What do you think of our 3 day plan?

[abitterbuffalo]

Headed to the parks the first week of June for the first time. We're staying on-site & will have express passes. The general plan is to go for three days (Wed-Fri) with one day less full and to take advantage of the express passes by generally picking a direction and heading that way instead of crisscrossing all day.

How's this look to you experienced folks?

Touring Plan Day 1 - USF to IOA

• Start at Universal
  • Minions
  • Rip Ride Rocket
  • Transformers
  • ET
  • Men In Back
  • Simpson lunch
  • Knight Bus
  • Explore Diagon Alley
  • Escape from Gringotts
  • Hogwarts Train - over to IOA
  • Look at Hogsmead but not staying
  • Mystic Fountain
  • Suess High In the Sky
  • Can skip - carousel
  • The Cat In The Hat
  • Popeye & Bluto
  • Dudley Do-Right
  • Jurassic Park River Adv
  • (Or Kong and do water rides tomorrow)
  • Walk around here to dry off or head to Hogsmead to walk around
  • Dinner at Three Broomstick when air dry
  • Meander or head back to resort

Touring Plan Day 2 - Half Day

• Which park has early entry?
• Straight to early entry park’s Olivanders and grab an interactive wand
• Everything and anything potter
• Switch to other park and more potter
• Anything we already rode yesterday and want to do again?
• (or do water rides now and then head back to hotel to pool or chill b4 dinner)
• Smaller counter lunch or snacks
• Early Dinner - Toothsome reservation - 4:30
• Resort Pool time (or nap first then pool time)
• Relax and stay off feet (later snack at hotel)

Touring Plan Day 3 - IOA to USF
(how did time go on day 1? - is there time to do more or less today? - time to do any ride redoes?)

• Start at Islands of Adventure
  • Hagrid’s
  • Forbidden Journey
  • Hogsmead final explore
  • Or Flight of Hippogriff
  • Kong
  • Lunch - Mythos
  • Hulk
  • Spider-Man
  • Dr. Doom
  • Hogwarts Train - over to USF
  • Great on time? - Fast & Furious - otherwise skip it
  • Mummy
  • Race NY
  • Shrek
  • Bourne Show?
  • Back to Diagon Alley for final exploring or Any other favorites to do one more time?
  • Dinner at Cowfish or Leaky Cauldron or Poolside at resort?

 

[jpkkld]

I commend you for targeting the less-walking option. But you seem to be planning for a different type of park, perhaps one with round ears?

Just kidding - I understand the impulse to map it all out! But the friendly folks here will need some more info from you first, like, how big is your group, what ages, any HP fans (I'm guessing yes from your Day 2 plan), which hotel are you staying at, how do you feel about mid-day breaks, etc.

Multiple people will tell you - just go with it. Walk in, do what looks good. You seem to know which direction you'll head, which is good planning. I would stop there.

At first glance, I note you have no breaks other than meals. Uni is small enough that you can easily go swim at your hotel mid-afternoon, and literally not miss a thing. Really.

Also, given Covid, you should make a plan for all meals and book reservations in advance. Normallly not needed (except Toothsome). If you plan to do quick service for lunch, block in a good chunk of time - more than you normally would.

Depending on the age of your family, and the type of rides they enjoy, you may not really want to do EVERY ride. Suess is super cute to walk through, but without a little one, I don't think the rides are must-dos. Roller coasters aren't for everyone. Personally, I never need to go on Spiderman, Kong, or MIB ever again. Not my thing. But I'll ride Mummy 6 times a day. With EP, you can too.

I see you left time to dry after your water rides - excellent plan. A lot of folks plan those rides at the end of their morning touring, then head back to the hotel for pool time so they don't have to tour soaking wet. And you will be soaking wet.

A few more things:
- You have Suess followed by water rides - they're on opposite sides of IoA.
- You have Hulk right after lunch. May want to rethink that. But Mythos is great.
- You have some HP activities in what appear to be the middle of the day. Whether or not you have HP fans, the best time to visit HP at either park is morning, or 1-2 hours before close. Mid-day is likely to be a crush of people, and early June is after school lets out for southerners.

So - you CAN follow your plan and have a fantastic time! Or you can start at a planned park and walk in a planned direction and make no further plans, and have a fabulous time! And you can trust me on this - I have to-the-minute touring plans for that other park, with all the hard-to-get reservations and perfect times for our FPs and all the rest of it. I am a planner. But I don't plan much for Uni!

 

[Disneyfan754321]

We spent one day with Harry Potter on both sides so we could fully immerse. The kids had robes interactive wands we ate dinner at three broomsticks. (We also did jurrasic park it's right next to it)
One day was perfect for the other parks especially if you have express passes.

