Universal Studios in Florida is a mega 2-park experience (soon to be 3) where guests can enter the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, escape from velociraptors in Jurassic Park and dive headlong into a myriad of otherworldly experiences. The following Universal Orlando Vacation tips for first timers are meant to simplify your travel planning and help you get more out of your time in the parks. It’s guidance for newbies, but also provides some tips and insights for all travelers to the Universal Orlando Resort.
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What Is Universal Studios Orlando?
One of the biggest Universal Orlando vacation tips is this: You aren’t dealing with a single park but rather 2 dramatic theme parks.
Universal Studios Florida opened its gates in 1990 with a groundbreaking vision: to immerse guests in the magic of filmmaking by bringing movie action to life. Unlike traditional theme parks, Universal designed its attractions to put visitors at the heart of the story, transforming them into the stars of their own cinematic adventures.
Here, you’ll find the Wizarding World of Harry Potter Hogwarts Diagon Alley, a realistic representation of the hidden London venue featured in the J.K. Rowling classic and the Warner Brothers Film series. Additional Hollywood style rides include a clash with The Mummy as well as adventures with transformers, the Simpsons and E.T, among others.
Universal’s Islands of Adventure opened in 1999 as a companion park to Universal Studios Florida, designed to offer immersive experiences across a variety of themed “islands.” Each island is centered around a distinct concept, such as superheroes, mythology, or children’s stories.
Highlights include Marvel Super Hero Island, featuring attractions like The Incredible Hulk Coaster, and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade. Known for its advanced ride technology, Islands of Adventure is home to some of the world’s most innovative attractions, including Jurassic World VelociCoaster and Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey.
Opening in 2025, Epic Universe is set to expand the Universal Studios world with 5 themed lands, including a new Harry Potter experience: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter—Ministry of Magic. Additional areas within the park will continue the movie focus and include Super Nintendo World and How to Train Your Dragon—Isle of Berk.
Epic Universe will also include 2 new lands not themed to a particular movie, but rather the adventures we experience through storytelling. These include Dark Universe, where classic monsters come to life, and Celestial Park where guests can explore the future.
Planning Your Trip to Universal Orlando
Universal Studios Orlando brings the world of the movies to life and sets you as the star. As you plan for your own epic adventure, it’s best to get off on the right foot with these Universal Orlando vacation planning tips.
Deciding When to Visit Universal Theme Parks
Finding the right time to visit Universal Orland Resort depends on a number of factors. For many guests, finding time when the parks are less crowded makes itinerary planning easier and park visits more enjoyable.
Like most Orlando theme parks, you’ll find that Universal Studios is most crowded when schools are out of session and less crowded when classes are being held. For that reason, you’ll want to avoid common school holidays if you are crowd averse as well as shoulder seasons associated with these dates. These include:
- The week between Christmas and New Years
- The week following Christmas
- Thanksgiving week
- Any Friday through Monday that includes a Monday holiday, such as Columbus Day
- Early March through mid-April (spring break)
- Beginning of June through mid-August
During these peak travel times, you’ll find hotels will be booked more fully, making it harder to find a reservation. Parks will also be more crowded, swelling wait times on the most popular attractions.
When it comes to avoiding crowds, the best times to take a theme park vacation to Universal Orlando are:
- Mondays through Thursdays the starting the second week of January through the week before President’s Day
- Sunday through Friday beginning the third week of April through the middle of May
- Sunday through Friday in September through the first week of October
- Tuesday through Thursday late October until the week before Thanksgiving
- Sunday through Friday beginning the week after Thanksgiving until the week before Christmas
Deciding When to Visit Universal Orlando: Thinking Beyond Crowds
While avoiding crowds may be a top priority for some guests, it isn’t the only factor to consider when planning a trip. You’ll also want to consider weather.
If you’re picturing sun-filled days and warm temps, keep in mind that winter days are not always warm. It is possible for highs to dip into the 40s sporadically during the winter months. Since we can’t control the weather, it’s better to avoid these months if you run a little cold blooded.
Your budget is another consideration. Pricing on hotels and tickets is typically lower when traveling during one of the less crowded times listed above.
However, if you’re a Halloween ghoul looking to scream your way through the thrills and chills of Halloween Horror Nights, you’re confined to the dates this event runs, usually September through the end of October. Fortunately, that’s a fairly easy time to find low crowds. October also offers some of the best weather Orlando has on tap.
