OK you guys it's all your fault LOL Now we're thinking about staying on sight at UNI for our days over there. The current thought plan is to do 4 days there checking in on our first day. I'm not worried about express pass as my boys are into Potter big time.
Even if you don't think you are interested in the Express Pass, I would strongly recommend reconsidering your plans for at least one or two nights of your stay.
There is NO perk in the theme park industry greater than the Unlimited Express Pass offered by a Universal Deluxe Resort. The power it wields over the ability to change a guest's experience at the parks is unmatched.
I just took my niece on an 8 day vacation to WDW and Uni last week. Crowds are tracking much higher at both resorts than they did even last year. Even with the higher than anticipated crowds, you can still knock out attraction after attraction at Universal using Express and have re-rides galore. Hour long waits disappear into a quick walk around and get on. Even the lines with slow moving Express access, like Mummy, never exceeded 15 minutes the 3 days we spent in the parks.
Universal is home to several of the worlds greatest attractions beyond the Potter experience and to visit the resort and neglect the chance to experience them would be a wasted opportunity. Spider-Man is still king of the roost when it comes to the modern "high-tech" dark ride experience when it comes to pulling everything together into a complete experience.
If you aren't planning on doing a significant amount of re-rides on the non-Potter attractions, I would still consider the Express perk as a way to hit up all the parks have to offer and allow you more time in Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley.
The best way to take advantage of the Unlimited Express is to plan your stay for at least 1 night at a deluxe because you get the early access and Unlimited Express on both your check-in day and the check-out day. For your vacation, you could do 2 nights at Cabana and 2 nights at Royal Pacific and have complete coverage for your stay.
This past week, they switched back to having both Studios and IoA open for early access. Definitely, plan on using the early morning time with Diagon and getting on Gringotts as the ride is still very temperamental and still goes down a few times a day. Capacity on Gringotts is also nowhere near Forbidden Journey, so it will hold a longer slower moving line throughout the day.
*Bonus tip for your family - hit up Diagon as soon as early access is available and jump on Gringotts for a quick ride and then do Olivanders in Diagon. Two show rooms and few people doing it that early in Diagon (as everyone is in line for Gringotts) mean a better chance at your children being picked for the wand. I'm ashamed to admit my niece got picked twice last week using this strategy.
