Newbie questions

[lisatx04]

Hello all,

US newbie here. Am hoping you can answer a few questions. First let me say that we are a Disney family and have never gone to US/ IOA. This trip will be me, DD, 17, DS, 15, and DDBFF, 18. We are going to be at Disney, but are leaving Disney to go to US for 1 night/2 days. Are days are set as I have hotels booked at both Disney and Universal.

This summer, we will be spending 1 night/ 2 days at the Royal Pacific. I booked this hotel so I could get the Express Pass, which I hear is worth it. Please tell me it is!! How close is that hotel to the parks? Is it within walking distance?

As for tickets, should I buy them online or wait until I get there? I will be leaving Disney and heading over to the hotel to check in so I can get my express pass. Did not know if I could buy my tickets at the hotel so I could have the express pass on the ticket.

I was planning on going to US on Wednesday, since we will be arriving that day then going to IOA on Thursday since we will be able to get into the WWOHP an hour early because we are resort guests. Is this accurate? I know that Diagon Alley will be opening and I am not sure how this will affect touring US.

Any thoughts/suggestions will be greatly appreciated!!

Thanks!!

 

[rowan555]

We're doing a one night stay at Royal Pacific in May as well - you will LOVE it. The walking path is GORGEOUS and so relaxing compared to hiking from the parking garage to the parks when staying off site. You can also take the boat if you like (we usually did that at night when our feet were about to fall off).

I HIGHLY recommend getting park to park tickets - with staying on site and having express passes, you WILL want the convenience of being able to go from one park to the other. You'll get early entry at IoA, and Universal stays open a few hours later - so it's nice to begin your day with early entry, have a relaxing mid afternoon meal or swim, then head to Universal Studios to finish the day. We did this three days in a row last year - we never stayed at one park an entire day. It's well worth the small extra cost to be able to do this.

I'd order your tickets online now through one of the ticket discounters or through Universal - either way is cheaper than buying at the gate. Be sure to get actual tickets, though - I made a mistake and accidentally bought an e ticket last month, and now I have to go to a will call kiosk to print the ticket - a small inconvenience, but an inconvenience nonetheless.

 

[RMulieri]

ALL resorts are within walking distance.Royal Pacific is no exception.The express pass is well worth it and will spoil you .You can buy tickets anytime.We buy ours thru Undercovertourist. Keep in mind the express pass is SEPARATE And they can not be combined.YOu take your resort key to the express pass kiosk and get your photo taken for express pass..So room key, express pass and park tickets are all separate pieces.Resort guests get into the Wzarding world an hour early.Once Diagon alley expansion opens, it is likely it will offer early entry as well.If it is open for your visit, plan for the parks to be extremely busy, especally in the HP sections of BOTH parks.You will also need park to park tickets if you are planing on being able to ride the Hogwarts Express once it opens.We like to have the park to park anyway, we enjoy going between parks if the whim suits us..They are literally nextdoor to each other and can be walked in about 5-7 mins max

 

[buzzrelly]

Subscribing to this thread since I have a lot of the same questions!

Another question…If we stay at RP for 3 nights, how many days can we use the express pass? Say we check in mid-afternoon on Wednesday and check out Saturday, could we use the express pass Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday? Thanks!

 

[CareHeartsDisney]

Subscribing to this thread since I have a lot of the same questions!

Another question…If we stay at RP for 3 nights, how many days can we use the express pass? Say we check in mid-afternoon on Wednesday and check out Saturday, could we use the express pass Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday? Thanks!

Yes, that is the case. Express passes are valid for your check-in day and check-out day and all days in between.

 

[buzzrelly]

Yes, that is the case. Express passes are valid for your check-in day and check-out day and all days in between.

Thanks!

 

[CareHeartsDisney]

Thanks!

You're welcome!

 

[jjas]

Hello all,

This summer, we will be spending 1 night/ 2 days at the Royal Pacific. I booked this hotel so I could get the Express Pass, which I hear is worth it. Please tell me it is!!

We had the Express Pass for the first time a couple of weeks ago. I literally cannot tell you the difference it makes to have this!! IT IS WONDERFUL! We never waited in line for more than 10 minutes (with the exception of FJ since there is no express line) - NEVER. The longest line we waited in other than for FJ was for butter beer ! We rode rides that had not ridden before because in the past we didn't want to take up time waiting in line for them.

I would agree that with the Express Pass you will want park-to-park tickets - you get so much done so fast that you will want to visit both parks each day.

Have a great trip!
Janet

 

[Mrs Lapo]

We have never been to US either. We are planning one day from our Disney vacation there over the week of thanksgiving.
We are planning on getting the park to park passed since we're only spending one day. Our main goal is to see a all the Harry Potter attractions. Would we still be able to get the express passes if staying offsite?

 

[glamdring269]

OP, I hope you don't mind but I would like to add another newbie question...

We're planning to visit for 2 or 3 nights in October. First trip for us as well! How late do the Uni parks typically stay open? Also, two adults (no kids) so curious how City Walk is after the parks close?

 

[RMulieri]

OP, I hope you don't mind but I would like to add another newbie question...

We're planning to visit for 2 or 3 nights in October. First trip for us as well! How late do the Uni parks typically stay open? Also, two adults (no kids) so curious how City Walk is after the parks close?

Parks close relatively early.The studios will close at 5pm on nights Halloween Horror Nights are going on ( hard ticket event).Nights that it isnt it closes 8pmish..Islands of adventure closes between 7-8pmish.Citywalk clubs/bars are generally open till 2am

 

[glamdring269]

Parks close relatively early.The studios will close at 5pm on nights Halloween Horror Nights are going on ( hard ticket event).Nights that it isnt it closes 8pmish..Islands of adventure closes between 7-8pmish.Citywalk clubs/bars are generally open till 2am

That's too bad really. I always think of Universal as the 'thrill ride' place so assume it would be open late like some of the Disney parks. Guess with early entry and express pass you just don't need the extra time. I'm really looking forward to it.