this post is a quick review of the rides and attractions. for an overall synopsis of the theme parks, see the orlando, florida 2015 post.

below is a quick guide to the rides I went on while at disney/universal. it is not a comprehensive list of all rides available. ride at your own risk. 😀

Key

★ DO IT!
✓ Do it, if you have time.
✇ Eh, skip it.

Magic Kingdom

space mountain ★ iconic ride. dark indoor roller coaster. people either love this ride or they don't. definitely a different experience than the space mountain in disneyland (which i personally prefer) but nonetheless, this was fun. get fast pass if you can, otherwise show up early when lines are short.
buzz lightyear space ranger spin ★ another iconic ride. pretty much the same as disneyland, but alien shooting space adventure? who would say no?
stitch's great escape ✇ oh dear. unless you're going with little ones who absolutely loves stitch - this is a pass. it's not really a ride - more of a adventure/story. some interesting effects, but not worth the (albeit short) wait or time it takes to get through it. go to buzz again instead
splash mountain ★ iconic ride - you can't say no. three dips including a 5 story fall. be prepared to smile for the camera! :D
pirates of the carribean ★ slow going themed boat ride. the ride that inspired a whole movie franchise. some quick drops and witty adventures ... worth a short wait - even if it is secretly to get off your feet for a bit.
jungle cruise ✓ i love this ride because of the tour guides. always witty and friendly. however, if you've been on this ride before (at disneyland or here) i'd skip it because the animals are animatronics and there isn't really a thrill to be had
haunted mansion ✓ a spooky ride through a haunted land - good for young ones - but really not the "haunted" experience i was expecting. if you're looking for a true scare, you may be disappointed. i suggest tower of terror at disney's hollywood studios instead.
big thunder mountain ★ a pretty fast and fun coaster for all ages. this ride curves and barrels through a nice mountain setting.
it's a small world ✇ i remember this ride from when i was a child. i debated on the rating for this one. i mean, it's almost too iconic to miss out on ... but then again, it's 10 full minutes... in a boat... listening to it's a small world after all... you decide.
peter pan's flight ✓ sail around like peter pan. if you love the story, you'll love this ride.

hall of presidents ✓ - interesting theater/cinema type of presentation about our presidents. not what i was expecting, but very informative and well executed. note, we see our presidents in animatronics form... it's a bit creepy but cool at the same time.
parade ✓ we got rained on, but it's always nice to see the characters together in song and dance. check the schedule for the day when you arrive.
monorail ✓took a train ride from epcot to magic kingdom (and back again) double check your stops

Epcot

spaceship earth ✓ slow interactive ride - you learn a bit about the earth. a cool ride if you have the time. at the end, you get to participate in virtual game/scenario.
mission: earth ★ an intense simulation, putting you in the seat of an astronaut. 3D/motion ride - don't do it if you get queasy or dizzy easily
test track ★ likely epcot's best ride - this is a super fast ride in a vehicle on a test track - you'll be hitting speeds right around 60 mph in the open air. also you get to design your car's specs and put it to the test. if you're competitive, be prepared - you'll have 3 minutes to design the winning car.
soaring ✓ extremely long lines if you don't have a fast pass. exactly the same ride in california adventures - except, instead of calling it california soaring, they rebranded to simply "soaring". I wish they would have changed the scenery - i think then the 90 minute wait may have been justifiable.

illumiNations ★ nighttime fireworks show around the lake - beautifully themed and is integrated with the various nations around the showcase. there are various locations to view this show - but to get a good seat, arrive early to stake your claim!
world showcase ★ a walk around these disney created worlds... centered around a beautiful lagoon which showcases 11 countries. there are plenty of places to eat, shop, rest, play, and pose. definitely plan time and pace yourself here!

Animal Kingdom

dinosaur ★ thrill ride (think indiana jones) around the world of dinosaurs. fast, fun and exciting. fast pass this ride or prepare to show up early so the lines are short.
expedition everest ★ one of the best rides! note that this is a not a thrill ride roller coaster but more like a big thunder mountain/space mountain/splash mountain ride type of category. in any case, just go. don't ask questions. no spoilers ;)
kali river rapids ✓ probably a great ride for the summer. classic sit in a large tube and tumble down a fall. only problem is, the fall here is a baby fall. regardless, you will get wet, and you will walk away with a smile.

kilimanjaro safari ★ likely the main attraction at animal kingdom. definitely fast pass this and do it early (animals are more active in the early hours). there are dozens of animals along the way - try to get a seat at the back of the truck - it's a bit more bumpy, but you can turn around and get some awesome, unobstructed pictures of the animals. (and yes, they're real)
maharajah jungle trek ✓ a walk through some habitats. depending on time of day and weather, you'll may or may not see the animals (we really wanted to see komodo dragons - but it was too cold the day we went -- we went on the coldest day in march). if you frequent large zoos, you may want to skip this one (and esp if you do the kilimanjaro safari)
tree of life ★ you can't miss this tree even if you tried. great photo spot from many vantage points

