Spotlight: Orlando - Universal Islands of Adventure

Spotlight: After establishing their Universal Studios - Florida branch, Universal decided to copy the Disney model and expand by creating a new amusement park called Universal's Islands of Adventure (1999). Whereas the original Universal Studios focused on attractions that related to specific movies, Islands of Adventure is geared more towards rides in themed "islands." When we visited, there were seven islands (Port of Entry, Marvel Super Hero Island, Toon Lagoon, Jurassic Park, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Hogsmeade, The Lost Continent, and Seuss Landing) with an eighth (Skull Island) set to open in the summer of 2016. In 2014, it attracted 8.1 million visitors, making it the 12th most visited park in the world that year.

Location: Universal's Islands of Adventure is located just east of where I-4 meets the 259 (a toll road) at 6000 Universal Blvd. in Orlando, Florida.

Cost: A one-day park hopper pass is $155/adult; $150.00/child (3-9). 2-4 day tickets run in the low $200s. Keep an eye out for deals. We purchased a 2-day park hopper which gave us a third day free.

Time: The park usually opens at 8:00 or 9:00 am. Closing time varies from day to day, so check the schedule ahead of time. One day should be sufficient to see most of the attractions you want to see (at one park) unless the park is really busy. We did one park one day, the other the second, and returned to our favorites in both parks on the third.

Description: The Port of Entry serves as the entrance and exit from the park, and is easily located at night due to its lighthouse. There are no attractions here, only gift shops and restaurants.
     Marvel Super Hero Island has some of the best rides in the park: The Incredible Hulk Coaster, Storm Force Acceleration, Doctor Doom's Fearfall, and The Amazing Adventures of Spider-man (3D ride). Also, the super heroes come out for photo ops every hour on the hour, with villains appearing on the half hour.

     In addition to the predominate comic strip and cartoon themed stores, Toon Lagoon has several water-themed attractions that are best visited early (but not too early) so that you can take advantage of the warm sun to dry off: Me Ship, The Olive, Popeye & Bluto's Bilge-Rat Barges, and Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls. If it is cold outside, you can always pay to dry off at the automatic dryers.

Ripsaw Falls

     Jurassic Park is fortunately located right next to Toon Lagoon, because the other water ride, the Jurassic Park River Adventure, is there. By visiting them all in a row, you avoid the need to get wet after you've already dried off. Other attractions here include the Pteranodon Flyers, Camp Jurassic, the Raptor Encounter, and the Jurassic Park Discovery Center.

     Hogsmeade is part two of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Hogwarts Castle is the dominant feature, and is home to the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey 3D ride. Other attractions include the Flight of the Hippogriff, the Dragon Challenge (roller coaster), and the Hogwarts Express (which takes you to Diagon Alley in Universal Studios - Florida). Of course there are themed shops, the Three Broomsticks restaurant, and live performances (The Frog Choir and the Triwizard Spirit Rally), as well as several areas in which you can practice casting spells with your interactive wand.

Sharing a butterbeer

Hogwarts Castle

Flight of the Hippogriff

The Hogwarts Express

Durmstrang & Beaux Batons Pep Rally

     The Lost Continent is designed with shows in mind rather than rides. The Eighth Voyage of Sindbad Stunt Show is a live stunt show with some audience participation at the beginning. You will want to check showtimes and time your arrival to about 15 minutes before show time. Poseidon's Fury is a special effects guided tour with continuous shows. The Mystic Fountain talks and sprays visitors. It is a big draw for kids. The Mythos Restaurant has won several awards for best amusement park restaurant over the years.

Sinbad stunt show

     Seuss Landing is obviously geared towards kids. There are about four rides, and interactive play area, shows/readings and of course photo ops with Dr. Seuss characters.

Rating: 5 stars (out of 5)

Things You Should Know: - The chocolate frogs at Honeydukes come with one of five trading cards: Albus Dumbledore, Godric Gryffindor, Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff, and Salazar Slytherin.
- If you purchase Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans, the packaged boxes are expensive - $10.95 for 6 oz. A baggie of the same amount of beans is less than half the price. The only down side is that you don't get the flavor guide.
- The Hogwarts Express is accessible to those who have parkhopper passes.
- You must empty your pockets of everything before boarding the Dragon Challenge roller coaster - and they aren't bluffing. You must pass through a metal detector before you get on, so you'll be sent back if you try to slip something through. Also, there are two different dragons, each of which follows a slightly different track.
- Valuables can be stored in free lockers while you are on roller coaster style rides. There is a time limit, so if you want to keep them in the lockers for a long period of time, you will have to pay.
- The Pteranodon Flyers are designed for children 36-56 inches tall, accompanied by an adult. In fact, you can only go on the ride if at least one of the guests is between 36-56 inches; so even though it looked fun, we weren't allowed to go on it.
- Hogsmeade and Marvel Super Hero Island are usually packed, so you want to hit at least one of them early, before the crowds hit. We did most of the Marvel rides right away while there was only a 5 minute wait. Of course, by the time we got to Hogsmeade, the wait times were about an hour and a half.

Nearby: Wet 'n Wild, Boggy Creek Airboat rides, Cape Canaveral, Daytona Beach