2.5 days but no park hopping option - where do we spend the extra 1/2 day?

[LHM2001]

We have 3 day tickets to Universal Orlando (!!!!!! so excited! we've never been before). we were planning to go for 2 days but got the 3rd day free so it's a "bonus". we're going to arrive just after lunch on the first day and were planning to just chill out at the hotel, but now I'm thinking we could go check out one of the parks. My question is - which one should we go to for that extra time (we don't have park hopper)

For our first full day there we have 1 hour early entry to islands of adventure so that day will be at that park. On our second day we'll go to the Universal Studios one (but have to leave by 5:00). So I'm leaning to checking out Universal Studios on the first day and saving Islands of Adventure for our first full day - but would love thoughts on this from all you experts out there that have been before

 

[Lynne G]

Check the hours for the parks. IOA generally stays open later. If it is warm enough, all the water rides are in IOA, so maybe make it an IOA water afternoon, find a nice place for dinner, then see Hogwarts at night. I really like the lighting in that part if the park. Plus, it will get you excited about the full day in the park. Also, sometimes the castle ride can be not too long a wait at night.

Enjoy! We like both parks a lot and make good use of the hotel's express pass, and the ease of returning to the room to change when we stay on site.

 

[Lynne G]

Oh, and I would also suggest you do the full day at the Studios. The night water show is a fun thing to see, and the parade is in the afternoon. If you like the RRR, ride that first thing in the morning. It tends to break down and there is no express pass for it. Plus, if you do the 2 half days in IOA, especially with the hotel's express pass, you will have plenty of time to see just about everything.

 

[BrinkofSunshine]

Oh, and I would also suggest you do the full day at the Studios. The night water show is a fun thing to see, and the parade is in the afternoon. If you like the RRR, ride that first thing in the morning. It tends to break down and there is no express pass for it. Plus, if you do the 2 half days in IOA, especially with the hotel's express pass, you will have plenty of time to see just about everything.

But if they go to USF on their one full day, they miss out on early entry to Harry Potter, which is a huge perk for on-site hotel guests.

I would suggest doing the first half-day at Universal Studios to see the parade and the Cinematic Spectacular at night.. both are worth seeing. Spend the full-day at Islands of Adventure, starting and ending the day at Harry Potter. Then the next day back to whichever park you want to re-visit.

 

[Metro West]

We have 3 day tickets to Universal Orlando (!!!!!! so excited! we've never been before). we were planning to go for 2 days but got the 3rd day free so it's a "bonus". we're going to arrive just after lunch on the first day and were planning to just chill out at the hotel, but now I'm thinking we could go check out one of the parks. My question is - which one should we go to for that extra time (we don't have park hopper)

As long as you have the extra time to kill, you could go to the Studios for the afternoon but check the park hours. If the park closes at 5pm, you should reconsider wasting the ticket for the first day. If that's the case, check out CityWalk and have a nice dinner, play mini golf or see a movie. CityWalk is very dynamic at night so you'll definitely have a great time!

BTW...when are you visiting? Park hours are very different in slow season as opposed to busy season.

 

[LHM2001]

Hi! We're going in February. I think the park is open until 7:00 pm? We have 3 boys ages 7, 9 and 11 - is citywalk more of an adult thing or would they have fun too? I thought it was mostly nightclubs?

 

[schumigirl]

Hi! We're going in February. I think the park is open until 7:00 pm? We have 3 boys ages 7, 9 and 11 - is citywalk more of an adult thing or would they have fun too? I thought it was mostly nightclubs?

Citywalk is very family friendly

Yes there are nightclubs but mostly it`s families having dinner and having fun. We spend a lot of time at night in Citywalk. Lots of choice for good restaurants.

The mini golf is fantastic. There are 2 courses and both are really good, something maybe your kids would really enjoy.

As Metro West says the cinema is right there also.

 

[johde]

As long as you have the extra time to kill, you could go to the Studios for the afternoon but check the park hours. If the park closes at 5pm, you should reconsider wasting the ticket for the first day.

I see your point but looking at the OP first post they were originally going to do a 2 day ticket for the 2 full days in the park and day 2 being departure day. So they have the following:

Day 1: Arrival in Afternoon
Day 2: full day in park
Day 3: "full" day in park and departure about 5:00

They are currently offering the buy 2 get 1 free so now they have an extra free admission to the parks. The way I read it if they don't use the free day the first day they are going to be "wasting it" anyways. My thought is if you end up going when hours are short go to the park with the latest closing on your arrival day, or if you have a smart phone look at one of the apps to see which park seems to have the shortest lines. It would be a whole lot easier if the 1/2 day was the last day you'd do a day at each park then go back to your favorite.