Express Pass Hot Take: You don't need them, even when it's busy.

[SPJoeG]

I know EP's are a hot topic around here, and when people ask should they get them in many instances I will say yes, but no one ever "needs" them.

We Stayed 6 nights at CB over Thanksgiving and while it was very crowded we got to do pretty much everything we wanted in 4 park days without EPs. Of course this would not have worked as well if we only had 2 park days, but even then we wouldn't have "needed" them. I think many of us have been so conditioned by Disney planning that we measure the success of our trips by how many rides we get on. When I let this notion go and leaned into the spontaneity of Universal, it made for a much more relaxing vacation despite the crowds.

We had such a great time, and CB is so awesome and affordable that we decided to go again during the kids spring break, which is the week before Easter. Sure there are a few things we didn't get to last time that are a priority for us on this trip, but the #1 thing we didn't get to do enough of was Volcano Bay because it was a little too cold for some members of our family. If I were too add EP for any day it would be $400+ for my family and I would try to get the most out of it by getting everyone to the parks early and trying to ride every ride in both parks in no matter the weather etc... I know this can be a lot of fun, and I planned some Disney World days w/ FP in the past that felt like even though I planned every minute, it all came together and worked great! That wasn't every day though, and some days would start with me trying to get very sleepy kids out of bed to get an 8am bus so we could make a 9am FP that I woke up in the middle of the night months prior to get.

While I have plans and reservations for our upcoming, there is absolutely nothing that can't be moved or cancelled. In fact I make multiple reservations for meals expecting to use only about half. If my kids get to the parks early and get tired around lunch, going back to the hotel and just relaxing by the pool is fine by me and I don't feel like I'm out $400 or am missing out on a reservation that took a lot of effort to make. If different people want to split up and do different things? I can accommodate this easily.

Of course EPs are great, and I get a bit jelly when I'm watching people breeze by me as I spend an hour in line for the Hulk but I have chosen to spend more time in the parks instead of "maximizing" less time. The thing is there are many things you can't even use EPs at like shows, parades, Hagrid's, VC, and not to mention all of Volcano Bay. My main point though isthere isn't a single attraction where you NEED a FP!

 

[schumigirl]

I didn`t know EP discussion was a "hot topic" on here. I don`t think I`ve ever seen it as such.

It`s always been personal opinion for most folks that I`ve observed over the years....some want it, some don`t. You obviously think you don`t and that`s fine, glad to hear it and glad your trip was so enjoyable for you and your family.

Some of us of course feel differently.

We spend a lot of time in the parks and even with longer trips, we wouldn`t be without EP. We have used them for shows where it`s been an advantage, Horror Make up Show is one, we have never once needed them for parades and have no intention of visiting Volcano Bay.

When Minions or Hulk rides are showing 100+ minutes I can absolutely say with confidence, yes I need EP........but again, as always.....each to their own.

 

[macraven]

It is worth it for me going to the parks as a solo to use the ep for line and show waits
So I don’t think twice staying at a premier hotel to get that perk

if I was with a group of peeps, we would most likely be chatting and pass the long wait time without a whine

 

[kbelle8995]

It really depends. I Usually stay at Cabana Bay and have never had a need for it. Others too. Recently stayed at Portofino and we went to used it on Gringotts because why not.

 

[mommytutu]

It's me...I'm the drama. I'm the worst when it comes to waiting in line...lack of patience and anxiety (do you know how many things can go wrong while I'm waiting in line? and sometimes the crowds start to feel claustrophobic). We went June 2021 and the WORST part was waiting in food lines...wished I had an EP for that. We've been twice and stayed at Hard Rock and then Royal Pacific because EP come with the stay. When we stayed at RP, I did not enjoy waiting for boats, so we walked, but at the end of the day when I already had 20,000 steps in, I didn't like that either. I enjoyed the 5 minute walk from Hard Rock to Universal Studios. We're planning our 3rd trip for the week of Thanksgiving this year and going back to Hard Rock. I would LOVE to try Portofino Bay and Cabana Bay for the theming, but I won't because of distance, EP, and I'm a creature of habit. The ONLY drawback I have noticed with EP is on FJ, Gringotts, and to a lesser extent the train stations, I feel like I miss so much of the queue theming so I will slow down, take it in, and let people pass me so I can look around and I ride them over and over...feels like I always see something new.

