11/28
Plan: Universal Studios
Before going to bed, I confirmed when Universal would be open, since I saw conflicting hours and found that it would be opening at 8. After getting a good night sleep, I got up and made some eggs and bacon for breakfast, then we headed out to the parks. We arrived about 7:30 and quickly found a parking spot, then headed into Islands of Adventure. Before we entered the gates, we heard an announcement that general admission would start at 10. All of us heard the same thing and were shocked by this, since I had done the research to confirm the opening time. I found someone and they confirmed that opening was at 8 and closing at 10pm. We entered the gates shortly before 8.
The first stop was at the restrooms. While my wife and DD2 went in, DD1 were able to get in the virtual line for Hagrid’s with an 8:10 time. Our first stop was The Cat in the Hat, but it was not operational yet, so we rode One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. We all enjoyed the ride and then headed off to Hogsmeade.
With our pass in hand for Hagrid’s we got in line, and before we knew it, we were hoping on to our motorcycles for our class with Hagrid. We all really enjoyed the ride and when we got off and tried to get another time, but none were available. Our next stop was Hogwarts for a ride with Harry. There was a little bit of a wait until we got in the castle, then it moved quickly. Before we got on, my wife and DD2 took the exit. Both DD1 and I enjoyed the ride and when we got off, we could not find the rest of our group. It turns out, they went looking for a snack.
After meeting back up, DD1 really wanted to go to Olivanders wand shop to try and get chosen for the wand experience. The wait was about 30 minutes, so we got in line. With the Covid restrictions, they are limiting the number of people into the shop at a time, which made the line move even slower. Finally, we got in and were with another group of four adults. DD1 was chosen and had a great experience, even though she chose not to purchase the wand. We were getting thirsty and needed to sit for a bit, so DD1 got a frozen Butterbeer to share and I got ice water for my wife and DD2.
By now, the area had gotten busy, so we continued through the park and rode Jurassic Park. The line for this continued to move and only had a short wait. Once we were in the boat, we were allowed to take off our masks, which was a nice break. Even though the ride is sort of corny, we all enjoyed it. There was not much else that we wanted to do at Islands of Adventure, so we decided to head over to the Studios via the Hogwarts Express. Rather than fighting the crowds in Hogsmeade, we continued to go around the park.
When we got back to Seuss Landing, we got on the Cat in the Hat, which was a cute ride. DD2 wanted to ride the carousel, but the line was too long, so we decided to ride One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. I rode with DD1 and we stayed dried, meanwhile my wife and DD2 got a bit wet. We got in line and waited for the train over to the Studios. Waiting in line, DD2 was starting to get tired and was not in the greatest mood.
The parks were at capacity by the time we got to the studios and there were long lines for everything. DD2 needed to get something to eat, but there were long lines and the signage for mobile ordering was not clear. We headed over to Minion Mayhem, but the wait was over an hour. My wife is not a thrill ride person, so there was nothing left for her to do at the parks, so we decided that we would head back to the resort and have a late lunch, then DD1 and I would head back to the parks. Before we headed back, we stopped at Voodoo Doughnuts and bought some to take back to the resort.
Our plan had been to have dinner at Cowfish, so I canceled the reservation and made tacos for dinner. I had picked up taco seasoning and tortillas from Trader Joe’s. When we got back, I went ahead and cooked up the meat and added the seasoning. What I did not realize is that unlike what we normally use, I was only supposed to use the packet. The other thing that I did not realize was that I had picked up quinoa flour tortillas. The tacos were quite spicy and the tortillas were dry.
DD1 and I headed back to the parks and around 4, we entered the studios. Our first stop was Minion Mayhem. The line had lowered to a 45 minute wait. While waiting, we looked at the virtual lines and were able to book Hagrid’s for two times. The line moved very slowly and we finally got in. After riding, we both agreed that DD2 would not have enjoyed the wait and my wife would not have been able to ride because of her motion sickness. I wanted to try a Duff, so we headed over there and thought it was decent, but not great. Next up was Men In Black. There was no line and we walked right on. I ended up with the high score for our car.
I had been keeping an eye on the wait time for Escape from Gringots and it was running about 60 minutes. We decided to head to Diagon Alley and get in line. Both of us were really impressed with the area and enjoyed the ride. DD1 had wanted to get ice cream from Florian Fortescue’s. There was quite a line, but we decided to go ahead. It took about 30 minutes for us to get in the shop and get our ice cream. DD1 got the butterbeer and I got the sticky toffee pudding. We found a secluded spot and we both really enjoyed the ice cream. With the wait for Escape from Gringots and for ice cream, we were going to miss our first time for Hagrid’s, so we canceled it. We wandered around for a bit and ended up in Knockturn Alley. When we left Diagon Alley, both of us were overcome with a feeling like we were stepping out of a magical place into the real world.
By the time we got back, it was time for us to get in line for Hagrid’s. There was a little bit of a wait, but it was not too bad. DD1 wanted to ride Flight of the Hippogriff at night, so we headed over there. On the way, we saw the wait for the Forbidden Journey was 10 minutes. After confirming that was the case, we got in line and walked right on. As we were walking through, DD1 was pointing out some of the things that I had missed when we walked through the first time. When we got off, we walked onto Flight of the Hippogriff and neither of us were really impressed with the ride. The park was starting to close down and we could see some of the fireworks from the Studios. As we passed Hagrid’s, I asked if we could hop in line and they let us. Once again it was off to class with Hagrid on the last ride of the night.
There was a large crowd exiting the parks, which my wife would not have liked, but we made it to our car and headed back to the resort. It was about 10:45 when we got back and both DD2 and my wife were in bed asleep. I stayed up for a little bit watching tv before turning in.
Steps: 30, 921 Miles:13.4
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