Summer Hours Almost Over

[CoasterFEV]

FYI:

Saturday, August 11th, 2001 will be the last day of:

10pm closes (Both IOA and USF will close at 8pm daily starting Sunday August 12th)

Xtreme Xventure

and the nightly fireworks at both parks

[JessicaR]

CoasterFev thanks for the heads up on the park hours change. I have a question...can you confirm if the parks will stay open later on the labor day weekend? I read IOA stays open till 9P on that sat and sunday. I sure hope thats true! I wanna see the park at dark! Thank you


Oh one more question...will there be any fireworks that weekend?

[XAVIER]

Weren't the fireworks originally scheduled to finish on August 18th? i'll miss 'em now :(
(Oh well I probably wouldn't have been able to see them from the bar of the HRH anyway!)

[markey]

I just checked a little while ago and saw the parks would be open until 9 pm and also fireworks untill the 18th. When did they chenge the hours that were originally posted?

[markey]

I am so, so mad! I know it was first published that the park would close at 9 and have fireworks till the 18th, I just went and looked and now it says 8. Also have to pay to park since we booked. I wonder what other surprises await. I know I'll not be able to use my Lowes Xmas card, since this is our first trip there and giving up DW I can tell you it will probably be our last!

[CindyZ]

I am not thrilled at all about how early the park closes. Why would they close so early in August?...it is STILL summer...and there are many of us with kids still on summer vacation...and that's when we can take our trips. FALL doesn't start untill late Septemeber!

Thank Goodness we'll have front of the line!! Does anyone know why they close so early...and so early so soon?

Thanx,

[pathubia]

We are going in August too. I didnt want to pull my daughter out of school again this year for our vacation and I didnt want to go during school vacation. As far as i know, the kids in Florida go back to school Aug 13 or Aug 20. Thats probably why they close the parks early. Does the attendance at the parks go down at this time???


Thanks

Patty

[CoasterFEV]

All of Central Florida (and alot of the rest of Florida) schools start on August 13th - some even start on August 5th. So, even though there will still be alot of tourists visiting from the North - there will be almost no "locals" visiting the parks. In other words, the crowds won't be near as bad as this month.

Also - keep an eye on the web site for operating hours. I am almost certain both parks will be going back to 6pm closings on weekdays starting Monday, August 20th

[CindyZ]

OH MY>>>>6PM?????

I think that is ridiculous!!!!!!!!!!

Will they offer a reduced park entry rate for the reduced park hours?

Great.....so what I thought was till 10 is now gonna be 6pm. That ruins the plan to go back to the hotel in the middle of the day for lunch and a swim.....and i'm not pleased about that. What are WDW hours in August?

[fboy9287]

ya i go back to school the 6th:cool: :o

[markey]

The Magic Kingdom is open, according to hours posted on web site, until 10:00 with parade and fireworks through August 25th!

[Cindy B]

A visit today to the universal website had the hours for Aug 25-30th, as 9-7 pm...

[MIB999999]

does anyone remember the early 7:00 am opening time for multi-day and onsite hotel guest late last year. does anyone remember when they started this?????? they really did not advertise this except to the on site hotel guests who had multi-day passes. annual pass holders could get in at 7:00 but to find out about it you had to call and ask. :confused:

[KProuty]

9 to 6 in that heat???? We arrive August 24. No thanks! We have annual passes, but we are bringing a friend with us. Now I'll have to rethink purchasing the Universal tickets for her and even going at all since we would only want to go early in the morning and wouldn't be able to return in the evening. A two-day or three-day ticket you can only use for half days doesn't make fiscal sense. I never thought I would say it, but Universal isn't looking good right now compared to Disney. They at least have ONE park open until 9 each night no matter what.

Katherine

[Zeke Draven]

Ahhhh. The day I leave! I just made it! Woo Hoo!!!!!!

[XAVIER]

I can put up with missing the fireworks. I can accept 8:00 closing.
But 6:00? Thats just ridiculous.
Coasterfev, Earl, please pass this on to your bosses at universal....
:p (raspberry sound)

[robvia]

I agree, pass it on.

School in South Florida doesn't start until August 27th.

That's right, the kids start 1 week before labor day, go 1 week, then get the Monday off, it's always been that way.

The park should run full hours until Labor Day September 3rd.

