Universal after Thanksgiving

[sommergirl25]

Thinking of taking our first Universal trip after Thanksgiving 2018. We will probably fly in to Orlando on Thanksgiving night or Black Friday and spend 1-2 days at Universal before heading to Disney for a week. How are the crowds for those first few days after Thanksgiving. Our main focuses will be Harry Potter, Fate of the Furious, and maybe Minions or Transformers.

 

[macraven]

thanksgiving day is a busy day in the parks.
if you want a room for that thursday, check the hotel rates and book soon.

play around with the booking site and see if rates are better arriving on friday

 

[bchbetha]

It'll be super busy all weekend. Book an onsite hotel with Express Passes included.

 

[JamieOak]

It'll be super busy all weekend. Book an onsite hotel with Express Passes included.

I second this! Our first trip was Thanksgiving weekend 2016 and we stayed at Royal Pacific to get the express passes. Our first day we missed early admission and didn't get in the park until 10am and went straight to Harry Potter and lines were so long! We stood in long lines that day for HP rides and also the line for Hogwarts Express each day could get long. Now there is Express Pass for those rides thankfully. We are going back this year at Thanksgiving weekend and staying at the Portoino Bay resort this time (with AP discount). We are also going in a few weeks for Labor Day weekend so I'm interested to see how the crowds compare.

My biggest warning is that the Harry Potter areas especially tend to get VERY crowded during peak hours every day. I mean it can get hard to get around in the crowds in the afternoon. So even with the Express Pass, I recommend getting in right at early admission to experience the Harry Potter sections before the crowds come. Our last day was that Sunday before transferring over to Walt Disney World and we got in right at early admission and rode Gringotts twice (my favorite!) and then we had time to leisurely explore Diagon Alley and get some food, take pictures, and observe the details without it being crowded. Then right as regular park opening occurred we took the Hogwarts Express over to Hogsmeade and enjoyed that without crowds for about an hour.

 

[PoohIsHome]

Anyone have input on how the parks are in the week leading up to Thanksgiving? We're at HRH the 18th - 24th.