2 hr waiting for Hary Poter today! It is insane!

[jpmom97]

I am getting nervous, we are going the first week of March! I guess we will have to get there at the crack of dawn LOL.

 

[Rose White]

Would it be a good idea to buy the Express pass for late next week? I know you can't use it for FJ, but it may be better...I'm going to be there on the 13th next week and I have been IOA, but my friend hasn't. It would only be $20 and I already have regular admission. However, I do know you all were saying it's probably going to be better next week, before MLK crowds.

Thanks for any advice!

 

[Magpie]

I just got back from IOA and US today. We did IOA on tuesday and wow. What a mess. Thank god we stayed on property because without the hour early entrance and the express pass, it would have been a completely miserable trip.

We got in right at 8 a.m. and were escorted to WWOHP. Hightailed it to FJ and walked right on. As far as the ride goes - it definitely made me queasy. I can handle any roller coaster in the world and most simulation rides... however if the FJ was ANY longer I would have been really sick. Other then that, I enjoyed the ride itself. I thought it was very creative. My friend who I was with however did not enjoy the ride at all. He thought it was cheesy and they could have done more. I guess it is just personal preference. After FJ did Olivanders and waited about 10-15 minutes. What a great little show! It was really magical. About 45 minutes after we rode FJ The line was out the castle and like other posters said - was a free for all. We left and rode the rest of the rides in the park. Thank GOD for the express pass. Saved a TON of time. Worth the money if you aren't staying at the resort. The rest of the day the standby line and overflow wrapped all around Jurassic Park as far as the eye could see. Hell no.

Overall I thought WWOHP was interesting and fun to see - absolutely beautiful area. But if the crowds remain like this... you could not PAY me to go back there. I was disappointed with how little there is in the area and on top of that... they did not have a big selection of merchandise to sell and what they did sell... I feel like a lot did not even have to do with the books.

butter beer... fantastic though ;-) I looked up recipes online and WILL be making it!!

That's incredible! I wonder why it's so busy now? It was dead quiet from the 11th to the 18th of December, when we were there.

Another question - what merchandise did you see in the Wizarding World that didn't have to do with the books? I thought they had a ton of t-shirts and hats and toys, and they all seemed to be about the Wizarding World somehow. Some of the tin wind-up toys and sweets were a little more generic, but they were the kind of thing you'd imagine Zonko's and Honeyduke's selling.

My daughter bought a screaming yo-yo, which is straight out of the books.

 

[elbodans]

yikes - I'm getting scared here...we are thinking to go early May but now I dont know what to do!!!

ditto! i'm now officially terrified. we booked PBH for may 11-15--and are paying an arm and a leg--and now i'm thinking of canceling.

 

[Metro West]

Would it be a good idea to buy the Express pass for late next week? I know you can't use it for FJ, but it may be better...I'm going to be there on the 13th next week and I have been IOA, but my friend hasn't. It would only be $20 and I already have regular admission. However, I do know you all were saying it's probably going to be better next week, before MLK crowds.

Thanks for any advice!

You should wait and check out the lines first hand before purchasing the EP. You can purchase them at either park but they are non-refundable and date specific. If you get there early, you can do several attractions w/o much of a wait.

 

[wdwprncess77]

I don't see the issue either. Fastpasses at Disney are the same thing. You pay your admission and go to a ride. You either choose to wait in line which could be a few hours, or you get a fastpass to access the ride at a later time. It you only want to ride Toy Story Mania and do nothing else, for example, your experience wouldn't be much different that it was at Wizarding World. You still have to walk to the ride to get the fastpass. They don't give them out at the front of the park.

Just to clarify, it would be like getting into studios. Putting every guest in the animation courtyard, then saying you can wait online for 90 minutes or here's your fastpass to walk down pixar place. Then you can wait on another line for toy story.

While I understand that everyone is working their hardest, it was terribly unsafe, disorganized and the employees were misinformed.

I was there in October, so I've seen it and know how wonderful it is and I understand why there are such long lines. I just think that universal is not managing the process very well during this peak time. October was really a very very lovely experience. I would have thought they would have figured out these crowds through the launch and the summer crowds.

 

[Principessa1284]

January and early February are Brazilian tour group times.. also lots of Brazilian families as this is their summer break.

 

[Metro West]

I was there in October, so I've seen it and know how wonderful it is and I understand why there are such long lines. I just think that universal is not managing the process very well during this peak time. October was really a very very lovely experience. I would have thought they would have figured out these crowds through the launch and the summer crowds.

