Universal Studios Itinerary Help

[PAcpl]

Hello all,

Im sure some of you have recently seen me lurking around here researching to death, thank you all for your help! My DW and I are going to be in Universal Studios for the first time on September 28th, we will not be doing IOA. Since this is our first trip I have no idea what to expect. We are only spending 1 day in the park, so I would like to see as much as possible. I put together a ROUGH itinerary, but like I said I have no idea what to expect so I may be totally off the mark. I will have EP and it is off season, but I think I may still be cutting it close on a lot of things. My Itinerary is below:

10:00-10:30 Get To Park
10:30-10:45 T2 3-D Battle
10:45-11:30 Blues Brothers Show (showtime 11:00)
11:30-12:00 Shrek 4-D
12:00-12:30 Jimmy Neutron
12:30-1:00 Twister
1:00–1:45 Street Breakz Show (showtime 1:15)
1:45-2:00 Earthquake
2:00-2:45 Beetljuice Show (showtime 2:15)
2:45-3:45 Hollywood Makeup Show (showtime 3:15)
3:45-4:00 ET
4:00-4:45 Animal Planet Show (showtime 4:30)
4:45-5:00 Jaws
5:00-5:15 Men In Black
5:15-5:30 Back To The Future
5:30 Head To Stay And Scream area

Any thoughts or suggestions are very appreciated. If I am totally off base here please don't flame me too bad!

Thanks again!

Brian

 

[calgarygary]

A couple of things jump out to me. If you can, arrive earlier. I know you are buying EP but that only allows for one entrance (if enforced) and you may want to repeat. I don't know if you left the Mummy off deliberately or if you just forgot. Also, you have an opening at 5:15 as BTTF is closed.

 

[PAcpl]

A couple of things jump out to me. If you can, arrive earlier. I know you are buying EP but that only allows for one entrance (if enforced) and you may want to repeat. I don't know if you left the Mummy off deliberately or if you just forgot. Also, you have an opening at 5:15 as BTTF is closed.

Gary - Thanks for the reply. We can arrive earlier, I figured with us being in the park until midnight we might need the later start.

I did leave off Mummy deliberately, im a wuss when it comes to fast moving coaster type rides. Thats why I have no problem leaving IOA off this trip.

With all this reading I was still not aware that BTTF was closed, thanks for the heads up. My main concern were the time slots where I only allotted 15 minutes for a ride such as Earthquake, T2, ET, Jaws and MIB.

Thanks!

 

[Lynne1875]

10:00-10:30 Get To Park
10:30-10:45 T2 3-D Battle
10:45-11:30 Blues Brothers Show (showtime 11:00)
11:30-12:00 Shrek 4-D
12:00-12:30 Jimmy Neutron
12:30-1:00 Twister
1:00–1:45 Street Breakz Show (showtime 1:15)
1:45-2:00 Earthquake
2:00-2:45 Beetljuice Show (showtime 2:15)
2:45-3:45 Hollywood Makeup Show (showtime 3:15)
3:45-4:00 ET
4:00-4:45 Animal Planet Show (showtime 4:30)
4:45-5:00 Jaws
5:00-5:15 Men In Black
5:15-5:30 Back To The Future
5:30 Head To Stay And Scream area

T2 and Earthquake require far more than 15 minutes, I'm afraid. The T2 pre-show alone is around about 20 minutes long. You really need 45 minutes for T2, in my opinion. It starts at set times as well, so you'll need to check the schedule when you get to the park. You might get lucky with regards show times. It's at the front of the park, so you can head straight there when you get in (through the gates and head down the street on your right) and find out when it's on.

Earthquake also has a rather lengthy pre-show as well. Similar amount of time required for that.

I would allow 20 minutes for ET. Jaws can be done in 10 minutes if there's no line. Same for MIB.