It’s a similar situation if you want to visit Universal during the Christmas holidays. Decorations tend to go up right after Halloween and special events begin in November.
Essential Universal Orlando Vacation Tips: Deciding Where to Stay
If you’re familiar with Disney World vacation planning, then you know that where you stay can have a big impact on your vacation experience. We found the same was true at Universal.
For our first trip, we scoured maps and read countless reviews of the available hotels and Universal resorts. In the end, we opted to stay onsite at a Universal hotel. There were more than a few reasons behind this decision.
Advantages of Staying at a Universal Orlando Hotel
One Universal Orlando vacation tip is to stay at a Universal onsite hotel, where you’ll enjoy exclusive perks. The first is transportation to and from the parks.
Complimentary Transportation to the Parks for Guests of Universal Orlando Resorts
Universal’s complimentary transportation system includes buses and/or boats.
All modes of transportation run on a regular schedule throughout the day. You’ll find that multiple boats and buses run early in the day and closer to closing, so your wait is likely to be lower during those times. While hotel personnel will likely tell you that vehicles run every 20 minutes, we never waited more than ten minutes, even when we narrowly missed a departing boat.
In addition to accessing the Universal transportation network, guests at Universal’s Premier resorts can also take a short stroll to the theme parks. Hard Rock Hotel and Portofino Bay share a walking path, surrounded by beautiful landscaping and shaded from the sun, that leads directly into City Walk. You’ll find the entrance to both parks here.
Lowes Royal Pacific also has a walking path. However, it will not take you to both parks. On the positive side, it does offer a more private way to enter Islands of Adventure, putting you a little ahead of other guests.
Early Park Admission Put Guests of Universal Hotels Ahead of the Crowds
Whether you’re enjoying the premier perks of Universal’s signature hotels or Universal’s superior budget-friendly amenities, you’ll have access to Early Park Admission. With Early Park Admission, guests staying at Universal’s line of hotels are permitted entry into Islands of Adventure one hour before standard opening. During more popular travel dates, this perk may be extended to Universal Studios.
Skip the Line with Universal Express Pass by Staying at a Premier Resort
An Unlimited Universal Express Pass is included for each guest booked into a room at one of Universal’s Premiere Resort. Universal Express Pass puts guests ahead of the crowds with access to most rides via a special queue exclusive to Express Pass users.
Since the only other way to get Express Pass is by purchasing it, this is a perk that could be worth the splurge on a Premier resort. Universal Premier Resorts offering Express Pass include:
Charge Purchases on the Fly
By staying at a Universal resort hotel, purchasing everything from souvenirs and food is simplified. Just link a credit card to your room, and your key card becomes a charging card. If you’re using this card to access implied Express Pass privileges, you’ll have it readily available, so using it to charge purchases just makes sense.
Universal Orlando Vacation Tip #3: Maximize Your Time in the Park
Whether you’re visiting Universal Theme Parks during a peak travel season or during a less crowded time, you’ll want to make the most of your time in the parks. The Universal Orlando vacation tips in this section are designed to help you do just that, with guidance on itinerary planning and perks to help you beat the crowds.
Early Mornings Are a Breeze at Universal
We found early mornings to be less crowded than other times of day. From park opening to around 11:30 to noon, the parks were relatively uncrowded and wait times for attractions were at the lowest of the day.
Early Park Admission for the Win
If you’re looking to beat the crowds, there is now better way than to utilize Early Park Admission, particularly if you want to experience attractions in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter with little wait or you aren’t using Universal Express Pass. This perk is exclusive to guests of Universal hotels and permits entry into Islands of Adventure one hour ahead of scheduled times.
Universal Express Pass Let’s You Skip the Lines
If you’re serious about rides and soaking up as much movie immersion as you can, you’ll want to at least consider Universal Express Pass. With Express Pass, you’ll enter rides from a separate queue exclusive to Express Pass Holders. Since the only way to score an Express Pass is to stay at a Premier Resort on Universal Property or to purchase one, lines are much shorter than traditional standby queues.
Arrive Early, Stay Ahead of the Crowds
If you take advantage of Early Park Admission or enter the parks at opening, you might just realize an unusual perk. You’ll remain ahead of the crowds for most of the day.