Universal Island of Adventure

harry potter and the forbidden journey ★ this was a great adventure/ride. be prepared to get shaken around and taken through harry potter's world. combination of 3D, visual and physically illusions/effects - it's a pretty great thrill ride
flight of the hippogriff ✓ simple coaster - the trek up has great views of the castle - but the ride is average at best. good for little ones who can't go on bigger rides
dragon challenge - chinese fireball (red) ★ (formerly dueling dragons - fire) inverted coaster - completely different ride from the other dragon - this one felt more fun to me - faster, with more interesting loops and combos. definitely do both of the wait times are short (but if you can ONLY pick one I suggest the red one). there's a re-ride shortcut after you get off the ride
dragon challenge - hungarian horntail (blue) ★ (formerly dueling draongs - ice) inverted coaster - this guy felt more "intense" in terms of the way the turns and loops felt but it also felt shorter (even though it's the same ride time). some cool loops and rolls - definitely a fun ride
jurassic park river adventure ★ big boat. fun dinosaurs. one big drop (85'). wear your ponchos
incredible hulk ★ likely the best ride of all parks in orlando (at least of the rides I went on) huge coaster - accelerates from 0 to 40 in 2 seconds and propels you up to speeds of 67 mph. super loops, zero-g's and inverted loops. most fun ride in the park.

posidon's fury ✓a guided adventure ... Some cool illusions and thematic presentation. it's definitely not a ride and beware you'll be standing the entire time.
hogwarts express ✓ train ride that connects hogsmead and diagon alley. cool ride within a ride - you almost forget you're in transit. there is a long wait - depending on the day - and if you're close to the entrance/exit of a park - it may be quicker to walk (we did on day 2)

Universal Studios

Diagon Alley - Weasleys' Wizzarding Wheezes

harry potter escape from gringrotts ✓ LOOOONG lines - and to be honest, while the ride was fun - it didn't feel like it was worth the exceptionally long wait. That said, if you're a Harry Potter fan, you'll want to go to see inside gringotts. the ride itself is an aventure type of ride - a 3D experience of you escaping gringrotts. similar experience to spiderman or transformers (which, imo, were visually more stunning and had better audio accompaniment)
revenge of the mummy ★ indoor dark coaster - one of my favorite rides of my trip. this ride takes you through an indoor roller coaster (but not quite like space mountain where it's completely dark). some great unexpected drops. twist, and turns.
men in black ★ buzz lightyear space ranger - but you're MIB instead.
transformers ★ a "4D" adventure - cool effects - fun story line
despicable me ★ a "4D" adventure - cool effects - fun story line.
the simpsons ★ a "2D" adventure - although it felt very 4Dish to me. cool effects - fun story line

shrek ✇ not a ride, per se ... more of a movie adventure - feels like the prototype of "interactive movies" ... unless you're really into shrek and have nothing else to do - i'd skip it.

one last note: fast pass (disney) and universal express pass

we definitely used our fast passes at the disney parks -although encountered some trouble since we were visiting multiple parks in one day. some pre-planning is in order and I recommend using passes for later rides that you know will be in high demand
we did NOT purchase a universal express pass which will allow you to skip lines for all rides for a single day. Many people seem to have opted into these passes (which starts at $40 per person per day in addition to your park tickets). given we've already spent a bundle on admissions and other travel fees, we decided simply to not get these. i don't think we would have gotten our money's worth as we ended up working around long queues anyways. (find an app to help manage queues)
single rider options: if you're not super worried about being split up on rides -try the single rider option at universal. the lines are often much shorter - and what that means is they fill you in to that "extra seat" at the end where there are parties of 3 and there's an extra seat open. you may not be able to be seated/picture with your party - but if it's the 2nd/3rd go, definitely a time saver!

this post is an overall synopsis of the theme parks. for a quick review of the rides and attractions, see the disney & universal rides and attractions post.

last week, i went on a fast and furious trip to orlando, florida. it was my first time to orlando, and on the itinerary was disney world (magic kingdom, animal kingdom, and epcot) and universal (island of adventure and studio). we managed to do all five parks in four days, sandwiched between two grueling travel days. here's how it went down:

thursday: travel to orlando

started with an early flight to orlando. included was 2 layovers (oy! why did i pick this flight??) anyways, everything went as expected. no delays, no drama. we did encounter a minor hiccup at the car rental place, but that was quickly resolved and off we went in our teeeny tiny car. we checked into the hotel, got settled in, grabbed a late dinner, and it was off to bed early to get ready for the next day.

friday: magic kingdom and epcot

WOOHOO! excitement is brewing for all of us. we've been to disneyland before, but this is our first time in disneyworld. just looking at the map of the disney parks was overwhelming. we knew we had a limited time here, and opted to get the 2 day park hopper pass. in addition, after some thought and consideration, we decided that we would prioritize 3 of the 4 major parks: magic kingdom, animal kingdom, and epcot (skipping disney's hollywood studios). we bought our tickets early, and set up fast passes for the major rides about 4 weeks in advance.

