A Few Uni Questions

[ShookieJones]

Hi Guys -

We're hitting Uni for the first time this year.

We're purchasing the 2 day multipark tickets.

We're in WDW from May 1st - 8th
We are currently planning on taking 2 of those days to hit US
Most likely Wednesday and Thursday May 4th and 5th.

So now my questions -

Are there certain days that are better to visit the parks less crowded etc?

Are there any special events during this week that I should work around to either avoid (i.e, grad nites at WDW) or go see (day specific shows or parades)?

I know everyone says you need to hit the HP section right off the get or you won't see it without waiting for hours. Is there any other tips like this that you guys may have of how to "hit" the parks?


Although I now always feel confident at WDW I'm super apprehensive about Uni so I want to make sure I do the park right and take full advantage of my 2 days.


Any help or comments you can provide will be much appreciated.

 

[nepalostparks]

We are heading down the week after you (8th -15th) and are spending just one day at Uni to hit the highlights (mostly HP.) I've been doing a lot of searching for info, since like you I feel more confident at WDW (plus, there's a lot more planning info for Disney vs. Universal.)

From what I have read, earlier in the week is better for Universal, with Tuesday being the least crowded on average. The reasoning is that most people will visit Disney first for their vacation, then move on to other parks and attractions later in the their week.

I did find this site while searching: http://www.orlandoinformer.com/ which has some details on Universal and Harry Potter. Seems pretty detailed in the handful of articles on Uni. Lots of photos and videos too (including a detailed account of the queue of Forbidden Journey, just as a spoiler warning.)

Hope this helps a little!

 

[ShookieJones]

Thanks for the info - much appreciated-- i will check the link now!

Have a great time when you go. The last 5 years we have always gone the first week of may (and had amazing luck weather and crowd wise) but I was this close to changing to the second week when i realized we caught 2 grad nites and 2 cheer days!

 

[OrlandoInformer]

Hi.

I saw that you found my site (I run OrlandoInformer.com).

It's great that you're coming to Universal Orlando for the first time. And yeah, with the tremendous success of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a first-time visit to Universal can be a bit daunting. Let's face it, with the WWoHP crowds its daunting for an Orlando veteran like me.

But if you haven't found out already, I have a huge archive of Universal Orlando and Harry Potter world tips on my site. I encourage you to check them out.

If you have more specific questions, please feel free to send me an email at dan@orlandoinformer.com or reply on this thread.

Good luck! I hope you find my site helpful!

 

[ShookieJones]

Thanks Dan (OI)!

I just started paging through your site and taking a real good look at all the amazingly detailed info. I will be back at it tonight until I have all the details. I will email you with questions if I can't find something...
Real quick - What's the deal with the "show" at Olivander's? I've read people's posts that say to actually stop there before heading to FJ?

Seems crazy considering the wait that you can inccur for FJ.

 

[OrlandoInformer]

Ollivander's in the wand shop inside the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. It is straight out of the books and movies. At Ollivander's, guests have what is called the "want experience," in which one guest out of about a dozen get to have a wand choose him or her.

The popularity of Ollivander's is perhaps Universal's biggest oversight in designing WWoHP. Because only about 10 to 15 guests get in at one time, and the experience takes about 6 or 7 minutes, a very, very long line forms very, very quickly. To worsen the situation, there is no structured queue outside of Ollivander's (again, a major oversight for Universal). So not only does the shop have perhaps the longest wait inside WWoHP--usually about the same as Forbidden Journey--you have to do it while standing out in the sun.

Here's a pic of the queue for Ollivander's taken from the queue heading up to Dragon Challenge:

That photo doesn't really give you a sense of the length of the line, but it does show you how the line is stuck out there between two buildings.

Anyway, the point of all this is yes, you want to do Ollivander's first if you have a little one with you who is eager to see this experience. Just keep in mind that only one guest is chosen out of each group--everyone else is a spectator.

Also, you can now buy wands throughout the resort (I think you can even buy them at the Universal store at the airport), so don't think you have to go through all of this just to get a wand.

You'd probably be interested in watching this video I made over the weekend. It is a 10-minute documentary of the entire WWoHP experience, from Hogsmeade into Forbidden Journey. There's even a quick clip of Ollivander's, although just from the outside, not from the wand experience inside.

Oh wait. I forgot that this forum doesn't have a video plug-in. Well here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheOrlandoInformer?feature=mhsn#p/f/2/6LK_MozGBjI

You can also search YouTube for videos of the wand experience in Ollivander's. There are lots of them.

Alright, I did it for you. Here's one from Orlando Attractions Magazine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPJKPE0yKGM

Let me know what other questions you have!

 

[ShookieJones]

Dan thanks again the pic and videos are super helpful. Your website is awesome! Amazing attention to detail and some really great tips! For instance we just did the vacation package " tip/trick" you mentioned on your site even though we didnt need the room (we are already booked at wdw) the extra 70 bucks seems well worth the 2 days of early entry park hours at ioa.

As far as olivanders is concerned we don't have a "little" one but our 15 yr old daughter is a huge fan and even if she doesnt get picked i know she will love the show just the same.

So with the early entry do we still need to get in olivanders line first? Or will being in front of the normal park crowds be enough time to hit fj first then do olivanders just before normal park opening? Sorry if im beinwg redundant- im a planner by nature

 

[OrlandoInformer]

You can probably get away with doing FJ first. But please, do the TOUR FIRST and then go through the regular line for the ride. Hopefully you saw my explanation of this on my site.