The trick to this is to start your day in the most popular sections of the park and keep moving from land to land. At Islands of Adventure, that means starting in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, moving onto Jurassic Park and onward from there. When visiting Universal Studios, start again in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and keep moving in a clockwise direction.
Since all lands are laid out in circular fashion, it isn’t possible to cut across the park to another land. That means that all guests must move from one land to another.
Guests who enter after you will remain behind you for most of the day as they make their way from land to land. This strategy is only effective if you arrive for Early Park Admission, when offered, or when the park opens if there is no Early Park Admission.
Enjoying Hagrid’s Motorbike Adventure with Minimal Wait
Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure is one of the most popular rides in Islands of Adventure, and with good reason. However, that also means it stacks up some powerful wait times during the day. The fact that this is the only headliner attraction without an Express Pass Queue means you could be waiting in long lines to experience it, even if you arrive during Early Park Admission.
That leaves one Universal Orlando vacation tip to beat the crowds: arrive even earlier. On our first park day, we arrived about 20 minutes before the start of Early Park Admission. This put us about 25 people back in our single queue line. However, almost all of the many entry points had a similar number of guests queued and waiting to enter.
One thing to realize about Universal is that their admission process is a little clunky, with a slightly outdated camera system in use to ensure you own the ticket you are using. That means it can take time to move guests through the queue.
On this day, it took us 10 minutes just to get into the park. By the time we arrived at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, the queue for Hagrid’s Motorbike Adventure stretched into the Lost Continent and registered an 80-minute wait.
We decided to do better the next day and arrived about 50 minutes prior to Early Park Admission. We chose a queue line where we would be first to enter and waited it out. Time passed quickly as we chatted, and soon we were admitted to the park.
Some guests tried to run or at least fast walk their way to the Wizarding World. We kept a steady comfortable pace and arrived with no visible line at the ride.
We stowed our backpacks and entered the queue. It’s a lengthy line to walk, but we did it without stopping and were put on the ride with no wait.
You May Want to Skip the Backpack
One of the biggest Universal Orlando vacation tips for convenience is this: leave your backpack, purse or other larger bag at home. At many rides, you are required to stow these in a locker before entering the ride queue. This can become a little cumbersome ride after ride, so you’ll find it more convenient if you can leave a carrying bag at home.
You could also find it cheaper. While smaller lockers are free to use, larger lockers require a fee, and even modest size backpacks will require a larger locker. This includes Loungefly bags from Disney parks, a popular crossover carrying pack for guests who visit both franchises.
Going Upside Down? Prepare for Extra Security
While the use of lockers is recommended on many attractions, you’ll find it strictly enforced on rides that turn riders upside down. Be prepared to pass through a metal detector when entering the ride queue to make sure you’ve left nothing in your pockets.
Do You Need Express Pass?
If you’re staying at one of the Universal Studios Premier resorts (listed above), Unlimited Express Pass is included in the price of your room reservation. If you aren’t a recipient of this perk, you’re likely wondering if it’s worth the purchase.
One Universal Orlando vacation tip we commonly give to first timers is to make the purchase if your budget permits it. This will simplify your trip and reduce the stress of planning an itinerary and rushing from ride to ride to beat the crowds. Simply show your room key or Express Pass at the entrance to the Express Pass line, and you’ll be riding in no time.
Express Pass is particularly important if you’re visiting the parks during one of the peak times listed above and could save you money in the long run. If you’re waiting in lines of 30 minutes plus, you could easily need 2 days per park to experience all of the attractions. With Express Pass, we rode everything in a single day with time to spare.
Universal Orlando Vacation Tips Regarding Express Pass
If you do decide to use Express Pass, there are some important Universal Orlando vacation tips to heed and general things to know. First, Express Pass does not eliminate the line entirely. You will wait a few minutes for each ride, but your wait will be significantly shortened when compared to the standby queue.
Second, Express Pass lines ebb and flow in length just like the standby lines. We saw the longest Express Pass lines beginning around noon and extending into the late afternoon. The shortest lines occurred early in the day.
If you receive Express Pass as part of your hotel booking, your pass will be tied to your hotel reservation. This means, you’ll need to show your hotel key at each Express Pass Line. Some of us found it easiest to purchase a lanyard and plastic card holder to carry the Express Pass. Scanning it at each ride through the plastic sleeve was a cinch.
Dining at Universal Studios Theme Parks
There are 3 important Universal Orlando vacation tips to understand when it comes to dining at Universal Studios. The first is the availability of table service restaurants.
