I just got back from the best trip to Universal Studios Orlando. I’ve been wanting to go to Harry Potter World for as long as I can remember and so Hart got us tickets as a Christmas present. I hadn’t been to Universal Orlando, or any Universal park for that matter before so it was all new. Before our trip, I hadn’t realized that their primary goal is to bring movies to life and make guests feel fully immersed. Mission accomplished! Every detail was thought of when constructing out rides and buildings. While it’s fresh on my mind, I figured I’d type up a post to share all of the things I wish I knew before getting there. I’ll write a separate post specifically for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and link it here when it is ready. We flew Spirit Airlines and you can read my thoughts on it here.
Where to Stay
We stayed at Parc Soleil Hilton Grand Vacations because of a deal we got. I’m a Hilton Gold Member so they offered us 3 nights for $150 (total) in exchange for going on their time-share tour. It was a good hotel, but I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re not a Hilton Grand Vacations member. The hotel was close to the parks, but there are more convenient ones.
When we return, we’ll opt to stay at one of the on-site hotels through Universal. There are a ton of benefits to staying on-site. Guests have early admission to the park (30 minutes prior), free express passes at select hotels, merchandise delivery to the hotel, and it’s easy to get to the parks and City Walk given the proximity.
- Value ($): Endless Summer Resort’s Surfside Inn and Endless Summer Resort’s Suites and Dockside Inn and Suite
- Prime Value ($$): Universal Orlando Aventura Hotel and Cabana Bay Beach Resort
- Preferred ($$$): Loews Sapphire Falls Resort
- Premier ($$$$): Portofino Bay Hotel, Hard Rock Hotel, and Loews Royal Pacific Resort
The Different Parks
- Islands of Adventure is the home of Jurassic Park, Dr. Seuss and one part of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. There are more roller coasters here compared to the other parks.
- Universal Studios Florida is home for The Simpson, Diagon Alley of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, and Universal Studios replicas. It feels like you’re walking around the a movie set. Most of the rides here are 3D/4D motion rides, but there is one roller coaster.
- Volcano Bay is the Universal water park. We skipped this on our recent trip, but would be a great addition if you’re looking to cool of with some pools and water slides.
- COMING SOON: Epic Universe is a new development from Universal planning to come in 2025. There isn’t a lot of information around what to expect but it is confirmed to be home of Super Nintendo World.
Types of Tickets
Once you’ve got your hotel booked, you’ll want to get your Universal Orlando park tickets. We did 2 Day Park to Park tickets and those were perfect for us. We spent the first day hitting up all of the rides and the spent the second day spending more time on rides we liked the most. You need the park-to-park tickets to ride the Hogwarts Express. One question we tried to figure out when purchasing our tickets is “Do we get the Express passes?”. There are a few things to consider before purchasing the Express Pass.
The Breakdown
Unlimited vs Standard Express Passes
The Express Unlimited pass gets you into the Express line for most rides as many times as you want for a fee of $109.99. The Standard Express Pass allows you to use the Express line for most rides one time and then you’d have to use the standby line if you wanted to ride again. This pass costs $79.99. The prices can increase for peak park days like holidays.
Neither Express Pass is cheap so it’s important to know the facts before you buy. The unlimited pass is free to all guests staying in one of the top-end Universal hotels – Portofino Bay Hotel, Hard Rock Hotel, and Loews Royal Pacific Resort. If you’re staying there, you don’t have to worry about purchasing this pass. However, it’s worth noting that a lot of people stay there meaning a lot of people have Express passes. The Express pass lane can really fill up. You won’t wait the full 75 minutes like standby guests, but you may still wait 30 – 45 minutes for a ride if a lot of Express guests are in line. It’s also important to know that the two newest attractions at Universal Orlando – Hagrid’s Motorbike Adventure and VelciCoaster – do not currently have an Express line (as of 2/21/22) so you’ll have to wait for the full length there.
We used the Express Unlimited for our first day and the standard Express Pass for the second day. I found that given the lengths of the line with Express and the limited availability for top attractions, the unlimited pass didn’t make sense for a park-to-park ticket if you’d like to hit up a lot of rides. Trying to do two parks in one day limits the number of times you can do rides again. We only ended up repeating two rides. The standard express for our second day was perfect for us. In the morning when the rides were short, we did a few standby lines and then used the Express when the lines got longer.
Single Rider Line
If you want to skip the splurge on the Express Pass, but still skip the standby line – the Single Rider Line is an option for you. It’s completely free! The Single Rider line isn’t always open at all attractions, but it is on most. The attendants assign people from the single rider line to fill up gaps in seats from uneven parties. You can stand in line with the rest of your party, but when it comes to getting on the ride you’ll likely be split up. The single rider line is available on the two new attractions – Hagrid’s Motorbike Adventure and The Velocicoaster – where Express lanes are not currently open.
Transportation To and From Universal Orlando
For maximum park days, you’ll want to get there 30 – 45 minutes before the park opens. Guests staying at any of the Universal Orlando Resorts have early access into the park by 30 minutes, but they let us in 15 minutes early as well.
