Universal Orlando Resort (USF, IOA, Epic) Discussion Thread

[CaptainUnknown]

Oh no, the hotel pool you're barely going to use because you're at the parks all day has no free extra amenities! But you know where they do exist? Volcano Bay--where it costs $100* to get in!

[PKI Jizzman]

On 1/20/2025 at 10:05 AM, Hilltopper39 said:

I think it looks pretty cool but I'll never understand building a brand new resort pool area without a slide/splash pad/playground of some kind. I mean there is a Holiday Inn Expresses like a mile down the road with a better looking pool than this. Just seems like such a simple thing to include that adds so much to the resort experience but instead it's just a big ole regular pool.

it doesn’t have a waterpark but it does have a splash pad. i believe limited space is an issue (see it in person) but you’re not staying here to stay at the resort, you’re here to go to the parks. 

[prozach626]

On 1/22/2025 at 1:02 PM, CaptainUnknown said:

Oh no, the hotel pool you're barely going to use because you're at the parks all day has no free extra amenities! But you know where they do exist? Volcano Bay--where it costs $100* to get in!

No kids, eh?

[Hilltopper39]

On 1/23/2025 at 10:13 PM, PKI Jizzman said:

it doesn’t have a waterpark but it does have a splash pad. i believe limited space is an issue (see it in person) but you’re not staying here to stay at the resort, you’re here to go to the parks. 

Yeah I saw the little splash pad in one of the opening day videos, so there is something there.

 

You know one other comment or maybe a slight critique of this resort is the views of the backstage areas of the park. I feel like the sight lines discussion inside of theme parks get a little blown out of context most of the time, like the discussion about the Guardians show building a few years ago, that kind of stuff who really cares? But I can't think of a an example anywhere at Disney where you have such a prominent view directly in to the backstage areas of the park like this resort has. I realize that the plots of land that had to work with here were kind of limited so there's only so much they could have done but it is a bit strange to have have a view directly into the back of the Donkey Kong coaster. I'm sure they'll eventually plant some trees at the park and the resort to clean the look up some but still.  Pretty petty critique here, I'll admit that.

[prozach626]

On 1/23/2025 at 9:13 PM, PKI Jizzman said:

it doesn’t have a waterpark but it does have a splash pad. i believe limited space is an issue (see it in person) but you’re not staying here to stay at the resort, you’re here to go to the parks. 

Depends, I guess. I think a lot of families take at least one low key day to relax and take advantage of what the resort has to offer. We're only doing four days in Orlando this summer, but we purposely chose a place with a great pool setup for a slower paced day. 

I still think this hotel has plenty of appeal to the DINK demographic looking to take full advantage of the parks. There's less need to pace yourself with that kind of lifestyle. If you do choose to have a chill day, a nice cheese free adult'ish pool with clean lines and less kids fits the bill. We would have placed a lot of consideration in a resort like this years ago, for the reasons I mentioned. In the modern, "don't have kids, they'll ruin your life" era, there's a market for this kind of compromise.