Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "I'll be curious to see if they keep it (and the show stop) for the DL version" It's been confirmed by the DPB that the DL version will not have a show stop.
Originally Posted By CuriousConstance I can practically guarantee that other Disney website don't actually think Universal is in the same league as Disney, so it puzzles me that they play up Uni and Knott's so much. I went to Busch Gardens several times when growing up. I'll never forget the time me and my dad got stuck on Big Bad Wolf mid ride!
Originally Posted By FerretAfros ^^That's so cool! That was such a neat ride, with the abandoned village and the iconic drop over the river. Sadly, it was removed a couple years ago and replaced by a coaster with some indoor elements and a vertical drop, but I think that BBW had a lot of charm. It's one of the only non-Disney coasters I've ever been on that actually attempted to have some theming along the route
Originally Posted By RoadTrip I realize that this is comparing Universal with WDW's weakest park, but except for the stunning visual aspects of Hollywood and Sunset Boulevards, Universal Studios is superior to Disney Hollywood Studios in just about every way. The saving grace for DHS is Tower of Terror.
Originally Posted By darcy-becker <My kids have gone Tsum Tsum crazy. Have you seen them? The mini ones are so adorable I can't stand it.> I love them too. Only the little ones. I doubt I'll ever get one of the big ones or medium sized ones. I have about 15 or so on my desk at work. It's fun to rearrange them every so often. Right now, I have all the Frozen ones riding on my regular stuffed Sven. (Except Hans, he's on the shelf near Sven but not riding him.) The others are in a pyramid.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA <Diagon Alley's ride "Escape from Gringotts" is a disappointment. In my opinion the attraction is boring, while the land itself is very beautiful> This is the first I've read anything but a RAVE REVIEW about all of Harry Potter.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros ^^Most of the reviews I've seen were disappointed by Escape from Gringotts. In general, people seemed to like the Hogwarts Express and the new land, but the marquee attraction seems to be underwhelming for most
Originally Posted By CuriousConstance Darcy, sounds adorable! I want a Jiminy Cricket! I don't know if it's been released in the US yet.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>This is the first I've read anything but a RAVE REVIEW about all of Harry Potter.<<< >>>^^Most of the reviews I've seen were disappointed by Escape from Gringotts. In general, people seemed to like the Hogwarts Express and the new land, but the marquee attraction seems to be underwhelming for most.<<< Universal did a fantastic job with creating the Harry Potter lands in oth parks. Diagon Alley is even more beautiful than Hogsmeade, but Forbidden Journey is so much better than Escape from Gringotts. I think they rushed the new land after the huge success of HP. Escape isn't a bad attraction, but in my opinion it doesn't deserve the praise it gets from so many fans. It's an underwhelming video screen ride. Universal uses too many screens in their attractions. Spider-Man and Transformers are basically the same ride with different themes and Spider-Man is better. I also had high hopes for Men In Black after reading on several Disney boards that it is so much cooler than Buzz or TSMM. Don't trust angry Disney fans. That ride looked so tacky and cheap, hence it was no surprise that there wasn't a queue. This trip to Universal taught me, that Disney isn't that bad as many want them to be.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip For me, the best thing about MIB was the queue. It has been quite a few years now, but I remember it being extremely well done. The ride itself, not so much.
Originally Posted By hopemax > This is the first I've read anything but a RAVE REVIEW about all of Harry Potter.< It depends on what you are looking at. Yes, compared to the "did I just do that" gobsmacking that Forbidden Journey provides, people weren't quite sure how to react to Gringott's. Especially, when so many were getting themselves worked up over "Gringotts Coaster!" because there was limited info about what the attraction would actually be like. So the initial reviews among bloggers and forum posters were not as gushing as everything else Harry Potter. Throw in the reliability issues early on, leading to some very long waits, and it wasn't the best recipe. I admit to being disappointed after my first ride too. But the more I ride, the more I realize how much I really do enjoy it. And I would gladly ride it over Mine Train, Mermaid, Test Track (I didn't know something could make the original good, but the redo really misses the boat for me), Soarin (at WDW), RnRC, Mission: Space, Monsters Inc Laugh Floor, Stitch, and yes, even Everest (the Yeti thing bothers me, without it, it's just steel done anywhere...oooh, backwards). Of the post-AK additions to WDW, maybe TSMM ranks higher, but my arm gets tired on that, so eventually, I think it would give way too. And many of those attractions I listed we skip altogether (looking at it, I guess Mermaid and Everest are the ones we really ride most trips), and I would never not go on Gringotts. In not too long (especially with the pace, Universal is keeping), it will stop being the "new" ride (and therefore the expectations that come with that). And just one ride among several other rides (someday, how many people will know which came first?). And as a much more family-friendly attraction, I think it will do quite well among those that aren't ready for FJ. Just like all the other rides at Disney that are still worthwhile, and popular despite not being the caliber of Haunted Mansion or whatever you think the best Disney has to offer is. The financials are starting to come in, and in the earnings report operating cash flow was up an insane number of 54.6%. That's unheard of, and if Gringotts were as terrible as some people make it out to be, that doesn't happen. Attendance comes out in June, and people are hinting strongly that it will be eye-opening. Attendance was up 14% for the Studios in 2013, and conventional wisdom is that people stay away right before a major expansion, you wonder what the ceiling could be.
