Looking at taking our kid this summer. She’s tall enough to ride everything and loves rollercoasters.
3 full days? She’s recently got into Harry Potter as well.
3 full days? She’s recently got into Harry Potter as well.
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How long & is the Express Pass worth it?
- Thread starter HRHPrincessAriel
- Start date
Weather_Lady
Well-Known Member
I think 3 full days is (in my view) perfect if you want to be able to cover the Universal parks without too much rushing around.
Our Universal trips range anywhere from 3 to 5 days. We'll spend one day each on each of the two "ride" parks (riding all of the rides, maybe seeing a show, and doing a slow tour through the Harry Potter stuff to really soak it all in), and then use the third day to return for favorite attractions, or visit Volcano Bay or another water park. We stay at one of the premier hotels (Hard Rock, Portofino Bay, and Royal Pacific) so unlimited express pass is included, but even without express passes, a good touring plan and a sense of which rides to get to first thing can do wonders to help avoid getting caught up in long lines.
If you're considering an onsite stay, note that the price of a 2-park seasonal annual pass is comparable to that of a 2-park 3-day park-to-park ticket, and would entitle you to annual passholder ("APH") discounts on all onsite hotels (including the premier ones with unlimited express pass - the discount is generally around 30% and APH rates are already out for July), as well as some other little perks.
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Ok that’s great to know. How long does it take for me to get the discounts if I buy the AP?
Get that first and then book hotels.
THANK YOU!!
Get that first and then book hotels.
THANK YOU!!
Sirwalterraleigh
Premium Member
Beware of 3D fatigue...we were there 4 in early 2020 and the mind was a scramble on day 3 with express pass...
take your time and “just say no” to some of the repetitive, 3D stuff
take your time and “just say no” to some of the repetitive, 3D stuff
Answered myself. I can book and just show pass at check in.
its 1000 cheaper at Portofino if I buy the AP.
but if we just go value it’s cheaper(for that specific hotel) no AP.
so the question is how important is the express pass
lebeau
Well-Known Member
Your mileage will vary. The best tip I can give you is that you don't have to make a decision about EP until you get there. Odds are, you won't need it. If you do, you can buy it on the spot.
Having said that, we like having EP. We actually don't ride a lot of rides and we would never wait in long line for one. With EP, our time in the parks is very stress-free. We do whatever we want in the moment with no planning. If you want to ride more rides, EP helps with that. If you do a lot of re-rides, EP becomes more valuable still. If you don't mind waiting in lines, EP is a lot less important.
A few notes on lines at Universal. Most of the rides there are relatively high capacity. I am generalizing here, but Universal doesn't tend to form lines like Disney does. Hagrid's will have a long wait, but it doesn't have EP anyway. I can only imagine what wait times for Velocicoaster will be. Also, crowdflow at Universal is hard to predict. Sometimes an attraction will have an inexplicably long line and an hour later it will have almost no line whatsoever. Our philosophy is that if a line is more than 20 minutes, we'll check back later. (It helps that we have ridden just everything but the newest rides so nothing is a must-do anymore.)
Sometimes EP lines will still be pretty long depending. Like FP, EP isn't front-of-line. It's just a shorter line. Sometimes if single rider is offered it can be faster than the EP line however you WILL be split up in single rider so plan accordingly. EP is of almost no value whatsoever on attractions with virtual queues (Jimmy Fallon, Fast and Furious) and isn't available on the two most popular rides (Hagrid and I assume Velocicoaster).
We spend a lot of time exploring. EP doesn't do anything about the crowds in Diagon Alley. It won't help with lines for casting spells or the wait to see Blue in Jurassic Park. A lot of rides like MIB and Cat in the Hat tend to have pretty short lines even during busy times.
So, no clear answers I'm afraid. We love EP even though we don't make use of it all that much. For us, it's worth the deluxe hotel stay to have it in our pockets (plus we love Portofino). But you can definitely save a lot of money and still have a great time if you're willing to do without it. It's rarely essential though often useful. And most importantly, there's no need to commit in advance.
Thanks! I really appreciate your thoughts.
it’s pointless here at SeaWorld in Texas but people still buy.....
It does depend on if which hotel I chose to book though...comes “free” with Portofino but do we want to spend the extra $900 for a nicer hotel.
