Do you like Disney World or Universal more? And why?

[angryduck71]

So, as a 45 year old woman... I still love Disney more (especially EPCOT). And, I'm a huge Star Wars fan, so I am thinking I will love it even more in the future. I am so sick of the planning effort, however. Now, my son, a 10-year-old boy loves Universal more. He loves Potter (as do I), superheroes, and the fact that we don't have to wait in lines as much. It so just depends on your tastes.

 

[damo]

So many people criticized Universal for putting up Diagon Alley, saying it was an old IP and nobody would care. It sure seems like the new generation of kids are loving it just as much as the original generation.

 

[TwoMisfits]

As an off-site visitor - Universal, hands down. I never feel like a 2nd class citizen in their parks. APs are also more valuable and more affordable...and their meal deals are purchasable by the day by anyone (and get discounted the times I vacation).

 

[woodynjessiesmomma]

I've been to WDW multiple times and only once to Universal. We enjoyed both in different ways but I'm definitely more comfortable at WDW. My least favorite things about Universal are the height restrictions on rides that seem fairly tame, like Cat in The Hat, since our kids are small and so many motion simulator rides when those make me sick. I did feel Universal was more relaxed and I did like the Child Swap better at USO. We had a wonderful time at Universal and I'm very excited to go back in March, but with young kids 2-3 days is enough at one time. We did upgrade to APs though so we might drive over more after we move to WDW.
I am more familiar with WDW and EPCOT is my favorite park and IaSW is my favorite ride so if you are lame like me WDW is great! When we rode ET at USO I was so happy to be on a slow, dark ride The HP areas are amazing though and I could just wander around there for hours without riding anything.
I guess I love them both.

 

[agavegirl1]

We like both with me leaning toward more time a WDW because of the size and onsite transportation and DH trending toward more time at US/IOA because the rides and vibe are more to his liking. Our last split trip was 8 days at WDW, 2days Sea World, 1 day Busch Gardens and 5 days Universal. The next trip is 6 days WDW, 1 day Sea World, 7 days US/IOA and a day or two in the greater Orlando area. Not enough new at WDW yet to keep us there longer. We will focus on AK and Disney Springs.

 

[Owlpost23]

Universal,hands down.The hotels are better,the food is reasonably priced and terrific,the parks are wonderful,more relaxed vibe overall.Less little children is also a bonus-I work at a private preschool.

 

[FLVacationGirl]

Disney has my heart but Universal won out for this last trip. I can have 5 people in a deluxe resort with a good APH rate. Easy boat transportation or walking to both parks. Unlimited Express Pass and hardly any pre-planning to do? Done.

Disney requires so much pre-planning. Especially if you want to rent DVC points. Because this was a last minute trip, Universal is so much easier.

 

[lampshadehead]

I like them both, but in different ways. Disney will win if I HAD to make a choice. We always stay onsite, at Disney value hotels, and Universal deluxe hotels. The use of express pass with deluxe hotels is probably giving Universal a boost in my ranking.

 

[klmall]

We love both parks enjoying certain aspects of each and disliking other things in each. And note that the "wins" and "loses" are purely personal taste and in some cases, negligible between the parks. My answers are based on:

11 family trips to WDW plus 1 to Disneyland
3 additional trips for me to WDW
6 family trips to Universal Orlando


WDW wins for us in:

• nostalgic, sentimental enjoyment - It was the first major park experience for our family and will always have that special place in our hearts!
• sheer size and variety of hotels, experiences and until recently, a company with family interests at heart
• overall ease of travel especially for the disabled, special needs and those of us over 60!
• making it easy for we photographers to get ride photos while on a ride
• hotel and restaurant theming

Universal Orlando wins for us in:

• deluxe hotel front-of-the-line access for most rides
• thrill rides - I am a big thrill rider even at 67 and UO rides deliver!
• ride theming for many rides with the best theming of any in the world (to me at least), Harry Potter World! I haven't read the books but have seen all the movies and I find HP theming to be amazing! Even after 4 days in the past enjoying HP I still find much to explore and appreciate. It is also a photographer's dream!
• ease of getting to parks and hotels
• little or no planning required for rides and meals

WDW loses for us in:

• pre-planning required and resulting anxiety at least for me - Now we have been enough times that I don't overplan as I used to but since we only go every three years or so I find I need to very carefully choose our FPs, ADRs and hunt harder for hotel discounts.
• It takes a great deal of effort to keep up with all the changes Disney constantly makes from reservations to park hours to FPs. And you have to do this up to the very hour your trip starts!
• prices...our upcoming trip will be our last on property as a family - We have now stayed at too many great hotels elsewhere in the US to consider Disney deluxe hotels worth more than 1/2 their prices!
• overselling itself causing the end of low and comfortable attendance levels

Universal Orlando loses for us in:

• park food offerings; less variety than WDW
• fewer characters
• ride restrictions for carryon items (I do know the logic here) and fewer accomodations for some larger build people

We now always plan a split trip with some days at Disney first (ALWAYS FIRST!) and then move to our more relaxed vacation days at UO. I always advise people staying at both to go to Universal second because you will be so spoiled by the experience that Disney will be hard to adjust to when it comes after UO!

