August trip - do I need express pass?

[DocAlan02]

So we will be going to Universal for 3 days before a week at Disney this August. I haven't been there since a one day trip about 10 years ago. The Express Pass is so expensive, that I am really unsure about it. Would it just be a terrible idea to not buy it? Will we be in for unbearable lines everywhere? An extra $540/day for the 3 of us just seems insane.
Any help is appreciated.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Wow, at those prices you could just get 2 nights at one of their Deluxe hotels and get 3 days of free express passes for everyone and save about $500 and have handy pool for mid afternoon park breaks.

 

[DocAlan02]

Wow, at those prices you could just get 2 nights at one of their Deluxe hotels and get 3 days of free express passes for everyone and save about $500 and have handy pool for mid afternoon park breaks.

I saw that it was included with the "premier" resorts. But that would not save us money...it would just cost the same as if we stayed where we plan to stay (Cabana Bay) and buy the express passes. But in both cases, that is more than I want to spend.

 

[JediMasterMatt]

I saw that it was included with the "premier" resorts. But that would not save us money...it would just cost the same as if we stayed where we plan to stay (Cabana Bay) and buy the express passes. But in both cases, that is more than I want to spend.

There is another option to consider as well. When you stay at a deluxe Uni Resort, you get unlimited Express Pass on the day you check in AND the day you check out. In essence, it's 2 days worth of Express for one night stay.

So, when you do the math for this, factor in the possibility of swapping hotels as you stay. Check into the Deluxe on day 1, check out on day 2 and then move to Cabana Bay. Lather, rinse, repeat as needed.

You also asked do you "need" Express Pass. That is an entirely subjective question. For me, I can't imagine visiting Universal for an entire day without it unless you catch it on a cold rainy day when there are no lines at all. Even if the lines are "short" at 20 minutes or so, that means Express is a walk-on and then you get into the math of riding multiple rides in the span of just one without it.

As Disneyhead mentioned, I would really encourage planning it into your budget. You can fly directly into the headwinds of busy days at Uni with Express in hand and still have a great time. Look into the resort hopping option above. If you plan on even number of days onsite, you can swap twice and have four days of hassle free fun (minus moving your luggage; but, you can see more resorts that way).

Oh... and since we've cracked open Pandora's box... take a look into Universal's annual passes. Once you start looking into multiple days, it pays for itself pretty quickly and you get discounts on rooms, food, and merch.

 

[DocAlan02]

There is another option to consider as well. When you stay at a deluxe Uni Resort, you get unlimited Express Pass on the day you check in AND the day you check out. In essence, it's 2 days worth of Express for one night stay.

So, when you do the math for this, factor in the possibility of swapping hotels as you stay. Check into the Deluxe on day 1, check out on day 2 and then move to Cabana Bay. Lather, rinse, repeat as needed.

You also asked do you "need" Express Pass. That is an entirely subjective question. For me, I can't imagine visiting Universal for an entire day without it unless you catch it on a cold rainy day when there are no lines at all. Even if the lines are "short" at 20 minutes or so, that means Express is a walk-on and then you get into the math of riding multiple rides in the span of just one without it.

As Disneyhead mentioned, I would really encourage planning it into your budget. You can fly directly into the headwinds of busy days at Uni with Express in hand and still have a great time. Look into the resort hopping option above. If you plan on even number of days onsite, you can swap twice and have four days of hassle free fun (minus moving your luggage; but, you can see more resorts that way).

Oh... and since we've cracked open Pandora's box... take a look into Universal's annual passes. Once you start looking into multiple days, it pays for itself pretty quickly and you get discounts on rooms, food, and merch.

Thanks for the response. The whole Universal thing is just an add-on to our Disney trip, which is where our budget is going. Staying at Beach Club for a week. We want to see Universal, but it is definitely secondary, so I am trying to at least somewhat limit the cost.
So I guess we are looking at 4 nights at Universal, but only really 3 days...we'll arrive on a Saturday but likely well into the day. We are planning for Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday to be the park days. We then stay that night and go straight to Disney on Wednesday morning.
You are saying that if we checked into a deluxe on Sunday and shifted to Cabana Bay on Monday, we'd get EP for both of those days? Of course, it's tricky with us arriving later on Saturday, as we then couldn't check right into the deluxe that day without losing most of the benefit of the first day of the EP. So we'd need to stay somewhere else that night, shift to a deluxe for one night, and then shift to Cabana Bay for nights 3 and 4. We'd have EP for 2 of the 3 days while only paying the additional amount for the hotel for one night. Hmm. Seems like a lot of moving. And now sure how the room and tickets package is handled if you are shifting hotels. Do you know?

