This Destination Spotlight was paid for by a promotional fee from a Home & Away Publishing advertiser.

If Universal Orlando ever needs a testimonial, all they have to do is call my boy.

After all, Griffin had the best time of his life there. He told me so. Several times. When he got out of the hotel shower. Before he went to bed. In the airport. On the airplane.

His only lament was not being tall enough (he’s 8 and just 2 inches shy) to ride the Incredible Hulk Coaster and The Dueling Dragons, another roller coaster. He told me so. Several times. But his disappointment soon was channeled into the anticipation of returning someday soon.

Hero Worship
When we get there, I know just where he’ll head first—Islands of Adventure, one of two parks at the Universal Orlando Resort. Islands is divided into five sections, each with a different theme, and given his choice on the second day of our stay, Griffin made it clear we would be spending the lion’s share of our time at Marvel Super Hero Island.

Griffin’s two favorite rides are there: The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man and Doctor Doom’s Fearfall. Spider-Man was tops from the moment he rode it, but Doctor Doom came from behind to take second. They are very different rides, but both pack thrills.

In Spider-Man, riders become accidental participants in a fight between the Wall Crawler and five of his biggest enemies. Spider-Man is distracted by his obligation to protect the riders and the need to defeat the villains. In between, the bad guys, including Doctor Octopus and Hobgoblin, try to do way with the riders. The trip culminates with a plummet of something like 100 stories. Gripping the restraint was easy even though I knew Spider-Man would sling a web just in time to catch us.

The ride’s effects are generated with changes in perspective and 3-D technology, along with a car that moves and lifts several inches. It sounds unimpressive, perhaps, but the experience will leave you excited and smiling—even after the fifth time in about four hours, as it did us.

Meanwhile, the Doctor Doom ride is all about free falling—something I don’t do. It launches riders 150 feet up a tower, then drops them, and repeats the process—albeit from smaller distances. It looked daunting to Dad from the safe vantage of terra firma. Griffin saw it differently, and off he went. Alone. A lot.

After one ride, I waited nervously for him because he never appeared in the group of riders who had just exited. When he finally did show up, I found out he never got off and had gone up again.

Because Dad’s a coward, I had to rely on Griffin for a firsthand account of the ride.

“It’s like you’re part of the air,” he said.

So there you are—it’s elemental.

Off to the Islands
The four remaining Islands of Adventure held their own excitement. We got wet in Toon Lagoon aboard Popeye & Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges, a raft ride along a curving course with watery surprises along the way. It’s a welcome refreshment on a hot day.

The same is true at Jurassic Park River Adventure, but with a little more oomph. The ride begins as a leisurely “scientific tour,” but then something “malfunctions” and the boat is taken off course through an area where velociraptors have escaped and maybe even a T-rex is roaming. The boat is climbing during the detour and the T-rex appears just before the boat plummets toward the waiting river. Sit in the front if you want to be drenched.

Jurassic Park also has Pterandon Flyers, which is designed mostly for kids, but big kids like me can go on with their children. It’s a cool take on a chairlift ride, giving guests a pterandon’s-eye view of the isle while being rocked around corners. The Lost Continent is the next island, and much of its intrigue during our visit was created by the fenced off expanse being readied for a Harry Potter attraction. (Don’t get too eager—it won’t be ready until 2009 or 2010, and they were not saying much about it.)

We rode The Flying Unicorn, a small, fun rollercoaster that whetted Griffin’s appetite for bigger game. Unfortunately for him, that wasn’t to be found on Suess Landing, where the revered children’s book creator’s creations come to life. Griffin may have been too old for the fare on this island, but it’s full of whimsy and fun for youngsters.

In the Studio
The big game hunt ended in Universal Studios Orlando, which is adjacent to Islands of Adventure and host to Revenge of the Mummy—a ride that sates one’s appetite for exhilaration. It begins innocently enough with the car pulling into a tomb, where an undead corpse warns riders about Imhotep, the villain from The Mummy films. The car pulls into another room as scarabs crawl out of wall before Imhotep himself appears to menace the riders.

From there, the car pivots and begins the riders’ flight from the monster. After a steep ascent, the car plunges into rollercoaster mode under the cover of darkness. It’s all drops and twists and turns. I thought I was having fun, but when I saw the photo of our car posted in the souvenir shop, I had to reevaluate. I was grasping the restraining bar so hard, my forearm muscles were easily seen, and I wore an expression that suggested I was straining to keep my stomach inside my body.

I decided it was fun, but I needed a break. Griffin, of course, was ready to go again. Mummy is in the New York section of the park and was a stylish way to cap our first day at the resort, but that doesn’t diminish the Studios’ other rides and attractions. In fact, Griffin’s third-favorite ride of the trip was Men in Black Alien Attack in the World Expo section. On our way to MIB, we passed a stretch of fencing covered with images of characters from The Simpsons, portending a new attraction set to open in spring 2008. (As with the coming Harry Potter extravaganza, few things were being said about the Simpsons.)

