy it immediately.

Anyway, you can skimp on the Studios if you're running low on time. There are some really fun things in there, but if you're looking for Disney-type quality, you'll want to stick to IOA.

It would really suck to end your trip with Universal Studios, but I can hardly think of a more exciting way to wrap up a vacation than with Spider-Man.

Hope this information is of some help. Your enjoyment of IOA will probably vary based on your appreciation of the source material. I am a big Seuss fan, so even though the Cat in the Hat ride is not great, I'd consider that one of my favorite park lands.

Post by **subsonic** » May Thu 04, 2006 12:08 pm

My wife doesn't want to unpack for just one night at a USF hotel. I think it's a good idea, especially because of the "key to the front of the line" advantage. You've resparked my interest in staying there.

Captain Schnemo · Post by **Captain Schnemo** » May Thu 04, 2006 12:50 pm

If you aren't going to go off-site at either place, you could forgo the rental car and try to sell the hotel to your wife in terms of saving money and time renting and returning the car. I can see the appeal of setting up a home away from home, however. Staying at Disney would also allow you to have a more flexible schedule.

But I have a friend who lives in Orlando and when I visit Universal, I get a hotel room for us anyway, just so we can have the pass. (It has some of the same issues as Fast Pass, by the way, in terms of funnelling you in through the back door and not allowing you to see some of the really cool queues. The Daily Bugle at Spider-Man is quite good.)

Another issue to consider...depending on whether or not you're renting a car, you might start to get sick of the dining options in Disney (although there is certainly a lot of variety).

There are some nice restaurants in CityWalk (the big mall strapped to the front of Universal that siphons cash out of all who pass through it to get to the parks) and your hotel key gives you priority seating to those as well.

Also, I'm not sure how familiar you are with Universal, but both parks are right next to each other, and CityWalk is right across the little river, so everything is within easy walking distance. I've actually been in IOA and decided to get lunch at a place I like in the Studios and the walk wasn't unreasonable. I guess you're used to that configuration in Disneyland, but it's different for me, since I'm used to WDW.

rich · Post by **rich** » Jun Tue 13, 2006 7:25 pm

Look me up when you get here, I'll buy the beer at IOA!

foldmama · Post by **foldmama** » Jun Wed 14, 2006 10:50 am

Mears has shuttles that will take you to IOA or the Studios. I use the service in May, 2005. They will pick you up at your Disney hotel in the morning at a pre-determined time. I believe they have a van about every 30 minutes or so. Please note that the return service at night left a lot to be desired. Sorry, but I don't remember what the cost was. Reservations are required.

Sub, I was soooo disappointed in the Studios, I would never go again. Total waste of money for me! Maybe I will try IOA the next time!

Post by **horizons1** » Jun Wed 14, 2006 7:37 pm

Be sure to pad it a bit as you might find you fall in love with one park and want to go back again and again. This happened to me the first time I went to Epcot.

If you stay on Disney property you get one advantage that might offset the "price" of commuting to USF: EXTRA MAGIC HOURS. The nighttime hours, in particular, are great for when you're finished with USF but you still have a little energy left.

I didn't see in a thread that you booked a place to stay yet. Just a note that in addition to Swan/Dolphin, the Hilton in Downtown Disney also participates in extra magic hours. Sometimes they're cheaper.

Finally, January, IMHO, is an excellent month to go!!!

Mr.ToadWildRider · Post by **Mr.ToadWildRider** » Jun Tue 20, 2006 8:45 am

Sub,

I'm going to WDW in like 11 days for July 4th week which as I understand will be packed. We have 7 days and our schedule includes:

1 day at both UO/IOA and we've invested in the Express Pass. It was like 50 bucks extra but it gives you a fastpass for every ride in both park (once per ride). Seeing as how Universal has done away with their old system that was much like Disney's fastpass system (but better imo) you can either stay on site to get the Express Pass or pay the money and get a golden fastpass type thing. We got the 1 day 2 park pass and tickets and it came out to roughly 30 dollars extra than going to each park individually over 2 days, and saving the extra day was well worth the extra 30 bucks.

1 day at MK where as long as you aren't planning on riding EVERYTHING (i.e. the speedway & the barnstormer) and as you said aren't too thrilled about shows and parades and have a decent plan of attack in terms of attractions/fastpasses you can get it almost all done in a day as long as you stay for the whole day (none of that going back to your hotel/timeshare/resort for a nap) you can pretty much do it all in a day - but you may miss a few rides but we have that covered (hopefully)

1 day at MGM - in reality you could probably do a 1/2-3/4 day at MGM and hop, but then you'd miss Fantasmic (which is the only show we really watch minus maybe Illuminations) Plus ToT and Rockin' Rollercoaster need atleast a few re-rides each.

1 day at EPCOT - This is the one thing I'm most afraid of. You can easily do all of the rides at EPCOT in 1 day, and you can stroll around the Showcase, but it's hard to really experience all of the countries in depth the same day you do all of futureworld. It's possible but hard.

1 Day at Typhoon Lagoon (then going to a Red Sox game in Tampa Bay after) which wll be our relaxing day.

1/2 day at AK - basically just want to try Everest and try to hit up Tough to Be A Bug, Safari, Dinosaur, Kali, and Primevil. I think we can get it done in a 1/2 day with fastpasses. I figure a fastpass will nullify wait times at Everst while we go and do Kali or Dinosaur or something, and another fastpass to nullify the wait at Safari and we'd basically have 4 of the 6 down fast. (Maybe by one in the afternoon) and then when we finish we're going back to MK to hit anything we missed (including PotC which re-opens that day) and just park hop as necessary.

We also plan on going to DisneyQuest on the day we get there and Pleasure Island for another night.

It's a pretty tight schedule and it prob. won't work as great as I'm hoping but I think we'll do as much as possible in a week. Just a thought for you.

Post by **subsonic** » Sep Mon 25, 2006 12:29 pm

Are there many rehabs in the first week of January?

Post by **subsonic** » Sep Wed 27, 2006 11:52 am

Anyone?

knedeau · Post by **knedeau** » Sep Wed 27, 2006 1:09 pm

Actually, You can check the WDW web site for rehab schedules. Ooooooooo Looks like splash mountain will be closed when you go! Bummer

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/ca ... e=20070101

Post by **js3901** » Sep Wed 27, 2006 1:15 pm

I'm actually surprised that anything is going down during the YoaMD they'll have going on. though, I guess it's expected at some point that a refurb needs to be done. I'm just glad there are no real refurbs going on in any park (besides Blzzard Beach) while we're there in December...