 

[JoeCamel]

Thanks for the response. The whole Universal thing is just an add-on to our Disney trip, which is where our budget is going. Staying at Beach Club for a week. We want to see Universal, but it is definitely secondary, so I am trying to at least somewhat limit the cost.
So I guess we are looking at 4 nights at Universal, but only really 3 days...we'll arrive on a Saturday but likely well into the day. We are planning for Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday to be the park days. We then stay that night and go straight to Disney on Wednesday morning.
You are saying that if we checked into a deluxe on Sunday and shifted to Cabana Bay on Monday, we'd get EP for both of those days? Of course, it's tricky with us arriving later on Saturday, as we then couldn't check right into the deluxe that day without losing most of the benefit of the first day of the EP. So we'd need to stay somewhere else that night, shift to a deluxe for one night, and then shift to Cabana Bay for nights 3 and 4. We'd have EP for 2 of the 3 days while only paying the additional amount for the hotel for one night. Hmm. Seems like a lot of moving. And now sure how the room and tickets package is handled if you are shifting hotels. Do you know?

Man, I hope you only travel with a backpack or that would be exhausting to move back and forth

 

[DocAlan02]

Man, I hope you only travel with a backpack or that would be exhausting to move back and forth

Yeah, we're not going to do that. We'll stay at Cabana Bay. I guess I just need to decide if I am willing to spend on the EP or not.

 

[SplashJacket]

The later in August the better, but honestly, I’ve never found Express Pass worth it. On the busiest days of the years, it might be worth splurging and staying at a deluxe (but still not buying it separately), but you should be absolutely fine if you’re spending 3 days at Universal.

Universal Studios is easy to knock out in a day with a good mix of shows to pad the busiest times of the day.

I’m not sure the age of your party, but the best rides are Mummy, Transformers, Gringotts, Men in Black, ET, Simpsons, and Rip Ride Rocket. ET and Men in Black don’t have bad waits, generally.

Men in Black, Transformers, Rip Ride, and the god awful Fast and Furious ride all have single-rider lines that I’ve found drastically cut wait-time.

I’ve had mixed results with Gringott’s single rider, but it also does bypass cool parts of the queue, so probably better to stick to the normal line.

Make sure to do the Bourne Stuntacular (I’ve found sitting close to the back makes the experience better), as it’s exceptional. Best to do it mid-day (like 2:00 pm) when wait times are highest.

I’ve found rope dropping the park can easily get you on Rip Ride, Mummy, Transformers, Men in Black, and ET all in a very compressed amount of time. Then doing Simpsons might be a good option, but the pre-shows make it take a lot longer. At this point, you’ll only be a couple hours into your day, and you can choose to do one of the mediocre rides (Fallon, Fast and Furious, or Despicable Me), grab food, explore diagon alley (fantastic land and absolutely worth exploring and just spending time in), or one of the shows. Animal actors is cute, Bourne is elite.

Eventually either bite the bullet for Gringotts or wait until waits die down near the end of the day.

The night show at Universal Studios (not shown every night) is shockingly good, but it’s not shown every night, but it’s worth doing.

You really should have no trouble doing US in a day without express pass, except on the busiest of days (and then just skip the mediocrity).

As for Islands, islands of adventure is a world class theme park that’s absolutely fantastic if you have park hoppers, the bulk of your time will likely be spent here, if you don’t, spend two days here.

In the summer when thunderstorms are ever abundant, due to the high percentage of out-door attractions, I recommend doing them as early as possible in the day (if there’s consistent rain forecasted for a day, go to universal studios).

Save Forbidden Journey, Spiderman, Kong, and Cat in the Hat for later in the day, because they are literally the only indoor rides, and everything else will close. Saving these rides isn’t as important since you have multiple days, but regardless.

Hulk, Dr. Doom, VelociCoaster, Popeyes, Dudley Doo, Jurassic Park, Hagrids, Flight of the Hippogriff, etc, all close during lightning, so the park basically shuts down.

VelociCoaster, Hagrids, Forbidden Journey, and Spider-Man are absolute must rides that should be experienced at all costs.

Dr. Doom is pretty trash, only do it if you’re walking by and it has no wait. I’ve personally only ever ridden it once, and it was immediately after it reopened following lightning so there was no wait. Storm Force accelerator is a basic flat ride, and the Cat-in-the-hat attractions can be skipped unless specific interest or demographics from your party specify it.

Flight of Hippogriff is a basic kids coaster.

Kong, Dudley, Popeyes, Hulk, and Jurassic Park are all worth doing.

My strategy and recommendation is rope dropping the park, immediately going left and riding Dudley, then Popeyes, then checking the wait time for Hagrids and VelociCoaster. If the wait for either seems reasonable, go to one of them. If not, do Jurassic Park River Adventure. VelociCoaster’s wait seems to fall quite early in the afternoon, plus single-rider offers a great way to shorten the wait, so prioritize a low Hagrid’s wait over VelociCoaster.

I might honestly recommend rope-dropping Hagrids then VelociCoaster on your first day at Islands, just so you can experience them early and determine how you want to spend time re-riding them.

I 100% recommended doing Hagrids before VelociCoaster because Hagrids feels too tame after riding VelociCoaster.

I’m going to stop rambling, but moral of the story, don’t waste your money on express pass

 

[Tom Morrow]

If it's the beginning of August, more than likely you will want Express.

If it's the end of August and kids are back in school, no, you probably won't need Express.