If attendance does drop off a little, then that's the bonus for those flying in to visit. They deserve a break from the crowds.

What irks me is that IOA is doing all these things with Express Pass to handle the crowds, yet they take away the one thing that will help the most right now, TIME.

[IOATech]

It was simply a business decision. Cost vs. revenue. It is very expensive to operate the park with the decreased number of vacationers this year. Every business in the industry is reacting to this, some better than others.

[Shawn2goUSF]

Just like Zeke I'll be leaving on august 11 the day before

[rob@rar.org.uk]

I'll be arriving on the 16th. I had thought that we would buy annual tickets as we intend to return in 2002, but if the parks close at 6pm I may re-consider this. Does anyone know an email address for Guest Services at Universal so that I can express my concern at these reduced opening hours. It may well be sensible for Universal (and Disney, who are doing the same) to reduce their opening hours, but they should be made aware that many people will be upset by this decision. I really hope that the parks don't close at 6pm...

Regards

Rob

[KProuty]

Ioatech,

Again, I repeat, it is going to be HOT! They should have at least one park open late (IOA) so people can take advantage of actually going back to the park after they leave after lunch. Sure, economize, close one park at 5 if you must, but keep one open late.

Katherine

[CindyZ]

I agree, close one park or the other early if you really need to economize.

I was so looking forward to an afternoon break...and now we'll have to reconsider that whole idea. I sure hope the 6pm closing won't be true for August 20-22.

I'm pretty upset about this...

Hope they'll realize that park-goers will be upset.

[CoasterFEV]

Just got back from work and, before leaving, checked the projection worksheets (as far in the future as available to us).

Hours for August:

IOA:

August 1st to August 11th: 9am to 10pm
August 12th to August 25th: 9am to 8pm !!!!

USF:
August 1st to August 11th: 9am to 10pm
August 12th to August 18th: 9am to 8pm
August 19th: 9am to 8pm
August 20th to August 23rd: 9am to 7pm
August 24th to August 25th: 9am to 8pm

That's as far forward as we can look at this time (sorry) - but the good news is that the 9am to 6pm hours haven't hit yet. Hopefully, we will wait until the week after Labor Day to go back to 6pm closings like we did last year !!!!

[gschmerl]

What would we do without CoasterFev and Earl.
Thanks so much for all your great info!

[MIB999999]

where did this 6pm closing time nonsense come from?????
thanks CoasterFEV and earl for the actual hours you posted. :pinkbounc

[CoasterFEV]

6pm closings are very typical during the off season on weekdays.

If you check Universal's web site, it looks like they start the week after Labor Day (September 10th).

[lisag1]

We're on holiday from Sept 13th and I am extremely disappointed in both Universal and Disney's opening hours. As far as the UK's concerned September is still in the holiday season. My plans of going back to our villa mid-p.m. to return about 5-6p.m have now been scuppered. This was important as we have 3 young children in tow (1, 3 & 4). So now they are classing End August - Mid September as winter season? What about lower admission charges to compensate for shorter closing times. And to add insult to injury there are now fireworks or parades mid-week at Disney!!!

I'm very disappointed.

Lisa

p.s. Is it worth emailing direct?

[CJ]

We'll be at the HRH from August 27-30 (weekdays). Should I assume that the hours listed on the official website: closings at 7:00 pm, will stay that way? I'm trying to decide when to book our p.s. and I really need to know for sure when the parks will be closing!:confused:

[markey]

We took our grandkids to WDW in September one year when they were 3&4. The parks closed at 7 and both kids needed a afternoon nap. Even with staying on site it was the least time I ever spent in the parks. Husband is not an early riser on vacation, so we never made it to the parks before 10. Then we had to return around 2 for naps. We didn't get back to the parks until 4:30 or 5. As you can see we usually ended up with 5 1/2 to 6 hours park time a day. Needless to say we never went back in
September. So if you cannot be at the parks when they open, 6 or 7 p.m. closing is not for small children.

[CindyZ]

I think that reduced ticket prices when the parks close early would be a great and fair idea for us park-goers...but not so great from a business sense for them. But it does make me mad that I won't have time to take a nice break in the middle of the hot hot hot and humid day! I'll be there for 7pm closings...woo hoo gee that makes me feel so much better.:rolleyes:

It's the most dissapointing thing about my trip that I am very much looking forward too...

