Universal in December

[Maleficent_Hades]

Going to be in Disney and Universal the first week of December for the first time, how are crowds typically in Universal around that time? Is it worth buying an Express pass? was pricing tickets out yesterday and for just my husband and I for a 1 day 2 park ticket with express passes is gonna cost us a few dollars less then a 6 day ticket for 1 person to Disney

 

[J'aime Paris]

Going to be in Disney and Universal the first week of December for the first time, how are crowds typically in Universal around that time? Is it worth buying an Express pass? was pricing tickets out yesterday and for just my husband and I for a 1 day 2 park ticket with express passes is gonna cost us a few dollars less then a 6 day ticket for 1 person to Disney

I went the first week of December 2019, and it was low/medium crowds. But since reopening and relaxing of restrictions, most of the pre-covid crowd levels at Universal have been higher than ever.....

The price of the Express Pass will give you an idea of anticipated crowds...the more expensive the EP, the more guests will be visiting.

You are comparing apples to oranges with your ticket cost analogy. WDW doesn't have FP+ at all currently. And FP+ is nothing compared to using unlimited EP.

Look into booking one night at one of the Universal Orlando hotels that offer the EP benefit. Many find that it can be cheaper than purchasing the EP for their family. And as a bonus, one night stay gives you 2 days of EP!

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Also the Seasonal AP is less than those 6 day Disney tickets. All the theme parks have much better pricing than their 1 day tickets.

 

[Maleficent_Hades]

I went the first week of December 2019, and it was low/medium crowds. But since reopening and relaxing of restrictions, most of the pre-covid crowd levels at Universal have been higher than ever.....

The price of the Express Pass will give you an idea of anticipated crowds...the more expensive the EP, the more guests will be visiting.

You are comparing apples to oranges with your ticket cost analogy. WDW doesn't have FP+ at all currently. And FP+ is nothing compared to using unlimited EP.

Look into booking one night at one of the Universal Orlando hotels that offer the EP benefit. Many find that it can be cheaper than purchasing the EP for their family. And as a bonus, one night stay gives you 2 days of EP!

yeah i know its different since FP+ isn't back as of yet, i just found it shocking that the prices were so close. like i honestly considered not going at all, but i do really love universal so i'd never really not go plus my husband still wants to go ahead and buy the tickets anyways. we originally were going to book a night at universal but then we wound up buying into DVC and now thats the only place my husband wants to stay, so that's not gonna work for us unfortunately.

Also the Seasonal AP is less than those 6 day Disney tickets. All the theme parks have much better pricing than their 1 day tickets.

i never thought of that i'll look into it for sure!!

thank you both for answering. i did suggest to my husband waiting on buying the EP until we get there and check on wait times starting a week before we get to universal to kind of see how long the waits are.

 

[nouvellefleur]

Going to be in Disney and Universal the first week of December for the first time, how are crowds typically in Universal around that time? Is it worth buying an Express pass? was pricing tickets out yesterday and for just my husband and I for a 1 day 2 park ticket with express passes is gonna cost us a few dollars less then a 6 day ticket for 1 person to Disney

Have you looked at the Orlando Informer crowd calendar? It's a really good resource. Crowds are predicted to be slow during the first week of December. It's historically recommended as one of the best times to go for low crowds. With COVID all things are still a little "who knows for sure", but I suspect between Thanksgiving and Christmas should still be a sweet spot.

 

[Maleficent_Hades]

Have you looked at the Orlando Informer crowd calendar? It's a really good resource. Crowds are predicted to be slow during the first week of December. It's historically recommended as one of the best times to go for low crowds. With COVID all things are still a little "who knows for sure", but I suspect between Thanksgiving and Christmas should still be a sweet spot.

I will check them out thank you!

 

[MrBellatrixLestrange]

One nice perk at Universal in December is the weather can get cool enough to make the hot butterbeer an option. I can't imagine getting one, if they even have the option, during the summer in Florida. I generally go to the Meetups so being there at night also helps.

 

[TommyJK]

One nice perk at Universal in December is the weather can get cool enough to make the hot butterbeer an option. I can't imagine getting one, if they even have the option, during the summer in Florida. I generally go to the Meetups so being there at night also helps.

I saw not too long ago (either one of their tweets or on the Universal Blog) that Hot Butterbeer is now available all year.

Edit: https://www.delish.com/food-news/a36519737/universal-hot-butterbeer-year-round/

 

[wdwrule]

I saw not too long ago (either one of their tweets or on the Universal Blog) that Hot Butterbeer is now available all year.

Edit: https://www.delish.com/food-news/a36519737/universal-hot-butterbeer-year-round/

Just had my first hot butterbeer today (from Hog’s Head)! Delish!!

 

[Maleficent_Hades]

i love butterbeer so hot butterbeer will be a must for me, as long as i can stomach it by then. i had gastric sleeve surgery in march and while i'm able to handle most foods now, things with too much sugar still cause some discomfort