 

[Calee]

Bourne show is good. I'd take the question mark off and do it for sure. With 3 days you will have plenty of time.

 

[bchbetha]

I agree that you seem to be planning for Disney and you really don't need to plan like that here. I also think you should get your wands on day 1.
It's nice to have some ideas of what you want to do but with express passes and an onsite stay you really can just roll with things.

 

[AJA]

For early entry not all rides are open.

I agree with others that 3 days with express is enough time to do everything without a detailed plan.

If you have big Potter fans I would plan some time on the first day for it.

Your plan looks fine, just probably not necessary.

As an example, we did not have express on Saturday May 1st (very crowded by noon) by getting to the park around 8am early opening we were able to ride:
Transformers
Gringotts
Fast & Furious
MIB
ET
All by 11am, without express.

 

[DL1WDW2]

I think VelociCoaster will have grand open June 10 so be prepared .
Watch for sneak peek preview if you hope to ride this.They usually are not announced because it is a testing period and attraction will probably
be sporadic with training, etc...
I usually recommend the early daylight and return for the night lights with pool in middle... I love Universal at night with the lights and music.
STUDY the MAPs ... Get their early even with Express Pass , Go to Hagrids Motorbike Adventure (Islandsof Adventure)and plan to ride again for night experience! This attraction also has “complications” so keep that in mind... and it will have virtual boarding, usually ,once line gets long but sometimes before ... and on some days not at all perhaps. Depending on weather delays, etc...
The Hogsmeade Express is different trips boarding from Hogsmeade to arrival in Kings Crossing Station (Diagonal Alley Universal Studios) I enjoy the round trip and express pass is a big advantage...
The Bourne Stunt Show Spectacular is amazing ! It has a combination tech marvel with live stage performers So the showtimes reflect specific times for stage actors. Fortunately the best quick service is nearby and most walk past it because it is fairly new .The TODAY SHOW Cafe has selection of breakfast and lunch sandwiches with really fresh fruit and side salads! Be sure to ask about discounts if you have AX or AP or AAA. Even the Starbucks at Universal will give a discount which is shocking considering the never ever response from Disney property.
So be sure to ask.
I seem to have more fun at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure than Disney property. I recommend you don’t pass any attraction because they are all fun for the first time. For some weird reason I love Race thru NY w/JimmyKimmel cause it makes me laugh everytime .
I also love a ride in SeussLand that is a small train above the land but it is fun at night I forgot the name. I see it on your list High in the Sky?)
If Three Broomsticks is not available , try to enter the Hogsmeade Tavern to order your ButterBeer to at least see the inside !
I hope the Deatheaters make an appearance but probably not due to Covid ... usually wander crowds around dusk near 3 Broomsticks ...
Also I just discovered the new (kinda) Legends Store across from the really new Universal Store in CityWalk... so much on display from the old movies! And do not forget VooDooDonuts in CityWalk...I think you can mobile order but seeing the wheel of donuts selection circling round to tempt you as you wait in line....yum!
P.S. if you happen to visit a WalMart nearby, they usually have a small ticket center with free large maps and brochures, etc. I help myself cause it is rare to see anybody actually selling the tickets but the cash register is there imbetween all the souvenir t-shirts on sale. I do not like to plan with online maps .
And remeber if you take a purse or backpack it will have to be stored in a locker before you can ride almost every attraction. Try to plan carrying nothing into the parks . They do have exceptions but I can’t remember the specific details.

Another thought...which resort are you staying at? I was at Hard Rock and was not prepared for the long lines to enter. The next morn I got there really early to be up front and go to Hagrids! Just an added thought to prepare you for crowds.

 

[Welsh_Dragon]

Group the water rides together and do them just before you return to the hotel for a break. You will be ‘I have jumped in a pool fully clothed’ wet, rather than ‘a light sprinkle’ wet.

 

[cfoxga]

We tend to view both parks as "loops of rides" that also have some shows. With EE and EP, we can usually get through the ride loop in one park in less than 2 or 3 hours. We just do a full circle around the park and hit the rides that we want. Rides like Hagrids (and likely VelociCoaster) need some planning, since they don't take EPs. You might want to try to fit them into day 1, in case things go wrong on day 3. And the suggestion to group water rides is good advice as you do tend to get soaked.

The trickier part is planning the shows, as they are only at specific times and are scattered throughout the parks. There are some real gems, so keep them in mind. Shows like Bourne fill up quickly, so you need to plan for that.