I'm sure I could find more to compare but will stop here!

And I'm so glad that we have both sets of parks so convenient in Orlando plus all the other local attractions!

 

[Beer Me]

Disney but they are really not comparable. I plan an entire week + vacation at Disney and never leave the property and only do a tiny fraction of what they have to offer.

We did three days at Universal and my kids were bored on the third day and we left at noon to get an early start home. We had done pretty much every attraction in both parks many of them multiple times.

What Universal has is very good there is just a lot less of it than Disney.

 

[mrsap]

If I were to have answered your question about three months ago I would've definitely said Disney.
My husband and I went to Universal back in 2004 as part of our honeymoon. (We visited both Disney and Universal at that time.) After that trip we swore we would never go back to Universal again. We were bored, miserable and couldn't understand why anyone would go there instead of Disney.
However, this past year (being that we have two little ones who love a lot of the nickelodeon characters, as well as Harry Potter), we thought we would give Universal another shot. We did a split stay with Disney and even stayed on Universal property this time. I never in a million years would have thought that I would like universal, as well as staying at their hotels -but I did. I liked it so much that we already have our 2017 trip booked and will be splitting our stay yet again with Disney. (Staying Longer at Universal!!) I'm so happy we gave it another chance! We loved both the parks and the hotel, which was Portofino Bay. The hotel was gorgeous, so clean, quiet and relaxing. We have been going to Disney pretty much every year since 2004, and it was such a nice change of scenery. We felt that Universal was so much more relaxing and less stressful. I didn't feel like I was in a constant rush trying to get from ride A to B. I love that we could just hop on the boat every day and we're at the parks within a few minutes and did not have to stand on long baggage check lines once we got there. The rides were a lot of fun and we loved just walking around city walk at night. Just one 7 day trip to Universal has definitely changed our feelings about it and now will call ourselves both 'Disney AND Universal People' lol

 

[quandrea]

We've haven't been to Universal yet but are going in February. One of the big reasons we chose Universal and Lego Land for our 9 year old over WDW this year is because I did not want to do the planning that WDW requires. Another reason is the lack of anything new at WDW since our last trip in 2013. The mine train wasn't open on our last trip but other than that, not much has been added that would entice me back to WDW, especially in light of the price hikes. Once the new attractions at Hollywood Studios (or whatever they call it now) and Animal Kingdom are open, we will probably go back to WDW to check them out. We shall see in February but I suspect that I am going to like Universal. I love Harry Potter by the way.

We are DVc members and frequent Disney a lot. For the first time ever we are not renewing our passes for this very reason. And we are heading to Universal instead for our park time this year. We rented out some dvc points and will stay at Royal Pacific. We will see which we like better in a little over two weeks. But Disney didn't get our money this year because APs are just too pricey.

 

[nighttowll]

I like them both equally for different reasons. A few years ago Disney would have been the clear winner. Now, Universal is. In a couple more years, it will probably change again.

If all things were equal (crowds, wait times, planning, cost), I'd choose Disney, no contest.

The theming of the rides at Disney appeal to me more. There is that nostalgia factor with Disney that I don't feel at Universal. In general, I like the movies and themes Disney attractions are based on better than the ones Universal attractions are based on. For some of the rides at Universal, I've never even seen the movie the ride is based on and don't care to.

Don't get me wrong, I think the theming of the Universal rides is amazing and very well done. It always impresses me that I can enjoy attractions based on movies I don't even care for or haven't ever seen. However, there is no sentimentality to the experience. As much as I love riding Transformers for the awesome special effects and action packed storyline, I'd prefer to ride WTP or PP or even IASW for the nostalgia.

Having said that, all things are not equal. I actually love to plan, so that aspect of Disney doesn't bother me. What I can't get past is that I don't feel I'm getting value for my money on Disney trips anymore. My last few trips, I walked more, waited more, and rode less probably by half then ever before. I'd rather ride Transformers 4 or 5 times without waiting, than PP once. The more I am able to do in a day is directly proportional to the amount of money I'm willing to spend, so as I am able to fit less and less into a day at Disney, my willingness to spend money there goes down as well.


