It’s been years since our family had a real vacation – and this year, we wanted to make it extra special. I wanted to choose a destination that would be fun for our kids now that they’re older as well as for my husband and I. It wasn’t a hard decision. The kids and my husband and I unanimously decided on Universal Orlando Resort. We have never been to Universal Studios and when asked to choose between Disney and Universal – Universal was the winner. Our trip was from December 23rd-December 30th and was the girls’ Christmas gift this year.
Where We Stayed at Universal Orlando
We chose to stay at the Universal’s Cabana Bay Beach Resort. It was amazing and decorated beautifully for the holidays! I loved the retro ambiance and there is nothing more convenient than walking downstairs and onto a bus that takes you to Universal Orlando Resort in just minutes. No parking. No wait. You just get off of the bus, take the elevator up and walk over to the parks (with the exception of Epic Universe).
We stayed in a family suite that had a kitchenette, living room and two queen sized beds. The resort has two pools, a lazy river, gift shops, Starbucks, a diner and different bars (poolside and inside). The resort was busy but it was still quiet and did not feel overwhelming or over crowded. The staff were amazing and very friendly and helpful. There is also the ability to text questions or concerns 24/7 to your concierge instead of having to call down. They answer within minutes and are very helpful.
Our Vacation Package
Our vacation package included our hotel for 6 nights and 7 days as well as 4 day park to park tickets and the first park we went to was Islands of Adventure. Here we met with the Grinch which if you go around Christmas time this is an absolute amazing experience and a highlight of the trip for me. He was hilarious and we got some great videos and pictures with him. IoA has the best Harry Potter World in my opinion (Hogsmeade) and we loved Jurassic Park (the water rides were awesome). My oldest braved the Velocicoaster with my husband and loved it. We ate at Thunder Falls Terrace where we had chicken, pernil, ribs and rice and beans – the food was fantastic and there was A LOT of it. We probably could have shared plates but it was delicious – highly recommend. With all of the worlds and variety of rides we loved Islands of Adventure.
Day Two of Our Universal Vacation
Our second day we went to Universal Studios. This was a lot of fun and I would say had the second best Harry Potter World. I enjoyed meeting the Transformers (Megatron, Bumblebee and Optimus Prime) and loved the Transformers and Men in Black rides. There were also a lot of character meet opportunities throughout the park including the cast from Sing and Betty Boop.
Day 3 of Our Universal Vacation
We spent our third day of vacation which was also Christmas Day at Volcano Bay and it was absolutely wonderful. It is a short walk from Cabana Bay and we were able to get there early and reserved our lounge chairs and lockers. We enjoyed the lazy river, wave pool and all of the rides there – it was a blast, not super crowded and a good break from the walking and waiting at the other parks. We wanted to be able to rest and relax and have plenty of time to get ready for our dinner reservations we had that night. For lunch we had steak tacos at the Feasting Frog which were delicious. The rest of the day we bounced around to the different rides and pools and left around 4pm to get ready for our dinner.
For Christmas dinner I had booked reservations at Trattoria del Porto in the Portofino Bay Hotel. This hotel is stunning. The dinner was buffet style and absolutely delicious. They had make your own pasta stations, carving stations, salads and fruits, different types of meat and seafood, and a million different desserts. We ate outside – the weather was beautiful. Leaving Portofino to head back to our hotel, we took the ferry back and it was magical – the lights and the water – absolutely beautiful.
Day 4 of Our Universal Vacation
On our last park day we saved the best for last and went to Epic Universe. We love How To Train Your Dragon and entering into the Isle of Berk was absolutely surreal – it really felt like you were there. When we went to Epic, we headed straight to Dark Universe and my kids rode Curse of the Werewolf, and Monsters Unchained with no line. Then we headed over to Isle of Berk and got in line to meet Toothless (it was a 30 min wait). Our timing was fantastic because we met Toothless and Stormfly and Astrid and got our pictures taken. We then headed over to the How to Train Your Dragon show – which is a MUST SEE.
After the show we ate at Spit Fyre Grill which was delicious. The steak bowl, chicken bowl, and mac and cheese cones were a huge hit! We did some shopping and then from Berk we went to Harry Potter Ministry of Magic which was my least favorite Harry Potter World in all of the parks. We got chocolate frogs and some candy and rode Battle at the Ministry which was ok. We then headed over to Super Nintendo World which honestly I did not like at all. I was overstimulated by the environment and it felt very childish – even the rides were very childish. A lot of people love it – it just wasn’t for me.
Sea World
We wrapped up our Orlando trip with a day at Sea World. I got an amazing deal on tickets through my job and paid about $50 per ticket – which was a steal! We love animals – my personal favorite are dolphins and my husband’s favorite animal is the orca so we had to include a visit. I was a little sad they stopped doing the $10 baskets of fish to feed the dolphins but we were able to feed some sea lions. We love the shows and my kids of course tried all of the roller coasters and loved them. It was an awesome experience.
Last but not least our last day in Florida was spent visiting with my sister in law and her husband who live in Florida and traveled to Orlando to see us. We had lunch at Margaritaville and walked around City Walk before going back to our hotel and hanging by the pool. At night we had dinner at the Sapphire Falls hotel restaurant Amatista Cookhouse. The hotel was gorgeous and had beautiful displays of gingerbread houses. However, the food at the restaurant was not the greatest. It was latin fusion – but in my opinion the fusion had no flavor.
It was an amazing vacation – if you have older kids – definitely take the trip. My only advice would be to put Express Passes in your budget. They are pricey but there are ways to make it doable – and at the end of the day they are worth every single penny.
Let me know if you went to Universal and what your experience was. Did you love it? Hate it? Let me know in the comments!