Originally Posted By Princessjenn5795 I used to be on here all the time, but then I started nursing school, which unfortunately ate into my geeking-out-over-Disney time. Now I read through posts once every week or two, but don't post all that often. I follow a couple of Disney fan pages on Facebook, but I don't really post anything. I do follow the Disney Parks blog too. Since my Disney geek time is limited, I like to just focus on the happy, fun side of things, and not reading about how much everything sucks now. That is the reason I stopped following other chat boards all together- this one really isn't bad. I am Facebook friends with a couple people from this board, but have yet to find people on other boards I would want to give actual information about myself to.
Originally Posted By Princessjenn5795 I also would send more time on here if this site didn't take 5 hours to load anything.
Originally Posted By demderedoseguys I'm back after almost a year away- I think my last post was last August when I got back from Aulani. Skipped WDW for the first time in decades last year and probably won't go back until my grandchildren are out of the stroller brigade.
Originally Posted By jkayjs I'll never understand the either/or mentality. When we were little my cousin told me "I can't like peanut butter because I like jelly. Why can't you like them both!?! US & WDW are for the most part two different animals for me. One's a theme park the other's an amusement park. Are there elements that overlap...sure. Some people prefer the adrenaline rush others prefer the wonderment of entertainment & the element of "how did they do that". I'm in the latter group but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy US/IoA. Both do it right in my opinion. After walking this earth for over 6 decades there isn't much that gets my panties in a bunch anymore anyway & certainly not if they change something in one of these parks. Do I miss some of the old ways/things...certainly but not enough to make me go all bat dookie over it. These boards are indeed much quieter than when I joined & they have never been very user friendly but again...no big deal. For pure park/resort questions/info I've always used Allears & Intercot anyway. For just chat & my countdowns I come here.
Originally Posted By HongKongDisneyFreak "how they do everything better. I adopted that view and then I was very disappointed by Universal Florida in January. It's by far not better than Disney, except for Forbidden Journey." Potter is a game changer. You don't see that? But we decided that universal needs improvement with many things other than potter. There is nothing in disney's arsenal that can compete with potter. NOTHING EVEN CLOSE. Maybe those Disney seas in japan have just as impressive lands and attractions but we will see
Originally Posted By HongKongDisneyFreak "Uni's budget hotel opened with bad reviews and Diagon Alley's failure to live up to all the hype." And here is my view after staying 3 nights: Cabana bay would be equal to or nicer than Disney moderate hotels(Dixie landing, Caribbean beach and Coronado). Base rooms with 2 high end queen beds Interior hallway room entry Approx 300 square feet 9 feet 5inch high ceilings(yes, I measured) Pool slide on main pool 2 sinks in bathroom This "budget" hotel kicked the shit out of pop century or all stars but was priced about the same. I would say better than Disney mods but definitely lower quality than the lowest disney deluxes like animal kingdom and wilderness lodges.
Originally Posted By HongKongDisneyFreak Have you been to diagon alley? You have not. Because if you had you would see how far supreme the quality is. There must have been 15 unique shops all with animatronics in the widows or on the shelves and interactive elements and ONLY HARRY POTTER ITEMS, UNIQUE ITEMS. We did not see General universal items there only the appropriate things like wands and capes
Originally Posted By HongKongDisneyFreak Oh, and as far as cabana bay transportation they have themed buses to match the hotel with no waiting(there were always enough buses in circulation as to no waits either at city walk or at cabana bay)..Unlike those Disney transports which are generic and butt ugly. Maybe next time before casting an opinion about universal you can do a bit of homework first. What do think? Is that a good plan?
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORWEN: Oh, I HATE doing homework!! Haven't done any of it since my last hex education classes!!!