for our first day, we knew that we wanted to go to magic kingdom and epcot, spending most of our day at magic kingdom but ending the night at epcot where we would watch the IllumiNations show. the night before, we did a final check on park hours and looked at parking. we decided to park at epcot early in the morning, and take a monorail over to the magic kingdom. it worked out brilliantly since we were going to end up back there at the end of the night (and a bonus of getting to ride the monorail!) parking at disney parks is $17 per day (you can save your receipt and drive to a different park... we'll be needing this option the next day)

(i'm not going to post about all the rides we went on here, because that will be too long - however, you can see my other post about the rides <here> (coming soon))

we spent the entire morning and most of the afternoon at magic kingdom. got to see all the major attractions and rides, saw the parade (got rained on... darn florida weather!), ate [overpriced] disney food, and paid for [overpriced] disney souvenirs. after that, we hopped back on the monorail to go back to epcot to see if we can go on some of the rides. we were able to cut wait time and get on some of the big rides because it was later in the afternoon (yay!) was able to preview a part of the park and had dinner here. we also stayed to see the IllumiNations show which was a combination of lights, fireworks, pyrotechnics, and laser magic.

PS. MAGICBANDS. get them. use them. the end. (also, just to note - for a premium - around 40-90% more than online prices - you can get some awesome bands (cooler designs) at the parks - but that cuts into your time at the parks...)

saturday: animal kingdom and epcot

work up pretty tired, but still very excited about this day. our plan, drive to animal kingdom in the morning, then head over to epcot in the afternoon to walk through the nations and do the rides we didn't get to the previous day.

the day again started as planned. we arrived 30 minutes before the park opened to a pretty sizable queue. we waited in line and decided we would hit up some of the rides we had on our fast pass so that we can rearrange our day. it worked out well for us (getting there early and just hitting the rides right off the bat) because we got through 4 rides within the first hour!

we also found a decent place to eat in the park continued our tour of the park, and finally headed back to epcot.

back at epcot - everything was epic. epic wait times (we were out of fast passes at this point) and epic journey through the world showcase. (it really is a biiiiigggggggggg loop to get around all the nations - about 1.3 miles according to various sites) and it was a particularly difficult loop for me - as my feet were super tired (i was super tired) and my fitness isn't currently at its best. in any case, the showcase was beautiful. be prepared to plan time to stop in the shops and check out the various food options. i think ideally, this would have been a 2 day excursion around the world showcase, but we got through in one full loop and finished in time for a last round of rides at epcot before calling it a night.

bonus: we ended up at epcot during the internal flower & garden festival. this is a special event that runs from march through about mid-may in 2015. this meant that we not only go to see the impressive gardens and landscaping at epcot - we got to see special topiary and garden displays throughout. also, since it was the week before easter, there was an adorable easter egg hunt happening around the gardens.

sunday: universal studios and island of adventure

rides. rides. and more rides.

i have never been to a universal park before, so i wasn't quite sure what to expect here. however, i am a big harry potter fan, and was extremely excited to visit the harry potter attractions.

similar to the disney parks - we opted for the 2-day "park hopper" version of the tickets - allowing us go back and forth between both parks.

we arrived early to the universal parking (there's only one parking for both parks) only to find ourselves amongst a sea of people already there for early park hours and other early perks. we decided that we would head to the island of adventure first, specifically hitting up hogsmead in the harry potter land. after we did these attractions, we would walk around the rest of the island of adventure park, then hop on the hogswarts express to universal studio (note: you must have the park-hopper to do this!)

everything went according to plan - though we did have to wait in queues longer than expected for some rides. it ended up being an easy day in both parks - crowd level was moderate and day progressed pleasantly. we mostly stuck to our plan - starting the day in island of adventure and ended it in universal studios.

monday: universal studios and island of adventure

for our second day - we started off in universal studios to try to catch the rides that we missed the previous day. we knew that this day was going to be a pretty rough day - given that it was the official first day of spring break - and that the crowd was expected to be pretty intense. we stood through lines... got on rides, rides, and more rides... and alas, decided we'd had enough of universal and ended up walking back to island of adventure to close out or evening with what else but more rides. :)

tuesday: travel home

ugh. my least favorite part of this trip. not only because it was going home, but also because our timing was off. i was thinking that we would spend the morning just checking out orlando (downtown disney or other) but by this day, we were too exhausted and simply didn't have the energy to be in "exploration" mode. our flight was scheduled mid-afternoon, but our rental was due in by noon - so we decided we'll get to the airport early, return the rental, grab a bite to eat at the airport, and wait it out. unfortunately, there was a minor issue with our plan, which resulted in a delay, which caused us to miss our connection, and ultimately, resulted in a 3.5 hour delay in our return. this plus the time change AND our fatigue from 4 days-o-fun just meant a very unpleasant return journey.

amsterdam 2017:

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