Alright, I'm going to Islands of Adventure THE WORST weekend of the year! Tips??

[WeebleWobble]

I'm going the weekend of the 13th-14th of July. This was really the only time I had available, and we all know how crowded it's going to be.
This will be a trip for five -- a four year old, five year old, a sixteen year old and two adults. Our main two goals are the Marvel area and HP world.
Any tips on how to make the most of it without going crazy? Heheheh.

 

[Bluer101]

It's is extremely hot. Make sure to drink plenty of water.

 

[AJA]

Get to the park at rope drop. Do you have early entry and will you be staying onsite? Get to HP early and then come back later in the evening if you want to shop or have missed something.

Don't throw stones () In the morning if the Ollivanders line is horrible and the two little ones are not "super" HP fans we would have one adult skip Ollivanders, take the little ones right to Flight of the Hippogriff and then out to play in the water or to the kids rides (they may not be tall enough for any other HP rides). Then the other adult and teen could enjoy HP. Later in the day the opposite adult and teen could go back and enjoy HP as the crowds leave.

If you are onsite or buy express pass you should have time to see everything provided the little ones don't get too hot and give out mid day.

If you don't have express then just hit the highlights and take it slow. There's a great playground and water play area in the Studios for little ones, it's right past ET. IOA also has a nice water play area and Cat in the hat is awesome. Marvel Island has lots of shops to walk through if you need to cool off in the mid day heat.

 

[macraven]

stay onsite.
utilize the express lines.
take breaks back at the hotel when the heat becomes too much for you.

 

[WeebleWobble]

Get to the park at rope drop. Do you have early entry and will you be staying onsite? Get to HP early and then come back later in the evening if you want to shop or have missed something.

Don't throw stones () In the morning if the Ollivanders line is horrible and the two little ones are not "super" HP fans we would have one adult skip Ollivanders, take the little ones right to Flight of the Hippogriff and then out to play in the water or to the kids rides (they may not be tall enough for any other HP rides). Then the other adult and teen could enjoy HP. Later in the day the opposite adult and teen could go back and enjoy HP as the crowds leave.

If you are onsite or buy express pass you should have time to see everything provided the little ones don't get too hot and give out mid day.

If you don't have express then just hit the highlights and take it slow. There's a great playground and water play area in the Studios for little ones, it's right past ET. IOA also has a nice water play area and Cat in the hat is awesome. Marvel Island has lots of shops to walk through if you need to cool off in the mid day heat.

I really like your idea of having someone take the little ones to to ride the Hippogriff while the other is at Olivander's.
My family goes to IOA pretty often, so we know how the crowds could be. Ahaha.
Do you happen to know of any way to get the express pass for less than a whopping $64? I think the price is ridiculous and I can't find anything cheaper anywhere else.

 

[macraven]

Do you happen to know of any way to get the express pass for less than a whopping $64? I think the price is ridiculous and I can't find anything cheaper anywhere else.

it is what it is.......
you won't find any discounts on express passes.

stay onsite one night and you'll get two days of free unlimited express lines usage.

what it would cost you for the express pass for all in your group for two days, would probably cost more than the room for one night.

 

[cieslack]

it is what it is.......
you won't find any discounts on express passes.

stay onsite one night and you'll get two days of free unlimited express lines usage.

what it would cost you for the express pass for all in your group for two days, would probably cost more than the room for one night.

 

[Metro West]

Do you happen to know of any way to get the express pass for less than a whopping $64? I think the price is ridiculous and I can't find anything cheaper anywhere else.

There are never discounts on EPs and the reason the price is high is because it's high season...larger crowds are expected during summer so the price goes up.

 

[macraven]

I really like your idea of having someone take the little ones to to ride the Hippogriff while the other is at Olivander's.
My family goes to IOA pretty often, so we know how the crowds could be. Ahaha.
Do you happen to know of any way to get the express pass for less than a whopping $64? I think the price is ridiculous and I can't find anything cheaper anywhere else.

came back to add something.
i'll show you how to get those express plus passes cheaper...


book a one night room at the RPH.
if you are staying offsite and really love it, just use the hotel onsite for the perks.


