Looking for some advice!

[AVanstraten]

Planning family trip to parks in end of January 1/18 - 1/24. Couple of days at Disney and couple at Universal. We have not been to Universal in a LONG time and never with our kids (last time we went was over 15 years ago). Kids and I are HUGE Harry Potter fans and did not do Universal on our last/1st Disney trip as they were too young to really understand/ride/enjoy. So, needless to say, we are excited. Couple of questions...

• Is getting the universal express pass worth it? Used to Disney where it is included (FP) so this whole purchasing one is new... however we only have 2 days at Universal so if it helps with waits and letting us do all the HP stuff we want to do, then I would consider it.
• Is the interactive wand worth it? We love Star Wars as well and will be doing all of that also... so looking at the build your own Droid option but can't swing wands and droids for both kiddos.
• Does Universal have "early morning hours"?

Thank you in advance!

 

[greg9x]

Express Pass worth is dependent on how you get it and how busy your days there are. But if it's busy, it is defiantly nice to have them as you get to use them on almost all rides (except currently Hagrids coaster). If it's slow, people generally report not having to wait more than 15 minutes for most rides. Of course that is hit or miss due to a lot of factors. Staying at Universal Deluxe hotels gets Express Passes for everyone in the room for free.. if going to stay at Universal for your days, then something to consider.

The wands are definitely NOT 'worth it' as they are $60 for a molded piece of plastic... but having kids who want them may make them a necessity. Also having your kid get picked by the wand at the ceremony (if chosen) is pretty fun. Doing the interactive spells is 'ok'... you will frequently find lines to do them, so will see the effect multiple times before it's your turn... again, kids wanting to do the spells will greatly influence buying them. I did buy one for my son after he was chosen at the ceremony..but he lost it 24 hours later, so .

One Universal park opens 1 hour early (monthly schedule of which it is) to guest staying in Universal Hotels, some Annual Pass holders, and a few partner hotels or special marked tickets. Only certain areas and rides are open during that hour, but usually the Harry Potter areas are included if that is your goal.

 

[disneyseniors]

I would add that you can add EP while in the parks, if it is too busy.
The wands were well worth it for our grandsons. They loved them and had a ball doing the interactive spells.
I guess it's an individual issue, but we always get EP's with our hotel room at RPR. I've been tempted to get a wand myself at times. Looks like a lot of fun, but you can watch others with their wands too to get the full effect.

 

[bchbetha]

• Is getting the universal express pass worth it? Used to Disney where it is included (FP) so this whole purchasing one is new... however we only have 2 days at Universal so if it helps with waits and letting us do all the HP stuff we want to do, then I would consider it.

Well, express passes are far superior to fast passes so there's a reason they cost money. They don't have to be reserved, you aren't limited to a certain number...
Staying deluxe onsite gets you the fancy unlimited version of express passes (they sell a once per ride cheaper version as well). AND 1 night in one a deluxe hotel gets you 2 DAYS worth of express passes for your whole group. It's a much smarter move financially to stay and get those. Sample breakdown- 1 room= $350. Express passes= $90-150/ per person per day...you can easily see why the math works out better onsite. Also, you can check in at 6:30AM, drop your bags, get your express passes AND early entry.

• Is the interactive wand worth it? We love Star Wars as well and will be doing all of that also... so looking at the build your own Droid option but can't swing wands and droids for both kiddos.

Yep. "Huge" HP fans will have a ball. I've lent mine out to a bunch of friends though so if your kids don't really care, maybe you can find someone's to borrow. Mine totally didn't care about waiting in line and seeing other kids do the spells first.

• Does Universal have "early morning hours"?

PP's covered that.

 

[AVanstraten]

So we are not staying onsite but in a house with other family. We are doing two days at Disney and two days at Universal. So getting the Express Pass would need to be a purchase, which is sounds like from what you say, they are worth it. What is annoying is that I can't seem to buy Universal Tickets yet, which seems odd. But again, I'm used to Disney where you can buy ahead of time.