My husband will also not go without EP, but his reasoning is we're spending $$$ and on vacation so spending that time and money to wait in line just isn't happening. For our upcoming trip (4 people, 4 nights), the price difference between CB and HR is $697. To us, that's totally worth EP, closer proximity and convenience, we can do everything in the parks (over and over), and still have time to fully enjoy the resort. We want to easily go from park to park to room back to park to city walk back to room. My husband is not a planner...he doesn't even like that dining reservations are now mostly needed at Universal. He prefers to wait until 7pm to decide where to eat dinner and then gets mad when there's a wait. He wants to ride (watch, eat) what he want to ride (watch, eat) when he wants to so he will walk back forth across both parks because he can't seem to do things in a logical order when we're there (he drives us girls nuts with it).

I don't see myself ever going back to Disney because of the lack of EP, the whole dining reservation system, and ride/activity reservations. I love the idea of Disney and I LOVED it when we went way back in 2004, but now when I look at it I feel overwhelmed like I'd have to plan every minute of every day months in advance and still be ready for things to change. I just don't ever see that being a good game plan for my family (husband) since we like to have time to wonder aimlessly.

 

[PezRuth]

Honestly we just got back last week. I would not go without EP. It was really pretty busy and with young kids I would have a very hard time with waits.

 

[captainofthepearl]

I have debated this for an upcoming trip and have decided to go with it. It will be our first universal trip so we figured we would give it a try. Still haven't decided if we are going to get the park to park , is that worth it just for Hogwarts ?

 

[DoryGirl1963]

Park-to-park is worth it to us so we can go back & forth from one park to the other as we like - they're literally right next to each other.

 

[bumbershoot]

Oof I could not disagree more. I need it as much as anyone NEEDS to go to a theme park.

I didn`t know EP discussion was a "hot topic" on here. I don`t think I`ve ever seen it as such.

Agreed.

if I was with a group of peeps, we would most likely be chatting and pass the long wait time without a whine

My peeps are the opposite; there would be more time to complain, especially by the 5th ride of the day, whereas I can amuse myself alone and not worry about the line

do you know how many things can go wrong while I'm waiting in line?

Note to self: do not go with mommytutu.

I could never figure out the shortcut for HRH, and I don't feel it's that much further to walk to Portofino. PBH is a sweet hotel, and I would recommend trying it out.

Still haven't decided if we are going to get the park to park , is that worth it just for Hogwarts ?

P2P isn't for Hogwarts (I take that to mean Forbidden Journey), it's to get access to two parks in the same day, and to experience the Express. Without the "hopper" ticket you cannot take the train, and the train counts as two rides because it's different depending on which way you take it. If you are fine missing that and if you don't ever want to go to two parks in one day, then you don't need park to park tickets.

 

[georgina]

I know EP's are a hot topic around here, and when people ask should they get them in many instances I will say yes, but no one ever "needs" them.

We Stayed 6 nights at CB over Thanksgiving and while it was very crowded we got to do pretty much everything we wanted in 4 park days without EPs. Of course this would not have worked as well if we only had 2 park days, but even then we wouldn't have "needed" them. I think many of us have been so conditioned by Disney planning that we measure the success of our trips by how many rides we get on. When I let this notion go and leaned into the spontaneity of Universal, it made for a much more relaxing vacation despite the crowds.

We had such a great time, and CB is so awesome and affordable that we decided to go again during the kids spring break, which is the week before Easter. Sure there are a few things we didn't get to last time that are a priority for us on this trip, but the #1 thing we didn't get to do enough of was Volcano Bay because it was a little too cold for some members of our family. If I were too add EP for any day it would be $400+ for my family and I would try to get the most out of it by getting everyone to the parks early and trying to ride every ride in both parks in no matter the weather etc... I know this can be a lot of fun, and I planned some Disney World days w/ FP in the past that felt like even though I planned every minute, it all came together and worked great! That wasn't every day though, and some days would start with me trying to get very sleepy kids out of bed to get an 8am so we could make a 9am FP that I woke up in the middle of the night months prior to get.

While I have plans and reservations for our upcoming, there is absolutely nothing that can't be moved or cancelled. In fact I make multiple reservations for meals expecting to use only about half. If my kids get to the parks early and get tired around lunch, going back to the hotel and just relaxing by the pool is fine by me and I don't feel like I'm out $400 or am missing out on a reservation that took a lot of effort to make. If different people want to split up and do different things? I can accommodate this easily.

