Help a Newbie :)

[JoelleM]

I haven't been to Universal before and was considering a trip for early May or early December of next year. As I began preliminary planning, I learned of the OI Meetup. It seems like a great deal and I started considering the November 2022 meetup. I was wondering, however, if this event would be good for someone who has never been to Univeral before? Should I continue to plan for a trip sometime next year? I was still working on the plan for next year, but thougth 3 day park to park tickets at an Endless Summer Resort. If we went for the Meetup we would stay two nights at Cabana Bay.

Would three, regular days be better than the two nights for the meetup?

Oh, and the trip would be for me, my DH, and our DDs (10 & 11) who love Harry Potter

Thanks in advance for any advice for someone just starting to try and figure out Universal.

 

[CAPSLOCK]

I would personally choose 3 regular days for a first trip (non-weekend preferably).

I think you would be trying to maximize rides during the meetup, which means breezing past the theming without really taking time to enjoy it. It is probably harder to navigate an unfamiliar park at night.

Having your first experience be no crowds / low lines has its perks too.

Either way, you will have a blast, Universal is so much fun!

 

[JoelleM]

Thank you for the response. You make an excellent point for the regular trip.

 

[macraven]

I second what CAPLOCK posted

During the day you can see the park and store fronts, details of entertainment easily.

During the night, you won’t be able to see much detail of the shops, store fronts, etc

 

[JoelleM]

Thank you both for helping me out!

New question - would you choose weekdays during early May (like 9 - 11) or late November/early December (sometime during the two weeks after Thanksgiving)?

 

[macraven]

I have gone in early May and liked the lower crowds
Heat not an issue for me

Going end of November early December is another decent time.
You will have cooler weather but it does bring out more of the locals in that time period

 

[JoelleM]

Thank you @macraven! I appreciate any advice I can get

 

[AJA]

I personally love early May but Nov/Dec decorations will make the HP setting and areas that much better. If Harry Potter is the focus Christmas time is amazing.

For me May still wins but go early before May 15th to optimize the lower summer crowd level.

 

[Grumpy92]

We did mid Dec last year. Got an incredible rate at Portofino. It gave us the express pass. We really didn’t need it and we enjoyed the Xmas decorations. You can’t go wrong with either date.