Harry Potter Crowd Report Thread...

[Donnask8pro]

Flying out today. Changed my days to this Sunday and Monday. I'll report on crowds when I get back. Catch you on the flip side..

 

[macraven]

Oops, see that this thread is a sticky that I should only be posting about WWHP queues so I will post my query on the main board.

sent you a pm.

 

[hammie59]

Just got back from a very long Disney trip and took son over to IOA for one day. (Wed 5/11. Park hours were 9-7) We got there around 8:30. The lines to buy tickets were huge, so I was really glad I bought mine ahead of time. Main entrance lines to get in were about 25 deep when we walked up, but got in pretty quick at 9. We took sly way thru Seuss land by green eggs and was in the wwohp without a problem. I went against the advice on here and skipped Olivanders and went straight to FBJ, which had a 20-30 min wait. Made mistake of getting into locker line thinking it was reg one, but only wasted a few min before I figured it out. Direction isn't very clear in that regard. They let me on with a hip sack. It went pretty quick. We rode it again after riding FotH (wait time around 20) with fbj having about a 35 min wait 2nd time. Not too bad I guess. Started to feel a bit queasy during second ride, which surprised me. Came very close to creating a "lasting memory" so that was the end of that ride for us. Too bad, cuz it's so cool! Ate at Three Broom Sticks around 11 before it got really crazy.

Crowds weren't too heavy in rest of park, so i'm glad I didn't buy the fastpass thing. Had no problems getting on other rides. Most were 10 min waits with longest being Terra flyers which was about 45. Seemed like forever and ride was too short. Went back to olivanders around 6 and waited about 15 to get in. I'm having withdrawals from the frozen butter beer.

 

[kingken]

hi
noted you said they let you on the forbidden journey ride, does this mean they wont allow bags on it, as my wife will have a messanger bag draped across her and from what i gather locker queue is bigger than ride queue,
thanks in advance

 

[Metro West]

hi
noted you said they let you on the forbidden journey ride, does this mean they wont allow bags on it, as my wife will have a messanger bag draped across her and from what i gather locker queue is bigger than ride queue,
thanks in advance

No carry on bags are allowed on FJ. She will need to place her bag in a locker or give it to a non-rider in your party. She could ride with a fanny pack but nothing that drapes over the body.

 

[Brandis]

There is another locker location in the Hogwarts Express "train station", but I'm not sure if they are free of charge.

 

[kingken]

No carry on bags are allowed on FJ. She will need to place her bag in a locker or give it to a non-rider in your party. She could ride with a fanny pack but nothing that drapes over the body.

thanks alot

 

[mesaboy2]

There is another locker location in the Hogwarts Express "train station", but I'm not sure if they are free of charge.

Those are free, but only for a time tied to the wait expected on Dragon Challenge. You risk being charged for these lockers when you return from FJ.

 

[SandraLee]

How much would the charge be?

 

[mesaboy2]

How much would the charge be?

Don't know, never chanced it. Probably a couple of bucks or so.

To clarify, any ride at Universal that doesn't allow bags has this free locker setup. The trick is that they are only free for a short period that is timed to the expected wait time of the ride. Since Dragon Challenge's wait times are typically less than FJ's, and usually much more so, you are likely to return to your locker at DC after riding FJ and needing to spring some coin. Not a big deal, but can surprise you if you're not expecting it.

 

[blondietink]

Just a thought for those of you planning a trip in January: January is typically summer vacation for South America, which can lead to huge tour groups from Brazil (BTG's - Brazilian Tour Groups), family groups from Australia, etc. I don't know if they are Harry Potter fans or not, but when the BTG's invade WDW, they typically can take up ride lines for a long time. So, I would expect that the same could happen at Universal/IOA if that is one of their park days. I believe July is also a big month for BTG's.

 

[Metro West]

Just a thought for those of you planning a trip in January: January is typically summer vacation for South America, which can lead to huge tour groups from Brazil (BTG's - Brazilian Tour Groups), family groups from Australia, etc. I don't know if they are Harry Potter fans or not, but when the BTG's invade WDW, they typically can take up ride lines for a long time. So, I would expect that the same could happen at Universal/IOA if that is one of their park days. I believe July is also a big month for BTG's.

Indeed...another reason I stay away during the summer.

 

[disneyluver6]

Advice Needed Please!

We have a trip to Orlando planned with full park days being June 2-7.

We are wondering what are going to be the best days to visit Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. We would like to spend one day at each park. We have a couple of big Harry Potter fans which is a big reason for the trip to Universal. We are willing to go on non consecutive days. We just want to maximize our time with the least amount of crowds.

The rest of our trip will include a visit to the WDW parks which we have been to enough times to make plans for around these Universal days.

Thank you so much!

 

[Metro West]

Advice Needed Please!

We have a trip to Orlando planned with full park days being June 2-7.

We are wondering what are going to be the best days to visit Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. We would like to spend one day at each park. We have a couple of big Harry Potter fans which is a big reason for the trip to Universal. We are willing to go on non consecutive days. We just want to maximize our time with the least amount of crowds.

The rest of our trip will include a visit to the WDW parks which we have been to enough times to make plans for around these Universal days.

Thank you so much!

That's going to be the start of the busy summer season so I would recommend going Tuesday-Thursday to keep the crowds at a minimum.

 

[19lottie82]

We are heading to IoA on Sunday, 12th June. Any ideas how bad the crowds will be by then? (will the schools be out for summer yet?)

I think the plan is to head along late ish. Would it be a sensible plan to head into IoA around 3pm and then WWOHP about 7pm?

Any advice is welcome xx

Anyone?

 

[damo]

Anyone?

That sounds like a good plan. It is still tough to predict crowds with the Wizarding World. You would think things would be a little better this summer, but who knows!

 

[audrey2580]

"Originally Posted by disneyluver6
Advice Needed Please!
We have a trip to Orlando planned with full park days being June 2-7.
We are wondering what are going to be the best days to visit Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. We would like to spend one day at each park. We have a couple of big Harry Potter fans which is a big reason for the trip to Universal. We are willing to go on non consecutive days. We just want to maximize our time with the least amount of crowds."

That's going to be the start of the busy summer season so I would recommend going Tuesday-Thursday to keep the crowds at a minimum.

We are planning the same dates but for next year with the same 2 day HP plan. Are you suggesting Tuesday-Thursday June 7-9th the following week or should she(we) go June 2nd?

Disneyluver6 would love if you could pm me after and tell me what you ended up doing and how the crowds were.

Thanks

 

[Coach81]

We're heading out tonight.. gonna ride FJ tomorrow night around closing... then every morning for the rest of the week!!!!

 

[tink20]

We're heading out tonight.. gonna ride FJ tomorrow night around closing... then every morning for the rest of the week!!!!

Hope you all have a great time (and no motion sickness) can't wait to hear if you do okay (then maybe there's hope for DS and me)

 

[tea pot]

Question
Has the FJ Ride had any recent breakdowns or problems?
I know the first few months they had a few break downs one that
involved evacuating the ride including the use of the fire dept and ladders (thanks Scary UTube videos)
Hoping those bugs are all cleaned up