5 Ways Universal Studios is Totally Different than Disney

Last Updated on August 3, 2023 by Jane

We spent a week at Universal Studios Orlando back in September. This is the first time I had ever been to Universal. I had been to Disney multiple times as a kid and once as an adult with our kids. Ever since the Harry Potter part of the parks opened at Universal though I felt a huge pull to visit. This intensified as our daughter also fell in love with the Harry Potter books. While there are obvious differences between the two parks, like what characters you expect to see at each of them, I found there were deeper differences I wasn’t exactly expecting. These are 5 ways Universal Studios is totally different than Disney parks.

Thrill seeking rides – Universal has more hardcore rollercoasters – Disney has rides that tell a story at a less breakneck pace. I am thinking of classics like Pirates of the Caribbean or Jungle Cruise. Even if you don’t like rollercoasters Disney is much easier to do many rides without feeling like the ride was more than you bargained for. We had a harder time this way at Universal Studios. I am not a big roller coaster person and I found even the easy roller coasters more than I could handle. My husband however loved all the rollercoasters. He even did the Velocicoaster more than once.

Backpacks – Disney you can take backpacks on almost every ride. We would pack some food and snacks and water for a day at the parks. We had no issue carrying full size backpacks on the rides we went on. Universal studios it is better to carry a fanny pack otherwise you will constantly be checking your backpack in a locker. We still were able to get a few snacks in those fanny packs but mostly we carried phones and stashed our sunglasses. We also used lanyards to carry our individual passes for easy use. We used this and this for our days at the parks. Even on water rides they didn’t get soaked through.

Read more: 10 ways to Save on your next Disney Vacation

Hotel perks – Disney hotels give you an extra 30 minutes in the morning and extended hours at night if you are at one of their higher end resorts. Their hotels all have themes, many of the themes are Disney focused extending the magic of Disney to the hotel (like our stay at All Star Movies). Universal hotels go a bit further in terms of perks. If you stay at one of the higher end hotels you get use of the water taxi system. This is much more convenient than the Disney bus system. The hotels are much closer to the parks as well. Easily walkable to the park entrance. These same Universal hotels offer 1 hour early admission, particularly to their most sought after sections of the park. And you also get a fast pass included in your stay. This is a huge savings. The Universal hotels also have a theme but these themes are less tied to characters at the park.

Fast pass – Disney revamped their fast pass system in recent years. It is now Genie+ and it costs extra per day. Much like the old program you have to “book” your time to use the Lightening Lane. The price per day isn’t outrageous but it is an extra cost. The Fast pass system at Universal in my opinion is easier to use. If you have fast pass you just use the fast pass lane whenever you want to no booking required. Our fast pass was included with our hotel stay.

Park proximity – Disney World is a much larger park than Universal Orlando. As such everything is spread out and nothing is within walking distance of each other. Universal however is all in the same area. City Walk, Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida are all right in the same spot so you are able to move back and forth between each of them if you so choose and if you pay for the park to park ticket. The only park that feels a bit separate is the water park. Even the hotels are closer to the park at Universal.

What do you think about the 5 ways that Universal Studios is totally different than Disney? Can you add to this list?