I don't think I can change it...so I'll have to learn to live with it...but I reserve the right to complain about it ;)

[Carol O]

I can't believe how Universal gets away with such an early closing time! We were there June 25 and that was the transitional week where the parks were opened until 9. It was 8 the week before! I always felt like we were racing thru dinner so we would have time at the parks. Then after leaving the park at 9 we would race back to the HRH so we could swim before the pool closed at 10! I think that the parks should stay open til 10 June thru Sept. or it would be nice if the HRH would keep the pool open for 2 hours after the park closes.

[CoasterFEV]

....boy oh boy do people on this board complain a lot....

There is a very good reason why the parks here in Orlando have earlier closing times starting the 2nd week of September - THERE ARE NO GUESTS IN THE PARKS !!!!!! You can run from ride to ride to ride almost nonstop all day - as much as you want - the lines are just almost nonexistent.

This whole idea about charging less since the parks are open fewer hours is ridiculous. You will be able to ride twice the number of attractions then the poor folks visiting in mid-July and forced to wait in 75 minute + waits. If anything, we should charge less during peak season to those folks waiting up to 2 hours for just one 2-minute ride!

Theme parks are businesses. When we have 28,000 guests in the park each day during the Summer, we can afford to keep the parks open later - and understand that guests need this extra time to experience all the attractions. Our entrance counts (especially on weekdays) during the off season are more like 11,000. Most attractions rarely have a wait time - if they do it's rare to see anything over 20 to 30 minutes.

I know this thing about going back to the hotel during the afternoon for a swim and a nap is nice for most families. But vacationing during Florida's off season requires some tradeoffs. The biggest is trading off longer operating hours and fireworks for NO LINES!!!!

...sounds like a fair trade for my family!

[CJ]

I became concerned when you posted that the parks would be closing at 6:00 pm starting August 20th, not the second week of September. That really seemed early considering that many schools do not return until at least the end of August.

I agree with you about the less lines trade-off and I can accept and deal with whatever hours U.O. decides on. My complaint is that I wish they would decide and post it and leave it alone! This complaint is not only directed at U.O., but at Disney as well. Once the park hours have been posted on their webpage, I feel they should be official. That way people can plan their vacations accordingly. Changing closing times after people have booked and planned I think is unfair.:mad:

Earl, I do appreciate all of the help and information you offer here. Please don't take my opinions or anyone else's as directed at you personally. It's kind of like a "don't blame the messanger" thing, isn't it?;)

[JessicaR]

So true CoasterFEV. We last visited early December. I cant recall but I believe Universal closed at 6 and IOA at 7P. I have been to the parks during peak season as well as off and we are able to get much more done off season. The only thing I missed was not being in the parks at dark. We were even able to swim everyday. The kids took naps...okay so did we :) when we returned from the parks before going to dinner and it did work out well. You could take advantage of EE do the parks for 6 hours and have some lunch and relax by the pool or nap and be back at the park by 4 for another 3 hours. This way you are even able to take advantage of the pool being open after the parks close. Or do the pools close early too off season?? I hope not! I guess either way ya look at it late closings have their perks as well as slow season does. Another thing I was wondering...the parks hours, have they remained consistent as the years before? Just my take on it......Thanks CoasterFEV for all the posts!

[rob@rar.org.uk]

CoasterFEV, like CJ I was particularly worried when you said that there might be a chance of the parks closing at 6pm on weekdays during the last couple of weeks of August. Although this might be off-season for the USA, for visitors from the UK this is most definitely in the middle of holiday season.

I appreciate that there will be fewer people in the parks, and this equals fewer waits for all the attractions. However, afternoon heat and humidity in August just saps your energy, so a break from the parks mid-afternoon is pretty much essential in my opinion. There is also the fact that you miss experiencing the parks in the dark. You guys do such a good job of creating lighting which improves the themeing around the park, but then then the parks close before it gets dark! This is so frustrating for me, as after dark is my favourite time in the parks.

While I understand the business rationale for closing early, Universal should be aware of the effect this has on guests' perception of value-for-money. This is why I am complaining here and in other places, and also about Disney's opening times which are even worse. If the Universal parks close at 6pm during the greater part of my stay next month I will probably change my ticket type, most likely buying a multi-day ticket rarther than an annual pass.

