going to universal- wife, 2 teens who are not really into the big rides. how much time is necessary to do the whole park? Can we do the park and then city walk in the same day?

That's hard to say. You can certainly see Universal in 3/4 of a day, especially if you don't have ride maniacs who get back in line just as soon as they get off a rollercoaster.

If you're that lukewarm about it, though, I would skip it and spend more time at a park or attraction you really like. Many people ruin perfectly good Florida vacations by trying to "do" everything--and count me among that number.

Have you thought about SeaWorld instead of Universal? it might appeal to the teens more.

I did the Universal Studio (vs Isles of Adventure) @ Orlando a few years ago, arrived a little late, saw most of all, and would say 1 day for that is about right.

kswl:lol about ruined vacations. I witness scenes with crying kids and parents muttering "Quiet! We've got to go xxxx next. We're GONNA have fun, dammit!"

Universal is all about rides. If they are just not into massive rollercoasters, but enjoy rides, then they will like Universal.
Spiderman is a very cool special effects ride and not scary(I am a big wimp, but realize I was always in a cart that has screens around you to make you feel like you are flying around. Shrek is a fun 3-Dtype show.
We spent a few days at the park. You can easily walk the parks in one day, but if you have to wait on lines for rides, it will be harder to see it all. I would suggest paying extra (if you are not staying at a Universal resort) and buy the fast pass. You don't wait on long lines and get to see the rides you want. If you are staying at one of their hotels, you automatically use your room key as the fast pass.
The park is geared toward teens. Whereas Disney is geared toward younger kids.

If you want to stay at the property all day and evening because you don't want to move your car, you can cool off and rest by catching a movie at the big cineplex at Citywalk.

You do know there are two Universal parks in Orlando?

Universal has two parks. Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. There's a lot to do beside "big rides". There are also shows to see. If you want to do both parks one day would be pushing it. Both parks and City Walk are within easy walking distance from one another.
Go to www.disboards.com and scroll down to the Universal Forum for great info.

We did Universal in one day and our ticket included the next day free so we went to Islands of Adventure, which we liked better than Universal. You can either upgrade to the Express Pass, which lets you in line ahead of everyone else once per attraction, or they had their version of "Fast Pass" when we were there in 2004. We went to Universal Hollywood this May and they only had the Express Pass, they didn't have any "Fast Pass", so I'm not sure if they've done away with that. If there is one ride not to miss out on, it's the Mummy...it is the best roller coaster I've ever been on and the version in Orlando is way better than the Mummy at Universal Hollywood. We went on it 13 times!