Universal Studios!
Posted on 05/13/2020
One of our Travel Advisors, Jessica C., visited Universal Studios over Thanksgiving in 2018. Here are some of her highlights.
When did you visit Universal Studios & Where did you stay? 
We stayed 3 nights at Lowe's Portofino Bay Resort and 3 days in the parks. The weather was great...60s and 70s every day. We did not spend any time at the water park, Volcano Bay. Three days was the perfect amount of time to spend in the 2 main parks. The other great thing about Loew’s Portofino
is that it’s really close to the parks, and there is a water shuttle back and
forth from the resort to the parks. You also have the option to walk, as
there are sidewalks all the way to the parks. I would compare it to the Hard Rock Hotel, as
it’s even closer to the parks and a shorter walk, while still offering the
Universal Express Unlimited tickets when staying there.
Should we get the Express Unlimited tickets?
Definitely! When you stay at Loew’s Portofino Bay you
automatically get the Universal Express Unlimited tickets added to your theme
park tickets, which is a HUGE perk. There are two lines at each ride in
the parks….the regular line and the Express line. These passes allow you
to bypass the regular line and use the Express line at every ride that it’s
available, which is nearly all of them. They only sell a certain number
of Express Passes a day, so you’re guaranteed a shorter wait time. You get to do so
much more in a day versus the regular park tickets, and the best thing is that
you don’t have to schedule a time for your ride.
How do you get to ride the Hogwarts Express?
We had park-to-park tickets which allowed us
to go back and forth between the two other parks, and more importantly, be able
to ride the Hogwarts Express. Be sure to ride the train both ways, as the
ride is different each way, and be sure to look for hidden surprises along the
way. One of my favorite things about Universal is all the little extras
that they’ve managed to add to the parks, especially in the Harry Potter
worlds.
Do they have magic hours like Disney?
The first day we were there, we went to
Island of Adventure, because when you stay at a Universal hotel on site, you
get in to Hogsmeade an hour earlier than the rest of the people who are
visiting that day. We headed straight to Ollivander’s Wand Shop in hopes
of being chosen to pick out a wand. The interactive wands
are amazing, as they have a lot of places in both Harry Potter parks where you
can do a spell with your wand, and magical things happen.
What are some of the other attractions?
We were able to visit with Shrek and
Donkey, which is a HILARIOUS interaction that we had just stumbled upon, and we
rode a few of the 4D rides like Jimmy Fallon’s Race through New York, Fast and
Furious, and Shrek’s ride. When the sun went down, we went back to Island
of Adventure to see the light show on Hogwarts Castle. Since we were there
over Thanksgiving, they had just switched their show to a Christmas/winter
themed show from their regular one. It was pretty amazing.
Now... saving the best for last...How was Diagon Alley?
The next day we went to Universal Studios
park, and headed straight for Diagon Alley. SO MAGICAL. I am a big
fan of Harry Potter, and I admit, my first glimpses of Diagon Alley brought me
to tears. This place just blew me away with all of the details, including
Nocturn Alley. We all had on Harry Potter themed shirts and the boys had
on their house colored lanyards, but there were so many people, kids and adults
alike, that were dressed in their Hogwarts robes and scarves, with wands in
hand. Universal was one of our favorite vacations
as a family…we are all looking forward to returning soon.