Thanks for providing this information; it is such a help. Please don't fell that us complainers are trying to shoot the messenger!

Regards

Rob

[KProuty]

Honestly, this just FLOORS me. You have customers screaming that they want to stay at a park late. They are extremely vocal. They have a need. Companies exist to furnish customer's needs. We are nearing a recession. Business study after business study states that this is the time to expand market share when everyone else is cutting back.

Experiment. Have ONE night where one park stays open until 11 -- CONSISTENTLY! You must guarantee it for six months to a year so you can send out press releases, etc. If you must, make it a Friday night so you can tap into the locals too. Have the fireworks. Make it worthwhile. (IOA during the summer months, early fall, Universal in the winter.) Let the families go back to the room to take a nap or swim in the pool. Universal has a huge opporunity to take business away from Disney. If your business doesn't go up for that night, and bring in more people who wouldn't have given a day to Universal, I'll eat my hat.

Has anything like this ever been tried?

Katherine

[MrShiny]

closing times are a function of projected attendance, and with the economy, it's expected that that will be lower. Personally, I wouldn't worry too much because even with the early closing times, there will probably be fewer people in the parks (the whole reason for the closing times). So you'll be able to do by 6 what on a crowded day would take until 10 to do.

Gee remember when WDW did parades and fireworks every single day of the 25th Anniv. Celebration? Bet that won't happen again soon!

[h20jag]

It's truly a shame many vacationers will not get the opportunity to experience the beauty of the parks in all their nite-time lit-up glory. There really should be some concessions made to allow the many requests (demands, if push comes to shove) to experience the wonderment of lights in these magnificent parks.
You can't tell me everyone quits spending money at night either, I know better. If anything, you market it right & you make money. (You have people running to the outlet places to buy the same merchandise as in the parks, what's up with that?)
There are countless ways to keep some excitement going into the night, without breaking the Vivendi bank (or whoever owns it this year). The economy is definitely changing, and the voices of consumers will certainly dictate the outcome of who survives....Theme Parks included.
Keep the joint open till 10-11 PM on a Fri/Sat nite, might keep an AP family re-newing. That's just one example of what might make me happy.
All this fine tuning talk just sounds like excuses for ill-preparedness. (yeah, I'm venting for several threads actually, just not addressing them individually)
Hopefully UO will quit "reducing" the goodies soon.
Jim

[larworth]

I'm with Kprouty on this one.

It sure seems like there is a market for a once a week late night closing. Riding Hulk, JPRA, etc. at night is a whole different experience and the park does look great at night.

I have to assume this option has been studied. Maybe the IOA guys can shed some light on the drawbacks.

[IOATech]

I do see some points here, but it simply doesn't make sense to remain open one more hour for the twenty people remaining after 9pm. Really, the last guests in the park stay only for the fireworks. It just can't be sustained this year.

[fboy9287]

really if the time is after or at 6 i am happy. I have a pass till dec and i have to leave a 6 most of the time any way!

[lisag1]

How rude are you!?

EVERYONE is entitled to their own opinion thank you very much!

Lisa

[AdrianB]

If I were to make a suggestion it would be to keep the parks open late 1 weeknight and 1 weekend night a week. I understand why they close early in the off season though.

[rob@rar.org.uk]

Dave, you're quite right. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and to voice it in public forums such as these.

However, it's kinda difficult to know what your opinion is as your posts come liberally sprinkled with bile and aggression. As far as I can see on this thread, people have been expressing their disappointment at Universal's decision to reduce their opening hours, and explaining why this changes their holiday plans for the worse. A number of people have recognised the business reasons for this, but nevertheless expressed frustration as it will mean a lower quality experience for the same amount of money.

Now I'd love to learn why you happy with Universal's decision, and how you are content to pay for a lower quality service. If this is beyond you, perhaps you could troll somewhere else?

Regards

Rob

[CindyZ]

I believe that the board is here to ask questions, share experiences, and to share great things AND dissapointments. I am certainly NOT acting like a first grader when I express my dissapointment at not being able to have an afternoon swim while I am at USO. I am not able to visit Florida very often, and have spent the last 8 months working extra for my sister's catering business to try and save every last penny to make a trip to USO. I've read and read and read so much advice on this board, I've bought Kelly's book, and I've tried to do some planning. I know that it is HOT HOT HOT in Florida in the summer; and I'm spending some big bucks (for my family anyway)...and why can't I be dissapointment at the earlier closing.