 

[abitterbuffalo]

Haha! Thanks for the responses but for those that called me out - as if I was planning for another park - nailed it. This is our first Universal trip (mom, dad & 13-year-old potter fan) but we've been to that other park a bunch and that's what I'm used to planning for. We've had trips there during busy times with almost no line wait times due to crazy hours of planning & perfect fast pass use BUT an insane amount of extra walking and that's the last thing I want for this Universal trip. It sounds like we can skip all that extra rush-walking. Thank you!

 

[jpkkld]

Thanks for the extra info. With a 13yo HP fan, you might try this:
Day 1: start at US, as planned, but go straight back to HP. If a wand is of interest, do Ollivander's first.
You probably want Gringotts sooner rather than later, but definitely make time to browse through some shops, grab a butterbeer.
Check out the Knight bus as you leave Diagon Alley.
Then, either do some US rides like Mummy and Tonight Show OR MIB / Springfield, but don't wait too long to hop on the train to Hogsmeade (10 is a good time to take the train - not much later though).

In HM, go straight to Forbidden Journey, catch Hippogryff as you leave, skip the shops, but if it's early lunch time (11-11:30), 3 Broomsticks is a great lunch for a Potter fan.

Then take a cool break at the hotel. When you come back later in the afternoon (4-5), do non-Potter stuff - whichever park, whatever you like.
Finish up in whichever HP land is in the park you're in - reride the ride and spend more time in the shops.

Next day, rinse and repeat, though you may prefer to start in IoA. Personally, I LOVE starting in IoA because Port of Entry is so cool.
By lunch on Day 2, you'll have done 75% of both parks.

While IoA does have those great water rides, US can also offer a cool break - check out Knockturn Alley on Day 2 or 3.

You'll hit your stride pretty quick. And definitely time it to catch a few shows!

Late dinners work pretty well if you eat a big snack at the hotel before returning for evening touring. Have a great time!

 

[CAPSLOCK]

• Popeye & Bluto
• Dudley Do-Right
• Jurassic Park River Adv
• (Or Kong and do water rides tomorrow)
• Walk around here to dry off or head to Hogsmead to walk around
• Dinner at Three Broomstick when air dry

"Air dry" will not happen in a few hours after Popeye / Dudley. Wet clothes and A.C. sit down meals may not be a particularly pleasant combo. Doable, but chilly.

 

[AJA]

"Air dry" will not happen in a few hours after Popeye / Dudley. Wet clothes and A.C. sit down meals may not be a particularly pleasant combo. Doable, but chilly.

Yes this! Just to let you and anyone else know that is coming from "disney water rides" both Popeye and Dudleys will get you soaked! Depending on where you sit, JP Raft can also get you pretty good. We were in the front of the raft on our trip and planned on eating lunch right after, I was cold in the AC as we got a big tidal wave splash in the front. My daughter and husband were fine though.
But again Popeye and Dudley will get you soaked, not splashed, plan accordingly just in case your shoes and socks are soaked, that makes it very uncomfortable to walk around. We usually do them before we make our way back to the hotel.

 

[Pooh's World]

Yes this! Just to let you and anyone else know that is coming from "disney water rides" both Popeye and Dudleys will get you soaked! Depending on where you sit, JP Raft can also get you pretty good. We were in the front of the raft on our trip and planned on eating lunch right after, I was cold in the AC as we got a big tidal wave splash in the front. My daughter and husband were fine though.
But again Popeye and Dudley will get you soaked, not splashed, plan accordingly just in case your shoes and socks are soaked, that makes it very uncomfortable to walk around. We usually do them before we make our way back to the hotel.

Dudley they just dump a bucket of water on you early and then you splash into the river.
Never wear jeans or shoes to Dudley's.

 

[SwanVT2]

Headed to the parks the first week of June for the first time. We're staying on-site & will have express passes. The general plan is to go for three days (Wed-Fri) with one day less full and to take advantage of the express passes by generally picking a direction and heading that way instead of crisscrossing all day.

How's this look to you experienced folks?

