Need some planning help

[Goofy Yno]

I am planning on going to US/IOA in october (a friday& saturday). He is a huge Harry Potter fan and wants this trip as his 11th birthday present. I am a obsessive planner who HATES lines, and pride myself on the fact that we have not gone to a park (WDW, DL, US Hollywood, Knottsberry, etc) and waited more than 15 min for a ride. But we’ve been point A to B type riders. We have never been to WWHP but I’m assuming he will want to play around in Harry’s world. so, help me with a basic plan.

We will stay on site, so we’ll get the extra hour (and of course be there up front for line drop). and have the express pass. I’m sure my DS will need to hit WWHP first. I’m not sure is Ollivander's is worth going to, but if so, should it be first or Forbidden journey?
Is it better to hit the big rides in WWHP then do the same for the rest of the park, and come back to explore, or is most of the detail seen while waiting in line?

(I’ve just begun my research, and have only been reading about WWHP. so I’m not even sure what rides in the rest of the park will need to be hit early (I’m guess the big ones which don’t take express pass?)

well, thanks for any assistance. I find this board invaluable.

 

[damo]

He will want to do Ollivanders. Head there first and then go to FJ. Everything else in the park (other than Pteranadon Flyers) takes express pass.

So do everything you want in the Wizarding World and then go explore the rest of IOA and then head to Universal.

 

[Metro West]

October crowds are generally light except for WWoHP of course. Since you're staying onsite, you will be able to ride the participating Express attractions multiple times. Keep in mind that Halloween Horror Nights is staged at the Studios every Thursday through Sunday night of October and the Studios will close an hour early at 5pm to set up. You would be wise to either skip the Studios on those days or do the Studios in the morning and then head over to IOA for the rest of the day. The HHN crowd will begin to arrive around 3pm so you will see an increase during the later afternoon hours. The HHN crowds do not generally affect IOA.