Parking - Citywalk - Harry Potter Questions

[kitkatsmom]

I did a search but any posts I found relating to my questions were from 2009 etc.. SO I wanted updated info.


We are arriving in Florida early on a Saturday and I bought universal park to park tickets with the unlimited express. To start Sunday. I didn't have the option to have them shipped to me via fed ex or to print at home. My option was Kiosk or window. I opted for Kiosk.


SO my question is PARKING... (staying offsite) Can we come over to universal on Saturday to pick up the tickets at the kiosk without having to pay the 17$ to park? We only plan to get tickets (kids are excited) then leave.

I saw a few posts about people doing the drop off lane, letting one person jump out to hit the kiosk and then getting picked back up.. Is this still an option (post I saw was from 2009) ** BUT ** can one person get ALL the tickets (fam of 4) from the kiosk by themselves or does all the people need to be there? (do they need photos for express pass?)


Also, What if we wanted to come over to the city-walk to eat that Saturday night. is there a separate area to park for that like there is for downtown disney? Or is it 17$ to park just to grab dinner? AND is there a ticket needed to access citywalk now? Cause when I was buying tickets I noticed an extra CITYWALK add on but didn't understand if you needed it to walk around or if that was for clubs etc..


Lastly, Is there a better time to hit the Harry Potter area. We are staying offsite so we won't be able to get in super early.. I know express pass doesn't work in most of the Harry Potter areas, so is it better to skip harry potter until later in the day? Night? The park is open till 8 the days we will be there. (june) Does the crowds die down at night? Or is it better to hit it in the morning (getting there around 9) ?? Any advice appreciated!!!

 

[BrinkofSunshine]

I don't know the answers to all your questions, but regarding CityWalk: the "ticket" is only for the clubs- walking around is free. However, you will have to pay for parking. After 9 the price goes down to $5, though.

 

[Lynne G]

I did a search but any posts I found relating to my questions were from 2009 etc.. SO I wanted updated info.


We are arriving in Florida early on a Saturday and I bought universal park to park tickets with the unlimited express. To start Sunday. I didn't have the option to have them shipped to me via fed ex or to print at home. My option was Kiosk or window. I opted for Kiosk.


SO my question is PARKING... (staying offsite) Can we come over to universal on Saturday to pick up the tickets at the kiosk without having to pay the 17$ to park? We only plan to get tickets (kids are excited) then leave.

I saw a few posts about people doing the drop off lane, letting one person jump out to hit the kiosk and then getting picked back up.. Is this still an option (post I saw was from 2009) ** BUT ** can one person get ALL the tickets (fam of 4) from the kiosk by themselves or does all the people need to be there? (do they need photos for express pass?)



You can drop someone off to use the kiosk. Need the credit card used to buy the tickets and the reservation number. You can get all the tickets under your order, they pop out of the kiosk, and I find using the kiosk very easy. There are also Universal people around to help, if you need some.


Also, What if we wanted to come over to the city-walk to eat that Saturday night. is there a separate area to park for that like there is for downtown disney? Or is it 17$ to park just to grab dinner? AND is there a ticket needed to access citywalk now? Cause when I was buying tickets I noticed an extra CITYWALK add on but didn't understand if you needed it to walk around or if that was for clubs etc..



The separate ticket for Citywalk is to get into the Clubs at night. If you want to spend time in CityWalk, yep, no other parking than the large parking garages. And yes, you pay the parking fee, even if arriving at night. Sometimes they have a discount for night time parking, but I did not see it when I went on Christmas day.

Lastly, Is there a better time to hit the Harry Potter area. We are staying offsite so we won't be able to get in super early.. I know express pass doesn't work in most of the Harry Potter areas, so is it better to skip harry potter until later in the day? Night? The park is open till 8 the days we will be there. (june) Does the crowds die down at night? Or is it better to hit it in the morning (getting there around 9) ?? Any advice appreciated!!!

Harry will be busy, no matter what. I still think first thing is better, but sometimes the night is better. I do get back to Harry later in the evening, as I like the place even more when it is dark.

 

[RMulieri]

It still costs the $17 to park to eat t citywalk unless you are there after 6pm..Harry Potter is going to be packed no matter what, even in the off season, it is always the busiest part of IOA.It is least busy in the early am and right befoe closing..It also depends when in June .If you are going to be there anywhere NEAR opening of DIagon Alley it is going to be BAD.Wouldnt suprise me to see return ticket system in use and I dont think it will matter whether it is morning or night

 

[damo]

Regarding picking up the passes. What I would do is go to one of the hotels and have someone just wait in the pullup circle while someone else goes in and uses the ticket kiosk. All of the hotels have them. You just need your credit card and confirmation number.

 

[I Love Tigger]

I did a search but any posts I found relating to my questions were from 2009 etc.. SO I wanted updated info.


We are arriving in Florida early on a Saturday and I bought universal park to park tickets with the unlimited express. To start Sunday. I didn't have the option to have them shipped to me via fed ex or to print at home. My option was Kiosk or window. I opted for Kiosk.


SO my question is PARKING... (staying offsite) Can we come over to universal on Saturday to pick up the tickets at the kiosk without having to pay the 17$ to park? We only plan to get tickets (kids are excited) then leave.

I saw a few posts about people doing the drop off lane, letting one person jump out to hit the kiosk and then getting picked back up.. Is this still an option (post I saw was from 2009) ** BUT ** can one person get ALL the tickets (fam of 4) from the kiosk by themselves or does all the people need to be there? (do they need photos for express pass?)


Also, What if we wanted to come over to the city-walk to eat that Saturday night. is there a separate area to park for that like there is for downtown disney? Or is it 17$ to park just to grab dinner? AND is there a ticket needed to access citywalk now? Cause when I was buying tickets I noticed an extra CITYWALK add on but didn't understand if you needed it to walk around or if that was for clubs etc..


Lastly, Is there a better time to hit the Harry Potter area. We are staying offsite so we won't be able to get in super early.. I know express pass doesn't work in most of the Harry Potter areas, so is it better to skip harry potter until later in the day? Night? The park is open till 8 the days we will be there. (june) Does the crowds die down at night? Or is it better to hit it in the morning (getting there around 9) ?? Any advice appreciated!!!

The parking is $5 between 6pm and 10pm, after 10pm parking is free.

Here is the link to the parking information on Universal's website
https://www.universalorlando.com/Resort-Information/Parking-Information.aspx

 

[Suellen]

The drop off loop is definitely an option. I popped over last week while waiting for my car to be serviced and they dropped me off there. You may need to circle around and come back since I'm not sure how long they will allow you to linger.

You will need a picture for your unlimited express but I believe you can do that afterwards.

I've not found HP are to be that crowded lately. That said... come June I would expect a huge increase in attendance.

 

[kitkatsmom]

Regarding picking up the passes. What I would do is go to one of the hotels and have someone just wait in the pullup circle while someone else goes in and uses the ticket kiosk. All of the hotels have them. You just need your credit card and confirmation number.

Really. Even if we're staying offsite. We can pick up tickets at the lowes hotels? That would be great