 

[Metro West]

Hello all,

Im sure some of you have recently seen me lurking around here researching to death, thank you all for your help! My DW and I are going to be in Universal Studios for the first time on September 28th, we will not be doing IOA. Since this is our first trip I have no idea what to expect. We are only spending 1 day in the park, so I would like to see as much as possible. I put together a ROUGH itinerary, but like I said I have no idea what to expect so I may be totally off the mark. I will have EP and it is off season, but I think I may still be cutting it close on a lot of things. My Itinerary is below:

10:00-10:30 Get To Park
10:30-10:45 T2 3-D Battle
10:45-11:30 Blues Brothers Show (showtime 11:00)
11:30-12:00 Shrek 4-D
12:00-12:30 Jimmy Neutron
12:30-1:00 Twister
1:00–1:45 Street Breakz Show (showtime 1:15)
1:45-2:00 Earthquake
2:00-2:45 Beetljuice Show (showtime 2:15)
2:45-3:45 Hollywood Makeup Show (showtime 3:15)
3:45-4:00 ET
4:00-4:45 Animal Planet Show (showtime 4:30)
4:45-5:00 Jaws
5:00-5:15 Men In Black
5:15-5:30 Back To The Future
5:30 Head To Stay And Scream area

Any thoughts or suggestions are very appreciated. If I am totally off base here please don't flame me too bad!

Thanks again!

Brian

Brian...relax man...take a breath. I understand you want to see as much as possible but it's a vacation. About your schedule...I think you should arrive at opening and just start in the front and work your way around the park...Don't worry about the strict guidelines you've imposed on yourself. If you encounter a ride breakdown or something, that's going to screw up the rest of the day for you. The Blues Brothers and Street Break shows are outside and you could cut out a little early if you wanted. As CalgaryGary stated...BTTF is closed so you have some time in the afternoon.

If you try to stick with this schedule, you'll be dead tired by the time HHN starts. Remember...just relax and have fun!

 

[Darcy03231]

I'm one of the biggest ride chickens in the world - just ask my kids! Having said that I did do the Mummy and I loved it. It really isn't bad at all and its over really quick. In fact, my 71 y.o mother enjoyed it too and she hates thrill rides. You might want to rethink that one too.

 

[Metro West]

Brian -

If you're getting an Express Pass for HHN, you can ride some rides during HHN as the rides will be open. So don't try to kill yourself during everything during the day.

 

[PAcpl]

Brian...relax man...take a breath. I understand you want to see as much as possible but it's a vacation. About your schedule...I think you should arrive at opening and just start in the front and work your way around the park...Don't worry about the strict guidelines you've imposed on yourself. If you encounter a ride breakdown or something, that's going to screw up the rest of the day for you. The Blues Brothers and Street Break shows are outside and you could cut out a little early if you wanted. As CalgaryGary stated...BTTF is closed so you have some time in the afternoon.

If you try to stick with this schedule, you'll be dead tired by the time HHN starts. Remember...just relax and have fun!

HA! I understand what you are saying completely, IT’S A VACATION! The Itinerary that I did was a rough "schedule" as to what to do. I am usually the most unorganized person in the world and with never being to WDW or US I wanted some kind of of guide. The DW and I have been going on RELAXING cruises for the last 7 years, this trip couldn’t be more opposite of that, so I just want to make sure we have all of our bases covered. We are not ones to over exert ourselves, so im not worried about burning ourselves out. Everything will be done at our own pace, and if we do miss something at least we know we can choose what we want to miss. Plus this will be our last day of vacation. We are leaving Saturday to come back to Philly.

It’s good to know that T2 and Earthquake will take 45 minutes and most of the other rides will be about 20 minutes. That will help a lot. As I said this schedule was more of a rough draft. It’s good to know that I have the option of watching the Street Breakz show, but it’s also good to know that its not one of the priorities in our schedule so we can blow it off if need be. I feel better knowing that I rather blow off Street Breakz then something like Jimmy Neutron which we probably would have blown off if it wasn’t for these forums..

As for The Mummy, if time allows for it maybe we will check it out. There is just so much other stuff that needs to be done..

Brian

 

[Christysuelouise]

Hi Brian!
Congratulations on your first trip! I'm SO excited for you guys! I used to have annual passes myself and I liked the place so much I got a job there. LOL. I have all kinds of things I could help you with, but first, how old are your kids? That will determine a lot of your day

 

[PAcpl]

Hi Brian!
Congratulations on your first trip! I'm SO excited for you guys! I used to have annual passes myself and I liked the place so much I got a job there. LOL. I have all kinds of things I could help you with, but first, how old are your kids? That will determine a lot of your day

Christy - Thank you for your enthusiasm and helping hand! I guess one of the most important things I left out is that we do not have any children! This is an "us to enjoy" WDW trip before we eventually make it a family WDW trip! So im sure this will save us a good amount of time.

