Missing out on the queue if you use U Express?

ghtx

DIS Veteran
Joined
May 29, 2012
I am staying onsite at RPR Thanksgiving week (Sun-Wed before T-giving) and will have the Universal Express pass. I am curious about people's opinions on how much of the "story" that you miss by skipping the normal queue with the express passes.

In the Unofficial guidebook that I have, it says that for some rides - Mummy, MIB, Dr Doom Freefall, and Skull Island - the express queues "sacrifice significant scenic elements and story setup" compared to the express queue. Also, the guidebook was written before the Potter rides had Express, so I am curious about those too.

Is it worth it for me to wait 30-45 minutes in a queue even though I have an Express pass just to see the queue?
 
For us- no line is worth an extra 30 minutes, BUT when we were able to get on the Mummy with almost no regular line we did go through it and a few of the jokes made more sense.

We also got stuck on the EP line for Spider-Man when the ride went down and we were right next to the tv with the news story so got to really watch that and was suddenly like OHHH that’s why Spider-Man is set up like that and has those props in the ride.
 
I’d absolutely do the regular Harry Potter lines. Get the Universal wait time app. 30 minuets really isn’t that long when there are such cool things to look at.
Minions and some Seuss rides I’d skip the regular lines on. I think all others have value at least once. You have enough days- you aren’t trying to/ needing to race through everything. Enjoy the sights. :)
 
I found that when the lines were 30 minutes or less, most of the wait was just shuffling through the queue. The only rides we had to do this for were the HP rides and I'd say for those 2 rides you will definitely want to do it.

I'm not a queue person and normally would skip any queue possible, but the HP queue are amazing.
 


Can you still walk the queue at FJ without going on the ride? We did that last year for my HP obsessed child who doesn’t like big rides. It was a line next to the official one so we just walked past everyone to see the castle. That might be a better option than actually waiting in line.
 
It honestly depends on if you are the type of person who cares about the storyline or not. I feel like most people just want to ride and rush through the queues anyway, not really caring that much about the plot.

All the rides are enjoyable without the setup, but some do make more sense if you take the time to follow the pre-story, but you won't be completely lost on the storyline either if you don't.

We usually try to walk through a few of the better queues first thing in the morning. I don't feel any of them are worth waiting 30 minutes or more for. Alternatively, you could look up the story setup ahead of time on the internet, or watch a YouTube video of the queue walk through to catch the plot if you really don't want to miss it.


IOA

Dr. Seuss Area
Nothing really missed.
Cat in the Hat, there are a few signs that read out part of the book, that's it.

Lost Continent
These are shows in this area, so nothing.

Hogsmeade
Flight of the Hippogriff - Nothing really, you can see most of it from the ride. Alternatively, this is a small queue, you could walk in, look around, exit and then enter the EP line. Line goes through Hagrid's garden and by his hut.

The queue for Forbidden Journey is a tour of Hogwarts castle, but you don't miss much in the EP line, as the EP line was made from what was once the old tour only line. It bypasses the greenhouse, but that area isn't very impressive so not a huge loss, not worth a long wait to see.

Jurassic Park / Toon Lagoon
It's usually too cold for us to do the water rides, so sorry, can't remember about the boat ride queues in these sections, but nothing amazing stands out in my memory.

I have never had a chance to do the standby on Kong. I know there are scare actors, and also there is a plot with a witch. You can see into the regular line from the EP line, so I've seen the witch, but never been able to make out what she says over all the other noise. I've never felt confused or like I was missing part of the plot, but since I have never done standby, I can't say for sure I'm not missing something.


Super Hero Island
Spiderman - I really enjoy this queue when you can take time and explore it. It does set the story up, and there are a number of interesting props to look at.

Dr. Doom - I haven't done the standby on this. It isn't our favorite ride, so we only do it if it practically a walk on.

X-men (tea cups) - There are signs that explain the plot but you can read them if you wish and then return to EP line.