 

[DocAlan02]

If it's the beginning of August, more than likely you will want Express.

If it's the end of August and kids are back in school, no, you probably won't need Express.

Right in the middle. 13th-15th.

 

[DocAlan02]

The later in August the better, but honestly, I’ve never found Express Pass worth it. On the busiest days of the years, it might be worth splurging and staying at a deluxe (but still not buying it separately), but you should be absolutely fine if you’re spending 3 days at Universal.

Universal Studios is easy to knock out in a day with a good mix of shows to pad the busiest times of the day.

I’m not sure the age of your party, but the best rides are Mummy, Transformers, Gringotts, Men in Black, ET, Simpsons, and Rip Ride Rocket. ET and Men in Black don’t have bad waits, generally.

Men in Black, Transformers, Rip Ride, and the god awful Fast and Furious ride all have single-rider lines that I’ve found drastically cut wait-time.

I’ve had mixed results with Gringott’s single rider, but it also does bypass cool parts of the queue, so probably better to stick to the normal line.

Make sure to do the Bourne Stuntacular (I’ve found sitting close to the back makes the experience better), as it’s exceptional. Best to do it mid-day (like 2:00 pm) when wait times are highest.

I’ve found rope dropping the park can easily get you on Rip Ride, Mummy, Transformers, Men in Black, and ET all in a very compressed amount of time. Then doing Simpsons might be a good option, but the pre-shows make it take a lot longer. At this point, you’ll only be a couple hours into your day, and you can choose to do one of the mediocre rides (Fallon, Fast and Furious, or Despicable Me), grab food, explore diagon alley (fantastic land and absolutely worth exploring and just spending time in), or one of the shows. Animal actors is cute, Bourne is elite.

Eventually either bite the bullet for Gringotts or wait until waits die down near the end of the day.

The night show at Universal Studios (not shown every night) is shockingly good, but it’s not shown every night, but it’s worth doing.

You really should have no trouble doing US in a day without express pass, except on the busiest of days (and then just skip the mediocrity).

As for Islands, islands of adventure is a world class theme park that’s absolutely fantastic if you have park hoppers, the bulk of your time will likely be spent here, if you don’t, spend two days here.

In the summer when thunderstorms are ever abundant, due to the high percentage of out-door attractions, I recommend doing them as early as possible in the day (if there’s consistent rain forecasted for a day, go to universal studios).

Save Forbidden Journey, Spiderman, Kong, and Cat in the Hat for later in the day, because they are literally the only indoor rides, and everything else will close. Saving these rides isn’t as important since you have multiple days, but regardless.

Hulk, Dr. Doom, VelociCoaster, Popeyes, Dudley Doo, Jurassic Park, Hagrids, Flight of the Hippogriff, etc, all close during lightning, so the park basically shuts down.

VelociCoaster, Hagrids, Forbidden Journey, and Spider-Man are absolute must rides that should be experienced at all costs.

Dr. Doom is pretty trash, only do it if you’re walking by and it has no wait. I’ve personally only ever ridden it once, and it was immediately after it reopened following lightning so there was no wait. Storm Force accelerator is a basic flat ride, and the Cat-in-the-hat attractions can be skipped unless specific interest or demographics from your party specify it.

Flight of Hippogriff is a basic kids coaster.

Kong, Dudley, Popeyes, Hulk, and Jurassic Park are all worth doing.

My strategy and recommendation is rope dropping the park, immediately going left and riding Dudley, then Popeyes, then checking the wait time for Hagrids and VelociCoaster. If the wait for either seems reasonable, go to one of them. If not, do Jurassic Park River Adventure. VelociCoaster’s wait seems to fall quite early in the afternoon, plus single-rider offers a great way to shorten the wait, so prioritize a low Hagrid’s wait over VelociCoaster.

I might honestly recommend rope-dropping Hagrids then VelociCoaster on your first day at Islands, just so you can experience them early and determine how you want to spend time re-riding them.

I 100% recommended doing Hagrids before VelociCoaster because Hagrids feels too tame after riding VelociCoaster.

I’m going to stop rambling, but moral of the story, don’t waste your money on express pass

This is awesome! Thanks so much. My son is 12 and is not super adventurous with rides yet, especially coasters with loops. So that will have some effect, although my wife and or/I will go on some of them.
This is a lot of great info. I really appreciate it.

 

[SplashJacket]

Right in the middle. 13th-15th.

You should have zero problem without Express Pass, a substantial portion of southern schools have already back in session by then.

This is awesome! Thanks so much. My son is 12 and is not super adventurous with rides yet, especially coasters with loops. So that will have some effect, although my wife and or/I will go on some of them.
This is a lot of great info. I really appreciate it.

Hulk and Rip Ride Rocket are fine for what they are, but Velocicoaster is a must-ride. While it's undeniably thrilling, the loops are incredibly smooth and it's not painful or uncomfortable at any point, but definitely a very thrilling coaster.

Hagrid's shouldn't be a problem. It doesn't look that daunting but is super fun. I have a cousin who refuses to ride even Big Thunder but thinks Hagrid's is amazing.