Shamu, Mickey Mouse, & Harry Potter!

Coaster · July 12, 2011, 12:11:24 AM

Sorry for this late trip review but I haven't had much time on my hands lately. Orlando was AMAZING. I love everything about it and I always find myself not wanting to leave and saying I could spend a lot longer than a week there. We got to visit Seaworld, Magic Kingdom, Downtown Disney, and Islands of Adventure.

Seaworld
Seaworld is always a fun place to visit but just as I worried, they are all pretty much the same. I wish I could have done the waterpark, Aquatica, but it just didn't work out that way. All the rides at Seaworld are really great. Manta and Kraken were simply amazing! I had never rode a "Superman" coaster like Manta before where you lay down, but boy, was it an experience! The first drop felt like I was diving. Journey to Atlantis was also a very fun ride, but the wait was extremely long! Over an hour. Luckily, the ride is long and technologically advanced enough that the wait was worth it.

The shows at Seaworld were also amazing as always. The sea lion and sea otter show was cheesy, but entertaining. I also noticed they no longer allow the trainers into the water with the killer whales. No doubt stemming from the accident which occured at Seaworld Orlando a few months ago when a trainer was killed by a killer whale.

I guess my one complaint about Seaworld was that we had to pay for a locker for any ride we went on. At Disney and Universal, this was not the case. Also, the Sky Tower should be free with admission for us cheapos

Magic Kingdom & Downtown Disney
Wow, I love Disney. I love everything about it, and it killed me not to experience all the parks like I was so fortunate to be able to do on my last trip. We only got to spend about 5 hours in the Magic Kingdom. And we made them count. We got to ride many of the classics (Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, Splash Mountain) and also got to see the night parade. However, we missed the fireworks because we thought they were at midnight, but they were actually at 10, whenever we were still in line for Space Mountain.

Every nook and cranny in a Disney park just has such charm. It is so hard to put into words. The Imagineers really do put so much thought and research into each new addition, however small it may be. They are currently expanding Fantasyland and taking out Mickey's Toontown USA. It looks like a huge expansion, and I wish it would have been finished while I was there.

Islands of Adventure
The first thing we did when we got to IOA was of course, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. And WOW. Being a Potter nerd, I was in for a treat. It is quite an experience, one that must be seen to be believed just like Disney. Everything is in tune with the books and movies, and I felt like I was in the movie. Everything is so well themed. Butterbeer was amazing! (Ended up spending 15 dollars on Butterbeer alone!

)

But the must do attraction was Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. It is the single best ride I have ever experienced, beating out the Tower of Terror at Disney. It was so REAL, and so technologically advanced. I can't explain it. Amazing amazing ride.

After spending over almost two hours in the Harry Potter world, it was time to experience everything else IOA had to offer. And it has a lot more to offer. Jurassic Park, superheroes, Toon Lagoon (fun, fun water rides), I won't get into all of it because it is so much, but it was all such an amazing experience.

All of Orlando was. Amazing week with so many memories made.

Thanks for reading everybody.

DollarCityBoy · July 12, 2011, 08:17:42 AM

Thanks for the detailed review, I enjoyed reading it!

Swoosh · July 12, 2011, 09:12:11 AM

I'm headed to Orlando next June. Wanted to go this summer but decided to wait a year and let "new" Fantasyland open at Magic Kingdom as well as the new Legoland Florida park.

sanddunerider · July 12, 2011, 09:41:04 AM

WOW!! sounds great. Glad all went well

Coaster · July 12, 2011, 05:31:13 PM

^^Swoosh, you'll have to tell us how the new Fantasyland looks. From what i saw at the park and everything else I've read online, it looks like a huge expansion and one that was really needed probably.

Swoosh · July 12, 2011, 06:16:29 PM

^Will do... oh and speaking of which, I need to update my PTR thread on here from this summer... wow talk about me being a slacker. I guess I can do that tomorrow.

spgoad · July 12, 2011, 10:11:12 PM

Glad you had a great time Coaster! Enjoyed reading your review.

Also, I totally agree about the Forbidden Journey ride... that ride technology is incredible. The ride was a bit dark for my tastes (not too many happy moments), but the technology impressed me greatly. Being the theme park geek I am, I found myself trying to not watch the stuff they wanted me to watch so I could look back at the "cars" behind us and figure out how the thing worked. Pretty cool stuff.

How were the crowds at the Wizarding World?

okiebluegrass · July 13, 2011, 02:46:02 PM

Glad you liked it. My fiance wants us to take my kids there next year.

Coaster · July 15, 2011, 10:42:21 AM

^^The first ride through The Forbidden Journey I rode it just to experience the ride. But the second time I rode it later that night I also kept looking around trying to find the track we were on and also trying to figure out how it worked. I'm also a nerd for that kind of stuff.

And it was very very crowded in the Wizarding World. There wasn't a wait to get in or anything like that but inside the shops it was almost impossible to move around. And getting a locker for the ride was cramped beyond belief. But it was all manageable and well worth all the waits. The Wizarding World is not a good place for a chlostrophobic, I'll say that.

^I hope you get to go to Orlando if you can okie! It is so much fun!

okiebluegrass · July 15, 2011, 10:43:17 AM

She lived in Tampa for a long time, so she knows that area. I for one have only been to Florida twice and I never left the airport the second time

betamike · July 17, 2011, 11:30:31 AM

I wish I could share some of the stuff I've been working on since I am now with the Attractions Line of Business at Walt Disney World. Much of my time has been spent on the Fantasyland expansion and I have already walked the Mermaid attraction (psssst....talk is that it may open earlier than the rest of the expansion).

Alas, Company integrity is at the core of my existence so you'll have to wait until the official unveiling for any sneaky shots.

Joy · July 17, 2011, 05:08:46 PM

You are so freaking lucky!

Junior · July 18, 2011, 08:22:16 AM

Yeah, BetaMike...I think a dream vacation for many of us would be to come visit you at work and tag along for a day or two. Get a REAL behind the scenes look at things. And here is a question for you...having the experience you have gotten with Disney, would you ever consider going back to SDC and becoming a management guy that plans and develops attractions? We all know you love SDC, and the days you spent at the candy making shop with Miss June, the belle of SDC!

StaceySue · July 18, 2011, 08:37:13 AM

Quote from: betamike on July 17, 2011, 11:30:31 AM
I wish I could share some of the stuff I've been working on since I am now with the Attractions Line of Business at Walt Disney World. Much of my time has been spent on the Fantasyland expansion and I have already walked the Mermaid attraction (psssst....talk is that it may open earlier than the rest of the expansion).

Alas, Company integrity is at the core of my existence so you'll have to wait until the official unveiling for any sneaky shots.

Oh, I hope things open earlier! We are planning a trip next June. (Well, I have been planning for a long time. I was hoping to go this year, but things didn't work out.) I will have an almost three year old, so I have been looking at the Fantasyland expansion and dreaming.

betamike · July 18, 2011, 09:43:01 AM

Ha!! Junior - I would love nothing more to be a part of the Herschend Family again. Honestly, my job at Disney was a fluke and I never really wanted to ever leave the Ozarks. June will even tell you "That damn mouse stole me" away from her. Flash forward 14 years later and here I am, doing things I thought impossible within Disney. Still, the power of Silver Dollar City sticks with you. Professionally, I would love to work for such a great group of people again. Only time will tell, but if anything can get me to give up with life of magic and pixie dust, it would be SDC.

StaceySue - Keep your fingers crossed. There's still a lot to be done but hopefully next year by June, we'll have some part of the Fantasyland expansion open for your family.