Is Universal Orlando Kid Friendly?
As a die-hard Disney fan, it was inconceivable to me that I would take my little guy to visit Universal Orlando Resort before he was a teenager. I had visited the resort a number of times before we became parents, and I just couldn’t see Universal Studios and certainly not Islands of Adventure as kid being friendly.
We traveled down to Orlando and Walt Disney World for the first time as parents with our then soon to be 2-year-old. We’ve been back every year since except for 2020. Over the years we’ve built up enough experience to know that our little guy has his favorite rides across the Walt Disney World parks, the bus and the monorail being two of them.
He loves a good spinning ride, the teacups are everything and to go fast, think Test Track. But certain dark rides just aren’t his thing. In fact, to this day I still have to negotiate whether or not we’ll ride the Haunted Mansion with our soon to be 9 year old. All these things considered; I just couldn’t see how he would take to the often-dark simulator rides that you can find at both Universal Orlando parks.
In fact, my husband and I discussed it more than once and didn’t think that unless we snuck in a trip without him that we would step foot into either park until he was 12 or 13. That is, if it turned out he liked roller coasters.
Enter 2021 and the opportunity for an extended visit to the central Florida area. We were there long enough that we could leisurely explore many of the attractions in the area beyond Walt Disney World. So, we thought, hey why not? We’re here let’s give Universal Orlando a try and find out if it’s good for little kids. Or at least for our little kid.
We had two things going for us, our little guy loves a new adventure and after his first ride on Goofy’s Barnstormer in the Magic Kingdom, rollercoasters. With that in mind, we set off on our first adventure as a family to see what with our then 7-year-old could do at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. As it turns out he liked both parks so much that he’s now a Universal Orlando fan and has a top 5 list of rides and attractions. Who knew?
8 things that we learned on our family’s first visit to Universal Orlando:
Get your tickets in advance, we wasted a lot of time on the line at the ticket window on our first visit trying to secure our park passes. Go with digital tickets
Consider the annual pass. Universal Orlando offers a very nice well priced selection of annual passes. Based on the number of days you expect to be in the park, you may find after doing the math that this option could work for you
Express Passes can be pricey at Universal Orlando. However, if you only have one day to spend and want to ride several of the major attractions, then it might be worth it. Otherwise, consider staying at one of their deluxe resorts where this perk is included
Download the Universal Orlando Resort app. You can mobile order food, make restaurant reservations, check wait times, keep track of your park tickets and use the map all through the app
Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate. Just like Walt Disney World, both Universal Orlando parks can become a crowded sweaty mosh pit of people on hot summer day. Pace yourself and apply the same rules. Hydrate, take breaks and eat at off peak hours
Halloween Horror Nights or HHN set-up starts in August. I mention this because this means that many of the scare zone props pop up for the event. While they cover the goriest aspects with tarp, some of what’s visible may be scary for your more sensitive kids. I share an example in the Top 5 video linked above
Universal Citywalk is worth a look with a variety of restaurants and some that have solid reputations to choose from. Not to mention they do have a movie theatre, miniature golf, and a new escape room to try
Most importantly, yes, it’s worth a day (or more) away from Walt Disney World to give Universal Orlando a try. You might be surprised to find that even the staunchest Disney fans among you just might find something to enjoy
Which Universal Orlando Park is more kid friendly?
While your mileage may vary, we found that there are plenty of rides and attractions at both Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure for our little guy to enjoy.
However, if you’re asking me to pick, my vote is for Universal Studios. If I only had one day to spend at Universal Orlando, this is where we’re headed.
Our 8-year-old can and does ride most of the attractions there except for three, (Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit™, Revenge of the Mummy, and Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts™).
While we didn’t have time to ride Fast and Furious – Supercharged on this last trip he did ask to ride and enjoyed The Simpsons Ride™ on our first visit.
The only downside is that the Woody Woodpecker Kidzone, which was a great experience for the younger set with plenty of water features and areas to run around and burn off energy has recently closed. However, it does seem that Universal has plans to update this section with a new family friendly area.
That said, you do still have the Camp Jurassic play area and the Dr. Suess areas in Islands of Adventure that will work just as well. While we haven’t had time to visit the Jurassic Park Discovery Center area yet this interactive indoor play area looks like a winner as well.
To go back to where we began, yes Universal Orlando is kid friendly and there are experiences for kids to enjoy in both theme parks.
Until next time, Enjoy the journey!
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