"Be Magical" - Our first DDP trip! - Day 13 - Islands of Adventure

Guest · 6 Jan 16, 11:40 PM

So well done if you have finally made it this far! So today was a sad day as it was our last full day, in hindsight I wish we had spent our last full day at MK as opposed to IOA.

This year I felt that Universal didnt seem to hold the same appeal and for me I won't be returning. There is nothing wrong with the park but for me after multiple trips I just feel as if it has lost it's sparkle and I spend more time just walking around. But anyway! Enough moaning.

As you will know from the US day, I love Harry Potter! So after ordering 2 Uber taxis we were well on our way to Hogsmeade! I loved Uber by the way, it was so easy! I'm not very good with small talk mind so it did make for a few awkward journeys! Today our driver was a young woman in a brand new audi, she said she was a student and this was to make extra cash...she must be doing something right as it was a lovely Audi! We arrived for park opening and I dragged everyone to Forbidden Journey. Everyone minus Perry. I had forced him to go Transformers and one of the consquences (alongside a dead leg) was that he never believed another ride description of mine again. He didn't believe it was a mild ride... well in fairness I guess it does throw you around slightly.

The line was about 30 minutes but I settled and conceded this was probably the best it was going to get. As usual I was extremely camra happy, my subjects were not so happy with Alfie still half asleep.

I love the queue areas they have for HP, I'm such a nerd that I am one of those annoying tourists that hold the queue up taking pictures.

Everyone admitted that this was a great ride and the verdict was it beat Gringotts. We spent a good half hour walking round Hogsmeade after this and admiring the atmosphere. I love it here, more so than Diagon Alley as it just feels so magical, i'm not sure whether its the snow on the roofs or the castle, but I feel like i'm in one of JK Rowling's stories.

[APP]http://www.thedibb.co.uk/postImages/96787/663ea81e4efaec.jpg[/APP

It was a beautiful day and the sun was beating down

Fortunately the Hogwarts express was deserted so for once I managed to get some decent pictures!

We also spent a bit of time admiring the castle just myself and Perry whilst my family mooched in the shops, it ws here we saw how friendly some Americans are. A young guy with his friends came up to us and saw us struggling to take a selfie. He offered to take a few snaps for us and was just generally really lovely, he didn't have to as we wouldn't have dreamed of asking.

One of my regrets was not eating in the Three Broomsticks. I've been here back in 2014 but wanted Perry to experience it, I do remember the food being a bit meh but the inside theming made up for it.

Myself and Tom decided to take a ride on both of the dragon challenges - fire and ice. I love both of them but fire seemed alot more exhilarating. I came off feeling a bit wobbly! I would have loved to snap some photos of the queue as it's themed like the Triwizard tournament but there was no chance of this. They had huge metal detectors seeing if anyone had any loose items in their pocket. If they did they were directed back round again to deposit them somewhere. Something must have occurred as I seriously don't remember these on my 2014 trip.

I also snapped a picture of the train station, this is something that also wasnt here on my 2014 trip but this time a more welcome addition. We didn't have park to park tickets so I never got to go on the Express but one day I will if we ever return.

We decided to stop at 'Sinbad' land as we needed some refillable drink mugs (absolute con by the way, you can only fill them up ath the actual freestyle machines. If you want a real human being to do it you have to pay more money

). I imagine at one point this part of the park was popular, but it always seems deserted now and just a walkway for Hogsmeade - it's a bit sad all in all.

Empty Sinbad Land

Next stop on our list was a trip over to Jurassic Park, I still get butterflies when I walk through that arch and hear the theme music! I think it's anticipation because I know we are about to ride the River Cruise. No matter how many times I ride this, that pesky raptor that pops out always gets me and not once have I managed to keep my eyes open on the decline!

Can't leave out the one of many bloody smoking breaks

I was forward thinking enough to pack Ponchos for this part of the trip and boy am I glad I did. We got SOAKED. I was prepared and tucked my poncho in at all angles, my bum was a tad too large and got soggy but hey ho, occupational hazard! My brother and Tom were missed off the Poncho list (whoops-genuinely forgot about them). I had one spare girls HP waterproof mac which Alfie commandeered. This meant the top part of him was somewhat dry, the bottom half drenched. Tom - who got Tidal Waved - must have been slightly bitter as he kept making holes in my plastic poncho.

Pre soaking

We decided that as we were already beyond soaked that we would give Popeye's bilge barges a go! What could go wrong? We couldn't get any wetter. We were wrong. This ride is purely designed to make you as wet as possible. Even my socks were wet. I NEVER fall for the conveinetly placed clothes stalls at the exit. This time I actually resorted to purchasing some flip flops for my soggy feet as I couldnt stand the squelchingany longer. I must say tho that this was the funniest part of the holiday, we haven't laughed so much in a long time and the soaking was totally worth it.

It was at this point we started to get a bit lost, we wandered around the park, went to go on Cat in the Hat and it was down, no one really fancied Spiderman and the Hulk was closed (booooo). We decided it was time to go home and spend some much needed relaxing at the pool.

Closed Hulk

We definitely took things at a slower pace this holiday, whci I am grateful for but also regret, I really don't feel we even touched the surface of some of the Disney parks.

We made our way home and took a stroll later that evening to DTD and enjoyed our last evening to pack and get some last minute gifts. Myself and Perry bought a beautiful 1st visit bauble for when we finally get our own home and used the last of our snack credits on some gifts for colleagues.

It sort of hit us that it was our last night and we went to bed with a very heavy heart.

collybird · 12 Jan 16, 04:30 PM

We don't bother with Universal, I just feel like Disney has everything we need. Maybe years down the line if Disney starts to bore us we'll return but right now I don't miss it. I do love HP though and am sad I haven't seen Diagon Alley yet.

