First time at Universal - going right after Christmas

[mom0299]

We have done Disney many times and I know exactly how to plan for a Disney trip. The kids are in college now and we are all HP fans, so this year we have decided to do Universal. We will go right after Christmas and stay until just after New Year's Day.
I would love to know how to plan for this trip compared to a Disney trip. When can I make dining reservations? What restaurants should I book? What should we expect that week as far as crowds and events? If we get a 5-day ticket will we be able to see it all during that busy holiday week? We won't be staying at a Universal resort.
Please help this Disney-turned-Universal family.

 

[shanew21]

It's going to be packed. Just a word of caution.

Dining reservations are 30 days out I believe, but only a few of them really take reservations. Look into Mythos, it's excellent and pretty good value.

As for seeing it all, it depends on the lines you want to wait in. If you get there early each day and stay late, you'll be able to get a lot done, but during the middle of the day the lines are going to be insane. That's the busiest week of the year.

I'd look into the Universal resorts that include express passes (Portofino Bay, Royal Pacific, Hard Rock) if it's in your budget. Those hotels also have pretty excellent annual pass rates at times.

 

[gotomu212]

As PP says it will be packed. Five days is plenty to see everything but you will,spend a lot of time in lines.

I know you said you’re staying offsite but check the prices for a throw away room at one of the three above mentioned hotels. You don’t have to stay there, just checkin, and one night gets you all 2 days of unlimited express passes. The room will be cheaper than buying 8 passes and I think you’ll really appreciate having 2 days to hit everything with little waiting and then a few days of back tracking and enjoying the HP areas.

This is the only week where I would bother with reservations, but you can make them the week before (or even day before). There’s a sticky here with great info on where to eat.

 

[Lynne G]

Yep, have college/senior high sport kids, and we did 28 to 31 December last year. Even the express lines for Mummy were an hour long. With 5 days, I'd do the must sees spread out through the days, as yes, wall to wall crowds. Did make dinner reservations from about a month before, and did the quick service for lunch/snacks, as off times as we could. Really enjoyed the light show on the castle, and all the holiday decorations they put out. Heck, we even did one early morning and one afternoon at Volcano Bay, 70 degree days, heated water, fun with not as big as crowds.

Try to get to the parks as early as you can. City Walk can be a wall of people as well. And since you are off site, give yourself plenty of time to get into one of those massive parking garages, then have to walk, there's some electric walking paths, and then a huge area where security is. That can be packed as well, as there is only so many scanners. From there, you have to go through City Walk to either park. Left for Islands, Right for Studios.

We bit the bullet, and stayed onsite. Doing security at the hotel's boat entry was not as crowded, and was nice to be a boat ride back, even if it was about 20 minutes, to go right to our hotel. No car traffic.

I hope you have a great time. It's one of my favorite times to be at Universal, all is open, and I enjoy holiday decorations.

 

[mom0299]

Thanks for all the responses. We are prepared for crowds. We've done Disney at that time of year a few times. I would imagine it would be comparable. I'm glad to know that dining reservations are 30 days out. I've always thought 180 days for Disney is a lot. We're staying offsite because we're Wyndham owners and have booked Bonnett Creek. We've been to CityWalk, but not the parks. We plan to get the pass to go to both parks in one day and we'll get 5 day passes. The Wizarding World is what we are most interested in seeing. Any other suggestions you can add would be great.

 

[Lynne G]

The resort guests will have early entry to one of the Potter areas. Find out which one, and go first thing to the other. The first hour is when to hit the most popular. The Studios Potter area is larger, with Islands smaller. If you have bags, always go to the back of the ride lockers, usually not as crowded. We saw the castle light show on the bridge, and it did not get crowded. The other night, we braved the crowds in the front of the castle, making sure to be in that area well before they close it off. You need the park to park ticket to ride the Potter train.

Depending on your budget, you may want to buy one preferred annual pass. That would get you free general parking in the parking garages, and 10 percent off food and purchases. They honored my annual pass discount at all places during the holiday. Works at the City Walk and hotel food places too. Buy your other tickets from an authorized reseller, like undercovertourist.

And check out our stickies to see current menus, and if any more questions, ask away. Friendly bunch here.

 

[mom0299]

The resort guests will have early entry to one of the Potter areas. Find out which one, and go first thing to the other. The first hour is when to hit the most popular. The Studios Potter area is larger, with Islands smaller. If you have bags, always go to the back of the ride lockers, usually not as crowded. We saw the castle light show on the bridge, and it did not get crowded. The other night, we braved the crowds in the front of the castle, making sure to be in that area well before they close it off. You need the park to park ticket to ride the Potter train.

Depending on your budget, you may want to buy one preferred annual pass. That would get you free general parking in the parking garages, and 10 percent off food and purchases. They honored my annual pass discount at all places during the holiday. Works at the City Walk and hotel food places too. Buy your other tickets from an authorized reseller, like undercovertourist.

And check out our stickies to see current menus, and if any more questions, ask away. Friendly bunch here.

Thank you! That's a huge help.

 

[slpeters]

If you are even considering buying EP I would definitely consider getting a room at one of the three resorts that offer free EP--even if you literally never set foot in it. With one night reserved you would get EP for all of you for two days plus two early entries. We are going in early December (totally different animal crowd-wise) and our room at RPR is cheaper than buying EP for the two of us for one day, let alone four of your for two days. I think particularly when it's that busy having the EP for two of your days might substantially enhance your experience.

 

[macraven]

You could book one night at the value hotels as a throw away room
They also are allowed early entry to the designated park which will help you do potter lands without the huge crowds first thing each morning

And parking is cheaper at those hotels than the city walk parking lot