Thank you!
lebeau
Well-Known Member
These are the kinds of qualitative judgements that only you can make for your family. For us, it's worth it. But it won't be for everyone.
We're a family of four. My oldest and I get bored lounging around on vacation. My wife and my youngest get worn out in the parks. Disney tended to be too stressful. My wife especially hated being tied to scheduled meals, FastPasses, etc. And the buses! Those were always a mess.
Universal is comparatively stress-free. No matter where you stay, the transportation to the parks will be much smoother than Disney. We stayed at Cabana Bay and never waited for a bus. There was always at least one waiting for us whether we were going to the parks or back to the hotel. The deluxes are within walking distance of the parks (Portofino is the farthest and it's about 10 minutes away at a leisurely stroll) but there is also boat and bus transportation. Boats are a little slower, but sooo relaxing. I have always been able to sit down on a bus or boat unlike the standing-room only death traps at Disney.
Splitting up is easy. Sometimes I go to the parks by myself. Other times one of the kids comes with me. Whoever wants to relax at the hotel can meet up with me later without any problems. My wife and youngest tend to spend quite a bit of time in the hotel which is what makes the upgrade worthwhile for us.
Last time, we stayed at the Club Level. This is a hefty upcharge, but we made use of it. We had breakfast there every morning, filled our bags with grab-and-go drinks and snacks, sometimes had dinner there and ended most nights enjoying dessert. You can save a pretty penny if you can work this into your schedule, but it requires spending a lot of time at the hotel.
We tend to spend an entire week at Universal. With three full days, you will be able to tour at a relatively leisurely pace, but you'll probably still spend more time in the parks than we do. All of our upgrades (deluxe hotel, club level, express pass) are based around making the theme park experience as stress-free as possible; something Disney just doesn't offer. Which is why we gave up on Disney several years ago.
At the end of the day, you just have to figure out what's worth it to you. If you want to know more about Cabana Bay, Portofino Bay or Royal Pacific, let me know. We have enjoyed our stays at all three.
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Minnesota disney fan
Well-Known Member
Very well said, Lebeau!
I will add my 2 cents here too. Our first trip we only went on the studios side for a day. We didn't have EP's. We found we only needed them on Minions and Shrek. The rest of the attractions were walk on. However, it depends on the time of year you go. We always go on "off" times, if there are any anymore, LOL.
Since then, we always stay at RPR and get EP's, which we love. Like Lebeau said, it makes it more stress free.
However, with planning you can go without EP's pretty easily. You can wait and buy them in the park if you need them, but I don't know if they ever get sold out or not?
You're going to love the easy touring and no planning at Universal. HP lands are worth the admission price alone, IMO. Since your daughter is into HP, she will absolutely want to spend alot of time just wandering around and going into the shops. Make sure you don't miss Knockturn Alley. It is dark, twisty, and spooky. Borgen and Burkes (hope thats right?) is alot of fun. Have her stand by the big cabinet and put her hand on it and she will hear a bird chirping. I think it's called the vanishing cabinet, but not sure. So much fun to do and see just at HP.
I will add my 2 cents here too. Our first trip we only went on the studios side for a day. We didn't have EP's. We found we only needed them on Minions and Shrek. The rest of the attractions were walk on. However, it depends on the time of year you go. We always go on "off" times, if there are any anymore, LOL.
Since then, we always stay at RPR and get EP's, which we love. Like Lebeau said, it makes it more stress free.
However, with planning you can go without EP's pretty easily. You can wait and buy them in the park if you need them, but I don't know if they ever get sold out or not?
You're going to love the easy touring and no planning at Universal. HP lands are worth the admission price alone, IMO. Since your daughter is into HP, she will absolutely want to spend alot of time just wandering around and going into the shops. Make sure you don't miss Knockturn Alley. It is dark, twisty, and spooky. Borgen and Burkes (hope thats right?) is alot of fun. Have her stand by the big cabinet and put her hand on it and she will hear a bird chirping. I think it's called the vanishing cabinet, but not sure. So much fun to do and see just at HP.
Weather_Lady
Well-Known Member
As others suggested, how much value EP would add to your experience depends on when you're visiting, OP, as crowds and lines can vary widely. We've always had it, but I know we only reaped the benefits at a small handful of attractions on our first visit, which was during a random partial non-holiday week in May, and in hindsight, we could have avoided those same waits simply by arriving early and going to them first. On our second visit to Universal, which occurred during a busy President's Day Week in February (when half the northern U.S. had a school vacation), the cumulative amount of wait time we saved with EP was significant.
