Park Capacity and Staying at Hard Rock

If the park is at capacity, on-site hotel guests can still get in. I believe staying at the Hard Rock also grants you included Express passes, which will cut down on your waits.
 
If the park is at capacity, on-site hotel guests can still get in.

That is no longer the case; on-site guests aren't guaranteed entry into the parks anymore. They're given 'priority' entry when the parks reach capacity, which means they'll be the first let in after enough people have left to allow the park to reopen.
 
That is no longer the case; on-site guests aren't guaranteed entry into the parks anymore. They're given 'priority' entry when the parks reach capacity, which means they'll be the first let in after enough people have left to allow the park to reopen.
That isn’t exactly how it worked Oct 10-17. Has it changed since then? The way it was explained to us was that we would still be able to enter the parks even if they were at capacity. They didn’t use the word “guarantee,” but it was language along of the lines of “you can still enter the park without waiting.” We were at Cabana Bay, and a few times entered the park even though it was at capacity and they were turning away others. There wasn’t a line or holding area or anything- they just let us right in.
 


There's been some very confusing messaging about this, and a lot of Universal employees at the front gate seem as confused about it as everyone. I've talked to several Universal reps personally, and they've all stated the same thing: it's no longer a guarantee to get in. I wish they'd put out some clear wording about it, because it's all confusing for everyone. The reps I spoke to said they're working with the front gate people to get everyone on the same page.
 
There's been some very confusing messaging about this, and a lot of Universal employees at the front gate seem as confused about it as everyone. I've talked to several Universal reps personally, and they've all stated the same thing: it's no longer a guarantee to get in. I wish they'd put out some clear wording about it, because it's all confusing for everyone. The reps I spoke to said they're working with the front gate people to get everyone on the same page.
Yeah they best clear this up - when I booked it was the policy so if they tell me I cant get in that will be an issue. Ep is great and all - but if I cant get in then I may as well stay across the road for half the price.

They may have changed it for last weekend and next weekend because of Halloween - I heard they were recommending that AP holders not come on the weekend.

Anyway whatever the policy is they need to make it very clear to those that are booked and will be booking.
 
Any ideas on how this works if a resort guest enters a park but then takes a mid-day break back at the resort with plans to return to the park?

Does Universal keep an accurate count of guests that enter AND exit the park? If they only count the number that enter, then I could see a bigger risk with leaving and planning to return later in the afternoon.

This is on the hotel FAQ:

Will hotel guests be turned away if the theme parks reach capacity?
Hotel guests will be given priority entrance to theme parks during our phased reopening. We encourage our hotel guests to take advantage of their Early Park Admission benefit to access the parks prior to our daily opening to the general public, and we will accommodate hotel guests on a priority basis in the parks throughout the day.
 


That is no longer the case; on-site guests aren't guaranteed entry into the parks anymore. They're given 'priority' entry when the parks reach capacity, which means they'll be the first let in after enough people have left to allow the park to reopen.
This is what I was told as well by someone on the phone that was with guest services who really knew what she was doing (fixed something regarding my ticket that others had told me we could only fix on-site). I spoke to her manager as well and he told me the same thing. Although - I haven't seen someone staying at a hotel say that they were denied entry yet.
 
Universal has done a lot of things right, but the message on this issue (resort guest access during capacity closures) has been muddled since June. After initially stating in their FAQs that resort guests would receive entry and that capacity numbers reflected that, Uni quickly changed to the current language that resort guests are “prioritized” - whatever that means.

On Friday, Uni sent out the two emails below - one to APs encouraging them to attend during the week instead of during the weekend (side note: really wonder if they sent something to all those who bought that Florida resident ticket deal that gives free admission through Dec 24 - as I suspect this is a big part of Uni’s capacity problem on weekends right now). The other email was sent to resort guests encouraging them to split their day (read: lighten capacity midday when it’s at its worst) by taking advantage of longer park hours - although the email noticeably doesn’t say anything about whether resort guests can expect to get in or not. Apparently it didn’t work all that well - as IoA hit capacity by 10:30am Saturday and Universal soon after, with neither park reopening (per the app) before IoA closed at 6pm. In better news, neither park hit capacity Sunday.

A couple of anecdotes:
1) Uni opened backstage passage between USO and IoA so guests could get between parks without exiting or taking Hogwarts Express. The IoA entry/exit was in Seuss Landing beside Circus McGurkus (with a tent and scanners set up and signs “To USO”) - but was not open all day or later in the evening.

2) Some rides and lines are getting overwhelmed mid morning on weekends as the crowds arrive - those are showing up as “At Capacity” and closed to additional guests because TMs can’t keep the lines spaced or contained. Happened to Hulk this weekend - and during that time “all guests” means all guests - Express closed as well.


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Universal has done a lot of things right, but the message on this issue (resort guest access during capacity closures) has been muddled since June. After initially stating in their FAQs that resort guests would receive entry and that capacity numbers reflected that, Uni quickly changed to the current language that resort guests are “prioritized” - whatever that means.

