8 Best Sights in Universal Orlando, Florida

One of Universal's most popular attractions, the experience combines moving vehicles, 3-D film with the highest-definition resolution available, simulator technology, and special effects. What does that mean? It means that after donning 3-D glasses, you drive through the streets of New York in a special car that will pitch and roll as you get swept into a weird, all-encompassing cartoon battle. How weird? When Spider-Man lands on your car, you experience the bump; when Electro runs overhead, you hear his steps. You feel the sizzle of electricity, the frigid spray of water from Hydro Man, and the heat from a flaming pumpkin tossed by the Hobgoblin. No matter how many times you visit, you cringe when Doc Ock breaks through a brick wall, raises your car to the top of a skyscraper, and then releases it for a 400-foot free fall. The bizarre angles and perspectives really do make you feel as if you're swinging from a web. Do not miss this one.

Youngsters accustomed to action TV shows should be fine, but timid kids won't. Also skip this ride if you're pregnant or have heart, back, or neck problems. For people with disabilities: Equipped for assisted-listening devices. Guests using wheelchairs must transfer to a ride vehicle. Come early or at dusk or use Express Pass to save on your wait time. Be sure to check out the wanted posters of Spider-Man villains on the walls.

A roller coaster with a twist and plenty of turns, this ride offers a magical blend of speed with an interesting collection from Hagrid's unusual menagerie. It surpasses expectation despite the potentially hour-plus wait in line. Whether you've got a grip on the handlebars or are tucked into a sidecar, amid Hagrid's commentary and the sound of a motorcycle revving, you rocket into a series of low angle turns that snap around corners and into tight curves. You'll slow down long enough to meet one of Hagrid's friends (one with an unusual defense mechanism), and then it's back to the track with more speedy curves and more surreal creatures before you enter a fog bank and . . . begin the experience backward! One more turnaround, and you're blazing full-speed to the exhilarating end. For people with disabilities: Guests must transfer from wheelchairs to the ride vehicle. Lines can be incredibly long, and Express Pass isn't an option, so check the wait time before lining up.

How do you find Gringotts Bank? Look for the massive dragon atop the building and the statue of a Gringotts goblin standing on a towering stack of gold coins. The queue to the ride is an essential part of the attraction: you'll walk through the bank where a multitude of goblins work at their desks, diligently, wordlessly, and eerily. Soon you're in a ride vehicle and, after it departs the station, it's only a matter of moments before Bellatrix Lestrange notices your presence and then does everything in her supernatural power to prevent you from traveling any farther. So, from here on out, your vehicle will come face to 3-D face with a towering security detail that destroys the tracks and sends you deeper into the bank’s recesses.

Be warned that your first encounter with the one who shall not be named (aka Lord Voldemort) isn’t your last. After he presents you with a fiery souvenir, he and Bellatrix return again—but they’re no match for the scaly superhero who comes to your rescue. This ride's technology is a blend of virtual reality, 3-D effects, 4-D sensations, and gargantuan movie screens featuring scenes synchronized with the motion of your vehicle. For people with disabilities: Guests using wheelchairs must transfer to a ride vehicle. Lines can be quite long, so this is a good candidate for using Express Pass.

Of all of Universal's Harry Potter rides, this is the one that really puts you in the movies. In the queue, you enter the hallowed halls of Hogwarts, where you are introduced to the founders of the school, and you see the sights you know from the books and films: Headmaster Dumbledore's office, Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, Gryffindor common room, Room of Requirement, and the greenhouse. You also encounter the Sorting Hat, the One-Eyed Witch statue, and several talking portraits. Keep in mind, all this is just the preshow. Eventually heroes Harry, Ron, and Hermione arrive, encouraging you to skip a lecture and follow them on a soaring journey—and so you go.

Thanks to a combination of live-action, robotic technology, and innovative filmmaking, your broomstick flight brings you face-to-face with a flying dragon and the Whomping Willow before being propelled into the heart of a Quidditch match. You also zip through a dozen scenes and encounter supporting characters Albus Dumbledore, Rubeus Hagrid, Draco Malfoy, and members of the Weasley family. It's a fantastic attraction—especially for fans of the series. Alas, this is another ride that's not suitable for those with neck, back, or heart problems, as well as those who are pregnant or suffer from motion sickness. For people with disabilities: Guests using wheelchairs must transfer to a ride vehicle. Lines are usually long, but the preshow here is a large part of the fun, so although Express Pass is an option, you could also just simply relax and enjoy your tour of the school.