Brian

 

[yaytezIOA]

Brian, like Metro said......only not as nice....Take that IT, crumple it up, and throw it away. You have all day, and night. Its going to get really busy come 3:30, as thats when school lets out, and thats when everyone will come in doing Stay and Scream. The rest of the day will be deadsville. I would definately check a park map and see what rides will be open....I know this is a cardinal sin of mine, but....from what I hear, first night of hhn is.....dead. After you see all the shows, and houses, then start picking off the rides, using single riders lines as much as possible.
Recommended ride list:
Skip: Street Breakz
Beetlejuice (think it will be down any way for the Rocky Horror Show)
Animal Planet Show (think it will be down for the freakshow anyway)
BTTF-closed
Must Do-
Shrek
Twister
Mummy
Earthquake
JAWS
MIB
ET
Horror Make Up
T2
In that order.
If you have time, go back and do Jimmy Nuetron and watch the blues brother show in passing after you get off of Mummy. MUST DO MUMMY. Its scary, its not a superbad coaster. If you can handle space mountain, then Mummy will be so much better.
The cool thing about Universal, is that you can catch so many things in passing that it wont matter if you cant get it all....and this time of year, its not like its going to be packed...like I said, later in the day it will be jammed, but that early in the day...not so much. I would also say, yeah get there early...just find a place later in the day, like maybe a movie, and nap and relax.

 

[PAcpl]

Brian, like Metro said......only not as nice....Take that IT, crumple it up, and throw it away. You have all day, and night. Its going to get really busy come 3:30, as thats when school lets out, and thats when everyone will come in doing Stay and Scream. The rest of the day will be deadsville. I would definately check a park map and see what rides will be open....I know this is a cardinal sin of mine, but....from what I hear, first night of hhn is.....dead. After you see all the shows, and houses, then start picking off the rides, using single riders lines as much as possible.
Recommended ride list:
Skip: Street Breakz
Beetlejuice (think it will be down any way for the Rocky Horror Show)
Animal Planet Show (think it will be down for the freakshow anyway)
BTTF-closed
Must Do-
Shrek
Twister
Mummy
Earthquake
JAWS
MIB
ET
Horror Make Up
T2
In that order.
If you have time, go back and do Jimmy Nuetron and watch the blues brother show in passing after you get off of Mummy. MUST DO MUMMY. Its scary, its not a superbad coaster. If you can handle space mountain, then Mummy will be so much better.
The cool thing about Universal, is that you can catch so many things in passing that it wont matter if you cant get it all....and this time of year, its not like its going to be packed...like I said, later in the day it will be jammed, but that early in the day...not so much. I would also say, yeah get there early...just find a place later in the day, like maybe a movie, and nap and relax.

Erik - Thank you for the reply. That is EXACTLY what I was looking for. What we needed to get done and in what order. The street breakz show was in the air, and its good to know the other 2 shows are suspended for the HHs. We will stick with your suggestions, I have used a lot of them already!

Do you have any suggestions for something VERY relaxing heading into S&S so we can recoup?

Brian

 

[yaytezIOA]

My biggest suggestion, honestly, is just to go and not plan anything. Everything I suggested was just that a suggestion.
I would say save the shows for last. Its a good way to rest up while catching a show. If you get out by about 4:45, head over to the stay and scream area....I dont know where it will be this year. Last year it was at Finnegans, but this year they are having a house in Naazermans, which is directly across the street.....dont know if it will effect Stay and Scream or not. If it is in Finnegans, then sit down for a bite to eat...you dont want to do it when the fun starts.
We're going to be there that same day...though half of our crew will be doing Stay and Scream and the other half (hopefully me included) will be doing something else...I hope.

 

[PAcpl]

My biggest suggestion, honestly, is just to go and not plan anything. Everything I suggested was just that a suggestion.
I would say save the shows for last. Its a good way to rest up while catching a show. If you get out by about 4:45, head over to the stay and scream area....I dont know where it will be this year. Last year it was at Finnegans, but this year they are having a house in Naazermans, which is directly across the street.....dont know if it will effect Stay and Scream or not. If it is in Finnegans, then sit down for a bite to eat...you dont want to do it when the fun starts.
We're going to be there that same day...though half of our crew will be doing Stay and Scream and the other half (hopefully me included) will be doing something else...I hope.

