Isle go Adventuring here! (Universal Studios Islands of Adventure (Orlando))

Name: xalala

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Product:	Universal Studios Islands of Adventure (Orlando)
Date:	25/02/05 (2327 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fast rollercoasters, Less crowded than Disney

Disadvantages: Parking is miles away from the entrance (but see below)

Islands of Adventure was the first theme park that my husband and I visited on our recent trip to Florida. It's meant to be Universal's answer to Disney's Magic Kingdom, or so the guidebooks would have you believe. I thought, however, that it was actually better than Magic Kingdom for a variety of reasons, not least that it lacked the sickeningly sweet Disney "peace, love and happiness" message.

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Arrival and Parking
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Universal is further north on the I4 than the Disney parks, so for us it was a longer drive. If you stay anywhere near central or north Orlando, however, it will be closer. We were caught out on our visit, as you come off the I4 (the exit is well signed for Universal) and immediately have to turn left. We missed the turn (d'oh!). Fortunately, the planners had thought about numpty tourists like us, and provided a second chance to turn into the Universal complex at the lights a hundred yards or so ahead. We followed the signs towards the parking.

This is where our guidebook really came into its own - I read before we got there that Universal offers valet parking for not much more cost than the standard variety, so we decided to give that a go. The signs for the valet parking service were fairly clear, but when we got there we were surprised that it seemed so small. We drove up and stopped, and within a couple of seconds a bloke wandered over and gave us a ticket, we got out of the car (leaving the keys inside it for him to move) and wandered off. That was it!

Although the valet parking service is more expensive than regular service ($16 versus about $10), it's much closer to the park entrance and is incredibly easy and quick. Since you pay for the parking at the end of the day, there's nothing to get between you and the turnstiles, which are a short(ish) walk away.

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Entrance
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From the valet parking, go up an escalator and then you can either take the moving walkway or walk to the escalator back down into City Walk. Head straight on and bear left towards Islands of Adventure, if you want Universal then it's off to the right.

City Walk isn't very interesting early in the morning, but it's obvious looking at it that it will get interesting later in the day - there are multiple stalls and fairground type rides around, along with bars, restaurants and nightclubs - definitely more for the adults.

Arriving at the park entrance, our bag was searched (as it was at all parks visited) for security reasons. We'd heard that Universal don't let you bring food or drink into the park, but the guy looking in our bag didn't seem too fussed seeing our packed lunch.

There wasn't a queue for the turnstiles, so we whipped out our pre-bought tickets and were in. First job was to pick up a park map, which were available from the lovely assistants just inside the park, and having perused it briefly, we made a beeline for our first rollercoaster of the day, Hulk.

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The Rides
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Note that the big rides have a height limit of 1 metre/40", and seemingly all rides had the standard warning about not riding if you have a weak heart/high blood pressure/a bad back or neck/are an expectant mother etc.

Although the park is laid out in different zones, as the Disney parks are, you don't get such a strong sense of differentiation between them, with the notable exception of Marvel Super Hero Island, and Seuss Landing.

Marvel Super Hero Island is, of course, the home of Hulk (min height 54"). This is a huge, bright green coaster that swoops and swirls over the path as you walk up to it - no hiding what you're letting yourself in for here! There are lockers near the entrance (of which more later) where you have to leave all loose articles like bags, cameras and so on. The queuing area is not as well themed as in Disney parks (the same is true for all rides) but is adequate - here, there's the Hulk film playing, specially adapted to suit the ride's backstory.

Luckily, we hardly had time to notice the film, as the queue was only around 5 minutes long. Judging by the amount of queuing area roped off, I'd say in peak season you're easily looking at a couple of hours queue time though. The ride itself feels fairly long, and takes you from 0-40 mph in 2 seconds - fast enough even for Jeremy Clarkson! I loved this ride, and we actually came back at the end of our day at Universal Studios to ride it again (several times!). It's smooth enough to feel safe, yet fast so that you get the heart-in-stomach feeling that makes it all worthwhile!