6 Jan 16, 11:40 PM	#1
	6 Jan 16, 11:40 PM Guest Guest
Guest Guest	"Be Magical" - Our first DDP trip! - Day 13 - Islands of Adventure So well done if you have finally made it this far! So today was a sad day as it was our last full day, in hindsight I wish we had spent our last full day at MK as opposed to IOA. This year I felt that Universal didnt seem to hold the same appeal and for me I won't be returning. There is nothing wrong with the park but for me after multiple trips I just feel as if it has lost it's sparkle and I spend more time just walking around. But anyway! Enough moaning. As you will know from the US day, I love Harry Potter! So after ordering 2 Uber taxis we were well on our way to Hogsmeade! I loved Uber by the way, it was so easy! I'm not very good with small talk mind so it did make for a few awkward journeys! Today our driver was a young woman in a brand new audi, she said she was a student and this was to make extra cash...she must be doing something right as it was a lovely Audi! We arrived for park opening and I dragged everyone to Forbidden Journey. Everyone minus Perry. I had forced him to go Transformers and one of the consquences (alongside a dead leg) was that he never believed another ride description of mine again. He didn't believe it was a mild ride... well in fairness I guess it does throw you around slightly. The line was about 30 minutes but I settled and conceded this was probably the best it was going to get. As usual I was extremely camra happy, my subjects were not so happy with Alfie still half asleep. I love the queue areas they have for HP, I'm such a nerd that I am one of those annoying tourists that hold the queue up taking pictures. Everyone admitted that this was a great ride and the verdict was it beat Gringotts. We spent a good half hour walking round Hogsmeade after this and admiring the atmosphere. I love it here, more so than Diagon Alley as it just feels so magical, i'm not sure whether its the snow on the roofs or the castle, but I feel like i'm in one of JK Rowling's stories. [APP]http://www.thedibb.co.uk/postImages/96787/663ea81e4efaec.jpg[/APP It was a beautiful day and the sun was beating down Fortunately the Hogwarts express was deserted so for once I managed to get some decent pictures! We also spent a bit of time admiring the castle just myself and Perry whilst my family mooched in the shops, it ws here we saw how friendly some Americans are. A young guy with his friends came up to us and saw us struggling to take a selfie. He offered to take a few snaps for us and was just generally really lovely, he didn't have to as we wouldn't have dreamed of asking. One of my regrets was not eating in the Three Broomsticks. I've been here back in 2014 but wanted Perry to experience it, I do remember the food being a bit meh but the inside theming made up for it. Myself and Tom decided to take a ride on both of the dragon challenges - fire and ice. I love both of them but fire seemed alot more exhilarating. I came off feeling a bit wobbly! I would have loved to snap some photos of the queue as it's themed like the Triwizard tournament but there was no chance of this. They had huge metal detectors seeing if anyone had any loose items in their pocket. If they did they were directed back round again to deposit them somewhere. Something must have occurred as I seriously don't remember these on my 2014 trip. I also snapped a picture of the train station, this is something that also wasnt here on my 2014 trip but this time a more welcome addition. We didn't have park to park tickets so I never got to go on the Express but one day I will if we ever return. We decided to stop at 'Sinbad' land as we needed some refillable drink mugs (absolute con by the way, you can only fill them up ath the actual freestyle machines. If you want a real human being to do it you have to pay more money ). I imagine at one point this part of the park was popular, but it always seems deserted now and just a walkway for Hogsmeade - it's a bit sad all in all. Empty Sinbad Land Next stop on our list was a trip over to Jurassic Park, I still get butterflies when I walk through that arch and hear the theme music! I think it's anticipation because I know we are about to ride the River Cruise. No matter how many times I ride this, that pesky raptor that pops out always gets me and not once have I managed to keep my eyes open on the decline! Can't leave out the one of many bloody smoking breaks I was forward thinking enough to pack Ponchos for this part of the trip and boy am I glad I did. We got SOAKED. I was prepared and tucked my poncho in at all angles, my bum was a tad too large and got soggy but hey ho, occupational hazard! My brother and Tom were missed off the Poncho list (whoops-genuinely forgot about them). I had one spare girls HP waterproof mac which Alfie commandeered. This meant the top part of him was somewhat dry, the bottom half drenched. Tom - who got Tidal Waved - must have been slightly bitter as he kept making holes in my plastic poncho. Pre soaking We decided that as we were already beyond soaked that we would give Popeye's bilge barges a go! What could go wrong? We couldn't get any wetter. We were wrong. This ride is purely designed to make you as wet as possible. Even my socks were wet. I NEVER fall for the conveinetly placed clothes stalls at the exit. This time I actually resorted to purchasing some flip flops for my soggy feet as I couldnt stand the squelchingany longer. I must say tho that this was the funniest part of the holiday, we haven't laughed so much in a long time and the soaking was totally worth it. It was at this point we started to get a bit lost, we wandered around the park, went to go on Cat in the Hat and it was down, no one really fancied Spiderman and the Hulk was closed (booooo). We decided it was time to go home and spend some much needed relaxing at the pool. Closed Hulk We definitely took things at a slower pace this holiday, whci I am grateful for but also regret, I really don't feel we even touched the surface of some of the Disney parks. We made our way home and took a stroll later that evening to DTD and enjoyed our last evening to pack and get some last minute gifts. Myself and Perry bought a beautiful 1st visit bauble for when we finally get our own home and used the last of our snack credits on some gifts for colleagues. It sort of hit us that it was our last night and we went to bed with a very heavy heart.