Hotel Express pass is not what it used to be...

[loribell]

Well I will be watching this closely. I will not pay the prices they charge for the onsite hotels if the FOTL perk is not much of a perk. I can stay at a much cheaper hotel and get to the park for opening, ride the rides we want and save a lot of money. FOTL is not free by any means, it is definetly paid for with the room cost.

Keep us posted!

 

[nymomof3]

what does this mean for all of us visiting in the summer in the extreme heat and humidity..its not fair with the prices of onsite rooms.. do people usually use these up by afternoon..so maybe the more popular rides would be better to ride in the evening when the lines aren't so bad.. which shouldn't be..you should be able to ride at any time of day without those crazy wait times..

 

[Metro West]

what does this mean for all of us visiting in the summer in the extreme heat and humidity..its not fair with the prices of onsite rooms.. do people usually use these up by afternoon..so maybe the more popular rides would be better to ride in the evening when the lines aren't so bad.. which shouldn't be..you should be able to ride at any time of day without those crazy wait times..

Last summer it was busy most of the time..at Disney and Universal. I understand what you're saying about the wait times. I would be upset too if I paid $300 a night for that perk and had to wait a long time to ride. Remember...Universal started this because the free EP was making the lines too long...supposedly and they decided to make some $$$ of the people who really wanted the perk of the Express line. Frankly...if you're staying onsite, go to the parks in the morning and then relax by the pool until evening and go back. You don't want to walk around ANY park with the crowds, heat and humidity.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

what does this mean for all of us visiting in the summer in the extreme heat and humidity..its not fair with the prices of onsite rooms.. do people usually use these up by afternoon..so maybe the more popular rides would be better to ride in the evening when the lines aren't so bad.. which shouldn't be..you should be able to ride at any time of day without those crazy wait times..

We live less than 1 1/2 hrs. from UO, but still stay on property 4 or 5 nights in July. We have had great experiences with the EP line. Getting up & going early doesn't work for us, so we never get to the parks early. My DH & I usually enjoy a relaxing breakfast, while our DS sleeps in. We usually get to the parks around 11 am, & always leave in plenty of time to dress for dinner. Hopefully, the lines this summer won't be any different. The recent reports do have me a bit concerned though. I guess we'll have to wait to see.

 

[damo]

Was there a problem at Easter? I would imagine that the crowds then would be similar to summer crowds and the express pass would be priced similarly.

 

[lindalinda]

Was there a problem at Easter? I would imagine that the crowds then would be similar to summer crowds and the express pass would be priced similarly.

The first night we were there the mummy line was 30 mins with express. That was a saturday night during Mardi Gras tho. (and it was Daughtry) The rest of the week there were no problems, lines were maybe 10 mins (express).

 

[nymomof3]

what will the ep prices be in july...maybe they'll raise those so not as many people will buy...hopeful thinking....

 

[bubba's mom]

what will the ep prices be in july...maybe they'll raise those so not as many people will buy...hopeful thinking....

Peak season they are more expensive. Check here: http://secure.universalstudios.com/...goryGroup=UOMain&SalesCategory=UO2ParkUEPLive make sure to scroll down the page to find the price for your dates.....(will give you a better idea!)

 

[rie'smom]

The lines at WDW were insane last week. It was because of the millions of school kids. There must have been 50 groups. I'm hoping that Universal will have shorter lines Thurs.,Fri., and Sat. because that's when we're going!
I'm trying to convert my DB and his family to the good side .

 

[bubba's mom]

The lines at WDW were insane last week. It was because of the millions of school kids. There must have been 50 groups. I'm hoping that Universal will have shorter lines Thurs.,Fri., and Sat. because that's when we're going!
I'm trying to convert my DB and his family to the good side .

*ahem* the darkside

 

[rie'smom]

*ahem* the darkside

I know . I just can't bring myself to think of Universal as the darkside!

