Best Wet Rides at Universal Orlando Resort
Have you stood outside lately? It’s HOT!
You can imagine how you’ll feel during a theme park visit. So why hasn’t anyone invented a portable air conditioner we can keep on our bodies yet?
Photo: Universal
Ah well. Until that happens, we’ll rely on the tried and true methods for staying cool on scorching summer days.
Here are the best wet rides at Universal Orlando Resort.
Photo: Universal
Curious George Goes to Town – Universal Studios Florida
Okay, I’m starting with a cheat, and I admit it. However, the Curious George play area within Woody Woodpecker’s KidZone deserves special mention.
This splash zone isn’t the usual kind you’ll find at theme parks. Well, it is, but the Curious George section comes with tricks.
Photo: Universal
Here’s a video to show what I mean:
How many different drench-worthy activities did you count there?
I mean, one of them is straight out of Flashdance. You pull a lever, and water drowns you.
Photo: Universal
On a hot summer day, you know that you can go to this section of the park and take a fully clothed shower. That can be a lifesaver at times.
Central Florida temperatures often reach/surpass 100 degrees. Knowing that you can drop a bucket of water on your head whenever you need it is vital information!
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish — Islands of Adventure
Here’s another option that should come with an asterisk. On this spinner flat ride, you can control the height of your fish.
You move up and down as appropriate to enhance your enjoyment of the experience.
Photo: Universal Orlando
Meanwhile, spitter fish outside the ride’s circular path try to get you wet.
Depending on your mood at the time, you may try to avoid it…but NOT on a hot summer day! On these days, you aim for the spit! Okay, it’s not spit.
Source: Orlando Informer
The ride’s exterior fish release projectile streams of water that will provide you with a healing dose of cooling water.
Unfortunately, you cannot control the water’s release, though. So, some rides prove wetter than others.
Photo: Universal
Thankfully, the wait time on this attraction rarely surpasses 25 minutes, even during the heart of summer.
When you don’t get wet enough, just ride it again!
Jurassic Park River Adventure – Islands of Adventure
Since 1999, Universal’s Islands of Adventure fans have re-lived the Jurassic Park experience in the most believable manner possible.
The ride’s storytelling structure mimics the first film. First, the gorgeous island of Jurassic Park reveals itself to you as an untouched paradise.
Photo: Universal Orlando
You gaze in awe as extinct dinosaurs somehow come to life. Then, you watch in shock and horror as they turn on their human overlords.
All the while, you’re stuck on a raft and cannot do anything about the sudden reversal of fortune.
Ultimately, Jurassic Park River Adventure leads to a splash down that will leave your clothes dripping and your heart racing.
Image Credit: Universal
You’ve escaped history’s most ferocious predators…and cooled off several degrees in the process!
Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls — Universal’s Islands of Adventure
Speaking of 1999, that’s the last time Dudley Do-Right was relevant.
The beloved Canadian cartoon character of yesterday requires some explaining now, especially if you don’t know who Brendan Fraser is.
Photo: wdwinfo
Hint: he’s the dude who dies at the end of Revenge of the Mummy.
Anyway, Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls charmingly celebrates the character, although it’s not for fans of female (or horse) empowerment.
Photo: Universal
We’re talking about the old-school twirling mustache villain tying a woman to the train tracks, which I’d still take over a murder podcast any day.
Cartoon violence is substantially more tolerable than the real deal.
Photo:uofanguide.com
Anyway again, you’ll love this ride as long as you can get past its dated nature. It lasts for four minutes, and much of it takes place indoors.
So, you cool off in between outdoor splashes. Better yet, there are several of those, meaning that your odds of getting wet are 100 percent.
Photo: Universal
Popeye and Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges – Islands of Adventure
While I find Ripsaw Falls quite charming despite its outdated themes, I believe that Bilge-Rat Barges provides the best wet ride option at Universal Orlando Resort.
This ride is one of those giant raft adventures wherein you’re one of 12-16 people spinning in circles.
Source: Universal Orlando
ALL OF YOU will get wet. The only debate lies in who absorbs the worst beating. One pair always winds up at the bottom of this struggle.
For whatever reason – and it’s a weight-balancing thing – the rafts randomly punish one set of seats to the point that the people need to dry off for hours afterward.
Photo: Universal
If anything, you may overcorrect by riding Bilge-Rat Barges. You’ll get so wet that your socks won’t dry off for the rest of your park visit!
Other Options for Cooling Off
Photo: Instagram/Universal
While I’ve covered all the wet rides at Universal Orlando Resort, you can still cool down at other attractions.
At least one of them is counterintuitive, though. Doctor Doom’s Fearfall resides outdoors, which is generally NOT the way to avoid the heat.
However, this drop ride will carry you to the skies before dropping you to the ground while simultaneously defying gravity.
When the line is short, this one will definitely make you feel better…and also possibly nauseous.
As far as indoor rides go, Despicable Me Minion Mayhem comes with outdoor line queues. Past a certain point, you’ll wait inside, though.
From that point on, you’ll participate in a pre-ride video and then enjoy the ride itself. So, you’ll spend half an hour in line in exchange for 15 minutes of cooldown.
Finally, you should consider Hogwarts Express as an ideal ride for resetting and rebooting.
Most of the line queue resides in a covered, climate-controlled area. As for the ride itself, you watch a Harry Potter story unfold from the comfort of a train cart.
Also, the story changes depending on which way you’re going between Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley. For this reason, you should ride it twice!
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