Touring Plan Day 1 - USF to IOA

• Start at Universal
  • Minions
  • Rip Ride Rocket
  • Transformers
  • ET
  • Men In Back
  • Simpson lunch
  • Knight Bus
  • Explore Diagon Alley
  • Escape from Gringotts
  • Hogwarts Train - over to IOA
  • Look at Hogsmead but not staying
  • Mystic Fountain
  • Suess High In the Sky
  • Can skip - carousel
  • The Cat In The Hat
  • Popeye & Bluto
  • Dudley Do-Right
  • Jurassic Park River Adv
  • (Or Kong and do water rides tomorrow)
  • Walk around here to dry off or head to Hogsmead to walk around
  • Dinner at Three Broomstick when air dry
  • Meander or head back to resort

Touring Plan Day 2 - Half Day

• Which park has early entry?
• Straight to early entry park’s Olivanders and grab an interactive wand
• Everything and anything potter
• Switch to other park and more potter
• Anything we already rode yesterday and want to do again?
• (or do water rides now and then head back to hotel to pool or chill b4 dinner)
• Smaller counter lunch or snacks
• Early Dinner - Toothsome reservation - 4:30
• Resort Pool time (or nap first then pool time)
• Relax and stay off feet (later snack at hotel)

Touring Plan Day 3 - IOA to USF
(how did time go on day 1? - is there time to do more or less today? - time to do any ride redoes?)

• Start at Islands of Adventure
  • Hagrid’s
  • Forbidden Journey
  • Hogsmead final explore
  • Or Flight of Hippogriff
  • Kong
  • Lunch - Mythos
  • Hulk
  • Spider-Man
  • Dr. Doom
  • Hogwarts Train - over to USF
  • Great on time? - Fast & Furious - otherwise skip it
  • Mummy
  • Race NY
  • Shrek
  • Bourne Show?
  • Back to Diagon Alley for final exploring or Any other favorites to do one more time?
  • Dinner at Cowfish or Leaky Cauldron or Poolside at resort?

Thanks for making me a touring plan haha!

 

[SwanVT2]

Do you have EP or is this a plan without EP?

 

[bchbetha]

Do you have EP or is this a plan without EP?

Per OP they are onsite with EPs.

 

[martikus]

I would start day one in Harry Potter section. Then loop around park stopping at things that look good. On our summer trips we live to go until mid afternoon, go back to hotel for pool and return in evening.

With express you don’t need planning. We’ve hopped parks several times to enjoy rides. It’s truly why we love universal. No stress.

And we only do water rides before returning to hotel. You will get SOAKED. But Popeyes is one of my sons favorite. We’ve done it like 6 times on a row.

 

[cschaaf]

With EP and EPA, I'd head to the HP areas first thing. There isn't a lot open during EPA, but the HP areas are open. I'd also recommend heading back to the HP areas at night. Both morning and night are the least crowded times. If you are lucky enough to be there when the park is open after dark, it's worth seeing those areas lit up.

Other than that, we tour like many above have said - pick a direction and go. Ride what you want as you pass it. You might want to ride something twice if the EP wait is short enough.

Bourne is really cool. Horror Makeup is also a fun show. I didn't see any of the Potter shows on your list, but you might consider them, too.

Park hopping is so easy compared to Disney. You'll likely want to ride the Hogwarts Express in each direction at least once, but you can also walk between the parks rather quickly. The HE waits can get long, even with EP.

With EP, your biggest 'worry' will be Velocicoaster, Hagrid's, and eating. None of those use EP In 'normal times', eating at Universal is easy. In COVID times, consider reservations and/or eating at 'off' times.

 

[MomOTwins]

Okay, just to play devil’s advocate, I know there is a whole narrative on this board that you don’t need to plan as much for universal, but that was not at all our experience in March. Some of that is Spring Break I’m sure but some is also post-Covid capacity issues.

We had three days, express passes, staying at PB and otherwise did not plan. First day, we did gringotts (30 mins in express line), hogwarts train (45 mins in express line), and hippogriff (20 mins express line) and then lunch. Mobile ordered three brooksticks and waited close to an hour for a table and another 30 mins for food. After lunch had virtual queue for hagrid (2 hour wait after entering queue, and then lost another hour because ride broke down while DH was on it and I was waiting with our youngest at the rider swap). We decided not to try any more rides and just went back to swim for an hour (45 min wait for boat to PB). Tried to eat dinner at resort around 6pm, every restaurant turned us away as reservation only. Went to city walk, only half of the places were even accepting walk ups and they all quoted times 9pm or later. Mentioned we were at PB for the so-called “priority waitlist,” they said that is no longer a thing post covid.

Well as soon as we got back to the resort I made dining rezzies for the rest of the trip (slim pickins but I took whatever I could get), and wayyy dialed back our plans for the parks. We only did maybe a third of what we planned and we did not plan to do much! Even the wand spots took ages because there was a 10-15 minute wait at each spot with people lined up to do the magic.

I say this because I read a lot of disboards and nobody ever described an experience remotely like hours. The story was always that express pass was walk on anywhere and reservations not needed. I think you are right to plan everything as better safe than sorry! I would even suggest having a slimmed down itinerary as a backup if you encounter the same waits we did.