The food
Image: DisneyAs much as any category here, this is the one where Universal simply cannot hope to compete with Disney. At Walt Disney World alone, Disney has built hundreds of restaurants. I am not exaggerating in the least when I say that the 25th best eatery at Walt Disney World would battle Mythos for the title of best restaurant at Universal Resort Orlando.
Let’s take a quick overview of the situation. The best food at Universal is up for debate. Many people tend to leave the parks when they’re hungry, choosing to eat at Universal CityWalk in the adjoining entertainment complex. The people who do eat inside a Universal theme parks either don’t want to go to the effort of traversing the park back to the front entrance or love Harry Potter/The Simpsons. Few people dine at Universal for the flavors.
Image: DisneyWalt Disney World is different. Foodies flock to the campus, visiting from around the world. While most of them are there for other reasons, people still take their Disney dining seriously. Entire websites, popular ones, focus on all the new and beloved cuisines available. Eater, one of the biggest foodie sites on the planet, does the same. They not only cover Disney restaurant changes on a weekly basis but also have an entire section of their site devoted to Disney dining. Eater culled the list of Disney eateries down to their 38 favorite locations. No such list exists at Universal. Why would it? Other than Mythos, nothing there is noteworthy unless you’re a fan of chain restaurants.
Disney trains and/or hires some of the finest chefs in the world. One of their restaurants, Victoria & Albert’s, is currently listed as the second best fine dining experience in the United States. That’s out of EVERYTHING, not just theme parks. Disney takes its food seriously, and the result is there in every bite.
Better extras
Image: DisneyLook, I’m in the tank for Disney. Statistics show that most people are. Still, the unbiased analysis of these two companies is that Universal’s been playing catch-up for a long time. While they’ve caught lightning in a bottle with Harry Potter and I expect Nintendoland to have the same kind of popularity, Universal’s still faaaaaaaaaaar behind Disney in some key areas.
As a movie lover, I happen to love the nighttime show, Universal’s Cinematic Spectacular. I would actually rate it ahead of Illuminations, which is the one that theme park voters generally pick as the best in the world. Personally, I’d still slot it behind Wishes and Fantasmic!, though. That’s what is amazing about Walt Disney World and Disneyland. Every gate comes with its nightly parades and fireworks.
Image: DisneyUniversal cannot touch Paint the Night or even Rivers of Light. They have no Main Street Electrical Parade. And Universal’s character meet and greets are not anywhere near the level of Disney’s princesses, furry friends, and the Mickey Mouse crew. These extras are HUGE competitive advantages that Disney still somehow finds new ways to upgrade.
I could also mention the vastly superior merchandise options at Disney (and the brilliant design of many of the stores) or go into greater detail about the Disney Bubble. These are the casual parts of a Disney trip that theme park tourists have come to expect so much that we may take them for granted. Universal’s definitely on the upswing right now, and they deserve all the credit in the world for their recent reversal of fortune. They’re still miles behind Disney in the overall theme park battle, though.
Comments
I agree on the rides. I think it's a push. Both are good in their own way. Disney does crush Universal on food, thanks in a big way to World Showcase at EPCOT.
I also think an advantage to Disney is the size. You just feel separate from everything while you are there. Due to it's location and size, Universal can't do the same.
Quite the opposite in regards to a totally immersive land. Universal has had Harry Potter for nearly a decade, and we are just now seeing Disney get their first immersive land with Pandora.
I know two teenage boys (my sons) who completely disagree with you. They are more about thrills and screens and less about slow boat rides and animatronics. To each, their own.
Agree with everything except better rides. Disney had better rides 15 years ago but not anymore. You make the same fanboy argument about motion simulators that is off base. Yes they have quite a few but no ones favorite ride is the Simpsons ride. Where are Hulk, Rockit,Dragons, Forbidden Journey, And Gringotts on this list. Plus the Hogwarts express is a much better mode of transportation between parks then the monorail or glorified cable cars will ever be.
Disney has nothing that can even compare to these rides at all. Nothing as technologically advanced or fun. Universal may do a lot of simulators (I'm looking at you Fallon) but their non simulator rides are leaps and bounds better than anything Disney is building. Disney has built a kiddie coaster, reskinned a boat ride, built the worst dark ride they have (that's you Mermaid) and well that's about it in the last decade. The two new rides this year are a boat ride and Soarin 2.0 as part of Pandora.
I'm starting this here... NOT ANOTHER BOAT RIDE at Disney. I think they have more boat rides than Universal has simulators. Pirates, Frozen, Pandora, Living with the Land, Small world, Tom Sawyer island, etc. Star Wars first order ride is going to be a boat ride I bet.
Overall good article, just please don't be a fanboy and fall for that garbage Disney argument of everything is screens at Universal. That's for whiny Disney fanatics that can't stand that they don't have good rides at their favorite park and have to go up the street to ride the best rides in Orlando.