Things I like about Universal:

• No waiting with the EP
• No ADRs needed
• Compactness
  • short walk to the resorts,
  • much easier and faster to park hop, go to CitiWalk (vs DW to DTD), or back to the hotel
• Less wasted time waiting for ride windows, ADR windows, or traveling around
• Less walking backtracking needed
• Restaurants are much cheaper
• The quality of the quick service seems much better to me at Uni.
  • Table service quality seems about the same.
  • Disney would win in the variety offered, number of restaurants, and elaborate restaurant theming.
• Deluxe hotels cost less and rooms seem nicer (although I do miss out on all the extras Disney hotels have)
• AP costs less
• I can experience probably twice the number of attractions at Uni in the same time span as what I could at Disney
• HP
• Overall more relaxing trip
• Service
  • I know this is contrary to what a lot of other people are reporting, but I've had better interactions with Universal employees, then I've had with Disney employees.
  • I've had amazing service at the Universal hotels (front desk, concierge, valet parking, security, cleaning crew), at the restaurants, and in the parks (ride operators, first aid). Everyone has been very friendly, nice, and helpful.
  • I wish I could have recorded the girl checking us in last time at PB. She was this ball of energy, singing and making jokes and so very nice and helpful.
  • Out of all my Universal trips, I have only ever experienced one semi rude /grumpy ride operator, and honestly I can't really blame him as no one was listening to or following his simple instructions, and he was only irritated by that.
  • At Disney, probably half of my CM interactions recently have not been good. I've had many amazing CM interactions in the past, but we had a number of issues on our last trips, and most of these issues were resolved by grumpy, rude, or indifferent CMs. Whereas, all our issues at Universal were resolved quickly by nice helpful TMs.

Things I like about Disney:

• Theming appeals more, nostalgia
• More family friendly rides
• Most rides do not aggravate my motion sickness
• Variety of attractions offered
• Number of parks
• More extras like stage shows, character meets, scavenger hunts, arts and crafts / hands-on stations, fireworks, and parades
• Variety and theming of table service restaurants
  • Do not like the ridiculous pricing that goes along
• Extras the hotels offer such as kids activities, community rooms, and such
• Airport transportation

 

[bumbershoot]

and their meal deals are purchasable by the day by anyone

Did you see that now Disney is testing a program like that? Just copy Uni more, Disney....

 

[nessz79]

If Universal's parks were all as immersive as Diagon Alley, they would win for sure. I *love* Diagon Alley and could spend half or more of my time there and be happy.

Universal is also more affordable for us for hotel rates (Florida rates), the APs are more affordable, and I find the dining to be more affordable as well.

Disney has always had my heart but we're taking a break from Disney while all the "new" stuff is going in. We may revisit in a year or two when those things are open, but I'm not in a hurry.

Disney has huge sentimental factor going for it, has sheer size on its side, and I like the feeling that you are immersed in Disney wherever you are on property. But it's expensive, lines are very long other than FP, and takes so much planning.

No clear winner for me, but enjoying our Universal time for now.

 

[maverik85]

In general I still think I prefer Disney. But a big part of that is just the amount of stuff they have to do there. I can go there for a week and have fun the whole time on property and still not be ready to leave as there is more I want to do I didn't get to. Whereas at Universal I do have a great time but after a couple days I feel I've done it all and the third day is just hitting stuff i want to do again. Plus Disney seems to be more detailed than Universal and looks better overall.

However, Universal has really been giving Disney a run lately and think they have a strong chance of surpassing them in my book. They keep adding new things that look great and offer a wider variety of stuff. Think once Volcano Bay opens it will really feel more like a resort. And Volcano bay looks better than either of Disney's water parks. Plus their new lands like the HP stuff and Simpsons look great and have awesome details (Harry Potter especially). I think within 10 years time they will probably be on equal footing. Feel like it's only a matter of time before we get a third theme park and likely have additional sections to check out like a City Walk type area around the new land acquisition/park and hotels. Plus I'm sure they will continue with the amazing details they have been doing. Kong looked great and they have a lot of potential with Nintendo and Dreamworks.

 

[Alicefan]