Reservations Ensure a Space at Table Service Restaurants
You’ll find very few table service restaurants within the theme parks, so if you want to sit down and be served while enjoying your day, you’ll need to be sure to make reservations ahead of time. A good time to do this is about a month before your arrival, but you will be able to find availability at some establishments as close as a week away.
If you are not able to book a reservation for a sought-after restaurant, try scoring a same-day reservation. However, you should expect a wait if you take this approach with no guarantee that seating will be available. Guests staying in club level rooms at Universal hotels are likely to find greater availability by speaking with your hotel concierge.
Mobile Ordering Saves You Time
If you’re going to eat counter service, you’ll certainly simplify your dining experience. If you use the mobile order option, you’ll find dining in the parks even easier.
Mobile ordering is available through the Universal Orlando app and is well worth the effort. We mobile ordered our meals while waiting in line for the last ride before we intended to eat. We then clicked to prepare our meals when we were within sight of the restaurant, found a seat and waited for the notification that our meals were ready. In most cases, we walked right past other guests who were waiting in a lengthy line to order, when picking up our food.
Coca-Cola Freestyle Souvenir Cups
Before leaving off with dining, we have one last Universal Orlando vacation tip. We saw many guests carrying insulated mugs and refilling them at Freestyle machines throughout the parks. We also saw a splash headline within the Universal App regarding free Freestyle drinks. It turns out the 2 are related.
When you purchase a refillable mug, you are granted free unlimited refills throughout the day. The break-even point was about 3 drinks, so if you plan to purchase at least 3 fountain drinks throughout the day, including Icees, purchasing a refillable mug may be worth it.
If you do opt for a mug, be sure to hang onto it for the rest of your trip. You can purchase a refill pass on subsequent days of your trip for a discounted price when using a prepurchased mug.
Booking Your Hotel and Tickets
When it comes to making your hotel reservations and purchasing your theme park tickets, the easiest way to do so is by booking a vacation package. Doing so, bundles the cost of your theme park ticket and hotel reservation into one purchase, allowing you to make a minimal deposit at time of booking.
Universal offers a number of package options, including selections that roll in popular experiences, such as a meal at Three Broomsticks or tickets to a popular after-hours event. You’ll also find build your own packages, but before you take this route, it’s wise to brush up on the various types of theme park tickets available.
Park-to-Park tickets allow you to visit more than one park in a day and is an essential ticket type if you plan to ride the Hogwarts Express. Single Park tickets will restrict you to visiting one park each day.
In addition there are 1-park, 2-park and 3-park tickets. You will only be able to visit the number of parks associated with your ticket type. For example, if you pick a one-day ticket, you will be asked to specify whether you plan to visit Islands of Adventure or Universal Studios. With a 2-park ticket, you will be able to visit both, and a 3-park ticket throws in a visit to Volcano Bay, Universal’s premier water park. Beginning in May of 2025, you will be able to select Epic Universe as one of your 3 parks.
Last, you must specify how many days you want on your ticket. A 3-day, 2-park ticket, for example, will allow you to visit Islands of Adventure or Universal Studios each day for 3 days. If you wish to visit both parks on each day or any day of your trip, you will need a 3-day, 2-park, park-to-park ticket.
All tickets for Islands of Adventure or Universal Studios can be purchased with an Express Pass add-on allowing you to skip the regular line on most rides.
Guests planning to visit Epic Universe in 2025 will initially need to purchase at least a 3-day ticket. However, 2 of those days must be spent at the original parks. Guests will only be able to visit Epic Universe for one day when the park opens in May of 2025.
Given the many ticket types, add-on options and available discounts, many guests find it easiest to work with a travel agent when booking their trip. This way, they can more easily find the right ticket type for their trip and ensure they aren’t missing any special experiences.
Conclusion and Final Thoughts
Planning a trip to Universal Orlando Resort can be a complex experience, especially for first-time visitors. Ultimately, a successful trip boils down to thoughtful preparation. Whether you’re navigating the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, braving Jurassic Park’s VelociCoaster, or exploring the upcoming Epic Universe, the right strategies will ensure you maximize your time and budget while minimizing stress.
Use our Universal Orlando vacation tips as a guide, and get ready to embark on an unforgettable journey into the heart of the Universal Orlando Resort.
