A theme park vacation is stressful normally, let alone with young children or babies! Despite Universal’s thrilling reputation, there are lots of things for young children to make their day in the parks. This article will cover all you will need to know when touring with babies and toddlers, from Rider Swap to Family Care Centers, food to characters, and more!

Universal’s Intense Reputation

Universal Orlando’s attractions are big, loud, visually startling, and physically intense. While the rollercoasters receive most of the attention, all the rides and shows at the resort pack more of a punch when compared to regional theme parks and Disney. For example, the Cat in the Hat dark ride in Seuss Landing at Islands of Adventure has a minimum height requirement of 36 inches, shows scenes with loud noises, dark segments, and times when the vehicle spins. Compare this to The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh at Magic Kingdom has no height requirement, a mild soundtrack, and a pleasant ride. Don’t assume that a similar-looking ride has the same motion and effects as another.

Don’t stress, even with Universal’s louder offerings, your family can find a full day of activities and fun with babies and toddlers.

Admission, Ages, & Pricing

Theme park admission for children under 3 years old is free, while admission for children ages 3 to 9 runs $5 to $10 less than adult admission, based on the admission type. Annual Passes and Express Passes are priced the same for all guests no matter the age. Halloween Horror Nights does not sell discounted admission for children, and Universal advises guests 13 and younger not to attend. Ultimately, it’s up to parental discretion if HHN is too much for their child, but don’t be the person pushing a stroller through a scare zone.

Hotels

Universal Orlando has eleven hotels on property that are operated by Loews Hotels. The hotels are friendly to families of all ages and offer great amenities like in-room refrigerators, crib rentals, Early Park Admission, on-site dining, package delivery from the theme parks, kids’ splash pads at the pool, on-site security, and much more. Hotel themes range from rock and roll to celebrating Southern California surfing culture, the hills of Portofino, Italy, to a South Seas tropical resort, and from rock and roll to the cosmos. We think there are a few hotels that stand above the others for babies and young children.

One of our favorite resorts for families is Cabana Bay Beach Resort, themed to a retro 1950s motel complete with vintage vehicles, a malt shop, and a chic beach atmosphere. There are lots of outdoor spaces to play at, including playgrounds and sand pits, plus two pools and a lazy river. Daily activities and poolside movies will keep the whole family entertained all day. Bayliner Diner is a buffeteria that serves comfort food like burgers, fries, grilled cheese, chicken tenders, and salads. Multiple room types are available, from a standard two-queen-bed room to multi-room suites that offer a bed for everyone. Prices for rooms start in the high $100s to low $200s.

For a more affordable room option, consider the twin Endless Summer resorts, which offer standard rooms and two-bedroom suites at affordable rates. The resort has fewer activities for kids, but they do have splash pads and a quick service dining location with picky eater-friendly options. We especially love the two-bedroom suites at Endless Summer, where kids (or the adults) have a separate room from the rest of the party. Endless Summer rack rates start around $100 a night, with prices going up to the mid-$200s during holiday periods.

If you have some cash to splash and want the closest option to Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure, and CityWalk, then stay at the Hard Rock Hotel. The house that rock built is minutes away from USF’s front entrance and includes Universal’s Express Pass with your stay (only valid at USF and IOA). The Kitchen is a sit-down full-service and buffet restaurant that is child-friendly with lots of great food options. Only issues with Hard Rock are the price and theming; at a rack rate over $400 a night (with most nights sold in the $600s), it is not a low-price hotel. The rock and roll theme also might be a bit unapproachable for young kids, as there is more Talking Heads than Coco Mellon.

Transportation, Security, & Strollers

The Universal Orlando resort complex is serviced by a fleet of buses operated by Universal. The buses are modern, air-conditioned, and ADA accessible, with plenty of seats for everyone. Collapsible strollers must be closed and stowed on the buses; larger strollers are welcome but are loaded from the middle door of the bus before general loading. The Universal theme parks offer stroller rentals at the theme park entrance; you will need to hoof it from the parking garage, through CityWalk, and to the park entrance before the rental location. Stroller rentals start at $40 per day plus tax.

Before entering CityWalk or the theme parks, you’ll need to pass through security. Universal has metal detection and a bag scanner in the parking garage and outside CityWalk and the theme parks. All bags and loose items go through a bag scanner, and guests pass through metal detectors. Keep this in mind while walking to the parks with kids.

Child Care Areas

All Universal Orlando theme parks feature Baby Change areas in restrooms and Baby Care Centers that offer supplies, privacy, and air conditioning. Epic Universe has taken this up one notch with their Family Centers, which provide amenities for families who need special attention or privacy during the day. Such amenities include baby stations, feeding rooms, sensory rooms, a small bottle prep station, and a general products vending machine.

 

Family Care Center is found next to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic in Epic Universe. Baby care centers with nursing stations are located at Universal Studios Florida at the front of the park by Lost & Found, in Islands of Adventure at the front of the park next to Guest Relations, and at Volcano Bay at the park front entrance First Aid Station.

