In our world, money talks. And Universal’s Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida is no exception. This can be fantastic if money is no object, as there are many options to upgrade your ticket to get faster ride queues, longer park opening hours and arguably a more worry-free day. But for the rest of us, the base ticket serves its purpose superbly and, while you get what you pay for, it is more than sufficient.
We visited Islands of Adventure in the April school holidays so you might say it was a little crowded. We opted not to upgrade our ticket and I still felt we saw everything we needed to in a day. Being the newest, most novel and most popular, we began our adventure of the Isles in Hogsmeade, courtesy of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
However, for all the hype and expectation that surrounds this Island, it would be easy to be disappointed. While the fantasy land they have created is absolutely marvellous, it’s size and the amount of things to do is grossly overstated.
Got time for a quick pin? Just hover
Perhaps the internet (and some of my crazy harry potter-mad friends) created unrealistic expectations that the park was never going to live up to. Don’t make that mistake. Harry Potter Island is still one of 7 islands in the park and the size reflects that.
Edit: I went before Diagon Alley was built so this is probably less relevant now.
Now onto the opposite-of-disappointing things. They’ve built a huge Hogwarts Castle (sadly, not life size) up on a cliff, inside of which is a simulation ride called Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, where you are riding on a broom with Harry and the Quidditch team through the forbidden forest to get to the game. Very cool. Not for those who get motion sick.
For some reason, despite every other patron also having the excellent idea to visit Harry Potter first, the Dragon Challenge roller coaster only had a 5 minute wait (In comparison to 70 minutes for the Forbidden Journey). This was an opportunity not to be missed. Twice in a row.
It literally took me longer to walk through the line than the time waiting at the end. It is so fast and so upside downey and you have to take in every second because then it’s over before you know it. The Island is very enjoyable to walk around and big Harry Potter fans will actually think they’ve died and gone to heaven.
However, it was a little disappointing that a lot of the ‘shops’ are just decorative and you cannot actually walk inside them. The Owl Post, however, was open. It contained many an appropriate souvenir, including (stuffed) pets, books, uniforms or your very own wand. And if you are lucky enough to be picked during the demonstration in Ollivander’s Wand Shop the decision is made for you! The last thing to do in Harry Potter Island is to try Butterbeer. It is super sweet so make sure you love butterscotch.
When we were done with Harry we began a (quick) lap at Seuss Landing then on to Marvel’s Superhero Island: the second best island to Harry inside Universal Orlando. We did the Spider-Man ride which was another simulation ride, the premise being we were reporters for the Daily Planet following Spidey around, watching him fight bad guys like Doc Oc. It was so good we did it twice.
This was very fun and probably better than the Harry one. It was also in 3D (4D) and as it drove us around the course, different screens around every corner made it feel like we were actually in New York with him. The mix between real objects and projections was perfect and nearly seamless.
Throughout the day it started raining. This was annoying for a time because we caught in some god-awful Gypsy-themed shop selling anything from machetes to trinkets. However, this meant the Hulk Roller Coaster was shut down. Bad news?
Well, for those at the front of the queue, yes. But those who hadn’t planned on going just yet, those of us who waited until it reopened when the storm cleared, only had to wait about 15 minutes for literally the best roller coaster in the world. And I’ve ridden a lot.
You begin in a tunnel and it shoots you up, out through a portal and it looks and feels like you’re being launched into the sky because you can’t see where the track goes. Everything from then on is just perfect. Thrilling. Exhilarating. The only problem now is every roller coaster I go on for the rest of my life will be compared to this.
These were the best 2 Islands so the rest I will only touch on the highlights.
In Toon Lagoon I noticed everyone was wet, followed shortly by a rapid raft ride, then another splash ride and another. Then a multitude of ‘drying’ stations, for the cooler days. Like a life-size Dyson Airblade. These would be great on a hot day or if you just didn’t care about squeaking sneakers and damp underwear.
Skipping these we moved through this island pretty quickly to Jurassic Park, which is predominately aimed at teens and kids, so it was also a relatively express tour. We had lunch and watched people get soaked on the Jurassic Park River Adventure – seriously, the biggest splash on a ride you’ve ever seen.
[Sidebar: get the turkey leg for lunch. Delicious and huge].
Back in the island of Lost Continent we watched a stunt show called The Eighth Voyage of Sindbad. Seriously, unless you have kids who are not real smart, easily entertained, enjoy (admittedly pretty clever) stunts, and terribly cheesy (don’t read: punny) scripts, I would give this show a hop, skip and a jump.
On the other hand, definitely do experience Poseidon’s Fury. A special effects show that is set in an ancient cave and eventually follows a battle between two the mythological gods Poseidon and (I think) Zeus. I won’t go over any more of the plot but it’s done very cleverly and has some very cool special effects including both water and fire.
We did probably at least 2 laps of the park. There is plenty to keep you entertained but the target age range is wide so not everything will be your cup of tea. The roller coasters are world class and the execution of the various themes is sublime. I would definitely come back here next time I visit Orlando. Especially because since I’ve been there they have added Diagonal Alley. Yeah, not heaps happy about that timing!
Beyond the scope of this post is Universal CityWalk. Many chain, themed restaurants around a small lake. We opted to eat at NBA city, an NBA themed restaurant (obviously). The menus were made out of basketball skin and there was plenty of basketball to watch. Food was pretty good too but nothing incredible. Like most of the alternatives, you go for the theme and the experience.
Heading to Orlando soon? Use booking.com to book your hotel because they have free cancellation on most bookings and you can pay later. I’ve had to cancel before and it’s super easy.
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