By the time you get out of FJ the line for Ollivanders will probably be 30+. But since you are going two mornings, you'll get a chance to do Ollivanders first if you want the next day. Or you could just wait the 30 minutes. Maybe it'll end up being less.

Since you got so much help from my site, I'd appreciate it if you left a comment either on my Facebook page http://facebook.com/orlandoinformer.page or on any one of my posts at http://orlandoinformer.com.

Glad I could help so much. Tell your friends! Thanks for the Positive feedback.

 

[ShookieJones]

Ok point taken - Olivanders first!

Yes i did read up on going through the regular line, etc. Thanks!

Done and done!

 

[WildcatDen]

So, how crowded would a Sunday in June be?

 

[OrlandoInformer]

I would expect it to be very crowed. June is about as busy as it gets in Orlando (aside from perhaps the July 4th weekend or the last week in December). Doesn't really matter what specific day you come. Everyone is in Orlando because kids are out of school, and everyone in Orlando wants to see Harry Potter

I tried to include a link in this reply to my site, so you could see what the crowds will look like, but it was rejected by the forum moderator. If you are interested, you'll have to visit my site and find it. Go to the homepage, click on the "Wizarding World of Harry Potter" link in the top navigation bar, and look for the post titled "Wizarding World of Harry Potter: You've got to see this before you go."

 

[iheartarkansas]

WOW! I knew WWOHP would be crowded, but I had NO IDEA that they would be as bad as they are in the photo/video posted by Orlando Informer. That is completely insane. Is it any better during early entry? Will be there May 15-17 and staying on site.

 

[ShookieJones]

WOW! I knew WWOHP would be crowded, but I had NO IDEA that they would be as bad as they are in the photo/video posted by Orlando Informer. That is completely insane. Is it any better during early entry? Will be there May 15-17 and staying on site.

Check Dan's site listed in the thread above. He has a ton of info,tips and tricks to get the most out your time at wwohp.

 

[sblanton]

Thanksgiving week

We are planning a trip to Orlando the week of Thanksgiving. What kind of crowds should we expect? We'll be arriving 11/19 or 11/20 and stay for the week. Is it still warm enough in late November to do any of the water rides? By that time WWoHP will have been opened for over a year, so we are hoping it won't be as crowded. Any ideas? I'm definitely going to check out the orlando insider link. Thanks!
:wave:

 

[OrlandoInformer]

The week of Thanksgiving is *extremely* busy, and even though WWoHP will have been open more than a year by that time, I guarantee you it will be packed. Absolutely expect summer-level crowds. If you are here the whole week, then it may be a bit lighter for your first weekend, but it will pick up fast as you get closer to Thanksgiving.

Now, if you were coming one week earlier or one week later... well, that would be a completely different story. Early November and early December are hands-down the best time time to visit the parks, at least in terms of crowd levels.

Definitely check out OrlandoInformer for more information about WWoHP crowd levels and insider secrets to avoid them.

As far as weather, November is usually really nice, at least during the day. Average high is almost 80, and all that sticky humidity is gone. If it is sunny enough out, then you should be able to enjoy the water rides or going in the pool. Once the sun sets, however, it gets chilly. Lows in November are in the upper 50s. You'll definitely want to bring layers you can put on as the night sets in.

Hope that helps!

 

[daikonjam]

I was lucky enough to be picked for the wand demonstration, and let me tell you, it's AMAZING. You feel so incredibly magical I can't even put it in words.

Keep in mind though, Harry Potter was my CHILDHOOD. I cried a little when i first walked through there. It's like "ok, my childhood is complete, i can grow up happy now" I didn't even care that I'm 18, i was jumping around like a little kid when i came out of the presentation room. the people were like "you don't have to buy the wand if you don't want to" and I was like "ARE YOU KIDDING ME? THE WAND CHOSE ME THERES NO WAY I CANT BUY IT!" so the marketing is infallible to say the least.

My advise for when you go to ollivanders? Have your daughter geek out on them, with the "OMG NO WAY HEEHEEHEEE" face on. have her flail a little. I did that on purpose and it actually worked, so I want to see if that's why they picked me

 

[rachealyates]

So now my questions -

Are there certain days that are better to visit the parks less crowded etc?

Are there any special events during this week that I should work around to either avoid (i.e, grad nites at WDW) or go see (day specific shows or parades)?

I know everyone says you need to hit the HP section right off the get or you won't see it without waiting for hours. Is there any other tips like this that you guys may have of how to "hit" the parks?


Although I now always feel confident at WDW I'm super apprehensive about Uni so I want to make sure I do the park right and take full advantage of my 2 days.


Any help or comments you can provide will be much appreciated.

I've been told by a Universal employee that the busiest days for Islands are Mondays and Thursdays.

As for the WWOHP, I highly suggest getting to the gate at least an hour before the park opens. Make a mad dash straight for Potter (make a right and go through Seuss Landing). Do Ollivanders or Forbidden Journey first. I personally try Ollivanders first because the line is in the sun and it can be pretty hot sometimes.

If you don't mind being split up, do single riders for the rides that offer it. It will make your wait times shorter and you'll be able to see more in the parks.

As for special events, I don't think there's anything going on except Grad Bash on the 6th and 7th.. But that's after park hours from 7pm-2am. I also highly recommend the Horror Make Up Show in the Studios. It's one of my favorites. It's funny and deals with Horror and how the make up is done.