Front of Line Access Questions

[odyseus_7]

Hi. I have a few questions about the front of the line access for resort guests at Universal.
1. How does it work, do you automaticly go to the front of the line or do you get into the express line?
2. Has Universal said anything about how long they are doing this for?
3. Has anyone did this on a crowded day. I will be going over Memorial Day on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and figure on huge crowds. I was wondering how well it works on very crowded days.
Thanks

[sunflower8932]

I am a Universal employee at one of the busier attractions and just thought I'd respond to you and offer some insight on what you can expect. The hotel access has just recently changed with the creation of the express program. It used to be that you would be granted immediate back-door access with the presentation of your room key. The new policy is that you present your room key to the greeter of each attraction and you are granted access into the express line. These lines are usually (and I stress USUALLY) limited to 15 minutes or less. The difference between resort guests and regular ticket holders is that you will not be limited to the number of attractions at which you will be granted express access.

I'm thinking that they're not explaining this particularly well to resort guests yet, because we have had a number of issues with guests expecting one form of access and getting another. However, when coming to the park on a weekend like Memorial Day, you will find the express access to be an incredible improvement over waiting in the regular line.

Just a couple of warnings though for the busier times. Express WILL be quicker than the regular entrance, but it gets busier as the park gets busier. Although they limit the number of passes that they distribute for each time period, the fact that there are now two hotels booked solid can lead to a slightly backed up express line at certain times of the day. For the more popular rides, try to go either early in the morning or late in the afternoon. Try not to go right after a show gets out (keep an eye on that show schedule) because people all flock like sheep to one or two attractions when they're let out.

Hope i answered some of your questions and sorry if I was too long-winded!

[xl]

FINALLY!! Someone who REALLY knows the "NEW" FOTL procedure.

Thank You SUNFLOWER!!

[odyseus_7]

Thank you so much for that info. I just have one last question, will the express line take you through any of the themeing like go through part of Dueling Dragons castle. Thanks so much, it is nice finally knowing what the new system is.

[DisneyCrazy123]

When I bought my package the FOTL was explained much differently. I guess the premium I am paying to stay on site still gives me an advantage in that I don't need to get the "express pass" and can just jump in the line. Although everyone's earlier descriptions of just walking up and getting on a ride had really sold me on FOTL.

[benebire]

When did this change happen? We stayed at the Portofino Bay in January and we were taken up the back exits directly to the rides in almost every case.

http://disneyclipart.simplenet.com/Movies/Alice_in_Wonderland/Alice/alice01.gif

[CoasterFEV]

The change occurred in mid- to late-February when the permanent Express queues were constructed at all the attractions. These new queues eliminate the congestion in the child swap areas and ride exits, which was the biggest issue.

Don't worry, even during the busiest periods, the time you will have to wait in the Express queue is no longer than you would have back in January - which is little to no wait. But, for the few minutes you will have to wait, you'll be alot more comfortable!

[Notatourist]

Hey 7-

The Express queque takes you through a small part of the castle-so you see a little of the theming.

Enjoy your stay

[Brenda67]

We just got back yesterday&the average wait for rides was 5 minutes when we showed our room key. We were very happy with this. Some rides we walked right on with no wait. This savedd us tons of times at the 2 parks. We were very happy with the system!

[Halle]

Is it worth going to these parks if you don't stay onsite and have to wait in line. Please advise, we leave Universal and go every trip but now I'm having second thoughts.

[odyseus_7]

Yes, of course it is worth going to the parks even if you don't get front of the line. Don't forget they have Universal Express that works similar to Disney's FastPass.

[TracyK]

Do people staying onsite get to ride as many times as they want? I'm not staying at Universal and will be visiting at Easter. I'm just concerned that with the crowds and FOTL for onsite guests that we won't get to do everything we want.

Tracy
Disneyland Paris Halloween 1999 & Christmas 2000
Off site Easter 2000 & Easter 2001

[whzzo125]

Do the people using FOTL wear their keys around their necks or something similar, or do they pull them out of a fanny pack or whatever every time they get in line?

[dreamer]

whzzo - I never saw room keys worn around anyones neck. I guess you could if you drill a hole thru the plastic key and loop it with a chain. I just kept ours in our pocket and flashed them when needed.

[jpeppers]

I was at the HRH about a week and a half ago. The FOTL access was wonderful. We hardly ever waited at all for anything, granted the parks were not very crowded though. The only ride I saw a problem on was Dueling Dragons. It seemed the only benefit you got was not having to walk all the way through the tunnels because you would come in right at the end of the line. Hopefully this was only because of the small crowds and they will have another setup when crowds are high. I went to Universal before I moved on to Disney and I was spoiled by the time I got there. Universal has a great thing going!

[Dragon0525]

Does anyone know what the lines are like in Dec.? I assume this is off season like Disney? I'm trying to decide if we should stay at a Universal hotel for the FOTL pass or not. Any suggestions?

1993 - Off Site
01/27/01 - YC - 7 days
02/03/01 - 7 day Magic Cruise
Next WDW trip Dec. 2001

[WebmasterBarry]

When in December are you going? Crowds during the first 2 weeks of December are the among the slowest times in the year. The last two weeks are shoulder-to-shoulder people.

http://www.wdwinfo.com/sites/family/guy.gif

Barry Hom
The moderator formerly known as Barry aka usagi
Moderator, Universal and Sea World Boards


"If you were me, you'd be good looking."