Once aboard MIB, riders are whisked into a “training” scenario. Soon, the aliens are real and riders are charged with ridding the Earth of them. All six riders have a laser gun and a running point total tabulates in front of all of them. Not only are riders in friendly competition with one another, they also are dueling a car of six more riders traveling through the ride on a parallel track. The duel even involves shooting at the other car’s exhaust port; a direct hit sends that car into an uncontrollable spin. At the end, the winning car is cheered on by actor Will Smith in character as Agent J from the MIB movies.

Movie Magic
Studios mix the wonder of movie-making and entertainment masterfully at attractions such as Jaws in the San Francisco/Amity portion of the park. The ride is on a “tour boat” taking in the sights of New England when the giant great white begins stalking the craft. A mechanical shark is used strategically to startle riders and the boat driver is essential in selling the experience. In Twister … Ride It Out, in the New York section, guests get to hear the sound of a tornado, feel the force of a tornado and witness the havoc wreaked by a tornado. At Universal Horror Make-Up Show, in the Hollywood part of the park, visitors get to see how hideous effects are produced with props and make-up artists.

Two other rides use moving images and moving seats to put you into a movie. Shrek 4-D and Jimmy Neutron’s Nicktoon Blast are so fun you don’t have to be a fan of either show to enjoy them. In Shrek, you follow the story of Shrek and Donkey rescuing Princess Fiona from the ghost of Lord Farquaad. The animation is dazzling and an extra dimension is added. For example, our seats bounced as if we were aboard a wagon with Shrek and it felt like spiders were running past our legs when they dropped off the screen. In Jimmy Neutron, we rode along as Jimmy piloted our rocket by remote control as he tried to save the world. Along the way we dove and climbed, jerked and shuddered. We also passed through other Nickelodeon cartoons, including SpongeBob SquarePants.

All Through the Park
When we weren’t on the rides, strolling the parks was entertaining in itself. Griffin likened it to being at a carnival. There were games of skill, food vendors, souvenir shops and restaurants every few steps.

Between Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios, the carnival atmosphere is taken up a notch with a bevy of eateries, including Emeril’s. It’s part of City Walk, a 30-acre complex where the entertainment leans toward nightlife. Guests can party away the hours at the world’s largest Hard Rock Cafe and other hot spots, including City Jazz and The Groove. City Jazz is a nightclub great for taking in live music in an atmosphere punctuated by rare instruments and items belonging to jazz legends. On weekends, City Jazz becomes Bonkerz, a comedy club with national acts appearing on Saturdays. At the Groove, dancing is the order of the night. The state-of-the-art lighting and sound system puts people on the dance floor and gets them ready for different types of music every night.

Besides the Hard Rock, great dining can be had at City Walk’s several other themed restaurants, such as Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., NASCAR Sports Grille and NBA City. Plus, there’s a Bob Marley-themed eatery, as well as an airy diner with a Jimmy Buffet motif.

City Walk also has a movie theater, shops, events and spots where guests can just sit and take in the Florida weather and people watch. Or they could relax beside the lagoon and watch the water taxis come and go, or watch kids play near the giant Universal logo globe as it revolves in a greeting.

Capping a beyond-imagination experience at Universal is a night at the Sharp Aquos theater. That’s where The Blue Man Group performs nightly. The show is hard to describe—part interpretive dance and performance art mixed in with some comedian Gallagher antics (there’s even a poncho section to protect spectators from sprayed material) and rock percussion. Griffin didn’t know what to make of the show, but the spectacle of it we could agree fits in well with what makes a Universal vacation so memorable.

On Property
City Walk is easily accessible by constantly running shuttles and water taxis from one of the resort’s three hotels—the ideal way to experience Universal Orlando.

The water taxi was a relaxing float along a waterway that eventually opened up into a lagoon faced by the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel, our hotel during our stay. It was built to recall the Italian seaside town of the same name. I’ve never been there, but the hotel does a great job of mimicking the colorful look of a Mediterranean city. Nice touches include small boats moored just offshore, motorscooters parked along the walkways and the Italian flag flying over the courtyard. Restaurants ring the same courtyard and have open-air dining areas for anyone looking for something al fresco.

Universal’s other resort lodgings are the Hard Rock Hotel and Loews Royal Pacific Resort. The Hard Rock has the look of the Spanish mission architecture from California and has a palm-fringed swimming pool. And the Royal Pacific looks like it names suggests, a tropical island paradise.

Besides the traditional reasons—attentive service, dining and amenities—one of the best reasons to stay on property is that guests automatically gain Express Plus admission on rides in both theme parks. We just showed our room key and hit a separate line that took us right to the front. With so much to see and do, it’s a valuable fun-seeking tool.

The ultimate fun-seeking tool, however, is the VIP Tour Experience offered by Universal. Griffin asked what VIP stood for as we waited for our tour to start and marveled at being labeled a “very important person.” We certainly felt the part as our guide, Chris Ceraolo, took us into every nook and cranny of both parks.

Her 17-year tenure with the park was obvious in the knowledge she displayed and the warmth with which she was greeted by fellow employees everywhere. She got us into the back entrances of many attractions and onto rides right away just by saying, “I’ve got two.” She even got us access into the control rooms of both the Spider-Man and Mummy rides.

It was a special way to do the parks and made for a special experience for me and my son. Something Universal is obviously very good at doing.