Wizarding World Touring Plans and Details

[macraven]

Glad you listed these things !

 

[Meech Loves Mickey]

We are headed to the WWHP for the first time this June, so this list is huge help!

Does this plan take up the entire day? How long can we expect to wait in line for the headliner attractions?

Is it worth it to get the express pass for this one day?

Thanks!

 

[Kivara]

We are headed to the WWHP for the first time this June, so this list is huge help!

Does this plan take up the entire day? How long can we expect to wait in line for the headliner attractions?

Is it worth it to get the express pass for this one day?
Thanks!

If you are only going for one day, I would say get Express Passes (especially in the summer) They will be pricey...depending on the size of your group, it might be cheaper to get a "throw-away" room at Royal Pacific, Hard Rock, or Portifino hotel. That would give everyone (up to room capacity) free express passes for 2 days.

A lot is going to depend on your group though...how many, ages, rides or no?, big Potter fans, want to see any of the rest of the parks? etc.

JMHO, one day will be tight to do much if you want to see it all or ride many things w/o Express.

 

[Meech Loves Mickey]

If you are only going for one day, I would say get Express Passes (especially in the summer) They will be pricey...depending on the size of your group, it might be cheaper to get a "throw-away" room at Royal Pacific, Hard Rock, or Portifino hotel. That would give everyone (up to room capacity) free express passes for 2 days.

A lot is going to depend on your group though...how many, ages, rides or no?, big Potter fans, want to see any of the rest of the parks? etc.

JMHO, one day will be tight to do much if you want to see it all or ride many things w/o Express.

Thanks! We will be there for 4 days total. Our plan is 1 day at WWHP (both parks), 1 day at IoA, 1 day at US, and then one day going back to see things we missed, and/or see things a second time.

We have actually been toying around w the idea if getting a Seasonal AP, since the cost is not much more....

 

[sherlockmiles]

Thanks! We will be there for 4 days total. Our plan is 1 day at WWHP (both parks), 1 day at IoA, 1 day at US, and then one day going back to see things we missed, and/or see things a second time.
We have actually been toying around w the idea if getting a Seasonal AP, since the cost is not much more....

This is kind of how we do it, although 1/2 of each day is always HP, then the rest of the parks.

 

[Meech Loves Mickey]

If you are only going for one day, I would say get Express Passes (especially in the summer) They will be pricey...depending on the size of your group, it might be cheaper to get a "throw-away" room at Royal Pacific, Hard Rock, or Portifino hotel. That would give everyone (up to room capacity) free express passes for 2 days.

A lot is going to depend on your group though...how many, ages, rides or no?, big Potter fans, want to see any of the rest of the parks? etc.

JMHO, one day will be tight to do much if you want to see it all or ride many things w/o Express.

Could you tell me more about the “throwaway room”? Or direct me to a thread where it is discussed?
Thanks!

 

[nighttowll]

A throw away room is where you book a room at one of Universal’s three deluxe resorts that you don’t plan on actually using solely to get the free EP privileges that come with it.

EP is included at no extra charge to guests staying at RPR, HRH, and PBR. You get unlimited EP for the day you check in through the day you check out. This means a 1 night stay gives you 2 days of EP. If you are a family of 4 and plan on buying EP anyway, it is almost always less expensive to buy 1 night in a hotel, than to buy EP outright.

For instance: Let’s say 1 night in a standard room is $400 / night. That gives you EP for 2 days for up to 5 people, the max occupancy of the room. It would cost a family of 4 around $100 a day per person to purchase EP, so $800 verses $400 for the hotel room. If you can catch deals on the room, it can be an even better deal. I’ve gotten rooms as low as $200 / night with my AP rate before. However, I’ve noticed a trend recently in the rooms running more and more expensive. I haven’t seen a $200 room in a long time.

You still need to check in and check out of your room each day, even if you aren’t sleeping there. You will need either an EP pass provided by the hotel or the room key to access EP. The policy seems to change. Currently, it is a room key. You can check in as early as you’d like in the morning of your first day. Having a throwaway room can also be nice simply for the fact that it provides a room to nap in and allows you to access to the pools in the afternoon for breaks or as a place to change wet clothes from the water rides and store belongings.

 

[Fern]

We just did one day both parks, with no express pass. It was tight (and a long day!), but totally doable. We didn't get to do everything, but were able to hit all of both HP areas and everything else we wanted to see (crowds were not bad though).

