Must sees?

[minnie56]

Haven't been to Universal in ages...
1 adult / 1 - 16 year old..
Only 2 days - what are the must sees?

Thank you!

 

[zebsterama]

All things HP! Diagon Alley is incredible!

Try and stay (if you can ) in one of the onsite hotels (Hard Rock, Royal P, PortoF) to take advantage of the front of the line perk. The hotel's are beautiful as well!

 

[minnie56]

Is Cabana Bay a Universal hotel?

 

[macraven]

Yes it is

There are 3 deluxe hotels that allow the free unlimited ep for all registered guests

The other two onsite hotels (SF and Cbay ) do not have the hotel perk of the free ep

All 5 hotels allow EE for registered guests

Since you have not been to UO in a long time go to
Www.universalorlando.com and read what is in the parks
Descriptions of rides and shows might guide you to know what rides will be a must do

 

[minnie56]

EP? Front of the line? EE early entry?

 

[macraven]

Yes EE is early entry

The only front of the line is for WISH families
The ep, express pass is for designated line which has the peeps wait 20 minutes or less for a ride

Many times peeps can be on the ride within 10 minutes or less depending on that ride line they are in

 

[minnie56]

Okay got it..thanks!

 

[minnie56]

This time of year, waits are long?

 

[macraven]

I'd you are talking summer mid July, yes regular line waits can be ugly

Express will get you on the ride a lot quicker

 

[wookiebeck]

Minnie, if you are interested in the express pass and you have two days planned, consider that if you stay at Hard Rock Hotel (HRH), Royal Pacific Resort (RPR) or Portofino Bay Resort (PBR) you can get the EP as soon as you check in.

We checked in at 7am once. The room was not ready, but we got the EP for that day and sped off to the parks. When you check out the next day, the EP is still good until the parks close. That's right, two days of EP for one hotel night stay.

Keep asking questions, we are here to help.

 

[wookiebeck]

Must sees: the headliner rides are pretty geared towards adventure seekers (and 16 year olds).

Universal:
Rip-Ride-Rocket
The Mummy
Men in Black
Transformers
The Simpsons
Terminator (more of a show like Philharmagic, but better)
Diagon Alley with Escape from Gringotts Ride

Islands of Adventure:
Hulk (re-opening later this summer)
Spiderman
Hogsmead with Forbidden Journey and Two Dragon Challenge Coasters
New King Kong ride
Jurassic Park River Adventure
Bluto's river rafting rapids (you will get wet)
Bullwinkle log flume
And I never miss the Cat in the Hat (better than Pooh ride, IMHO)

And there is much more to see than this short list. Enjoy!

 

[minnie56]

Thanks everyone!

 

[Wanderer72]

Just got back from Orlando and did 4 days at Universal. Best advice is definitely to be there at park opening. And do all the non-Harry Potter stuff. We didn't stay at a universal hotel, so we didn't have early entry, but we were able to get a lot done from 8-10am each day. Best example is transformers. From 8-10 am the ride is a walk on. By noon it can be a 90 minute wait or more this time of year.

This is all because the people flock to Potter early (and Reign of Kong right now). The Kong line can get up to 120 minutes right now because it's brand new.