Rider Swap

Child Swap, also known as Rider Swap, is a program where families can wait once without if someone in the party cannot ride due to height or a medical restriction. Guests wait together in the ride queue before approaching the ride load area, where guests not riding wait together. For families with small children, an adult waits with the child while another adult rides. Once the riding adult(s) return, they swap with the waiting adult(s) and wait with the child.

It’s a program that works in theory and has its positives and negatives. For the positives, groups are kept together, and there is no fighting over who goes with which parent or separation anxiety. On the other hand, queues for Revenge of the Mummy, Reign of Kong, and Monsters Unchained can be as intense and loud as the rides themselves.

Playgrounds

All of Universal’s parks feature parks and play areas for young children with soft padding surfaces, water, slides, and more. Here are our favorite playground areas in the parks:

Universal Studios Florida

• DreamWorks Land Shrek’s Swamp For Little Ogres – Slides and small fountains around Shrek’s house
• DreamWorks Land King Harold’s Swamp Symphony – Stomp on soft lilies to make frogs croak
• DreamWorks Land Poppy’s Playground – Playground for the youngest children with climbable objects
• DreamWorks Land Kung Fu Training Camp – Dry spinning playground items and a wet side with a tipping bucket of water.

Islands of Adventure

• Seuss Landing If I Ran the Zoo – Dr Seuss themed playground with slides and play areas. Mostly for young children.
• Jurassic Park Camp Cretaceous – Playground for kids of all ages, offers slides and nets to caves to large climbing structures.

Epic Universe

• Celestial Park Astronomica – Water splash pad
• How to Train Your Dragon Isle of Berk Viking Training Camp – Dry and wet play area with slides and climbing structures.

Volcano Bay

• Runnamuka Reef – Water playground with water slides, fountains, and jets.

Characters, Shows, & More

Universal Orlando might not have the Mouse, but they have dozens of other famous characters to meet and dance with in their parks. Universal’s current line-up of characters includes those from DreamWorks films like Shrek and Kung Fu Panda, Illumination movies like Minions, Marvel characters, Simpsons characters, and the friendly characters of Dr. Seuss. Meet and greets are readily available in the parks, though we tend to find the most characters in Universal Studios Florida’s Hollywood section and DreamWorks Land, Islands of Adventure’s Marvel Super Hero Island and Seuss Landing, and Isle of Berk and Super Nintendo World at Epic Universe.

Shows are a great way to get off your feet and out of the sun during the midday heat. While we enjoy many of Universal’s shows, some are loud and scary, like The Bourne Stuntacular. Here are four shows that rate highly with children:

• DreamWorks Imagination Celebration – An indoor dance party featuring your favorite DreamWorks characters as they sing and play with guests. A quiet favorite of several adults with kids.
• Animal Actors – Now on Stage! – Dogs, cats, parrots, and pigs perform tricks and show off how animals “act” in movies. Some shows have a meet and greet with the dogs afterwards. A perennial favorite of kids.
• Diagon Alley shows – Two shows, one a singing show and the other a puppet show, that dive into the extended world of Harry Potter.
• Oh! The Stories You’ll Hear – A small-scale story time show in Seuss Landing featuring Dr. Seuss characters.

The Universal Mega Movie Parade is a daily parade featuring popular Universal, Illumination, and DreamWorks characters. The parade performs at Universal Studios Florida and circles the Hollywood and New York sections of the park. During the winter holidays, Universal instead performs the Universal Holiday Parade featuring Macy’s. The nighttime parade features Santa, Shrek, Minions, and the iconic oversized Macy’s Parade balloons.

Food

Children do not eat free at Universal, sorry parents. But all restaurants feature children’s menus that include more familiar items with smaller portion sizes. Bring your bottle and formula for baby feeding, but young children are allowed to eat off your plate. While each restaurant has a children’s menu, some locations are better for babies and toddlers than others:

• Fast Food Boulevard – A buffeteria with lots of options for the whole family, including chicken tenders, pizza, burgers, and more.
• Finnegan’s Bar & Grill – Sit-down restaurant in USF that offers familiar food options like burgers, chicken strips, and more.
• Circus McGurkus Cafe Stoo-pendous – Seuss Landing’s indoor restaurant has a vibrant and fun interior that matches the unique food options.
• Cafe 4 – It’s boring but reliable – burgers, chicken, and pizza.
• Toothsome Chocolate Emporium – “We have Cheescake Factory at home”. Large menu full of unique dishes with lots of desserts. Walk-around characters entertain the kids.
• Hard Rock Cafe – Loud, but you know what you’re getting with the menu of burgers, pasta, and chicken.

Baby Sitting

Need a night to yourselves at dinner or Hallween Horror Nights? Consider an in room babysitter. We recommend Kids Night Out in-room sitters who will have certified and background checked sitters for babies and toddler. Keep in mind that activities like dinner and going to the parks will cost additional money.

Have you traveled with your toddler or baby to Universal Orlando? Leave your tips in the comments below!