On Friday, Uni sent out the two emails below - one to APs encouraging them to attend during the week instead of during the weekend (side note: really wonder if they sent something to all those who bought that Florida resident ticket deal that gives free admission through Dec 24 - as I suspect this is a big part of Uni’s capacity problem on weekends right now). The other email was sent to resort guests encouraging them to split their day (read: lighten capacity midday when it’s at its worst) by taking advantage of longer park hours - although the email noticeably doesn’t say anything about whether resort guests can expect to get in or not. Apparently it didn’t work all that well - as IoA hit capacity by 10:30am Saturday and Universal soon after, with neither park reopening (per the app) before IoA closed at 6pm. In better news, neither park hit capacity Sunday.

A couple of anecdotes:
1) Uni opened backstage passage between USO and IoA so guests could get between parks without exiting or taking Hogwarts Express. The IoA entry/exit was in Seuss Landing beside Circus McGurkus (with a tent and scanners set up and signs “To USO”) - but was not open all day or later in the evening.

2) Some rides and lines are getting overwhelmed mid morning on weekends as the crowds arrive - those are showing up as “At Capacity” and closed to additional guests because TMs can’t keep the lines spaced or contained. Happened to Hulk this weekend - and during that time “all guests” means all guests - Express closed as well.


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Very informative, thank you!

Maybe they need to switch to a park reservation system for resort guests? It seems like the perks of staying onsite are greatly compromised if you cannot get into a park, and if the EP line access is closed.
Yikes!
 
It’s a hard call - how do the parks balance capacity limits, guest experience and the financial demands of staying open? I give Uni a lot of credit for what they’ve done - first to reopen, trying to maintain the core guest experience, keeping shows running that they easily could have kept dark, moving ahead with a partial HHN, bringing back nighttime entertainment, doing right by APs.... And I think those efforts have won them new business or at least interest from people who haven’t been before.

That said - there’s still room for improvement in some areas and communication. Guests that end up confused or frustrated aren’t usually guests that keep coming back. Luckily ride closures for lines at capacity - while annoying - are usually short. The ability of resort guests to enter during capacity closures, however, has been an ongoing question for months - even though it doesn’t seem to have been an actual issue, it’s asking a lot for out-of town people to spend time and money on a trip to “probably” get in the parks. Without a clear policy, a guest may be at the mercy of a particular TM.
 
So if I am reading this correctly, we may or may not get into parks and may or may not be able to use our EP when we are going over Christmas and spending over $3000 to stay at the HRH? I will be extremely upset if this is the case. Those are the ONLY reasons we are staying on-site.
 
So if I am reading this correctly, we may or may not get into parks and may or may not be able to use our EP when we are going over Christmas and spending over $3000 to stay at the HRH? I will be extremely upset if this is the case. Those are the ONLY reasons we are staying on-site.

The only way for on-site guests to guarantee that they get into the parks is to enter during early entry, as the number of people who have access to early entry is much less than total capacity.
 
We are staying onsite Sat-Sat the week of Thanksgiving, with the first 4 days at HRH and the last 3 at ES. We'll arrive at noon on Sat, so there is a decent chance that we may not be able to get in to the parks. If that happens, we'll definitely do rope drop on Sun-Tues to make sure we get in to the parks while we have EPs. We normally take a break at lunchtime to go to CityWalk and a nap back at the hotel, but if the parks are full, we might just stay inside until we are done for the day...
 
I thought I read somewhere that on site guests are guaranteed entry because their hotel booking automatically counts them in the park capacity numbers. That way they can come and go back to their hotel without worrying about getting back in.
 
Following this...curious if there have been any updates or resort guests who were not able to get in for the day.
 
I'm at Hard Rock right now-- when I checked in, I asked them if we're guaranteed entry if the park reaches capacity. She very clearly said "no, it's not guaranteed, but you will receive priority. When they're able to let more people in, you'll be at the front of the line."
 
I'm at Hard Rock right now-- when I checked in, I asked them if we're guaranteed entry if the park reaches capacity. She very clearly said "no, it's not guaranteed, but you will receive priority. When they're able to let more people in, you'll be at the front of the line."

So do they have two different entrance lines then, one for onsite guests and another for the rest?
 
So do they have two different entrance lines then, one for onsite guests and another for the rest?
Yes. We were there on Saturday 10/25. We got dropped off by Uber at HRH and walked to City Walk from there. We did not go to the parks, but heard security explaining to the group in front of us that because they were staying at the hotel, they could wait in the separate line that had formed for hotel guests which was significantly shorter than the line that had formed for general admission, which extended past Hard Rock Café (around 3pm on a Saturday). Security was explaining this to all hotel guests at the bag check, so if you're walking, you will be directed where to go.
 
What happens if a park reaches capacity?

If a park reaches capacity, arriving guests will not be able to enter until the capacity is lowered. There is no guarantee, but the park can reopen after it has reached capacity due to guests leaving. If you are a guest at a Universal Resort hotel or have purchased a date-specific ticket, you have been accounted for and will be allowed in, even if the park has reached capacity. Park hopping may not be available if either park reaches capacity.

I just read this on undercover tourist.
 

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