Express Pass or No Express Pass?

[John Marecek]

After 4 days at Disney, doing 3 days at Universal, staying at a partner hotel offsite. Wife doesn't think we need the Express Pass, I'm not sure. We will be at Universal February 8-10.

 

[wookiebeck]

I would think you are OK for those dates.

If you get to the 9th or 10th and feel like lines are holding you back from seeing everything, just purchase the EP at guest services.

 

[NYHeel]

After 4 days at Disney, doing 3 days at Universal, staying at a partner hotel offsite. Wife doesn't think we need the Express Pass, I'm not sure. We will be at Universal February 8-10.

You definitely don't need it but it helps repeat rides multiple times. It's probably cheaper to just stay on site at one of the three Universal hotels with express pass.

 

[kohlby]

It's better to buy it once you're in the parks and certain you need it. (If staying onsite isn't a possibility). We didn't need it our last trip but it was still nice to have for shorter walks in line. We did save a small amount of time using it towards the end of our trip. That was nice with our youngest not liking the same rides at the other two kids, but not a huge deal - just a nice perk.

Is it just you and your wife going? If so, don't forget about single rider line. Before we had kids, we relied heavily on single rider line. (We used to go over Christmas break). Not every ride has single rider lines, but it still helps quite a bit.

 

[John Marecek]

It's better to buy it once you're in the parks and certain you need it. (If staying onsite isn't a possibility). We didn't need it our last trip but it was still nice to have for shorter walks in line. We did save a small amount of time using it towards the end of our trip. That was nice with our youngest not liking the same rides at the other two kids, but not a huge deal - just a nice perk.

Is it just you and your wife going? If so, don't forget about single rider line. Before we had kids, we relied heavily on single rider line. (We used to go over Christmas break). Not every ride has single rider lines, but it still helps quite a bit.

9 and 5 year old ladies going for the first time. Single rider may be okay after the 9 year old has been on once. Im not sure how my youngster is going to do on all the sim 3D rides anyway.

 

[Peezle]

Are some of you saying that Express Pass is included with your park tickets if you stay in one of the on site hotels?

 

[pcstang]

Are some of you saying that Express Pass is included with your park tickets if you stay in one of the on site hotels?

It's included with any of three deluxe hotels. Hard Rock, portofino or royal pacific.

 

[kohlby]

Ah - yes, I wouldn't do single rider with those ages. (Also, the child has to be at least 48" to do single rider as well). Every time we've gone, RPR has always been the cheapest of the 3 that offer express pass. And though child swap is great, express pass helped us out so the child who wouldn't ride wouldn't have to wait as long. We did a multi-day trip and the line for Mummy scared my youngest - making rider swap a bit more challenging. So, after discovering this the first time, we stuck to using express pass and not making him go through the line to wait for us.

That being said, we're planning a trip for April and will be staying at Cabana Bay - so no express pass. We won't have the money in our budget for that trip and we're getting two rooms instead of our normal one - making the additional increase for RPR be way too much for us. I figure we'll do just fine without express. Express has been a nice perk on past trips - not essential due to the off-season - but still helpful. So, if there's room in your budget, consider staying at one of the hotels that offer it. If not, you'll find a way to make it work out just fine too.

 

[schumigirl]

Are some of you saying that Express Pass is included with your park tickets if you stay in one of the on site hotels?

Not with your park tickets no. But it`s a perk of staying in either Royal Pacific, Hard Rock and Portofino Bay hotels.

If you stay one night you get unlimited EP access on arrival and departure day too. Although it says 4pm check in, you can check in as early as you like and leave any bags with Bell services if your room is not available yet.

You will then get a room key and go to the kiosks in lobby areas and print off your EP with your picture on it.

Staying at Cabana Bay will give you early entry only. No EP staying there.

 

[Peezle]

It's included with any of three deluxe hotels. Hard Rock, portofino or royal pacific.

Thank you for the response. I didn't see EP listed as one of the perks for Cabana Bay, so that's why I was asking.

 

[Peezle]

Not with your park tickets no. But it`s a perk of staying in either Royal Pacific, Hard Rock and Portofino Bay hotels.

If you stay one night you get unlimited EP access on arrival and departure day too. Although it says 4pm check in, you can check in as early as you like and leave any bags with Bell services if your room is not available yet.

You will then get a room key and go to the kiosks in lobby areas and print off your EP with your picture on it.

Staying at Cabana Bay will give you early entry only. No EP staying there.

Thanks, schumigirl. The EP prices for the dates my daughter will be there (Dec 14-16) have really high prices ($90 for unlimited use in both parks), so I was hoping for a different answer!