5 in your group.
$64 for express pass that can be used one time only per ride.

5 x $64 = $320


one night at RPH on the 13th: $304 + tax
i just pulled up the hotels and rooms are available for the 13th of July.



when you stay onsite, you receive hotel perks.

you have unlimited usage of the express lines for all rides and shows.
like the MIB?
do it 5 times in a row.


you get early entry for parry hotter and the spiderman ride.
you are allowed into the park one hour prior to the official opening time.

so for $304/+ tax, you get $640 worth of epp for 2 days.
but, those epp's only allowed one ride per person a day.


if you have AAA, you can get 10% discounts off of food and merch in the parks and some of citywalk.
i could not find any discounts with AAA on the website of UO.
but calling for a hotel, you might inquire and see if any are available for that date.
could get you 20% off. (really depends on the date)

you would avoid long line waits for rides and shows using the express lines.



the youngest w/a parent could take time out to do the pool at the hotel for a few hours break when the heat is unbearable.






i'm just trying to find a way that your family could have a great time and not get frustrated in the heat and long lines at UO.

 

[rcraw45425]

I just booked July 18-22 for PBH. I had a courtesy hold for the SMSM RATE(stay more save more) rate at Royal Pacific. It was 237.15/258.10 for week day/weekend. I called to change it to Portofino Bay, which I knew would be higher. Surprisingly they told me thy could give it to me for the same rate as RPR. they may offer you an even better rate if you call. We have been to US/IOA in July before and I ord not even attempt this without onsite / FOTL express pass. It really is a sanity saver!

 

[badandy]

I just booked July 18-22 for PBH. I had a courtesy hold for the SMSM RATE(stay more save more) rate at Royal Pacific. It was 237.15/258.10 for week day/weekend. I called to change it to Portofino Bay, which I knew would be higher. Surprisingly they told me thy could give it to me for the same rate as RPR. they may offer you an even better rate if you call. We have been to US/IOA in July before and I ord not even attempt this without onsite / FOTL express pass. It really is a sanity saver!

So staying onsite is less than buying expresses passes.

 

[Metro West]

I just booked July 18-22 for PBH. I had a courtesy hold for the SMSM RATE(stay more save more) rate at Royal Pacific. It was 237.15/258.10 for week day/weekend. I called to change it to Portofino Bay, which I knew would be higher. Surprisingly they told me thy could give it to me for the same rate as RPR. they may offer you an even better rate if you call. We have been to US/IOA in July before and I ord not even attempt this without onsite / FOTL express pass. It really is a sanity saver!

Being able to come back to the hotel and take a nap or swim will really come in handy. Sometimes I wish I could do that too but I never stay onsite.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

So staying onsite is less than buying expresses passes.

For us it was WAY cheaper.

We booked one night at the Royal Pacific for January 3 (to give us free express passes for two days...one day to visit Universal and one to visit IOA). We booked with the CAA rate for $189 and thought we were getting a pretty good deal considering our reservation fell over the New Years holiday week.

We didn't plan to stay there.....we had a one bedroom suite at an International Drive property that suited our sleeping needs better than our queen/queen room at the RPR.

When we went to check in, the staff at the Royal Pacific said they were overbooked for our room type. Offered to upgrade us to the hospitality suite (explaining that the room had a pull out sofa and that they would bring in a cot for our teenager) and refund us $90........making the cost of the room $99.

We jumped on it! 2 days of unlimited express passes for three people for $99. You can't get any better than that.

Its also worth mentioning.........the hospitality suite was gorgeous. We could easily have spent the night there very comfortably had we chosen to do so .

I wouldn't think this would be a typical experience, but let me tell ya.....we were thanking the vacation Gods that day!

 

[the Dark Marauder]

That's actually not the worst weekend, crowdwise. The heat + humidity + crowds can make it miserable, yes. Crowdwise, late December is always the worst.