I used to almost dislike Universal back in the 90's and early 2000's because while they had some really good rides, there is something just missing. You can't quite put your finger on it when you're there because the staff seems very nice and helpful,(anyone else notice how the CM's at Disney aren't nowhere near as pleasant as they once were? Several older cm's made snide remarks at my friends blue hair one trip, it was his first trip and the first thing he said to me was how the cm's sure weren't as nice as I told him they'd be. I was embarrassed.) Universal is VERY well maintained and is always pristine. I'm not sure if it's the outright desperate feel of competition or what, but they are just missing the magic. It's something about the vibe. Now as I've gotten older and different things are important to me than they were in the past, Universal is slowly starting to outshadow Disney for me. I almost feel guilty typing that. lol Something about the pristine parks and the advanced ride technology and the constant need to outdo Disney is starting to pay off. I'm glad to see Disney starting to get off their rears and start competing. I feel they always had the attitude of "We're Disney, we don't have to compete", but ever since Universal knocked Harry Potter out of the park they seem to have Disney running scared. The "vibe" at Uni has started to feel better and they are coming into their own. The first thing you'll notice about the parks is that they go above and beyond in the ride tech department. Disney for me has fallen short in that department for years. I'm hoping Avatar will prove to be different. But that's another thing....I'm not at all interested in some of the concepts that Disney is coming up with. I don't want all of these other franchises blended in with my Disney. I believe they have enough material to pull from in order to create the most amazing exclusively Disney parks that you can imagine right in their own closet but they chose not to trust in their own brand? It makes zero sense to me. In a perfect world I would see rides representing Mulan, Jungle Book, Tarzan and the like filling in the gaps at AK. A ride themed to the country in every spot around WS. And a land devoted to live action Disney movies instead of Star Wars at DHS or ANYTHING for that matter. Don't get me started on how many other stories could get a spot at MK if they were to get rid of the Autopia. Ugh...but that's just one girls dream. lol So yes, Universal is starting to become the favorite for me.

 

[Alicefan]

Something weird happened with my reply.....

The short answer - Universal

The long answer as to why -

We travel quite a bit for work and pleasure. The Disney and Universal trips were our first theme park trips since we were children ourselves. We were traveling with our son, whose was ten yo at Disney and eleven at Universal.

For us, Disney was too spread out and too restrictive with the ADR and fastpass requirements. Universal was far more relaxed.

I know plenty of people that love the Disney style of vacation, the planning, obsessively stalking for ADRs, juggling the fast passes, touring plans, etc. I did not. We were beyond frustrated by the Disney

I understand this. I can't IMAGINE what a Disney trip to a newbie would be like. I honestly imagine a lot of people throwing up their hands and giving up. Disney has just made is sooo very confusing to someone who is not computer savvy. I myself HATE the idea of having to take my phone into the parks, but Disney is stupidly pushing for that with all of these apps and fastpasses etc. I was in the Carousel of Progress a couple of years back and I looked down my isle and counted 5 people who had their faces in their phones the ENTIRE show, adults and kids alike! I wondered how much money they had spent on their tickets to be there that day? I used to always leave my phone in the room, but these days I feel like I can't. My phone is my business phone too, so having to take it with me makes me feel like I can't get away from work. Clients call the whole time and it's hard to ignore. My father who is a big Disney parks fan even said after the last trip that he didn't care if he ever came back now that they screwed up the fp system. It was new and I didn't have a smartphone at the time and we ended up with no fp's for anything and having to hunt down the kiosk to find nothing but inconvenient times that didn't work for us. It just about ruined his whole trip. Disney has turned our vacations into a second job.

 

[prprincess]

WDW...I grew up on it and I feel like it's my home away from home. I enjoyed Universal when I lived out in Southern California, and then here in Orlando in the early days. But on our recent trip about three years ago, it just wasn't for me. That being said, I wouldn't hesitate to go back and give it another try. My sons and husband loved it though. I guess I'm just a creature of habit and set in my ways. I also feel like it may be my age...I used to love coasters and 3D rides and no longer do.

 

[cleopenn]

I understand this. I can't IMAGINE what a Disney trip to a newbie would be like. I honestly imagine a lot of people throwing up their hands and giving up. Disney has just made is sooo very confusing to someone who is not computer savvy. I myself HATE the idea of having to take my phone into the parks, but Disney is stupidly pushing for that with all of these apps and fastpasses etc. I was in the Carousel of Progress a couple of years back and I looked down my isle and counted 5 people who had their faces in their phones the ENTIRE show, adults and kids alike! I wondered how much money they had spent on their tickets to be there that day? I used to always leave my phone in the room, but these days I feel like I can't. My phone is my business phone too, so having to take it with me makes me feel like I can't get away from work. Clients call the whole time and it's hard to ignore. My father who is a big Disney parks fan even said after the last trip that he didn't care if he ever came back now that they screwed up the fp system. It was new and I didn't have a smartphone at the time and we ended up with no fp's for anything and having to hunt down the kiosk to find nothing but inconvenient times that didn't work for us. It just about ruined his whole trip. Disney has turned our vacations into a second job.

Thanks for the understanding Under another thread as well on anther forum, I got a lot of less than nice judgment when I was honest about our Disney planning struggles and my thoughts on the Disney model.

You are so right about how frustrating it must be to someone who can't or doesn't want to be constantly checking on open time slots for FPs or ADRs! I work at a company that has 36 employees servicing multiple customers, 24 hours a day so I am no stranger to juggling to make all the pieces fit.

Speaking of phones, I found myself rolling my eyes at everyone in Diagon Alley waiting for the dragon to blow with their phones in hand. Guess what I was doing the next day? My son begged me to video it so he could show his friends. So there I was, being one of those people!