How you can read whining into an expression of disspointment is puzzling to me :rolleyes:

[DaveOBrien]

Perhaps I should have worded my post differently. However, the fact is that quite a few folks seem to go off the deep end whenever a decision is made that they don't agree with. It was stated that the hours are shortened due to business reasons which seems perfectly plausable by me. Getting upset and e mailing Universal about something that probably will not change forces a poor soul on the other end of the computer or phone to be a sounding board, which is not a desirable situation.

My job puts me in direct line with the public every day. I've been cursed at, spit at, verbally threatened(myself and my mother), had to duck objects thrown in my direction all in the name of "The customer is always right". Perhaps I'm venting some frustration out on this board, which is wrong and I do apoligize for. Every day I deal with people yelling, screaming and complaining about things I have no control over, yet I'm on the front line, so I get the brunt of it. After dealing with this for 10 hours a day on top of performing your other job functions, you are pretty frazzled. This is why I have such a strong reaction when I see people ready to call out the firing squad because a decision is made that alters plans. I know what folks who deal with people all day go through. After a while, the smile is harder and harder to come by. I sympathize greatly with anyone who works in customer service or deals with the public. Before anyone says "Well, find another job if you don't like it", I'll say simply that the pay is good, so that's why I stay. It has taught me to be extra polite to people who serve me, whether it's the hotel desk guy, the cashier at McDonald's, or the ride op at a park. Usually if the person doing the complaining was in the other guys shoes, there would be a better understanding for both sides.


In the future, I will try to choose better words to express myself and my thoughts. I just cringe when I see someone ready to kill because they were slightly inconvenienced or had to alter their schedule. There is almost always a valid reason for these decisions, although it may not be the reason that you want to hear. Please accept my apologies for being an evil troll.

[rob@rar.org.uk]

Thank you for your more considered comments Dave. While some of the behaviour you have witnessed is clearly unacceptable, I do not feel that we should just swallow a decline in service without any comment, not least because Universal (and every other company) will only get better at what they do if they know what customers think, both good and bad. One email to Universal about reduced hours might not change this business decision, but it does help Universal Exec's to know that not all their customers are happy with this decision.

I am always polite when dealing with staff, even when I feel that service levels are not what they should be (in my experience a rare occurence in Orlando). In my email to Disney and Universal I was not abusive because I was upset, but I did explain how early closing would lead to a worse experience for me. This also applied when I got a phone call from Disney's Guest Relations to discuss this issue. I'm not ready to call out the firing squad or go off in the deep end - I just want to provide some feedback on a decision which will have a major impact on my holiday plans.

Regards

Rob

[KProuty]

Look, you are right, the guys on the front line usually can't make the business decisions, but, if there is GOOD management, they are oftened listened to because they are the ones that hear from the customers on a daily basis. Do you know how much companies spend to find out what their customers are actually thinking?

Now, all managers have to make the decisions as to whether the people who are screaming the loudest actually represent a large percentage of their total audience or if they are the screwy 1 percent. However, people on this board are evangelists. They aren't asking for the parks to stay open 7 nights a week. They are asking for one night a week. I can hear the posts now, even in the Disney forums.
(Crude but representative.)

--------------------------------------
How is this itinerary? Friday night Epcot, Saturday, MK, Sunday MGM, Monday Epcot.

Response: Since you have Epcot twice, you might want to try out Universal on Friday night. They stay open until 11 and even have fireworks!

---------------------------------------

If you commit to this program long enough, it can make newspapers and guide books. Consistency is what brings results because it takes a while for it to seep into the consciousness. However, with Evanglists and the Internet, the time could be substantially reduced.

Any successful program takes many legs to make sure it actually stands. Universal marketing falls somewhat short consistently. I always receive my annual pass newsletter AFTER a major event highlighted in the newsletter has passed. Programs aren't consistent, they change every few months.

Read the Harvard Business Review about how to gain market share in a down market. There are multiple ways to gain market share when you competitors are all contracting.

