25 de October de 2024

Expan Experience: The magic of Universal Orlando and Disney World

An ideal world would be fantastic to find . Echoing the iconic song from Aladdin , an animated classic, this splendid world that travelers dream of discovering is called Orlando . There, the Universal Orlando parks and attractions like Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World capture the hearts of children and those of us who were once children ourselves.

In this edition of Expan Experience we present the adventure of Paola Hidalgo , travel advisor for North America, Central America and the Caribbean , who tells us about her tour of the main hotels near the theme parks and how she had fun on the most exciting attractions, simulators and roller coasters .

The Universal Orlando hotel catalog

" My destination was Orlando for a FAM Tour , invited by Action Travel . From the beginning, the destination was friendly. This was my first time there . Upon arriving at the airport , you can connect to Wi-Fi and receive transfer messages for your pickup ."

The FAM included Universal product training , then we visited hotels such as Loews Sapphire Falls Resort at Universal Orlando , a beautiful hotel with lovely views and comfortable rooms .

We also visited Universal's Aventura Hotel , a hotel overlooking Volcano Bay that features small robots that can bring you small items to your room and a terrace with a very beautiful view .

Another stop was the Loews Royal Pacific Resort , also at Universal Orlando , a comfortable hotel from where you can take a water taxi to Universal Studios . It's a world unto itself; there's so much to explore and experience . The must-see is The Bourne Stuntacular Show , where reality and fantasy blend seamlessly, making it hard to tell if the actors are there or not, all set against a constantly changing backdrop .

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, the best at Universal Orlando

" For Harry Potter fans, there's The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley . Believe it or not, I haven't seen any of the movies , but the Potter world is real: castles, dragons, shops . And for roller coaster enthusiasts, there's Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit . I must confess I didn't see anything, since I closed my eyes, but I conquered my fear of roller coasters ."

At night, we enjoyed Halloween Horror Nights , also at Universal Orlando . It's a separate attraction, running from 6:30 pm to 2:00 am from August 30th to November 3rd , where you explore haunted houses . It's an activity based on horror movies , like Insidious and Ghostbusters . In the streets, you see zombies and men with chainsaws scaring anyone who crosses their path .

At Island Adventure, we continued exploring The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade and traveled on the Hogwarts Express Hogsmeade Station , which takes you from Universal Studios to Island Adventure . The train is very comfortable, and they project images as if you were traveling through the locations and scenes from Harry Potter —very entertaining. And the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey simulator is very entertaining; you're inside the movie, flying with Harry .

The magic of Disney World

" We went on to Disney World . Animal Kingdom is beautiful, it's like an oasis, so much greenery, the Tree of Life , and the most impressive thing was Pandora – The World of Avatar , and even more spectacular was Avatar Flight of Passage , a simulator with a unique experience riding on the back of a banshee . It was an unforgettable experience. Sailing down the Na'vi River Journey , for me, who loves Avatar , was very exciting."

The Everest Expedition , a very fast and exciting roller coaster . For younger children and adults alike, I recommend Festival of the Lion King .

The must-see is Magic Kingdom , with its imposing castle that steals your heart; it truly makes you feel like a kid again. You also can't miss Bayou Adventure , based on The Princess and the Frog , sailing down a river that features the characters , ending the journey with a small waterfall .

Another exciting attraction is Tron Lightcycle Run , a roller coaster -style ride, the fastest, combining speed, special effects , and music —a must-see. And for adults and children alike, the night at the castle with its lights and narration is simply beautiful .

From Epcot to Hollywood Studios

" Epcot is a quieter park , which you can walk around peacefully and take part in activities that aren't as exciting as Remember , a walk through Mexico like the movie Coco , but it helps to cope with the heat ."

The Ratatouille attraction , for fans of the film , is very nice, with its Parisian -style setting, restaurants, and cafes . There's also Spaceship Earth , an attraction that shows us the beginnings of our civilization up to today's technology .

Hollywood Studios was also a lot of fun. The Indiana Jones area shows us a live-action reenactment of a film , how the fights, explosions, and set changes are filmed—it's really interesting. And finally, for Star Wars fans, there's Star Tours . The atmosphere is incredible, everything is so realistic, the spaceships … It really feels like being in another galaxy .

The parks have no age limit, there are no excuses not to visit them, it's a very inclusive destination . There are no limits to the magic and fun .

Recommendations for visiting Orlando theme parks

" You can stay at Disney hotels , which offer very easy and quick access to the parks and include transfers : buses, monorail, Disney Skyliner, and water taxi . In addition, each hotel has a section where you can find all the information you need about the parks ."
Don't forget to bring travel insurance , your raincoat and your water bottle , which you can refill in all the parks .
Download the Disney app , and you can do everything: you have park hours , what you have booked , you can buy the Lightning Lane Single Pass and the Lightning Lane Multi Pass , which allows visitors to skip the regular line and use the fast-track entrance to join a line that is usually shorter . "