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My kids call me Mrs. Disney. I carry a Dooney & Bourke Disney Cruise Line handbag. I used to work for Disney. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve visited Disney World (over 20) and Disneyland (over 50). My kids have grown up visiting the Disney parks.
So, it is shocking news to all of us that everyone in my family preferred Universal Orlando Resort over Disney World on our recent trip. I’m just as surprised as you are. There are several reasons why the scale tipped in favor of Universal for my family.
Shorter Lines
Disney World has temporarily suspended its FastPass+ system due to the pandemic. My family had become so accustomed to using that tool to plan our day and avoid long lines. Unfortunately, we had to wait in long lines at Disney World (45-60 minutes) for several rides on this trip. Since most of the interactive queue features were also temporarily disabled, waiting in those long lines was very boring.
In contrast, at Universal we had the Express Pass due to staying at the Hard Rock hotel. This pass was basically like having a fast pass for every ride (except for 2 rides) in the entire park. Lines were much, much shorter.
Better Entertainment
Most of the entertainment and shows at Disney World are on “pause” right now. We only saw one character out in the parks (distanced, of course).
However, Universal’s shows were still happening, and they were plentiful. We enjoyed entertainers in Harry Potter World as well as several other character interactions throughout the Universal parks. My daughter and I also enjoyed an animal show, and we all loved the Bourne Stuntacular show.
Easier Transportation
Since we stayed at the on-site Hard Rock hotel, we were within short walking distance to both Universal parks. We had the option to take a boat, but for us it seemed easier to walk. Unlike at Disney, we never had to wait for busses to take us to and from the parks. This saved us a lot of time and energy.
More Age Appropriate Rides/Merchandise
My two boys are 13 and 17 now, and they are into thrill rides. Disney World doesn’t have an overabundance of those like Universal does. They thought many of the rides at Disney were too “kiddy”. Even my 10-year-old daughter was really into the Harry Potter lands in a big way.
We ended up spending more money on merchandise at Universal for two reasons: they had cooler stuff, and there were no queues to get into the stores! At Disney, the lines to get into some stores were 30 minutes long!
The Wow/Newness Factor
Admittedly, part of the reason why we liked Universal more is probably because of the wow factor and the fact that everything was new to us. With a few exceptions, we had already been on every ride at Disney World. But Universal rides were all new to us, so our park experience was just a little more special.
While Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Hollywood Studios was pretty cool, I think Harry Potter World was themed even better. There are still nooks and crannies at Hogsmeade and Diagon Ally that we didn’t get to explore.
Overall Thoughts
I’m still a big fan of Disney, don’t get me wrong. I’m sure I will return to the parks again. But in this stage of life with my kids’ ages, we are all looking forward to another trip to Universal in the next 1-2 years. I’m hoping we can return next year when my oldest is a senior in high school.
Have you been to both Disney and Universal in Florida? Do you have a preference for one over the other?
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Author: Nancy
Nancy lives near Dallas, Texas, with her husband and three kids. Her favorite vacations include the beach, cruising and everything Disney.
I realize this was a while ago but do you remember how long the lines were with the express pass? I am planning a trip for next January during MLK, Jr. weekend, another busy time (and really not looking forward to it – my 13 yo wants to go), so trying to figure out everything.
Thanks!
@HML From what I recall, the Express Pass lines were fairly short, like 5-15 minutes long. I was so thankful for those shorter lines.
I don’t think that wand is gonna save your daughter from Blue.
HA! She tried.
Agreed with better transportation. We stayed at Cabana Bay Beach Resort and the buses came continuously. It was so nice! A nice change from Disney which pretty much always had a 5-10 minute wait. The app was great for checking wait times. We were there for 4 days in May, over Mother’s Day weekend. On Mother’s Day, Sunday, there was hardly any lines, and I thought that Monday and Tuesday would even have less people. Surprisingly, it was very crowded on both days and there was even a long line just to get in. Yes we took advantage of the the early hour too. Overall, we love Universal as well, just not the price!
@Joyce It’s nice to hear that the buses were plentiful at Cabana Bay!
We went to Universal last yea with my then 14 year old stepson. We had the same feeling as you. While we were there prior to the pandemic and so cannot speak to the fastpass, or showtime availability, overall the park is just overall much more age appropriate for teens, IMO
@CSP Yes, Universal is definitely a great park for teens who like thrill rides!
Has Disney ever explained the logic behind suspending the FastPass+ system due to the pandemic? It seems to me that by eliminating FastPass, that makes the ride queue even longer, which means more people congregating, and thus more potential for spread.
On the other hand, if the FastPass system was actually up and running, queues would be shorter, since a portion of people would only come to the ride during their allocated time slots.
@Aaron I’ve never seen or heard a good explanation from Disney about how suspending FastPass+ helps during the pandemic. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a staffing issue. I know that Disney has had challenges getting enough workers, and having FastPass+ probably requires more workers to monitor the separate queues.
@Aaron I’ve never seen or heard a good explanation from Disney about how suspending FastPass+ helps during the pandemic. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a staffing issue. I know that Disney has had challenges getting enough workers, and having FastPass+ probably requires more workers to monitor the separate queues.