Touring Plans for Universal

[ToyStory3]

Hi all - is there someplace to find a general touring plan for Universal and IOA? We will have an express pass as we are staying on site. This will be our first trip so we are researching the attractions. At Disney I know which rides are busiest and how to order the rides. But at Universal I have no idea what kind of a touring plan to use or how to use the Express Pass. Any links, threads, or websites that would be the most helpful? Thanks!

 

[TommyJK]

Have a look here:

http://orlandoinformer.com/

Good overview of everything, ride reviews, free touring plans etc.

All that being said, with express pass you don't really need to plan all that much. Just get familiar with the park layout via park maps and "wing it".

Outside of the main Harry Potter attractions (which don't allow express pass), express pass gets you on the rides quickly so you can really just wander and hop on for the most part.

 

[ToyStory3]

Thanks!

 

[damo]

The beauty of the Universal Express pass is its ability to allow you to go plan free!

 

[gzmtlock]

PPs are absolutely correct! We were just there last week (between Christmas and New Year's), one of the top two or three busiest weeks of the year. And had no issues at all with long waits with Express Pass. We never waited more than 15 minutes for anything in the Express Pass line. Having been at WDW the same week two years ago, I can say that UO is MUCH more manageable than WDW that week. So presumably the same is true the rest of the year as well!

 

[wookiebeck]

I did a US plan my first multi-day trip just like I do a WDW plan. That was time wasted. Didn't need the plan after about 15 minutes. Express pass really makes it over-the-top. Carrying one is like having a Fastpass for every ride (with a few exceptions). There is an alternate queue that is shorter than stand-by.

Such a breath of vacation relief going to US. Research the restaurants instead and be ready to have fun!

 

[TommyJK]

I did a US plan my first multi-day trip just like I do a WDW plan. That was time wasted. Didn't need the plan after about 15 minutes. Express pass really makes it over-the-top. Carrying one is like having a Fastpass for every ride (with a few exceptions). There is an alternate queue that is shorter than stand-by.

Such a breath of vacation relief going to US. Research the restaurants instead and be ready to have fun!

Even without EP, a touring plan for UO/IOA can get thrown out the window pretty quickly.

With the majority of visitors having P2P and using it liberally (because of how close the parks are together), wait times can yo-yo up and down for attractions. They could be 20 minutes one moment and then jump up to 60 quickly as people rush to an attraction that shows a low wait time. Or conversely one park could be busier at times than the other so with P2P, you would/could just bail on your touring plan and hope over to the other park.

without EP, I'd create a only a very "general" touring plan in terms of creating a route throughout the park/parks, and skip an attraction if it's high at the time you happen to pass it and earmark it for a return later if the wait times drop. And spend more of your time researching things like restaurants and shows that might interest you to check throughout the day.