Of course EPs are great, and I get a bit jelly when I'm watching people breeze by me as I spend an hour in line for the Hulk but I have chosen to spend more time in the parks instead of "maximizing" less time. The thing is there are many things you can't even use EPs at like shows, parades, Hagrid's, VC, and not to mention all of Volcano Bay. My main point though isthere isn't a single attraction where you NEED a FP!

I'm glad you had a great time. I think there are many folks who are fine without EP also, especially with 4 park days. I am a frequent solo visitor so can use many of the single rider lines. I am also a CB fan and love the easy walk to VB.

 

[kathy884]

How nice OP that you and your family had a wonderful relaxing vacation. Sounds like a great time and a fantastic way to do Universal that your whole group really enjoyed. Way to go!

It's a little different with my group of 12, as eight have no interest in returning to Universal/IOA, but four would really like to do it, but just for the one day, so they can do the things we have planned on the other five of our six days and be with the bigger family group. So for the four, I splurged and got the one time EPs and one park to park day at Universal/IOA. It's pricey but will let them go on the major things they want to hit. A one day throw away room that includes the EP was quite a bit more expensive even. The week we are going is super busy (spring break) and looked to me when I did a touring plan without EPs that they would miss a lot of things they wanted to hit. With the EPs it looked based on touring plan predictions like a great day for them, getting to do everything they want to do. They only get to Universal/IOA for one park day about every six years or so. None of them are in a financial situation to get down there and do a trip on their own either.

I thought this made sense for them as they wanted to hang with the eight others in the family for the other five days. This lets the twenty somethings do our two resort/nature - family visiting days (we have relatives in the area and one has a nature tour company too), two Disney parks days (They just love Disney.), and one day at SeaWorld (All love SeaWorld and really like the Seven Seas festival we'll be hitting).

If you have the time to spend multiple days, what you did OP really sounds great -- nice mix of activity and relaxation. And it's a good time to pick Universal I think with high Disney crowds and issues with the relatively new Genie + / LL system.

 

[Skippyboo]

It is worth it for me going to the parks as a solo to use the ep for line and show waits
So I don’t think twice staying at a premier hotel to get that perk

if I was with a group of peeps, we would most likely be chatting and pass the long wait time without a whine

If you are solo, you could use single rider lined instead of express.

 

[Lashed34]

I would always stay in deluxe just for the EP. It allows us to have absolute freedom in the parks and obviously stay in a hotel just a walk from them and citywalk.

That's my preference and doubt it will change,. Even on a slow day it adds so much time to do other things.

 

[SPJoeG]

At Universal without EPs I do like to get Park 2 Park. P2P is an actual necessity to ride Hogwarts but in all other regards is a choice like EPs. I choose it because it provides greater flexibility as I plan my day around standby lines.

I enjoyed everyone's take and definitely can relate to some of the anxiety, but for me paying for EPs can make me more anxious. I assume everyone with kids here has paid for things their kids didn't really use, and probably quite a few people in relationships have had this experience with their partner. My son doesn't really like thrill rides, and while my daughter does her favorite thing to do is go in the shops... So for me not paying for EPs for a lot of rides my son won't go helps me afford my daughters shopping.

The one posters point about "needing EPs" as much as anyone "needs to go to a theme park" is an interesting one. I very much agree that neither are actually necessities and that is my point with respect to EPs, but I'll note that most of the people emphasizing the importance of EPs haven't even tried going without them. I know that time is limited and has to be budgeted just like money, but for people who do have the time to spend, especially if you want to check out some the non deluxe hotels, check and see how much more time you can get by not getting EPs... In my case it was enough to book another trip.

 

[RamblingMad]

It's really a seasonal thing. I've never used EP. But I've had good luck using single rider lines in the morning for the bigger attractions and standard queue for the less busy ones. For example, before close, I almost walked right onto King Kong. And first thing in the morning, I did Gringotts twice in a row before getting my bag. You can be strategic. The single rider lines tend to close in the afternoon, so plan accordingly.

 

[TommyJK]

If going without EPs I find Park to Park more a necessity. Crowds ebb and flow between the parks. So there can be sizable stretches within the day where one park is much more busy than the other, and then it sawps, and then it swaps back again.....

So having Park to Park, and monitoring wait times on the app often, you can get a good guage of where it's busier and where it's less busy, and navigate your way between both parks (since they're so close to each other) to go where the crowds are "thinner" at any given time.