Even though I haven't been to the parks since HHN ended in October, I have to agree about the crowd management. It seems like no one is learning from past experiences with the crowds when you continue to hear stories like the ones this past week. I know it's during the holiday time but what better time to work on sorting the crowds out? I certainly hope someone over there gets it together before spring break or these stories of unruly and out of control lines will continue. You can't do anything about the amount of people wanting to get in but you can certainly make their time in line a more pleasant experience.

 

[Jason71]

Even though I haven't been to the parks since HHN ended in October, I have to agree about the crowd management. It seems like no one is learning from past experiences with the crowds when you continue to hear stories like the ones this past week.

Short of making WWoHP a separate, hard-ticket area with only a fraction of those wanting in allowed to see it, I don't know that there is a short-term solution*. By way of comparison, WDW has been doing a nighttime parade and firework for close to 40 years. They still haven't figured out how to properly manage the crowds that leave immediately after on even a moderately crowded night, let along July 4 or December 31. It's a zoo.

You can't do anything about the amount of people wanting to get in but you can certainly make their time in line a more pleasant experience.

But they have. Rather than wait in line for WWoHP, you can spend that time sampling the other amazing lands they have open, then eventually return with your ticket.

*-The longer-term solution is, of course, an expansion as well as better attractions in the other Islands and US.

 

[Toad_Passenger]

Ugh...reading about these crowds is giving me a bit of pause. We're heading to WDW on March 9th, and were planning on taking a day and doing WWOHP for a day.

We've been at WDW during this time and crowds have been larger, but very manageable. I was hoping the same would hold true for IoA, but now, not so sure.

Going to keep my fingers crossed, and keep watching these threads.

 

[amym2]

I don't see the issue either. Fastpasses at Disney are the same thing. You pay your admission and go to a ride. You either choose to wait in line which could be a few hours, or you get a fastpass to access the ride at a later time. It you only want to ride Toy Story Mania and do nothing else, for example, your experience wouldn't be much different that it was at Wizarding World. You still have to walk to the ride to get the fastpass. They don't give them out at the front of the park.

But Disney never blocks off an entire AREA and requires a FP to get into the area without any way to get through the then long lines without waiting in every single line.

I don't have a problem with Universal blocking off WWOHP- it's so difficult to get around that area with crowds that they really have to limit entrances or it will be a safety hazard. Not to mention there is ONE women's restroom in that section and that line alone blocks much of the area.

The issue that there is no way to know that this is how they're doing it. Some days they require return tickets, some days they don't. When you enter the park, there's someone saying for WWOHP go left. But none of the employees seem to be able to explain what you need to do. Certainly they knew that there were going to be ENORMOUS crowds over the holiday and could have devised a system that was clearly explained. When you try to get to WWOHP from the right (say if you stopped in Seussland first) there's nothing to tell you that you can't enter, other than a couple of employees shouting "hold up your tickets."

As far as FJ, when we bypassed the locker line since we were child-swapping, there was an employee standing there occasionally saying "the single rider line is this way" and pointing. If you didn't happen to stand there when he was saying it, I guess you were out of luck. Once you got into the line, I'm sure no one wanted to get out of it to go back to ask and risk losing their spot.

I'm sure once the crowd dies down, this will not be an issue. But it does seem that some signs or at least employees who are able to answer questions would have been a good investment. Anyone going to WWOHP should expect long lines, but having to get a ticket to get into the section, then waiting 90 minutes for FJ, then 45 for Hippogriff, then 30 for Dragons just isn't worth it. Forget Ollivander's or walking through the shops. The only short line when we were there was for Butterbeer, and that was only because it was FREEZING outside and no one wanted a cold drink!

The only Disney thing I might compare this to is the opening of World of Color at Disneyland, but they seemed to get that figured out pretty quickly.

 

[damo]

You can't compare Wizarding World to World of Color. One is an all day attraction where people come and go at different times and the other is a short show with set start and finish times. You can't even compare WW to any ride. The fact that you can stay in WW as long as you want makes it a very difficult, perhaps impossible, situation to control to the satisfaction of everyone.

I have yet to hear one suggestion of how the situation can be fixed other than double its size and that won't happen for a while.

 

[BatonrougeDisneyfan]

Went to WWOHP yestarday, arrived at 9:30am. 1 &1/2 hour wait for lockers and 2 hour wait for FJ. I think the ride broke down for a while. Everything there was packed!!!! Went back at 1:30pm and the park was at capacity! I'm trying to decide if I want to go back tomorrow or go to Universal Studios. If anyone went today, were the crowds any better????