Probably the next biggest ride here is the Duelling Dragons, which is an interesting combination of two coasters, the Fire and Ice dragon, which are intertwined through the length of their track, and which are carefully managed so that they set off together (one is held back part way through the first climb if the other isn't ready). The reason for this becomes clear part way through the ride, when it seems that only fortune has prevented your feet from smacking into the faces of the people riding the other dragon. You actually pass within a foot, and a computer weighs each ride as it sets off to guarantee that special feeling of closeness. Obviously this ride is on the opposite side of the park to Hulk.

In between the two main coasters is Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls, an entertaining log flume ride with what is reputed to be one of the steepest drops created. Expect to get wet.

Seuss Landing is very well themed, and kids will love it there. It's full of architecture and decoration that looks exactly like the book illustrations, with all the cartoon colours and shapes. We tried the Cat in the Hat ride here, and although it was aimed at younger kids, we had fun - it's basically a replay of the book, with a narration of the story accompanied by visuals and animated models to illustrate it.

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Other Attractions
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There are probably more "other attractions" here than there are true rides, which just emphasizes the film background that this park has, and has worked into everything it's produced.

It's possible to meet the characters, however those on offer are much less instantly recognisable than the Disney characters. Nonetheless, kids might like to meet Spidey and his cohorts, especially following the recent success of related films.

The Eighth Voyage of Sindbad Stunt Show was an impressive diversion, certainly as full of stunts as promised. It's a nice way to spend 20 or 30 minutes, and gives you the chance to rest your feet (and those of your family) too. It's a classic tale of goody versus baddy, and there's nothing in it to scare kids over the age of 8 or so unless they're particularly sensitive. We saw children much smaller in the audience and apparently enjoying themselves.

The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman is a 3-D film of a search for the statue of Liberty. The story might be a tad weird, but the effects have to be seen (and felt) to be believed. I've never come across anything like it, but it should be restricted to older kids and adults I think, due to what it does to your senses! I really believed I was falling a great distance at the end.

There are many other attractions that we didn't try out, which will be detailed on the park map when you visit.

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Facilities
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The locker facilities in Islands of Adventure were very good. All the big rides had lockers at the entrance, where you could put your bags, cameras, sunglasses and so on. These lockers were free for a certain period of time - how long this was depended on the estimated queue wait time, meaning that you could use the locker for free while riding but would start to pay for it fairly shortly afterwards. Rather than use a key, the locker is accessed via a fingerprint scan, which worked very well indeed. Even if you forget your locker number (which we did once), the machine will still scan your finger and tell you the correct number, although you then have to enter the number and get your finger scanned to check against it (I wasn't really sure why on this point!).

There were plenty of toilets available and very clean across the park. There were no queues in any of them, even at busy times and locations, which bodes well for high season times too.

Food and drink was on the whole good for a theme park. There was still the standard burger and chips fair, but there were more choices available and there seemed to be at least one veggie option in the restaurants or diners. Prices were reasonable, too - or perhaps I'm just used to getting fleeced in UK theme parks?!

One thing that Universal has introduced is the concept of Child Swap. I would say that this is because of the fairly high height limits on some rides. Basically, it means that the family can queue for a ride, and while one parent rides, the other looks after the kids. At the end of the first ride the parents swap places, without having to wait again.

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Conclusion
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This park, although it's meant to rival Magic Kingdom, doesn't really. It appeals to an almost entirely different audience, one that's more adult and likes thrill rides rather than sugary sweetness. Both parks have their place, but I for one preferred Islands of Adventure, for the sheer fun and variety in the attractions that it offers.

Although it's very much the new kid on the block, I'd say it's definitely worth a day out of your schedule to visit. However, if you have young children then you will be more limited on what you can do as a family than in the Disney parks.

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Other Information
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We used a 5-park Orlando Flex Ticket, which also includes Universal, Sea World, Busch Gardens and Wet n Wild. It's valid for 2 weeks from the first date of entry, and cost us about £110 each (January 2005).

Islands of Adventure has a website available at http://themeparks.universalstudios.com/orlando/web site/ioa_landing.html

Although I've rated it as suitable for everyone, small children (those under 7 or so) are really only catered for in Seuss Landing and Jurassic Park (where there's a "prehistoric playground" and dinosaur discovery centre.

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