[Dragon0525]

Oops...sorry. We're going Dec 1-9 so it sounds like they'll be slow. Thanks.

1993 - Off Site
01/27/01 - YC - 7 days
02/03/01 - 7 day Magic Cruise
Next WDW trip Dec. 2001

[Tigger]

Does each member of my party need to flash a room key for FOTL access? I've read conflicting information on this. How about our 1yo--is he given a room key for the rides that he is able to go on even though he is too young to need a park ticket?

[WebmasterBarry]

Yes, every member of the family needs a room key.

http://www.wdwinfo.com/sites/family/guy.gif

Barry Hom
The moderator formerly known as Barry aka usagi
Moderator, Universal and Sea World Boards


"If you were me, you'd be good looking."

[Mittman]

Tigger&Belle:
You do not need to have a key for your 1 year old. You should keep one for everyone else in your party, but for kids that young it is not necessary.

[lovelyk68]

I am planning a trip to Universal in late November and have reservations at the Portofino. Does anyone know how long front of the line access will be in effect. Is this a permanent program?

[gschmerl]

We are staying at the HRH in July. Our documents state"Front of Line access. If they disconinue something that is listed on people's documents they will get a LOT of flack. If you book with it listed, they would have a hell of a nerve taking it away. We would not be going if it wasn't for the FOTL access.

[cforza]

Barry I'll have to disagree with you on that. We were there last week and were not given room keys for the children. When we went into the rides only the adults showed there keys and the children were allowed in with us.

[lovelyk68]

I booked our room at PBH thru the Universal 800# and received a confirmation number only, no documentation. Should I call back to request something in writing that confirms FOTL? HELP!

[Tigger]

I'm confused--does each member of the party staying at HRH get a room key to be used for FOTL access or only the adults? Teens must get a room key or they wouldn't be able to go in by themselves. We have two rooms reserved at the HRH (5 plus a baby in our party) and I will consider going to only one room and sneaking the baby into the room (max of 5 in a room including the baby) if I won't regret it when we are in the parks. There is something to be said for keeping the two rooms though (ie a good night sleep and two bathrooms) so the one vs two rooms is not a deal breaker for us. I just wish that they weren't deluxe rooms, though. We really don't need 1000 sq ft of space. Regular rooms were not available (or maybe they couldn't guarantee connecting).

[cforza]

We were there last week with 3 adults, 2 children and an infant. We booked 2 rooms and were very glad we did both for the extra bathroom and quite frankly we didn't want to be disturbed by my sisters baby waking at 3:00 a.m. one morning and 5:00 a.m. the others. He has been sleeping through the night for months but I find when you travel with infants they tend to get off there schedules. I think it would have been very difficult to get a good nights sleep with all of us in one room. Technically you can have 5 in one room and they will give you 5 room keys. I know they don't allow 6 in one room, even if one is an infant. Also I think the room would be incredibly crowded with a rollaway and a crib, even if it is a deluxe.When we checked in they asked "How many keys do you need?" I just said 4 (2 for each room) not even thinking about the fact that I needed them for FOTL. As it turns out, I never needed to show one for everyone. If I had I would've had a fit if I had to walk back to the hotel for the extra key. I think they should say "How many in your party" when you check in so everyone gets a key. That way people would remember to get one for everyone who will be riding.

[Tigger]

It's funny, but when I read the post from Mittman that said that the baby didn't need a room key I decided that we'd just pack the porta crib and sneak him in. Then I read the post from cforza about being glad that they had booked two rooms and I was glad that we have two rooms reserved. Maybe I'm influenced by others too much! LOL Bottom line is that I don't know what we're going to do. With the Entertainment Card I think that we have a good rate on what sounds like a great hotel, so if we keep the two rooms I don't think that it will break the bank (only crack it).

Linda

[nhrenee]

If you looking for someone to influence you further, go for the 2 rooms!! It's much better to have peace of mind and rest, I think it helps if you're not on top of each other.

Have a great time!! :D

[Tigger]

Nhrenee, next you're going to tell that me you're not going to pay for one of the rooms... :D I hate it when I'm indecisive. I'm going to leave it two rooms right now and hope that I win the lottery--I suppose that I should buy a ticket!

Linda

[The Mystery Machine]

I am not happy reading that post but I guess I have no choice in the matter. So FOTL is no more and now it is called 'Express Line'. OK.
HRH/PB had better stop the commercial they run on HGTV, esp. Sat nights, that states, "FRONT OF THE LINE ACCESS ALL DAY EVERYDAY!!" in big bold letters across the screen.
Either way I am looking forward to vacationing in June!!!!
HRH/CBR June 2001

[peppersugar]

Can someone help explain what all these mean--as I understand it FOTL is for on-site guests only--is Univeral Express available to ALL park guests and does it work like Disney Fastpass? We'll be staying off-site (probably) and will have only 1 day passes to Islands of Adventure first week of June for 1 day only--I'd rather skip the park and go somewhere else or stay at Disney an extra day rather than be really frustrated by waiting in many lines with impatient children only to keep getting bumped back. Any info would be helpful.

[gschmerl]

Universal Express works like Fast Pass. FOTL access mean you can get right into the express line whenever you want.

[gschmerl]

Universal Express works like Fast Pass, and is available to people with park passes. FOTL access mean you can get right into the express line whenever you want.