First time at Universal with 1 day park to park ticket

[PolyRob]

This will be my first time traveling to Universal and it will fall in the middle of an early spring (technically late winter?) Disney World trip! I plan on taking a Lyft and arriving prior to the park opening. I will be traveling with my sister and we will definitely want to get the most our of our 1 day there. We have very similar interests when it comes to attractions and definitely want to experience the thrill rides.

I have been looking through a lot of different sites, and am still wondering a few things and would value DISboards guidance!

1. Would an express pass be valuable during "value" season on 3/8/17? I plan on purchasing the base park to park tickets and upgrading while there if need be.

2. What Harry Potter attractions are worth missing for us if we can't fit them in? We are not obsessed with Harry Potter. Nothing against it, just never really got into it. I see HP and the Escape from Gringotts is an indoor coaster we would probably enjoy, but we may not really appreciate experiencing the scenes or attractions that go through the story as much as seeing something like Jurassic Park or the Simpsons.

3. How is the QS food? At Disney we typically make ADRs and very rarely dine on QS. We do not really like the typical amusement park burgers, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets. I've read very good things about Mythos. Is it worth tailoring our touring around something like this and City Walk to dine?

4. What is a good place to see Universal’s Cinematic Spectacular? We enjoy Fantasmic! and would be interested in closing out the day with this!
Sorry about the lengthy post, I appreciate any answers, feedback, or suggestions!

 

[bchbetha]

1. You should be ok without express passes but they are nice to have if you are only allotting 1 day to the parks.

2. Gringotts and Forbidden Journey are headline attractions and not to be missed. Gringotts is loads better than Simpsons (and I'm a big Simpsons fan! Love the Simpsons area but not that ride). You could skip Flight of the Hippogriff though.

3. The food is good and there is a lot of variety; you aren't limited to burgers and fries. Eat an early lunch at the Leaky Cauldron. Grab a taco or eat in the food court over at Simpsons for lunch, get dinner in CityWalk at somewhere like Cowfish. With only 1 day, don't spend the time on a sit down lunch. Go with a late afternoon snack and late dinner.

4. Over in NYC Central Parknis good. Try and get head one with one of the screens.

Aim to arrive about 45-60 minutes before opening to allow walking time + security. And go with an open mind. It's not Disney- and that's ok.

 

[wookiebeck]

3. How is the QS food? At Disney we typically make ADRs and very rarely dine on QS. We do not really like the typical amusement park burgers, hot dogs, or chicken nuggets. I've read very good things about Mythos. Is it worth tailoring our touring around something like this and City Walk to dine?

We LOVE Mythos. It is a nice air conditioned break. It might be a few minutes longer than CS, but that is OK when doing rope drop and staying until late. The two HP restaurants are technically QS, and they queue and run way better than WDW QS cafeteria line. Those two themed restaurants have some of the best QS choices around.

 

[Heidi K]

I also like the QS restaurant near Jurassic Park. I don't remember the name but it has roasted chicken and other options that are a step above the usual. I don't think Mythos is worth taking the time when you have only one day.

At the Simpsons food court, we liked the chicken stand but hated the Crusty burgers.

We also enjoyed both HP restaurants.

For HP, you can also skip the wand ceremony. It's magical for a fan but not necessary otherwise.

 

[schumigirl]

If you feel you need EP, upgrade on the day. Some ride queues can surprise even on so called quiet times. But, don't buy them ahead of time as you can't get a refund or change them.

You know you won't be able to ride the Hogwarts Express without a park to park ticket?

The Potter rides can be seriously enjoyed even if you don't know or even like the Potter stories. They are amazingly themed and a lot of fun. You could miss flight of the hippogriff.......it's very short.

I would definitely have a sit down lunch. Both parks have some excellent choices that are as inexpensive as counter services. Mythos and Confisco Grill in Islands of Adventure are both fabulous and have different menus from regular theme park food. You can eat pretty quickly in these places.

In the Studios you have Lombards and Finnegans as table service. You also have the Simpsons food court which is excellent and of course Louie's (CS) is one of the best pizza places around Universal. Also wouldn't take long to leave the parks if you wanted to and eat somewhere in Citywalk. Plenty of variety there.

Both Potter restaurants consistently get good reviews.

For counter service we do like Thunder Falls Terrace in IOA for counter service. Best chicken wrap ever! And they do decent chicken and ribs combo........huge portion.

In the studios for counter service, it's got to be Louie's.

Cinematic spectacular can be seen from anywhere around the lagoon. Down from Moe's Tavern by the water is excellent and opposite Mels Diner is another good place. But there isn't really a bad place to watch around the lagoon and you don't have to be there much before it starts.

 

[PolyRob]

Thank you all for this information!

1. You should be ok without express passes but they are nice to have if you are only allotting 1 day to the parks.

2. Gringotts and Forbidden Journey are headline attractions and not to be missed. Gringotts is loads better than Simpsons (and I'm a big Simpsons fan! Love the Simpsons area but not that ride). You could skip Flight of the Hippogriff though.