Erik - Thanks again for the help. As I said we are usually very unorganized, but with so much to do I just needed some kind of plan as to what to do and what to blow off to get the most out of this one day expierience. With everything I have read about HHN I am more excited to see that then most of WDW, although I cant say the same for my wife..

Thanks once again for your help, if I see you at the S&S I'll buy you a drink!

Brian

 

[Christysuelouise]

Hi again Brian!
I would definitely say that Erik has the right idea.... Start early when it's empty, take a break for a nap (if you're staying in one of the hotels nearby) or just some time to relax and maybe a late lunch/early dinner. If you give yourselves that time in the late afternoon to chill out a little bit, HHN will be a much better prospect for you. Plus, breaking around 4pm will keep you out of one of the hottest parts of the day as well as our usual timeslot for afternoon showers.
Erik's suggestion also has you walking in one big circle instead of scampering all over the place, which is good. The single riders line is fabulous as long as you aren't looking to buy the ride photos, you'll all get off one right after the other anyways. Just make sure you leave yourself enough time to do some of the rides more than once... namely Men in Black. If you have any kind of competitive spirit, you WILL want to ride again, I promise The other thing I would tell you, is don't be SO eager to skip the lines that you miss the whole point of the park. Pay attention to what's going on around you (especially if you happen to be standing in line) and you will enjoy it so much better. The theming that happens while you're waiting in line is really worth taking a few minutes to enjoy. I know this sounds incredibly silly... but it is absolutely true. The theming of the rides is one of the things that sets Universal apart from other parks. (Personally, I think Shrek and Men in Black are the best 2 for this.) All I'm saying is, try not to get so overzealous about the idea that you have to see EVERYTHING that you don't really see anything. HAVE FUN!!!

 

[PAcpl]

Hi again Brian!
I would definitely say that Erik has the right idea.... Start early when it's empty, take a break for a nap (if you're staying in one of the hotels nearby) or just some time to relax and maybe a late lunch/early dinner. If you give yourselves that time in the late afternoon to chill out a little bit, HHN will be a much better prospect for you. Plus, breaking around 4pm will keep you out of one of the hottest parts of the day as well as our usual timeslot for afternoon showers.
Erik's suggestion also has you walking in one big circle instead of scampering all over the place, which is good. The single riders line is fabulous as long as you aren't looking to buy the ride photos, you'll all get off one right after the other anyways. Just make sure you leave yourself enough time to do some of the rides more than once... namely Men in Black. If you have any kind of competitive spirit, you WILL want to ride again, I promise The other thing I would tell you, is don't be SO eager to skip the lines that you miss the whole point of the park. Pay attention to what's going on around you (especially if you happen to be standing in line) and you will enjoy it so much better. The theming that happens while you're waiting in line is really worth taking a few minutes to enjoy. I know this sounds incredibly silly... but it is absolutely true. The theming of the rides is one of the things that sets Universal apart from other parks. (Personally, I think Shrek and Men in Black are the best 2 for this.) All I'm saying is, try not to get so overzealous about the idea that you have to see EVERYTHING that you don't really see anything. HAVE FUN!!!

Christy - We really do plan on enjoying the park itself. We are both big movie buffs and cant wait to check out the detailes of the rides and places like NY and San Fran. I grew up in NYC so I was fortunate enough to see a few movies being filmed. Its amazing and im sure the park is like one big set!

 

[tick_tn]

WOW. A bunch of us newbs are coming to get ya'll this year.

 

[Metro West]

WOW. A bunch of us newbs are coming to get ya'll this year.

As Johnny Olson used to say on The Price Is Right........COME ON DOWN!

 

[PAcpl]

As Johnny Olson used to say on The Price Is Right........COME ON DOWN!

As Michael Scott would say from The Office "I am going to drop a deuce on everybody!"

Speaking of, is there ANYTHING at US for an over the top Office fan? I read on the forums that you can buy Dwight Shrute bobble heads, but anything else?