Look, I'm not a neophyte about this stuff. I worked at ZD, was head of ZDNet on CompuServe and ZDU. I was VP at FamilyEducation.com. I'm familiar with what online communities can do and that you have to guard against the danger of a few zealots. What I am proposing in no way qualifies. The only drawback that I see is that the idea isn't getting to the top where some action and some coordination might be taken. (Although, if this doesn't get the full backup of marketing and the committment for time, then it won't work.)

If what IOTech says is true, and this will only appeal to 20 people on a Friday night, I would ask where he gets his projections.

Katherine

(P.S. I just want to thank all of the Universal folks who actually spend time on the boards and give the good advice. Your participation is invaluable and adds tons. Please don't take this as criticism of you or what you do! Please take this as well-meaning criticism of some Universal policies because I would like these parks to grow! Analytical conflict actually strengthens products because no one person has all of the information or the management style needed to make truly informed decisions. By debating, the final result is usually stronger. (See Dr. Ichak Adizes for the best thoughts on the proper way to do this. ) One more thing, I realize that I don't have the numbers needed to make a truly informed decision, but by observation, I would be willing to invest the time and effort to discover if there is merit.)

[IOATech]

I get my projections from actually being there. Waiting to start the hour-long ritual of getting the rides set up to properly shut them down. Understanding that there are 40 man hours of inspections to manage per-ride/night to maintain minimum standards. Any time left is dedicated to making things better. This "maintenance and repair" factor has slipped the attention of your astute analysis. Without this, your business model resembles the typical fast food joint or internet business. Laws and conscience prohibit us from being open for certain periods of time without performing maintenance, and with big, big budgets. Regardless of your credentials, that thinking doesn't make it here.

And... we have grown Universal Studios quite well for many years.

[CoasterFEV]

Universal's Preventative Maintenance program on our attractions suffered greatly last year when the parks were open from 7am until 10pm daily (with some rides still cycling guests until 10:45pm).

There just wasn't enough "down" time to properly maintain the rides to our standards.

[KProuty]

CoasterFev and IOATech,

You have brought up an extremely important point that, to be honest, I hadn't thought about in the least. Most customers who go to Universal automatically assume the rides are safe, and we forget about all of the hard work that goes into making them that way. It is extremely comforting, now that I think about it, that there are guys like you who push back and demand that time be given for that "must-have" feature. (You just proved the point that listening to folks on the front line is a must.)

So I ask you, in your position as experts, would it be too much to have one park open until 11 on Friday, then open at 9 a.m. the next day, and close at 9 p.m. the next night? Monday through Thursday would close at 6 p.m. or 7 p.m.

Thanks!

Katherine

[mhic]

I would think that it would be nigh near impossible for Universal (or any other business) to properly staff its parks for that "one late night" every week. It is one thing to have a regular workforce through the summer, for example. But just where would they find a stable, reliable staff to work just Friday nights, for example? This is the reality of society today. We whine and moan about "poor customer service," but we contribute to it by abusing the service people, and this makes it even harder to get (and train, and maintain, etc) service staff. I am trying to imagine getting, training and keeping the size staff required to operate a park one night a week. Those people could not POSSIBLY have the experience to do it right--and boy I can hear the complaining! Perhaps Universal (and DIsney, and the hundreds and thousands of other businesses in the same boat) know when to hold 'em, and know when to fold 'em.

[Shawn2goUSF]

WOULD YOU ALL ADULTS PLEASE STOP COMPLAINING

I'M SICK OF COMMING TO THIS BOARD AND HEAR EVERYONE COMPLAIN.

IT'S LIKE YOU PEOPLE ARE ADDICITED AND NEED THE EXTRA HOURS TO RIDE.

GOSH JUST CAUSE YOU CAN'T TAKE A NAP OR SWIM DURING THE DAY YOU GET ALL GRUMPY.

TO END ALL THE COMPLAINING I SUGGEST TWO THINGS.

ONE IF YOU DON'T LIKE TO GO TO THE PARKS SIMPLE AS THAT.

TWO JUST TAKE YOUR NAPS AND SWIMS AFTER YOU COME BACK.

YOUR ON VACTION TO ENJOY YOURSELF NOT TO STRESS ABOUT THE HOURS.

A FEW PEOPLE ARE NOT GANNA CHANGE THE HOURS JUST CAUSE YOU PEOPLE DON'T LIKE IT.

LET UNIVERSAL DO THERE JOB AND YOU DO YOURS