We are planning a family trip to Orlando for spring break. The family is doing 3 days in Disney World and 2 days Universal Studios. My daughter is 5 and I was thinking she might be too young for Universal. Has anyone taken young kids? The next oldest cousin is 7 so she might enjoy it more than my daughter would. I just feel bad if my daughter knows that all her cousins are going to universal, she might get upset. Any one know if universal would be ok for a five year old? I know that Islands of Adventure has doctor seuss land. But does it pay to go just for that?
I was just at universal on Sunday. We were so excited to go to the Harry potter hogsmeade adventure. My daughter works for the park so she gets free passes. If the passes were not free we would not waste our time. Skip universal and do 5 days at Disney. The universal park is ok but to me no better than a six flags park at double the cost with less to do.
I would not recommend Universal for younger kids. Most of the rides are very intense with movement, noise, etc., but there are small sections in both parks for little kids.
Universal Studios has an area with Curious George (lots of water so bring a swim suit), Barney and a playground. The kid areas in Islands of Adventure is Seuss Landing and it has 4 rides. There is also an inside area in the Jurassic themed part that has interactive stuff that younger kids would like.
There is plenty to look at so if your kid wont get upset about not riding much then she will be OK. I would also check the website about height and weight requirements. Most of the rides there (even the kid ones) have height restrictions.
I think this may depend if your family are movie watchers. Mine is not, so going on rides that feature Shrek, Despicable Me, Men in Black, Incredible Hulk, etc, would mean nothing to them. So we are planning to skip it when we go to Orlando. We are holding off until our younger one is old enough to read Harry Potter.
If you watch a lot of movies with your kids, maybe they would love it.
They'll love it! Take them there.
My husband & I went to Universal 3 yrs ago, & there is plenty for young kids! There are the larger, adult rides, but many of the attractions include shows, rides for young kids, and non-roller coaster rides for groups (provided your daughter meets height requirements, between 34" & 40" for most rides). We saw quite a few younger kids (between 4 & 10) on almost all of the rides we went on (with the exemption of the big coasters & any with height restrictions that the youngest kids couldn't qualify)
Some of our favorites included:
@ Universal Studios: Despicable Me 3D, Simpsons, Shrek, Men In Black, & the show "Horror Makeup Show" (very interactive & not scary). There's also a Woody Woodpecker kids coaster, & play areas with Curious George & Fievel. (BTW, skip Twister, it was boring & a waste of time)
@ Islands of Adventure: Harry Potter!! (Flight of the Hippogriff 36" in case she can't go on the Forbidden Journey in the Hogsmeade castle 48") but the entire area is very tuned into kids & family. Spiderman, Ripsaw Falls (water), Popeye's bilge barge (water) & Xmen Storm Force (you control the ride), plus all of Seuss-land are great for families. Poseidon's Fury was a fantastic show!
Keep in mind, my husband & I don't have kids... yet we fully enjoyed all of these attractions! So I don't think you would feel stifled if you restricted most of your activities to the ones the kids can participate in. Plus there are larger coasters & more intense rides for the rest of the family. I think you won't find any shortage of things to do for everyone of all ages, truly. Have fun! T.
