Universal Studios Orlando
Thursday - January 8th 2015
Claudia and I still hadn't adjusted to the time difference between Europe and America yet and so we woke up early again. We got ready for the day, packed our stuff and drove to the food court for breakfast. After a coffee and a bagel we were on our way to the
Universal Studios Orlando. This was our first visit to Universal and we were a bit excited because of the Harry Potter attractions. After we parked the car, we headed to the Will Call Kiosk for the tickets, since we ordered them online and saved 40 dollars.
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| Welcome to Universal Orlando Resort |
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| Universal Studios Globe |
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| Entrance to the Universal Studios Orlando |
The
Universal Studios Park wasn't open yet, but we were allowed into the Hollywood Blvd section. Since it was a bit cold, we got a cup of hot tea at the Beverly Hills Boulangerie. Finally the park was open to all guests and we walked straight to the Wizzarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley. I was never a very big Harry Potter fan, I read the books and saw the movies, but I was amazed by the theming of that area. Diagon Alley looked fantastic and is totally on the same level of theming you find in Disney parks, maybe even a bit better. First we did the Escape from Gringotts ride. We had high expectations due to all the hype, but unfortunately we were a bit disappointed. The ride wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either. Afterwards we just strolled around the beautiful shops and then we did Men in Black Alien Attack and the Simpsons Ride. Both attractions were okay, nothing special, but I wouldn't do them again.
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| Universal Studios Store |
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| Hollywood Blvd |
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| Hollywood Blvd |
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| Hollywood Blvd |
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| Hollywood Blvd |
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| Hollywood Blvd |
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| Hollywood Blvd |
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| Back to the Future |
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| The Wizzarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley |
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| The Wizzarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley - Knight Bus |
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| The Wizzarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley |
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| The Wizzarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley |
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| The Wizzarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley |
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| The Wizzarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley |
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| Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts |
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| Men in Black Alien Attack |
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| The Simpsons |
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| The Simpsons |
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| The Simpsons Ride |
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| The Simpsons Ride |
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| The Simpsons |
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| The Simpsons |
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| The Simpsons |
Now it was time for another new ride that got a lot of attention - Transformers. I didn't like the movies and I wasn't impressed by this attraction either, although it had some nice effects. Since it was around noon, we got hungry and had lunch at Louie's Italian Restaurant. Claudia and I both ordered the pasta marinara with a bread stick and a coke, and I have to say it was pretty good. Afterwards it was time for The Revenge of the Mummy attraction, it's a coaster in the dark with special effects, and it was very cool. In fact, it turned out to be one of our favourite Universal rides.
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| Transformers - The Ride 3D |
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| San Francisco |
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| San Francisco |
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| Louie's Restaurant |
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| Louie's Restaurant |
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| Pasta Marinara & Coke |
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| San Francisco |
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| San Francisco |
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| Revenge of the Mummy |
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| San Francisco |
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| San Francisco |
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| San Francisco |
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| San Francisco |
Then we walked back to Diagon Alley and took the Hogwarts Express to Hogsmeade in the Islands of Adventure park. The train ride was really great, especially what you could see in the train windows. Once in Hogsmeade we got a pumpkin juice and wanted to do Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. However the line was too long and so we decided to walk around the park and have a beer somewhere.
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| King's Cross Station |
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| Diagon Alley |
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| Diagon Alley |
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| Diagon Alley |
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| Diagon Alley |
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| Diagon Alley |
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| Diagon Alley |
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| Diagon Alley |
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| Diagon Alley |
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| 9 3/4 Hogwarts Express Station |
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| Hogsmeade |
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| Hogsmeade |
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| Hogsmeade |
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| Hogsmeade |
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| Pumkin Juice |
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| Hogsmeade |
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| The Lost Continent |
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| The Lost Continent |
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| The Lost Continent |
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| The Lost Continent |
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| Seuss Landing |
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| Port of Entry |
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| Port of Entry |
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| Port of Entry |
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| Port of Entry |
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| Port of Entry |
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| Port of Entry |
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| Nice Bar |
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| Port of Entry - Starbucks |
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| Universal Studios |
Afterwards we rode the Incredible Hulk coaster, which was a lot of fun, and the Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man, both located in the Marvel Super Hero Island. The Spider-Man ride was very similar to Transformers, but it was better. We really liked that ride.
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| Marvel Super Hero Island |
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| Incredible Hulk Coaster |
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| Incredible Hulk Coaster |
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| Incredible Hulk Coaster |
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| Marvel Super Hero Island |
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| Marvel Super Hero Island |
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| The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man |
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| Marvel Super Hero Island |
Before we walked to the Jurassic Park area, we got a coffee at Starbucks. The queue at Jurassic Park River Adventure was very short, I guess that was because of people getting wet when doing the attraction. We didn't bother and got in line. The ride itself was nice, maybe a bit old, and we did get wet. While drying, we explored the Jurassic Park Discovery Center, but there wasn't much to see.
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| Toon Lagoon |
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| Toon Lagoon |
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| Toon Lagoon |
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| Toon Lagoon |
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| Toon Lagoon |
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| Jurassic Park |
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| Jurassic Park River Adventure |
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| Jurassic Park River Adventure |
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| Jurassic Park Discovery Center |
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| Jurassic Park |
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| Jurassic Park |
Since it was already late afternoon, we decided to leave the park and drove to the Whole Foods Market for dinner. Back at the hotel we enjoyed some cocktails at the River Roost Bar and then went to bed.
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