In regards to the wand... Have any of you done the droid build at Star Wars and the Harry Potter wand? If so, and you could only pick one to do, which would you pick?

 

[Disxuni]

So we are not staying onsite but in a house with other family. We are doing two days at Disney and two days at Universal. So getting the Express Pass would need to be a purchase, which is sounds like from what you say, they are worth it. What is annoying is that I can't seem to buy Universal Tickets yet, which seems odd. But again, I'm used to Disney where you can buy ahead of time.

In regards to the wand... Have any of you done the droid build at Star Wars and the Harry Potter wand? If so, and you could only pick one to do, which would you pick?

You should be able to purchase Universal tickets ahead of time.

In regards of the Star Wars / Harry Potter question. I might be biased and also, I might not be able to make the best judgement as I haven't done both, but experienced one. I am basing my opinion on what I know, or heard about both and with that, I think a wand might be best.

Not only it is less expensive, but I think whether you, or your children, either way will have more fun seeing the type of interactive moments you can have with the wand a lot more than the droid. I have a feeling it will feel more magical and have more of a wow factor. Also, the wand is quite sturdy and strong, itself should remain functional and if, by chance it no longer works, even if you come back for a few years, you can go to the wand shop to find a "wandmaker" to "fix" it free of charge.

In the case of the droid, not only it's more than twice the price of a wand ($99.99), but in addition, if you want some of the accessories (ex. personality chip $12.99, droid holding backpack $39.99) that's even more money you have to pump into the droid. The interactive factor is the fact that it moves, beeps, chirps to express happiness, or distress in certain areas of the park. While it makes sense that the droid would be made out of plastic it doesn't look that sturdy to me. Also, the droid is not that big as well, which makes sense as well, but I personally find disappointing considering the price. In photos I've seen it doesn't appear to be not even a foot tall. Also, while this is a new concept, this is Disney, and I doubt that if anything breaks on this bad boy you're going to get a replacement, or parts for free if something goes wrong.

 

[bchbetha]

Run the numbers. People sometimes book “throwaway” rooms at the hotels forvtge perks and don’t ecs need stay there. I think that’s nuts because it’s a heck of a lot nicer to be onsite and a 10 minute walk into the park in the AM or whenever you need a break as opposed to commuting. Truly, run the numbers. Even with having two overlapping lodgings booked it’ll very, very likely be cheaper to get the onsite room. A shared house probably doesn’t really cost all that much per night anyway to not swing this (it’ll cost you WAY more to buy Express Passes a la carte for 2 days x that many people)

Droid vs wand? Well, I'm more of a HP than SW fan so wand all the way. Though, again, my suggestion stands of borrowing wands. If you use social media, just put the request out there because I bet someone in your social circle has some to lend.

 

[AVanstraten]

Staying onsite is not an option for either Universal or Disney as the house we are in for our complete stay is a "gift" from my in-laws! So, can't get better than free! Also, my sister in law and her family has never been to Disney/Universal (or traveled with their kiddos, so should be interesting) and their kids are much younger so they are not doing Universal at all. So really, the express passes would be just for us.

Thank you all so much for the info on the wand/droid discussion. I'm going to go with wand as my son already has one of those small BB8 droids that programs off your phone and sadly, doesn't play with that at all. I think the wand experience will be more fun (and honestly, I want one too!) and I can get both kids a wand for the price of one droid.

We are trying to do all parks in 4 days (2 at each), leaving one day for Kennedy Space Center/beach, and then some R/R with family. I am planning on doing the throwaway room at Disney so we can get our fast passes at the 60 day mark, and we can get a night at Wilderness for pretty cheap and split with three families is nothing as we can put 10 on the reservation.

I think I will just keep an eye on the boards here/on the app, and buy the express pass close to trip or onsite based on crowds/waits.

Do you need to reservations early for any dining or any experience like Disney? If so, any recommendations on fun places to eat or things to do (outside of rides) for family. Thank you all so much, this has been super helpful!!

 

[Disxuni]

I think I will just keep an eye on the boards here/on the app, and buy the express pass close to trip or onsite based on crowds/waits.

