sueoz

Hi - Will be in Orlando for about 5 days and trying to do stuff other than Disney. Universal is high on our list. Do you think we can enjoy this in one day? We are going during the week of March 15 (no weekends). How are crowds and waits at this park during this time?

Anyone used the VIP tour - is it worth it?

Any tips at all are appreciated!!

sue

Melissa

3 friends and myself went to Universal Studios last August, and not only did we do Universal in 1 day, but we went to the Islands of Adventure too! I guess August is high season in Universal, but the lines were not bad at all (better than Disneys) and you can use fast passes to get a ride time without waiting in line. Don't know anything about the VIP tour. I think you should do what I did: start mid morning at Universal Studios, buy a 2 park 1 day ticket, figure out what rides or shows you want to see and use the fast pass for them, then head on over to Islands of Adventure, spend the early evening there, and go eat at the restaurant/shopping area (?Citywalk).
Universal is a blast, and should rightfully be at the top of your list.
Have fun!

emd

We did Universal in one day, and didn't get to all of it but almost all. Do some research and decide what rides and shows you really want to do and can live without so you'll fit in the stuff on top of your list once you find out the schedules of the different shows etc. We were there a little later in March and I don't remember bad crowds, it seemed to move fast if there was a line for anything. I think your crowds won't be as bad as they are later in March and April as it gets closer to Easter (it is a function of spring breaks at the schools, which varies across the U.S.)
One thing we really enjoyed, and I think you might enjoy as two solo adults, is City Walk. You can spend an evening there having dinner, going to a club, jazz; there's even a movie and dinner deal now for $19.95, dinner at one of like 6 places (Margaritaville, Motown place, Latin Quarter, etc) at City Walk and a ticket to any movie at CityWalk cinemas (you get this at the info kiosk at city walk.) After a day a the park, it's a great way to wind down, right outside the front gate. Are you going to go to Islands of Adventure? It is different than Universal and has some pretty unique rides and areas.

Sara

Yes, you can do Univerrsal in one day, although, as others have said, you'll have to pick the highlights. It's worth it to do both Universal and IOA. Just do your research ahead of time so you know what rides and attractions you care about most, and plan out your route. In my opinion, the Spiderman ride at IOA is the absoloute best ride in either park, it's really cool. I also really enjoyed the Men in Black ride (it's a smilar idea to the Buzz Lightyear ride at Disney, if you've done that, but you're trying to pick off the bad aliens). I also enjoyed Twister at Universal, that was pretty intense. The special effects at the Back to the Future ride are good, but I found it much too violently jerky to enjoy, and was worried about hurting my neck. IOA has some amazing looking roller coasters, but I didn't get a chance to go on any of them - but my son thought that the dueling dragons coaster was awesome.

If the lines are long, and you don't care if you ride together, you can get in the line for single riders, which is shorter - they fill up empty single seats from this line. You may end up together, anyway, my friend and I sometimes did when we used this line.

mrt

you can do Universal or islands of adventure in one day if you get there early and husle but not both.

Wednesday

Go to Islands FIRST, then if you have time, go to Universal.....You will do more at Islands and pick through places at the original Universal.

JoyinVirginia

If you get a multiday 2-park pass, they never expire. You can easily do all of IOA in one day and some of Universal. The Men in Black ride at Universal always seems to have an extremely long line whenever we have been, so I would save that for last so you don't waste time standing in line. Attractions at Universal are more the "show" format where a large group enters at one time, the next large group won't go in for 15-20 minutes or so. IOA has more "continuous loading" rides where the lines are moving constantly as rides load quickly, so you can zip around there faster. Either will be lots of fun!

LilyLace

My advice for any of the parks is always the same: Drive there. Get to the park at least 1/2 hour before the scheduled opening. Buy your ticket, study the map pick your must do/sees and just go go go until the lines get long. Then take a break later for a nice sightseeing stroll of everything else. This trick always works for us and we feel like we got to do all we wanted to without waiting forever in long lines etc....