All About Our Orlando Spring Break Trip

Last week we went on a family trip to Orlando. Here’s where we stayed, what amusement parks we went to, what we did, and all the outfits I wore! 

Our Spring Break in Orlando

Last week we took our 3 boys to spring break in Orlando! We went to Universal Studios and SeaWorld. Here are all the details on our trip, from why we booked certain park tickets, how we broke up park and resort days, and of course, what I wore!

Our schedule for the week in Orlando

Sunday evening: arrive

Monday: Universal Studios

Tuesday: Universal Studios

Wednesday: Switch hotels and Pool Day

Thursday: SeaWorld

Friday: Pool Day

Saturday: Depart

Where we stayed during our Orlando Spring Break trip

We stayed in two different hotels during our stay. The first was on property at Universal Studios, at the Loews Royal Pacific Resort. It’s definitely more expensive than a regular hotel, but it includes front of the line passes and early entry passes with each of the tickets to Universal Studios. Also it’s a five minute walk to the parks in the morning, and easy to get back home quickly at the end of a long park day.

We also stayed at the Signia by Hilton, Orlando Bonnet Creek hotel for the second half of our stay. This was about a 15 minute drive from SeaWorld, but we were only at that park for one day so a farther drive wasn’t a big deal. We mostly stayed here because of the amazing pool, knowing we’d have two pool days there.

How many days we did at Universal Studios

We did two days at Universal Studios, which was absolutely perfect. We were able to ride every ride that we wanted to, and we rode our favorites many times (including VeliciCoaster seven times and Hagrid’s Motor Bike Adventure three times), so we all felt like we did not need a third day. Two full days in the parks is exhausting and we were for sure ready for a relaxing day after day two.

I love Disney, but truly Universal Studios might be my very favorite theme park. I’m such a Harry Potter fan, and the two Harry Potter lands that they have in the parks are unbeatable. So magical and beautiful and spectacularly done. I would go back in a heartbeat (and actually we plan to next year since the new Epic Park opens in a few months)!

Did we get park hoppers?

We did get park hoppers this time! When we visited in 2021, we visited the parks for two days, but we didn’t do park hoppers that time. This time we wanted to be able to ride the Hogwarts Express train, which is only available to park hopper pass holders, and also we wanted to be able to switch between parks to do all the big rides. In 2021, our kids were much younger and smaller, so we spent a lot more time doing the little rides at a single park. This time, all of our kids only wanted to do the big rides, so we did all the rides in one park and then were able to move to the other park and do their big rides on the same day.

Did we get fast passes? And were they worth it? 

Yes, and YES! As I mentioned above, our fast passes were included in our hotel stay. But even if we hadn’t stayed at that hotel, we would absolutely have gotten the fast passes. The lines are so long, and if you’re able to avoid spending half of your day in 1-2 hour lines, it makes the day so much better.

Just a note – the fast passes are not available for Hagrid’s Motorbike, and that is the longest line in the park always, so getting there early and going straight to that ride is the best way to do it. With our early entry, we arrived about 45 minutes before early entrance time, got into the park right when it opened, and only stood in line for Hagrid’s Motorbike for about 30 minutes.

If you don’t have early entry, try going to Hagrid’s Motorbike at the very end of the day. The line closes at 9pm when the park closes, but if you’re already in line by then, you get to stay in line and they’ll continue to let people ride until the line is empty. Lines will be shorter at the end of the day anyway, so get there around 8:30 or 8:45 and you’ll probably see the shortest lines of the day and be out of there within an hour. Not guaranteed obviously, but it’s worth trying, and riding that ride at night is THE BEST.

How many days we did at SeaWorld

We only did one day at SeaWorld, and that was definitely plenty. There are only seven big roller coasters there, with one currently under construction, so with our fast passes, we rode all of them many times and didn’t feel like a second day would have been of interest at all.

That being said, the rides at SeaWorld were tremendous! We had SO MUCH FUN. Lots of rides with cool features (like a standing roller coaster!) that made it a really fun and different kind of experience. We highly recommend going with your kids if they love roller coasters.

And of course they still have the beloved animal shows, which are beautiful and educational and fun for the whole family.

What ages are good for Universal Studios and SeaWorld?

Our kids are 14, 12, and 9 right now, and they’re THE PERFECT ages for these parks. They’re not too old for the themes and magic, but old and tall enough to ride and want to ride everything. Our youngest got over his fear of roller coasters last summer at our local Six Flags, so he rode every single big ride at Universal Studios and SeaWorld without a problem.

However, we still loved it in 2021 when our youngest was barely 5 years old. There are lots of fun kiddie rides, and the parent swap system is very good so it’s easy to take bigger kids on the big rides even if your smaller kids are too young or short to ride.

Best places to eat at Universal Studios and SeaWorld

Islands of Adventure: absolutely eat at The Three Broomsticks. It has really good breakfast and lunch and dinner. Highly recommend the half chicken for lunch or dinner. Also this is the only place in this park you can try all the styles of butter beer drink — hot, frozen, and regular. Try all three and do a taste test!

Universal Studios: definitely recommend Cocina Mexicana for the Birria Tacos. They’re kind of small for the price, but they’re insanely good.

SeaWorld Orlando: Try Voyager’s Smokehouse – it’s all smoked meat right on the property, and the ribs and brisket and chicken were delicious! We were all very happily surprised.

What I wore on this spring break trip to Orlando

My goal, as always, at theme parks, is to be cute and comfortable. Here’s what I wore for each day of this trip:

GINGHAM PANTS OUTFIT | GREEN JACKET OUTFIT

BLACK POLKA DOT SWIMSUIT OUTFIT | GREEN JUMPSUIT OUTFIT

GREEN SWIMSUIT OUTFIT | WHITE DRESS OUTFIT

IF YOU LIKED THIS POST, YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:

• Our Spring Break in Kiawah Island

• All About Our Family Trip to South Africa

• What We Did On Our Family Reunion in Mexico