Do you need to reservations early for any dining or any experience like Disney? If so, any recommendations on fun places to eat or things to do (outside of rides) for family. Thank you all so much, this has been super helpful!!

You do not have to purchase them necessarily ahead of time. You can wait until you get there to see if it's really needed. However, if that is your preference to purchase ahead of time and you're wishing to skip the lines based on what you read, then you can. Some people like having EP simply, because it's more convenient and enjoyable to them, not necessarily, because it's necessary.

As for reservations, no, you do not need to do any early reservations like Disney. Places that even offer reservations are a hit, or miss. Besides, you shouldn't have to wait that ridiculously long for a table anywhere, if you have to wait at all, especially during that time frame you plan on going. Even the newer restaurant Bigfire will be open a few months by the time you get there so while I'm sure it'll be popular, any hype that is happening for the restaurant now will die down some by the time you're there. I always recommend that if people are really worried and wanting to make sure they have either low, or no wait, for places that do not offer reservations to either go when it first opens, or to go during what is considered odd hours for lunch, or dinner.

However, as for within the park, it is different, as the restaurants are smaller in comparison to the City Walk restaurants so you might have to wait depending on when you go. So once again, if that is the case, either see if you can make reservations at dine-in places (cause QS isn't going to offer it) and if not, go when it first opens, or during odd hours.

 

[AVanstraten]

You do not have to purchase them necessarily ahead of time. You can wait until you get there to see if it's really needed. However, if that is your preference to purchase ahead of time and you're wishing to skip the lines based on what you read, then you can. Some people like having EP simply, because it's more convenient and enjoyable to them, not necessarily, because it's necessary.

As for reservations, no, you do not need to do any early reservations like Disney. Places that even offer reservations are a hit, or miss. Besides, you shouldn't have to wait that ridiculously long for a table anywhere, if you have to wait at all, especially during that time frame you plan on going. Even the newer restaurant Bigfire will be open a few months by the time you get there so while I'm sure it'll be popular, any hype that is happening for the restaurant now will die down some by the time you're there. I always recommend that if people are really worried and wanting to make sure they have either low, or no wait, for places that do not offer reservations to either go when it first opens, or to go during what is considered odd hours for lunch, or dinner.

However, as for within the park, it is different, as the restaurants are smaller in comparison to the City Walk restaurants so you might have to wait depending on when you go. So once again, if that is the case, either see if you can make reservations at dine-in places (cause QS isn't going to offer it) and if not, go when it first opens, or during odd hours.

Thank you for the tips! Such different processes for Universal than Disney... Looking forward to it though! Hoping the crowds won't be bad if we can go mid week and try to avoid the MLK holiday weekend and do Kennedy instead that weekend. Thank you again!

 

[jacksdadcan]

From a crowd calendar perspective it looks like it shouldn't be terribly busy that week of January so you might be able to get away without the added cost of express passes. In that case you will want to download the Universal Studios app that will show you wait times for rides. You will find throughout the day that wait times can really swing ie Hulk can be a 10 minutes wait or a 55 minute wait depending on the time of day.

 

[J'aime Paris]

Op, you should really go back and read the advice of @bchbetha more carefully. She knows what she's talking about, and is trying to possibly save you money for your given scenario.

Unlimited EP for 2 whole days on a 1 night reservation at Universal....is worth BOATLOADS more than a throwaway room at WDW for 3 FP+ at a 60 day mark vs 30 day for everyone else.

 

[Disxuni]

Op, you should really go back and read the advice of @bchbetha more carefully. She knows what she's talking about, and is trying to possibly save you money for your given scenario.

Unlimited EP for 2 whole days on a 1 night reservation at Universal....is worth BOATLOADS more than a throwaway room at WDW for 3 FP+ at a 60 day mark vs 30 day for everyone else.

That's a matter of opinion and values.

While I never done a "throw away" room I personally think having one at Universal is more worth the money due to the fact that you get to do unlimited EP for all attractions (except Hagrid's for now). It also includes check in and check out date.