US

Despicable Me and Shrek both have really cute preshows that you need to know for the attraction to make sense. EP does not skip these intros.

Transformers and ET also have interesting queues that set up the storyline of the ride.

Mummy has an interesting queue with some interactive aspects if you take the time to look around.

MIB you really only miss the beginning intro. You are there for training to become a MIB agent. That's about all you need to know. Also, MIB offers the Immigration Tour which is a much better use of your time then bothering with the full queue experience in my opinion.

For the HP ride Gringotts, the queue is a tour through the bank. Although this line skips quite a bit of the bank, it doesn't skip anything that is necessary for the plot of the ride, but it is interesting if you are a HP fan.

Rip Ride Rocket and the Simpsons, I've not done standby, so I can't tell you about those.
 
Can you still walk the queue at FJ without going on the ride? We did that last year for my HP obsessed child who doesn’t like big rides. It was a line next to the official one so we just walked past everyone to see the castle. That might be a better option than actually waiting in line.

I was just there the last week of September, and they were using the old tour only line as the EP line. There was no tour only allowed the days we were there. I was so disappointed. I'm really hoping they will work out a way to offer it again. It was one of our favorite things to do.
 


I think the lines for the HP rides are very well-done and worth walking through. I did not feel that way about any other attraction. My personal opinion is that most queues for US attractions are not that big of a deal. Kong was elaborate, but not my thing at all.
 
I was just there the last week of September, and they were using the old tour only line as the EP line. There was no tour only allowed the days we were there. I was so disappointed. I'm really hoping they will work out a way to offer it again. It was one of our favorite things to do.

I was wondering if that was going to be the case. It seemed to make sense they would use it. But that means there’s no reason to go thru the regular line unless you have a burning desire to see the green house (cool but not half hour wait cool). We saw everything else (I think) from the tour only line.
 
Yes, the tour only covered everything except the greenhouse. The other difference is the very beginning where the portraits speak is a physically different location, but the same spiel and not skipped.

Edited to add: actually, that might be the single rider line I'm thinking about with the different portraits, I always get those two lines mixed up in my head, but either way, you only miss the green house which is really just a large area with a few potted plants. Very unimpressive compared to the rest of the castle which is so detailed and immersive.
 
I stay onsite and have used the early entry for the hotel guests

Do Potter rides in the regular line as not a long wait

Be at specific rides and use the regular ride line when the park officially opens to the public
There are some rides where you will see more of their story line for them
 
Can you still walk the queue at FJ without going on the ride? We did that last year for my HP obsessed child who doesn’t like big rides. It was a line next to the official one so we just walked past everyone to see the castle. That might be a better option than actually waiting in line.

Mac my sister and I did the tour of FJ in October without any problem. Yes, it does skip the greenhouse, but we had all seen that before. We were able to take our time. Just let the TM know that you are wanting to take the tour and not ride the ride. They were most accommodating.
 
Mac my sister and I did the tour of FJ in October without any problem. Yes, it does skip the greenhouse, but we had all seen that before. We were able to take our time. Just let the TM know that you are wanting to take the tour and not ride the ride. They were most accommodating.

Yep, I did it a couple of times through September with no issues......few times dh did the ride 5 or 6 times in a row and I can only cope with ride once or twice.

Shame the PP wasn’t able to do it, but it was definitely still being offered through September. It is worth doing if you don’t want to ride.
 
You will get spoiled with Express. I really think it comes down to time. How many days are you actually spending in the park, if only 2 I would definitely want Express. If you want to do some park, some resort/swim/other stuff, Express is good. If you don't want to deal with a "plan" for riding rides, then Express is nice because it allows you to walk in the park and basically just go wherever you want, whenever you want with very minimal wait times. I think Mummy and FJ are the only rides that I might really want to spend more time in the queue. The biggest hassle in my opinion is getting lockers at the Harry Potter attractions, so it's good to get those done in early entry. Also, express is very nice for Hogwarts, that regular line can get pretty long.
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!





Top