One thing that saved a lot of time was that we wandered Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade looking in the shops during the day, but went back to Diagon Alley after close. The shops were closed, but the lights in the windows are all on and the kids did all of the interactive spells then. Only a few people there, no waiting to get their turn, and most importantly, they didn't feel stressed if they needed to do it a few times to get it to work. It seemed like it was much harder to get the sensors to read the wand movement when there were a million other people standing around waving their wands at the sane time, and they felt pressured to get it to "work" immediately so others could have a turn.

This also helped us so we could avoid the mad crush of people leaving right at 8.

 

[ArielSparrow]

I wish I could wear robes but it's way too hot for that! I hope to time it right one time to go to Universal Hollywood when it's not too hot.

 

[psac]

For our trip in May we’re bummed that the park closes at 6 or 7 every night. With sun-down at close to 8, there’s really no chance to see Diagon Alley at night.

 

[sherlockmiles]

For our trip in May we’re bummed that the park closes at 6 or 7 every night. With sun-down at close to 8, there’s really no chance to see Diagon Alley at night.

Totally agree - that sucks! and there's really no reason for it.

 

[macraven]

Since this thread is about:

Wizarding World Touring Plans and Details

Posts should be directed to the topic.

No need to continue to discuss your discontent of park hours.
It has been made known the park hours are set to have earlier closings in May for some dates.

You can carry on that type of discussion by using the pm system.



UO does hold special paid events during the year.
Perhaps the reason for not having extended hours for all of May.



If you want to talk about park hours, suggest you make a new thread and discuss it there.
Don't discuss it here and change the theme of the topic

 

[schumigirl]

Since this thread is about:

Wizarding World Touring Plans and Details

Posts should be directed to the topic.

No need to continue to discuss your discontent of park hours.
It has been made known the park hours are set to have earlier closings in May for some dates.

You can carry on that type of discussion by using the pm system.



UO does hold special paid events during the year.
Perhaps the reason for not having extended hours for all of May.



If you want to talk about park hours, suggest you make a new thread and discuss it there.
Don't discuss it here and change the theme of the topic

Thanks mac........there’s a few posts on the Universal boards being taken of course by complaints about other issues........

This is an excellent thread that’s not for complaints about Universals hours!!

 

[supedewoop]

This is so helpful, thank you!
Are the interactive spells interesting for adults? I definitely want to do a few and get a wand, but I'm wondering if I need to plan the time to do *all* of them. I'm also not sure how much of the non-HP things I'll want to do, but I can really only do one day, at universal and this sounds like a pretty full one if I do *everything*. What, if anything do you all think can be "cut"?

 

[Kivara]

This is so helpful, thank you!
Are the interactive spells interesting for adults? I definitely want to do a few and get a wand, but I'm wondering if I need to plan the time to do *all* of them. I'm also not sure how much of the non-HP things I'll want to do, but I can really only do one day, at universal and this sounds like a pretty full one if I do *everything*. What, if anything do you all think can be "cut"?

The wand spots are a lot of fun, my favorites are in Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley (they are all great, but the ones in Hogsmeade-IoA were added in after the park area was built, so IMO they aren't quite as amazing and can be glitchy at times.)

 

[pup975]

This is great! This is exactly what I needed. We're going to Universal for just 1 day and need to cram in all of the HP we can do. This summarizes things perfectly.

 

[HuskieJohn]

The first post is outstanding but my only issue is finding this stuff for the sake of my OCD planning. The online universal map is kind of lame with extremely little detail. Is there a more detailed map for the HP lands for Orlando?

 

[macraven]

I’m sure there are some readers here that know the names and locations of the shops/stores in each potter section of the two parks

Is that the info you would want?

I do the potter stuff but could only guide you to the shop that sells ice cream and the main restaurants
(For the rest of potterville, I follow the friends I am with )

 

[ruthies12]

@HuskieJohn There are no maps that I've ever found. Maybe I'll try to work on that on my next trip, but that may not be until December. Diagon Alley is especially confusing because the shops kinda all lead into one another and it's all in a big circle. You are correct that the map universal posts is extremely inadequate!

@supedewoop Most of the spell spots are obvious and you'll see other people doing those, some are out of the way or kinda hidden. If you have limited time I would suggest just doing the ones that strike your fancy as you walk around that don't have a long line of people waiting. I personally think the best ones are the ones down Knockturn Alley, but that's just my opinion. But yes they are definitely fun for adults!! As for what can be skipped, I would skip the gringott's money exchange and some of the other shops. You want to go in Weasley's Wizard Wheezes for sure and Honeydukes, you want to do the train both ways and the rides. After those I'd just add in what you can as time permits, but I think those are the big things not to miss.

 

[psac]

I have a map, but you have to say “I solemnly swear that I am up to no good” to be able to read it.