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Universal Orlando Resort: Where to Stay & Play for a Few Days

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My recent stay at Universal Orlando Resort was so much fun and I’m going to share and highlight my favorite moments with you. First and foremost, I stayed at the Cabana Bay Beach Resort on the property which allowed me early access (one hour) to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter™. It was my first time experiencing Diagon Alley™. I took advantage of the complimentary shuttle service to Universal Studios Florida and was able to … [Read More...]

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Navigating Disney World During a Pandemic

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Taste the Flavors of St. Thomas USVI

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Navigating Disney World During a Pandemic

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I recently had an opportunity to visit Walt Disney World as part of my Goofy Getaways FAM Training. It was exciting and I was a bit anxious because even though some restrictions are being lifted, guidelines are more relaxed, and travel is starting to … [Read More...]

Taste the Flavors of St. Thomas USVI

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I am excited to be collaborating with my fellow foodie lover Hannah Victoria on this listing of places to eat in St. Thomas USVI whether you are visiting or local to the island. We are giving you our personal opinions based on our dining experiences … [Read More...]

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My Universal Studios Water Ride Challenge

My attempt to ride every water ride at Universal Studios in one afternoon began with a stubborn challenge: leave Orlando with both of the park’s genuine flumes completed before the afternoon was out. I meant Universal Studios Florida, not Hollywood, and I meant attractions built around water rather than every ride that fires a playful spray. Our family holiday already had a rental car booked, so the extra planning was a change of clothes and enough nerve to stop watching the clock.

Planning it from Australia introduced small logistics glossy park guides can hide. Most of Universal Orlando sits around International Drive in unincorporated Orange County, close to Kissimmee, although travellers casually call Orlando a city. From Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane, the flight is long and the exchange rate turns a US-dollar estimate into an Australian-dollar decision. At the airport rental car, we remembered that Australians keep left while Floridians keep right.

Before entering, I set a four-hour window, from 1 p.m. until 5 p.m. I decided Jaws would not count: it uses water and a boat, but it is a dark ride rather than a flume or rapids attraction. For wider park context, I also referred to my JenOni travel notes. The plan was deliberately simple and left plenty of room for the one thing I could not control: Florida weather.

Defining the Water-Ride Challenge

At Universal Studios Florida, the proper water-ride pair is wonderfully manageable: Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls and Jurassic Park River Adventure. Both are flume rides, both can leave riders genuinely drenched, and both sit inside the main park. A family can reach either from the central hub without hopping between parks or catching a water taxi.

The first feels like a comic strip come alive, while the second turns prehistoric danger into a swirling raft ride. Together they gave me a satisfying definition of “every”: two complete water rides and no inflated claims about rides that merely mist a few droplets. I wanted the afternoon to test endurance and organisation, not my ability to apply the word water too generously.

Arriving Ready for the Race

I arrived before the gates opened and used the morning for familiar attractions, saving 1 p.m. for the challenge. The phrase “one afternoon” refers to when I rode the water rides, not when I first bought coffee. At opening, the park app refreshed with live wait information, and I mapped a route between the two flumes.

I checked the posted height rules, rented a small locker and bought a cheap poncho. Both rides required 107 centimetres, a useful number when Australian guides often quote inches. My phone went into a waterproof pouch because rides promising a soaking rarely limit themselves to a little dampness.

Near our hotel, we followed a familiar Australian habit and collected drive-through coffee. Early coffee, a full water bottle and sunscreen helped me enter the queues alert. I carried a hat too, though it spent most of the race folded in the locker rather than on my head.

Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls

Dudley was the easier target on paper. Its queue moved through cartoon sets, mixing adults and children and making it less intimidating than the prehistoric queue across the park. I could hear the flume machinery and watch boats climb towards the first lift, then wondered whether the old attraction might be too gentle to count.

The boat crested the lift and dropped with enough force to pull a cheer from the queue. The splash reached beyond the front seats and left my poncho looking decorative. Water pooled in the boat and soaked my shoes, prompting a crowd-wide hunt for air dryers and equally universal regret at trusting a theme-park warning.

My hat was safe in the locker, my hair was not and the camera bag survived. Dudley delivered the cheerful staged plunge I wanted without denting the schedule. That left Jurassic Park, the longer queue and the bigger drench, with ample theoretical time remaining.

Jurassic Park River Adventure

The Jurassic Park queue told a different story. It snaked beneath huge dinosaur jaws and through displays designed to make an ordinary wait feel like an expedition. The posted estimate was not the time I spent there; my “quick” target became a substantial wait, so I checked the app twice and changed position when the line moved.

Aboard the circular raft, we passed towering dinosaurs, snarling heads and scenes of hatchlings breaking free. Then came the rapids. The raft spun, climbed and dropped into churning brown water, throwing riders together and all but emptying the front of the boat. The poncho helped this time, while the phone pouch earned its place.

A second surge met us before the raft returned to the loading area. My shirt was heavy, my shoes squelched and my fellow riders looked as though they had emerged from a tube. The ride supplied the afternoon’s strongest payoff: a long queue, a memorable journey and a spectacular drench.

When Florida Weather Interrupted

Florida’s afternoon storm arrived while I was drying my sandals. Dark clouds built beyond the palms, rain hammered the pavement and everyone looked towards the rides. Water rides pause for lightning, so the flumes stopped while staff moved guests under cover. The irony was hard to miss.

During the pause, I bought bagged ice and a frozen drink from a park shop. Prices were in US dollars, with sales tax added at checkout, unlike an Australian Coles or Woolworths shelf where GST is normally included. The break let the crowd thin, though it produced no miracle shortcut.

When operations resumed, the queues were shorter but not empty. Normally I lose patience before a long lunch, yet standing beneath dripping umbrellas with a melting drink gave me perspective. By then I had stopped treating the afternoon like a race and started treating it like a very wet family picnic.

Practical Notes for Australian Visitors

Florida has several legal details that catch Australian families out. Child restraints are required for children younger than six unless the vehicle is a taxi or limousine, and rental companies can supply the correct seat. Traffic keeps right rather than left, and the legal drinking age is 21 instead of 18 across Australia.

The retail market follows US habits. Publix supermarkets and CVS-style convenience stores sit near International Drive, merchandise is priced in dollars and sales tax is added at the till. Tipping around 18–20 per cent is normal in restaurants, unlike Australia’s generally optional practice. Drink refills are also less predictable than at home.

My carry-on priorities were simple:

The useful queue habits were equally basic:

The Afternoon Verdict

Yes: by 4.37 p.m., both genuine water rides were complete. Dudley provided the quick hit, Jurassic Park supplied the drama and drench, and the storm briefly turned a checklist into an endurance test. Jaws stayed outside the count because it is a dark ride, which kept the result honest.

The afternoon was not effortless. I was soaked twice, lost time to weather and discovered that comfortable clothes are poor choices for flumes. Still, both rides were accomplished in the same window without rushing between two parks. I left with two completed flumes, one damp phone pouch and the peculiar pride of having set a wonderfully unnecessary challenge for myself.