However, for someone who might be needing to get all the best out of their Disney experience and if needing to get specific reservations for very desired attractions that are normally impossible to get, or have insane wait times, it might felt more needed, or desired. So, depending on those person's desires, or values might be considered more important and raises the worth.

That being said, if that is truly important to them and the reason for doing the throw away room at Disney as oppose to Universal, OP might want to make sure to be making those reservations in the morning at the earliest date they can book. As even with the 60+ day time frame you have to watch out for those most desired FPs. They also have to watch out for the tier system.

 

[J'aime Paris]

That's a matter of opinion and values.

Correct....
And I gave my opinion, nothing more.
The OP was looking for advice and I gave mine.

No need to school me on WDW and Universal. Been to both many times and I understand how it works!

 

[Disxuni]

Correct....
And I gave my opinion, nothing more.
The OP was looking for advice and I gave mine.

No need to school me on WDW and Universal. Been to both many times and I understand how it works!

Please don't take offense. Not "schooling" you, letting the OP know the differences. I just think there is a lot to consider and think about between the two of them. Just expressing the differences between the two and what to look out for with the 60+ FP option. I more than willingly expressed my own opinion as well, but expressed the pros and cons of the other choice too.

 

[AVanstraten]

That's a matter of opinion and values.

While I never done a "throw away" room I personally think having one at Universal is more worth the money due to the fact that you get to do unlimited EP for all attractions (except Hagrid's for now). It also includes check in and check out date.

However, for someone who might be needing to get all the best out of their Disney experience and if needing to get specific reservations for very desired attractions that are normally impossible to get, or have insane wait times, it might felt more needed, or desired. So, depending on those person's desires, or values might be considered more important and raises the worth.

That being said, if that is truly important to them and the reason for doing the throw away room at Disney as oppose to Universal, OP might want to make sure to be making those reservations in the morning at the earliest date they can book. As even with the 60+ day time frame you have to watch out for those most desired FPs. They also have to watch out for the tier system.

I'm assuming OP is me (original poster)? LOL, still trying to figure out the abbreviations on all of these boards... Ok, so I re-read and thought about it more... so one theory is that the "throw-away" room cost is more valuable at Universal due to getting unlimited EP for both days at Universal than getting the 60day early FP at Disney with that "throw away" room correct??

So, here are some of my challenges (and also reasons why we have never traveled with others probably...). We (two families and one set of grandparents) are staying in house paid for by grandparents for all. So, lodging is free which is awesome and we are so blessed for! We have agreed and tried to lay down ground rules that we can do what we want and won't be all doing the same thing at the same time, however some logistical planning is required with some shared vehicle usage/uber costs and other things. The other family with children is not going to Universal at all, they feel kids are too young. They are only doing 3 days at Disney (skipping one park entirely I think, and doing 1 day at Legoland I think). We are doing 2 days at Disney (combining AK in am to hit Pandora, then MK in evening; DHS in am for Star Wars, then Epcot in evening) so we have limited time at each park (which is why I was thinking the 60 day FP is critical. Then as a whole group, we are all doing Kennedy Space Center/beach. The other family really wants to do park/rest day/park... which I get but makes for driving and planning tough. Sooooo..... knowing all of that, any thoughts on best plans...? I'll do some research on throw away rooms at Universal hoping to find least expensive option. The tough part is with these, is that it forces you do do back to back days at parks to get the perks which is fine with us but not necessarily what I think works best for the group. Ugh...

 

[AVanstraten]

Can someone verify I'm understanding this correctly? A one day express pass is $64/per person, so for our family of 4, total cost would be $276. I found a one night stay at the "surf hotel" for $104. So with that one night stay, do we get the Express Pass included for one day, both days...? If Express Pass is included for each of us then yes, I'm thinking the throw away room is a better deal than adding on the express pass independently.

