Seriously have no idea to attack US/IOA.

[kbmartin]

I'm staying on Disney property and visiting both US/IOA on one day of our trip - Thursday, August 21st. Both parks, US and IOA, are open from 9 am - 9 pm that day. My DH and I will take a taxi from our hotel to US/IOA and can leave anytime. We will be utilizing rope drop every day at WDW, so we can certainly wake up early for US/IOA.

My only priority is Harry Potter. (I am a HUGE fan - so much so that I honestly wept when seeing the final movie in theaters, feeling that it meant that my childhood was truly over...) Although it feels like ages ago, I went to Universal back in college and saw pretty much everything else (DH is the same way - though we didn't know each other then, we were there at the same time!). HP was probably barely in the works then. So anyways, if I get to nothing else but Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley, I'll still be SO happy. (Well, I might like to get to Spider-man and the Hulk... but that's all.)

Although I do not have a plan of attack, I am not completely clueless as to how things have been with HP at the parks. I've read a lot here on the DIS about the horribly long waits at Gringotts and how early entry has affected everything. It also sounds like they let people through the turnstiles early on random days.

What would be my best strategy?

Specific questions I have:

1. When should I arrive?
2. Should I go to Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley first?
3. What should I tackle first once there?
4. What's the best place for lunch in the Harry Potter areas?
5. Do you think crowds will have died down a LITTLE? Judging by the price of Express Passes, I think my answer is NO, but I sure would love a little hope!
6. Anything else I should know or expect?

Thank you very much!

 

[johde]

Touringplans.com has a pair of touring plans for just this. One for people with Early Entry and one for people without. They are Summarized on their website at http://blog.touringplans.com/2014/0...ding-world-two-park-touring-plans/#more-68048 . You can play around with personalized touring plans for free. Registering costs under $5.00 with the discount code WIZARD.

 

[kbmartin]

It makes me nervous to leave Diagon Alley as the last attraction of the day, but I understand that people RUN there first thing, so I can see how it makes sense. Has anyone saved Diagon Alley for later in the day (3 pm or later)? If so, how did it go? Also, is there a chance that I could miss Gringotts if I wait until the evening? (Do they cut off the line at any point?)

 

[hopemax]

When we were there, 8AM opening we did the Hogwarts Express about 9:15 to Hogsmeade, and returned to DA about 11:15. We did most everything in DA first, and saved Gringotts until 2:00 when I noticed the wait time on the app was 90 min, but back up to 120 by the time we got to the queue. It was 220 and 240 min before noon, so you are well served to save Gringotts until later, but you may not have to wait until 4PM or later.

We did well by knocking off Minion Mayhem and Transformers first at the Studios, then heading to IOA for Forbidden Journey via the train. We didn't do Dragon Challenge, Hippogriff, Hulk or Spiderman but the wait times that soon after opening were very reasonable so we could have done them with short waits, before heading back to the Studios.

So that is my recommended plan of attack.

Minion Mayhem, Transformers at Studios -first thing
IOA stuff mid morning - early afternoon
Diagon Alley early afternoon to early evening
Other Studios stuff like Men In Black or Simpsons if there is time left in the day.

I think I prefer the food at the Leaky Cauldron slightly more than Three Broomsticks. But you could do one for lunch and one for dinner.

Also, I've been to Universal for the opening of Hogsmeade and once over Christmas, and Universal "busy" isn't the same as Disney "busy," IMO. I was worried about crowds because of what I was used to at Disney, but Universal seemed so much easier.