Predatory velociraptors patiently await your arrival on this new-in-2021 roller coaster featuring extremely wild twists and turns. Sparking the adventure is a high-speed launch that accelerates the string of cars from 0–50 mph in just 2 seconds. What immediately follows is a 90-degree twist and then a series of rises, turns, and S-bends before yet another boost that increases the speed from 40 to 70 mph in 2.4 seconds. It's just enough acceleration to get you to the peak of the attraction, a 155-foot "top hat" that's essential for what follows, namely, a 140-foot drop at an 80-degree angle, followed by a rapid series of turns of varying degrees and culminating with the "Mosasaurus Roll"—a loop at 53 mph. What you experience on this adrenaline-filled attraction might just explain why dinosaurs are extinct. It probably goes without saying, but we'll say it anyway: women who are pregnant and anyone who has a heart, neck, or back condition should avoid this coaster. For people with disabilities: the attraction has a device that can help people using wheelchairs transfer to the ride (see an attendant).

Walking through the queue area takes you through the history of The Tonight Show, with memorabilia honoring the hosts—Steve Allen, Jack Paar, Johnny Carson, Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Fallon—who have all put their stamp on the most famous program in late night. Nostalgia paves the way to a rocketing road trip that begins after a serenade by the Ragtime Gals, a visit by Hashtag the Panda, and a preshow area where, for the first time anywhere (more than likely) safety instructions are offered in a freestyle rap performed by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter of The Roots.

When the doors finally open, you'll find a seat before a towering screen that really comes to life when you fasten your seat belt, put on your 3-D glasses, and find yourself on the set of the show getting ready to race Jimmy through the halls of 30 Rock, down Broadway, through the streets of New York—and beyond. You follow in your own "car" beside Jimmy as you whip past taxis, pedestrians, and landmarks, before heading into space to land on the moon. Why not? For people with disabilities: Guests using wheelchairs must transfer to a ride vehicle. Free lockers are available for loose items. Use them.

As you enter this ride through Krusty the Clown's gaping mouth, and then receive a video greeting by citizens of Springfield, police chief Clancy Wiggum reminds you that if you must get sick, do it in your hat—and thus the tone is set for your arrival in one of television's most popular animated communities. The preshow explains that Krusty has expanded his empire to include a theme park, which his disgruntled former sidekick, Sideshow Bob, plans to sabotage. After a fairly tame start, your virtual car soars through virtual Springfield, plunging toward familiar businesses and buildings and narrowly escaping disaster as Sideshow Bob tears up the tracks and sends you racing through wild scenes in a variety of locations such as Disney, SeaWorld—and hell. Several times you're saved by the split-second timing of an unexpected hero.

Guests who are pregnant or who have heart, back, or neck problems shouldn't ride. For people with disabilities: Guests in wheelchairs must transfer to a ride vehicle. If you have even a scintilla of motion sickness, this one will throw you for a colorful, cartoonish loop.

The show begins in an intriguingly creepy preshow area where masks, props, and rubber skeletons from classic and contemporary horror films and tributes to great makeup artists like Lon Chaney, Rick Baker, and Jack Pierce make a great backdrop for a horrifying family photo. Inside the theater, your host brings out a special-effects expert who describes and shares some secrets about what goes into (and oozes out of) creepy movie effects (e.g., corn syrup and food coloring make for a dandy blood substitute).

Older children, in particular, eat up the blood-and-guts stories. But despite the potentially frightening topic, most audiences get a kick out of the show, because the subject is handled with an extraordinary amount of dead-on humor, including one-liners delivered with comedy-club timing. For people with disabilities: The theater is wheelchair accessible. Good scripts and good shtick mean that those with visual impairments can enjoy the show. Arrive about 15 minutes before showtime (doors close immediately after show starts).