FWIW, if you tell me when you're going, I can tell you the touringplans crowd estimates for the parks on those days. Obviously it's just a guideline, particularly this year when everything is a bit wonky and crowd movements can't be as easily predicted, but it would give you an educated guess, at least.
FWIW, if you tell me when you're going, I can tell you the touringplans crowd estimates for the parks on those days. Obviously it's just a guideline, particularly this year when everything is a bit wonky and crowd movements can't be as easily predicted, but it would give you an educated guess, at least.
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Possibly Looking at July 13-15 for park days!
Thank you all!!
Weather_Lady
Well-Known Member
Estimated crowd levels are 5-7 (out of 10) for those days. What that translates to in wait times is about 4 attractions in each park topping out at 35-45 minutes at their highest peak of the day. Hit those first and you're looking at waits for most everything else in only the 5-20 minute range. (Velocicoaster is a wild card, of course.)
Sirwalterraleigh
Premium Member
I like the more pricey hotels and I detest that Orlando now trains its customers to pay to circumvent lines...
so the included express pass allows me to not get aggravated by door #2
so the included express pass allows me to not get aggravated by door #2
Thank you!!
avenger1138
New Member
I always stay at the EP hotels, even in “off” seasons. I cannot imagine ever going to Universal without it. It just allows you so much more flexibility and less stress. I tell everyone it’s worth it
Rob562
Well-Known Member
Three full days should be perfect. One day to focus primarily on each park, plus a third to park hop as you see fit to revisit your favorites.
However, with a big Harry Potter fan, especially a younger one, for maximum thematic impact on Day 1 I typically suggest treating Hogsmeade as if it were only accessible via the Hogwarts Express and that the rest of IOA doesn't exist.
So you'll want to start in the Studios, and head to Diagon Alley. Take some time exploring, riding Escape from Gringott's, etc Then take the train over to Hogsmeade. Explore Hogsmeade, ride Forbidden Journey and Hagrid's, and then take the train back to Studios to end out your day. After that, you can simply visit Hogsmeade whenever you're in IOA. It's not critical, but I feel it really gives the most wow-factor in your introduction to the two Potter lands that way.
-Rob
We have Express Pass for our 1 day August visit. Trying to decide where to head first in the morning, with a focus on the two Harry Potter lands. It looks like the last few days at least, that Virtual Line hasn't been used for anything but Jimmy Fallon? Or is it just that they're all gone for other rides (Hagrids, etc.) immediately and I'm not seeing them when I refresh my app from home? We are thinking of going to Hagrids first at rope drop that day, particularly if Virtual Line isn't working since it doesn't take EP. Today the app is showing 90min wait immediately at open at Hagrids, but not sure how legit that is. Any advice?
disneygeek90
Well-Known Member
Hagrids seems to lean into the VQ on weekends, Saturday specifically. Hagrids and VC are going to be the only attractions without EP so if you want to do those I would recommend getting it out of the way first and rope dropping Hagrids since it's susceptible to VQ and technical issues. If Hagrids is doing VQ, they will drop them throughout the day.
If Hagrids is showing a standby wait, VQ isn't being used at the moment.
DISR
Well-Known Member
I just returned from a 2 day visit on 21-22 June. Express Pass (from our Deluxe hotel) was a lifesaver. I thought Mon/Tues would be relatively uncrowded, but the parks were absolutely packed. If we had not had express, we would have given up and left the park for the pool. Note that for one night in a hotel, we got two days of express pass for 4 people. Do the math as to what makes sense for you, but buying express ala carte is usually not the most economical way to get it.
We did Hagrids during early entry each day and that was the best time by far. Even with the mass rush to that ride, the wait times were pretty reasonable compared to later in the day. Rode Velocicoaster one time. Wait was posted at 70 minutes and got on in about 40. It was not bad at all. Plus most of the queue is relatively cool and has good theming to keep you entertained.
We did Hagrids during early entry each day and that was the best time by far. Even with the mass rush to that ride, the wait times were pretty reasonable compared to later in the day. Rode Velocicoaster one time. Wait was posted at 70 minutes and got on in about 40. It was not bad at all. Plus most of the queue is relatively cool and has good theming to keep you entertained.