 

[macraven]

Would it be a good idea to buy the Express pass for late next week? I know you can't use it for FJ, but it may be better...I'm going to be there on the 13th next week and I have been IOA, but my friend hasn't. It would only be $20 and I already have regular admission. However, I do know you all were saying it's probably going to be better next week, before MLK crowds.

Thanks for any advice!

totally agree with metro on that one!!


if the price of the epp is only $20, that means the park is projecting a 'low' crowd day.


you can buy the express passes the day you are in the park.


do parry hotter first thing in the morning and then later in the day, do the rest of the park.

if the lines are long, then consider buying the ep.
you can only use them one time per ride.

they are non refundable once you purchase them.

 

[crostorfer]

I've said it before in other posts, and I'm seeing it echoed in other people's responses here. I cannot stress enough, if you do not have to take a bag into Islands with you, DON'T! Specifically on the FJ. Do not have more than a fanny pack or waist pack on your person, anything larger and you will have to wait in line for a locker. The line for the locker is often just as long as the line for the ride, doubling your time. Save yourselves the time and the trouble and go in empty handed!!! You will thank me for this advice later. If you take away no other tip from this board, PLEASE, remember that.

The other thing, get there 45 min to 1 hour before opening, and walk as quickly as possible to HP. Ride the FJ first, and then get straight in line for Ollivanders, avoiding the gift shops until later. At that point, your wait for Ollivanders may be as much as an hour, but it only gets worse until close to closing time.

 

[JimR24]

January and early February are Brazilian tour group times.. also lots of Brazilian families as this is their summer break.

Ya think! I was wondering why English was the 2nd language this week. I feel like I need a translator walking around the parks.

 

[Planogirl]

We were there the first week of August and we stayed offsite. We managed to see what we wanted to and it was very crowded with 90-100 minute waits routinely showing for FJ and even longer at times to get into WWoHP.

I can't stress enough - get to the park early and be prepared to wait for a while in spite of that. Our wait time for FJ at opening was 45 minutes and the ride went down for a bit so we waited an hour. We did not go to Ollivanders because it was worse. We did however enjoy the shops and the overall ambience of the area. The Three Broomsticks was good too.

We found plenty of stuff to buy so that comment about little available is puzzling. The shops in the front has a fair amount of Harry Potter things too if you want to avoid lines. Or at least they did.

 

[ladylinda65]

Sorry to say to everyone but it is true that IOA is still as busy as ever. The wand wielding boy has created a constant flow of people!!

I can't remember a day since it opened that I haven't seen the area crowded and the FP line at least 90 mins.

Additionally, you can't get into the area when it is in overflow mode not even to ride dragons challenge or flight of the hippogrith.

I too am hearing that they are contemplating taking over the remaining part of Lost Continent that they did not use but as of now I believe this is just a rumor. But if you like Sinbad show you might want to make sure you see it so if this does come to pass you can say you've done it.

I would think if they did it that they would build to where the bypass bridge is in order to make it all one area.

Have fun and enjoy everything else USF/IOA has to offer till you can get into Potter!

 

[AverysMommy]

so a couple of questions from a newbie..........

1. Are the crowds just this crazy right now as teh US kids havent gone back to school yet from teh CHristmas holidays? or are the crowds tourists?

2. I am starting to hear the message - no backpacks at the park as they cause a hassle. NP. I assume I am OK with a purse or fanny pack?

3. Do I need to make a dinner reseration at the 3 broomsticks or do I just walk in?

Thanks

 

[fairyprincess88]

so a couple of questions from a newbie..........

1. Are the crowds just this crazy right now as teh US kids havent gone back to school yet from teh CHristmas holidays? or are the crowds tourists?

2. I am starting to hear the message - no backpacks at the park as they cause a hassle. NP. I assume I am OK with a purse or fanny pack?

3. Do I need to make a dinner reseration at the 3 broomsticks or do I just walk in?

Thanks

Can't really answer the crowd question as most thought it would clear up this week and it hasn't. I know here in the NJ/Philadelphia area the kids went back to school on the 3rd.


You will be fine with a fanny pack but not a purse. A purse(even a tiny over the shoulder mini) is considered a loose bag on rides like FJ ect. It will have to go into a locker for them. Fanny packs can stay on as long as the restraints lock around them.

Three Broomsticks is a counter service so no reservations needed. The only time they take reservations is breakfast and that is only for people booked on the Harry Potter package. It depends on crowds and the time you choose to eat as it if you will have to wait in line to get in. This July we had to wait in line for an hour to get into the Three Broomsticks and get our food. If there is a wait, they have a special queue for it chained off by the main door.