 

[Disxuni]

Honestly, there is no pressure. You do what you want to do, especially if you're trying to please a lot of people and you're on a budget, or not even having a budget, but really want to enjoy the free lodging. I do not know how much you know about FPs, but the only other thing I'll mention about watching about booking FPs other than understanding the tiers (for ex. you can only book one certain "tier one" attraction FP and finish booking and going on the other two "tier two" FPs before potentially booking another FP) and that you can only select all your FPs for one park. I mention this since it sounds like your park hopping.

EP and unlimited EP are two different things. $64 is regular EP and only one park. $99 is for Unlimited EP for both parks. Unlimited EP is included only with Hard Rock, Royal Pacific, Loews Portofino. There are no hotels that include regular EP. However, at those three resorts, you get unlimited EP for check in and check out, so essentially if you stay one night, you get it for two days. However, I honestly do not think you'll need EP due to the fact that you're going during a non-peak season.

The only thing I'd offer in terms of advise for avoiding long lines for popular attractions is instead of doing the rope drop and dealing with the rush, what I personally do is wait until the evening. When it's time for the main show of the park, or the fireworks, or even just before the parks closing hours, I hope onto the main attraction that seems impossible to get on and usually the wait time is not too bad in comparison to what it has been the rest of the day. Most people are either gone for the day and a lot the guests that are left are watching the show/fireworks. The last couple of times I've done this for Flight of Passage. The first time it was 45 minutes, the second a little over an hour. Still a wait, but it's better than three hours.

 

[AVanstraten]

Honestly, there is no pressure. You do what you want to do, especially if you're trying to please a lot of people and you're on a budget, or not even having a budget, but really want to enjoy the free lodging. I do not know how much you know about FPs, but the only other thing I'll mention about watching about booking FPs other than understanding the tiers (for ex. you can only book one certain "tier one" attraction FP and finish booking and going on the other two "tier two" FPs before potentially booking another FP) and that you can only select all your FPs for one park. I mention this since it sounds like your park hopping.

EP and unlimited EP are two different things. $64 is regular EP and only one park. $99 is for Unlimited EP for both parks. Unlimited EP is included only with Hard Rock, Royal Pacific, Loews Portofino. There are no hotels that include regular EP. However, at those three resorts, you get unlimited EP for check in and check out, so essentially if you stay one night, you get it for two days. However, I honestly do not think you'll need EP due to the fact that you're going during a non-peak season.

The only thing I'd offer in terms of advise for avoiding long lines for popular attractions is instead of doing the rope drop and dealing with the rush, what I personally do is wait until the evening. When it's time for the main show of the park, or the fireworks, or even just before the parks closing hours, I hope onto the main attraction that seems impossible to get on and usually the wait time is not too bad in comparison to what it has been the rest of the day. Most people are either gone for the day and a lot the guests that are left are watching the show/fireworks. The last couple of times I've done this for Flight of Passage. The first time it was 45 minutes, the second a little over an hour. Still a wait, but it's better than three hours.

Thank you! Yes, we are park hopping for Disney. The good news is, we really only have two "have to do's" for all 4 parks. Pandora at AK (wasn't there last time we went) and Start Wars at DHS (was very limited last time we went). Honest, at MK, there are lots of things we loved and would do again but nothing that is a "have to". And at Epcot, we really want to do Soarin' as it was closed last time we went for refurbishment.

Yes, group planning is proving to be challenging.... but all good problems to have! Getting out of WI in January is GREAT no matter what! After doing some more reading/blogs, I'm going to wait I think to get the Universal EP until we get there and see the crowds knowing we can purchase at the park if we feel we need/want to.

 

[bchbetha]

Waiting is a fine option. If you simply decide you want a break from everyone too then you know you can head off for an overnight at one of the 3 deluxe hotels too...
FYI- those prices quoted in your post and pp's for the EPs are the **starting** at prices. They can go quite a bit up. Unlimiteds have the potential of being $150 EACH per day!
As a frequent January visitor, pack stretchy gloves and layers. We have had a lot of evenings where it got down to the upper 30s and highs only in the mid 50s. In the sun during the day feels great but darned cold at night and the morning.