Universal Orlando Resort: Thanksgiving Week 2024 - Part 2 at IoA

Part two of our UOR trip: Islands of Adventure

We spent a total of 1.5 days here over the week. I guess a bit more after we dropped in after a day at Volcano Bay to get a couple night rides. This was a big step up from USF… onto the highlights!

Hulk (2x)
This ride surprised me. Maybe because Hagrids and Velocicoaster get all the headlines these days? But wow, what a ride. I don't know if it’s because my first ride was at night, the launch, the onboard audio, or what, but this ride did it for me. I’ve read complaints about it being rough, but I didn’t find that to be the case at all.

Velocicoaster (4x)
What. Just. Happened. We rode during the day, at night, toward the front, last row, etc. I don’t think I’ve ever been on a coaster where deep down I really believed I was going to get tossed from the ride. Sure, there are plenty of coasters with insane ejector airtime but something about the restraint never led me to “feel” like I was in danger. But the mosasaurus roll over the water spooked me in the best way possible. Something about getting thrown from your seat, with lateral forces, that low to the water. I can’t explain it, but it might be my favorite coaster moment of all time. I’ll slide this coaster in as my new #2, with Steel Vengeance just edging it our for #1. I might need another ride on SV to confirm that though.

Hagrid’s (2x)
We rope dropped this one morning, and rode once at night. What a ride!. This may not be my favorite rollercoaster, and hear me out on this… but could this be one of the best coasters ever built? It appeals to so many visitors. Thrill seekers love it. More timid riders love it. The theming. The launches, the surprises… just a masterpiece. The consistent wait time says it all. If you haven’t been, a day and a night ride is a must.

Forbidden Journey (2x)
Simply excellent. The combination of virtual simulation with physical sets mixed in is so well done on this ride. And no matter how many times I looked at that castle, the level of detail is staggering. IMO between this at Gringotts, this is the better ride, and that’s saying a lot.

Other notes:
-Butterbeer is the real deal. I prefer it frozen, while my wife prefers the hot drink.
-I know Jurassic River is due for a refurb soon, and it needs it.
-Spiderman still holds up.
-Mythos is a great place for table service. Very unique menu for a theme park.
-People seriously wait 200 minutes to meet the Grinch? Oy.
-Operations are exceptional. Velocicoaster for example was routinely pumping out trains in 60 seconds or less.
-The value of staying at a Premier hotel here is off the charts. Express passes are included, which is nuts. During this week, if you stayed elsewhere and purchased Express individually, they were going for $300 per person, per day.

Up next: Volcano Bay

I wonder how many of those Hulk complaints date from before it was re-tracked.

I've had some rides on Hulk 2.0 that were as rough and nauseating as Hulk 1.0 and others where it runs like a champ. It's often hit or miss on what kind of ride you'll get. Same with Kumba at BGT.

I didn't realize it's already been 8 years since Hulk's retrack. Where does the time go?

Regardless, that ride just hauls through the course. Even watching it from the ground, it's wild how fast it takes some of those inversions.

Hope you saw the Grinch show, it’s a great shortening of the Jim Carey Grinch and the actors who play the Mean One are usually spot on with topical quips. The nighttime projection show on Hogwarts is great too.

Universal has an underrated holiday event, sure it’s not Dollywood, SDC or Disney but it’s quite good.

We did not see the Grinch show, unfortunately. We did see the nightime projection on Hogwarts, which was fascinating.

I wonder if they replace the springs/pads on the wheel bogies often enough for Hulk. I remember how much that thing shook around laterally, to the point you could see it from the back of the train. And it was all random from each other, so I don't think that it was track defects. Same question about wheel bearings.

I won’t ride Hulk anymore. I think my head is more sensitive than others because certain B&Ms give me a headache.

I am with you on Hagrid’s though. I remember my first ride and searching for the “exciting” roller coaster bits and being a little disappointed. Then I learned to love it for what it is and what it is one of the best theme park attractions in the world. It’s perfect (except for the queue.)

I am glad you had a good time. I’ve been a bit burned out on Universal so it’s nice to hear someone experiencing it for the first time.

What about the queue did you not appreciate? Aside from the outdoor switchbacks closest to Hogwarts, I thought it was pretty well done.

As for getting burned out, I can see that. Spending three days between USF and IoA seemed to be just the right amount, but beyond that, I was done. We'll probably return in a couple years though, and will only spend a half day at USF. It just doesn't have the return visit appeal that IoA does (or the Disney parks).

Although there's been rumblings of permits filed for an Intamin ride at USF; I'll be curious to see if that has any legs.

I have no issues doing 4-5.5 days there. But the 5.5 days are during HHN or Mardi Gras. When I go during Christmas Sea World gets a day (their Christmas is probably even more impressive then Universal) and I will do a party at MK, in the summer Sea World gets a day so I can do their Summer Spectacular.

Danimales:

What about the queue did you not appreciate?

It’s burnout related. It works the first couple times but after that it’s featureless and isn’t broken up in a thoughtful way. I actually like the outdoor section because at least you can see and hear the ride. There’s the weird video room way too early that they switch to a b mode at times. Then the long back and fourth room with the fake windows. Then the endless, featureless cave. Then of course the weird room at the end with the ceiling projection.

Parts of the Hagrid's queue are absurdly loud and not great for people with sensory sensitivity.