 

[RamblingMad]

If going without EPs I find Park to Park more a necessity. Crowds ebb and flow between the parks. So there can be sizable stretches within the day where one park is much more busy than the other, and then it sawps, and then it swaps back again.....

So having Park to Park, and monitoring wait times on the app often, you can get a good guage of where it's busier and where it's less busy, and navigate your way between both parks (since they're so close to each other) to go where the crowds are "thinner" at any given time.

And the Hogwarts Express is pretty much a walk on at lunch too, so that's a good time to switch parks.

 

[sandam1]

I'm going to take the unpopular opinion and agree with @SPJoeG and say that Express Pass isn't necessary. And I'll take it a bit further - I don't even enjoy it. (You can all gasp now!)

A bit of background - for me, Cabana Bay is home. It is the first Universal hotel that I stayed in and I like just about everything about it - the food, the vibe, the pools, the smell, and I can even deal with the buses - and after 10+ stays, I will chose it over any other place. Being that we usually don't have EPs, we've learned most of the tricks on how to do everything we want without them focusing mainly on going at low crowd times (mostly but not all of our trips), using early entry and single rider, and being willing to come back to something where the wait time is more than we want to spend. We also are multi-year annual passholders so our trips aren't "one and done" affairs. If we happen to miss something (and we usually don't), it isn't earth-shattering.

But after reading for years about the magic of EPs, I finally broke down and booked a split-stay with our first night at Hard Rock Hotel when I found a killer APH rate. The hotel was okay (I wanted to like the location more than I did and I was unenthused by the quick service selections available). We wound up altering our touring style to try to take advantage of having the EPs and hit the big line rides, but that was almost more "work" than our usual style. We just didn't see the value in it as there were times the EP line was longer than the single rider line, which is what we usually do. When we walked into the lobby of CB, it like a breath of fresh air and it felt like our vacation had finally begun.

This January, I decided to try again. I was traveling with my best friend (who is familiar with the parks, but not my usual Universal partner) and I was doing the runDisney Dopey challenge (running 3.1, 6.2, 13.1, and 26.2 miles on consecutive days). In an effort to save my feet for the races and maximize the limited park time that we were going to have at the start of the trip, I booked the first 2 nights at Royal Pacific. There were definitely more people in the parks and the stand-by lines were longer, but so were the EP lines. And since I had spent the darned money on the EPs, I felt a pressure to use them even if it didn't make sense. Finally by day two, I was ready to let go of that and bail on the parks when the crowds go to be too much and my energy/patience was depleted. We also wound up getting out of an EP line that was probably going to take us 10-15 minutes and ducked into a single rider line that had us on the next set of cars. For the rest of the trip, we were at Cabana Bay and the last 1.5 days (after the races were over), we had no problem getting to do everything that we wanted to - and I felt a lot less stress about doing it.

Is there a time and place for EPs? Yes! If you are only going for a day or two at a busy time and are a "one and done" trip, absolutely. Are there a particular type of group that they work particularly well for (i.e. a family unit that can't or doesn't want to use the single rider lines)? Yes! But I see so many people on the boards who seem to believe that they MUST HAVE THEM for their trip to Universal to successful and are willing to break their budget/stress themselves out beyond belief/give up things like trying the park food or buying their kid a wand to do so. And that makes me sad because I know that you can have a fabulous trip without them. I hope that that never changes about Universal.

 

[schumigirl]

Or there are the people that have EP as a perk of staying in the Premier hotels which we would be staying at anyway and just enjoy them.

And I have never wished to be without EP..... We have long trips and have all the time in the world, but we will still use EP every day...... and as many times as I can on a Sunday

I have never been in an EP line that has been longer than the regular line, that would be annoying, but as I said, never experienced that in all our visits.

I agree with you @sandam1 I hope it never changes that Universal has options for every budget.

As always....each to their own.

 

[SPJoeG]

If going without EPs I find Park to Park more a necessity. Crowds ebb and flow between the parks. So there can be sizable stretches within the day where one park is much more busy than the other, and then it sawps, and then it swaps back again.....

So having Park to Park, and monitoring wait times on the app often, you can get a good guage of where it's busier and where it's less busy, and navigate your way between both parks (since they're so close to each other) to go where the crowds are "thinner" at any given time.

I agree with this completely and add if I see lower wait times in the other park and HWE is 30 minutes or less, I just take that.