3. The food is good and there is a lot of variety; you aren't limited to burgers and fries. Eat an early lunch at the Leaky Cauldron. Grab a taco or eat in the food court over at Simpsons for lunch, get dinner in CityWalk at somewhere like Cowfish. With only 1 day, don't spend the time on a sit down lunch. Go with a late afternoon snack and late dinner.

4. Over in NYC Central Parknis good. Try and get head one with one of the screens.

Aim to arrive about 45-60 minutes before opening to allow walking time + security. And go with an open mind. It's not Disney- and that's ok.

I will mark these HP attractions and include them in our plans! We both love the Simpsons, but I have read so-so things about this ride. I also personally got a little nauseous on Star Tours in Disney, but am fine with Soarin'. I read people take dramamine so I may try it out since we have it if needed for flying. I love rollercoasters and have no problem there and would not want a day ruined due to the Simpsons. lol

My sister loves cream soda so Butterbeer (or frozen Butterbeer) is definitely on the list! Leaky Cauldron would make this easy! I also think I may try to only do a lunch and snacks as needed during the time the parks are open, and possibly wait to eat a late dinner at CityWalk after the Cinematic Spectacular. We do late dinners in Disney and sometimes pair them with fireworks so a late meal should be fine.

Thank you, I definitely want to be there ready to go when the park opens so 60 minutes early it is! I have always wanted to go to Universal since I was a kid, but it never happened. I have the mindset it will be more like my local Six Flags rather than Disney, but it will be hard to get out of the MagicBand, PhotoPass, FastPass+ mindset.

We LOVE Mythos. It is a nice air conditioned break. It might be a few minutes longer than CS, but that is OK when doing rope drop and staying until late. The two HP restaurants are technically QS, and they queue and run way better than WDW QS cafeteria line. Those two themed restaurants have some of the best QS choices around.

Since we will be going all day, that air conditioned break will definitely be nice! This is a savior at Disney in the warmer months. Also reassuring about the HP QS. We may have to go to one of these.

I also like the QS restaurant near Jurassic Park. I don't remember the name but it has roasted chicken and other options that are a step above the usual. I don't think Mythos is worth taking the time when you have only one day.

At the Simpsons food court, we liked the chicken stand but hated the Crusty burgers.

We also enjoyed both HP restaurants.

For HP, you can also skip the wand ceremony. It's magical for a fan but not necessary otherwise.

Wasting time is definitely a concern. I will lookup the QS near Jurassic Park as this sounds like a solid option. I saw the Krusty Burgers and they did not seem like something we would appreciate either. Lisa's area and the chicken area seemed the best for us there, besides Lard Lad Donuts. I think I need to try that D'oh-Nut Sundae!

I will note that we can skip the wand ceremony since we may not appreciate the experience like a dedicated HP fan. Thank you!

If you feel you need EP, upgrade on the day. Some ride queues can surprise even on so called quiet times. But, don't buy them ahead of time as you can't get a refund or change them.

You know you won't be able to ride the Hogwarts Express without a park to park ticket?

The Potter rides can be seriously enjoyed even if you don't know or even like the Potter stories. They are amazingly themed and a lot of fun. You could miss flight of the hippogriff.......it's very short.

I would definitely have a sit down lunch. Both parks have some excellent choices that are as inexpensive as counter services. Mythos and Confisco Grill in Islands of Adventure are both fabulous and have different menus from regular theme park food. You can eat pretty quickly in these places.

In the Studios you have Lombards and Finnegans as table service. You also have the Simpsons food court which is excellent and of course Louie's (CS) is one of the best pizza places around Universal. Also wouldn't take long to leave the parks if you wanted to and eat somewhere in Citywalk. Plenty of variety there.

Both Potter restaurants consistently get good reviews.

For counter service we do like Thunder Falls Terrace in IOA for counter service. Best chicken wrap ever! And they do decent chicken and ribs combo........huge portion.

In the studios for counter service, it's got to be Louie's.

Cinematic spectacular can be seen from anywhere around the lagoon. Down from Moe's Tavern by the water is excellent and opposite Mels Diner is another good place. But there isn't really a bad place to watch around the lagoon and you don't have to be there much before it starts.

I plan on buying the "value" 1 day Park to Park ticket online directly through Universal. I did not see any other site that offered a significant discount (at most $2 per ticket). I guess I will just gauge the EP need based on the rides that day.

I will note Flight of the Hippogriff is a HP attraction that can be missed. I will also look into Confisco Grille. We do plan on being in Islands of Adventure during that "peak" park time so lunch right before leaving Universal Studios or right after works.

Thank you for the Cinematic Spectacular time advice. I am so used to scoping out a spot for Disney shows/parades so I assumed we would have to find something far in advance.