 

[robvia]

Lines will always be long during peak times of the day, especially between 11am - 4pm. In the past, Hulk would have a 20 minute wait for the express line around noon. The line goes down the stairs, same thing with The Mummy. If you walk up and the line is at the bottom of the stairs, that's about 20 minutes. If you haven't made it to the stairs yet, turn around and go somewhere else. That's why I tell everyone to leave between 11am - 4pm and go rest at your hotel. It's usually burning hot out, walk ways packed, long lines for everything.

The answer is to install more thrill rides to handle the crowds. Everyone goes to the newest, most thrilling ride. Sure, parents take children to the kiddie stuff, but I'm talking in general.

I don't hear people talking about Earth Quake that much. I haven't read, "Wow, we went to USF, rode Earth Quake and it was soooo coool." Yet I hear people talking about Hulk, and The Mummy all the time.

Lets hope that new HP lands comes thru.

 

[lookingforward]

As much as the long lines for express bugged me I can still honestly say we had a fantastic time. We go to US/IOA a few times a year so we did not feel compelled to stick it out in the parks all day. I enjoy the entire "feel" of the hotels. restuarants, parks, etc. and we absolutely LOVED the Portofino hotel. It is now our official favorite. Everyone and everything about the hotel was great, I just can't say enough nice things about it.

The "express mess" does need to be fixed if they plan on keeping their very expensive hotels full, but these wonderful places are still a bit less expensive than Disney deluxe and much, much nicer in my opinion (except perhaps for the AKL concierge floor

I will post a trip report later, but we are already planning another trip in July. I can't wait.

 

[ChisJo]

Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought there already was a restriction on the amount of EP they could sell in a day....has this changed??? I also thought there were black out dates - when did they start having unlimited sales of EP passes??

 

[Mainebound]

I know . I just can't bring myself to think of Universal as the darkside!

Hey, we've got a tough guy image to protect over here!

 

[damo]

Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought there already was a restriction on the amount of EP they could sell in a day....has this changed??? I also thought there were black out dates - when did they start having unlimited sales of EP passes??

We don't actually know if they have unlimited sales or not.

 

[bubba's mom]

i remember someone posting the "school groups" got them with their tickets....so, maybe that was in addition to the amount they normally would sell??

 

[phamton]

Yes, they do have a limit on the amount of express they sell. It's been sold out several times in the last couple of weeks. On holidays like the 4th of July, they are usually sold out before noon. Many HHNs sell out of express.

 

[loribell]

I don't hear people talking about Earth Quake that much. I haven't read, "Wow, we went to USF, rode Earth Quake and it was soooo coool." Yet I hear people talking about Hulk, and The Mummy all the time.

Lets hope that new HP lands comes thru.

I actually really like Earth Quake. We ride it on every trip. BTTF though I had stopped riding because it had gotten way to rough for us to ride. I love the classic rides. Wish they would have just done a refurb on it to take out the roughness. Also really miss Kong, to bad they couldn't have left it and added the Mummy ride instead of removing something else. Or they could have even gotten rid of Twister. Do not care for it at all. Maybe because I live in tornado alley and have seen much worse damage right here at home. Don't need to see it as an attraction at an amusement park!

The "express mess" does need to be fixed if they plan on keeping their very expensive hotels full, but these wonderful places are still a bit less expensive than Disney deluxe and much, much nicer in my opinion (except perhaps for the AKL concierge floor

While I love the Universal parks and hotels just as much as I do the Disney ones I have to disagree with this statement. I know that I can always get the AKL & WL for less than the Universal hotels & very often the Contemporary. Now the Poly & GF are more expensive but not all the Disney deluxes are. Also for our trip in July I can get in to SSR or OKW or the Epcot resorts for less than I have been quoted for any of the Universal hotels. Just an FYI.

 

[XAVIER]

Whatever happened to the "maximum 15 minute wait" for onsite guests?
And can the people get their money back if the Express line is as long as the regular lines? Is there any sort of guarantee printed on the express tickets?