There are a ton of options for getting to the park. You can use your hotel’s transportation accommodations, drive yourself or use a rideshare app. We used Lyft and Uber to navigate to and from the park. It was super simple. There is a rideshare drop-off/pick-up location right in the parking garage. The sign says Uber, but both Lyft and Uber drive to and from the park. We chose to use a rideshare because the hotel transportation hours didn’t align with the hours we wanted to be at the park. It left the hotel at 8:30 AM and returned at 5:30 PM, but the park hours were 9 AM – 10 PM. Taking a rideshare gave us a little more freedom.
The Lyft from Parc Soleil was around $13 – 15 to the park around 8 AM on a Friday and Saturday. Getting the Lyft back on the first night was a bit of a wait, but the Uber pricing was $59. The Lyft was only $15 so it was worth the wait. There are a ton of things to do to pass time once the park closes. As you exit, you’ll pass through the City Walk with plenty of restaurants, bars, and other attractions to keep you busy. On our second night, we ordered the Lyft as we were walking out and it arrived right when we got there. You can also schedule a taxi or rideshare in advance.
Where to Eat
Within The Universal Orlando
Meals
Both parks are full of restaurants you can eat at. Of course, they’re overpriced but it’s convenient. Each area of the parks have restaurants relevant to the area’s theme. It takes bringing the movies to life to a whole new level. You can enjoy bangers and mash in Diagon Alley, Duff Beer at Moe’s Tavern near The Simpson’s attractions or Mediterranean affair at the acclaimed Mythos Restaurant. We ate at The Three Broomsticks for lunch and the Leaky Cauldron for dinner at one point. We enjoyed both meals, but Leaky Cauldron’s dinner was our favorite.
On the Go
If you’re not interested in a sit-down meal, there are plenty of places where you can grab a snack on the go. There are stands throughout the park to grab a drink, a pretzel, popcorn, or whatever. We enjoyed stopping for snacks throughout our second day. We had a shepard’s pie pastry from Neep’s, a cinnamon pretzel, and ice cream from Florean Fortescue’s Ice-Cream Parlour. I wish we had stopped for more!
If you’re wanting to leave the park during the day, you can leave and re-enter the park without any issues. There are plenty of restaurants directly outside of the park at the City Walk.
Getting Drinks
There are several spots to grab alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks throughout the park. This section is for you if you specifically want to know about adult beverages. If you’re in Islands of Adventure, stop by Hog’s Head Pub at the back of Three Broomsticks. If you’re at Universal Studios Florida, check out The Duff Brewery or Moe’s Tavern for The Simpson’s inspired drinks or The Hopping Pot in Diagon Alley.
City Walk
The City Walk is a main attraction in its own right. It’s connected to the park and you have to walk through it to enter or exit the park. There is no entry fee, but you do have to go through security. It’s filled with tons of restaurants, shops, and things to do. It’s a fun place to hang out even if you aren’t going to the park. A lot of the restaurants you find here are going to be your normal vacation destination spots like Margaritaville and Hard Rock Cafe. They had the very popular The Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen, as well. You can make reservations at these restaurants and I recommend you do so in advance. The wait times can be absurd after people leave the parks. If you’re looking for something more low-key, there are also more fast-casual restaurant’s like Moe’s Southwest Grill.
Our Favorite Rides
Universal Orlando has a variety of rides and attractions. I’d say they have something for everyone like thrill rides, 3D/4D motion rides, family-friendly rides, water rides, and a water park. This is why I think you could ask 5 people what their favorite rides are and they’ll all be different.
I love “thrill” type rollercoasters so it’s important to keep that in mind as I rank my favorites. Because of this, all of my favorites are on Islands of Adventure. Universal Studios Florida has fun rides too, but they were more motion-oriented. As I mentioned at the top, the goal of the park is to bring movies to life. Even the thrill rides include videos and sounds to accompany the ride making you feel like you’re a part of it. Every detail is considered not just during the ride, but during the lines as well. As you wait, you experience the movies coming to life.
Overall, I enjoyed all of the rides. The only one I wouldn’t do again is the Hollywood Rip Ride Rocket because it was so shaky. It was a blast, but I had a huge headache as soon as I got off. It felt kind of like riding an old wooden rollercoaster. The cool thing about this ride is that once you’re seating, you can choose a song to listen to while you ride. It sets the mood for the ride and you twist and flip.
One thing to note about the rides is most roller coasters required you to utilize the lockers to store any loose items and bookbags. Hagrid’s Motorbike Adventure and The VelociCoaster had lockers you use in the line, which helped make it convenient. If rides aren’t your thing and your more into arcade games, check out the Superhero area of the park and if you like carnival games, check out the Simpsons area of the park!
1. Hagrid’s Motorbike Adventure
This was hands-down my (and Hart’s) favorite ride of the weekend. It doesn’t have an Express lane, but we loved it so much that we stood in line for it three different times. The wait time can be high, but you can use the app to gauge the line or pick an optimal time to go. We found that the line was shortest around 1 PM when people were taking a lunch break.
The ride is unlike any ride I’ve been on before. A lot of thought went into the details of the ride. You ride in pairs and can choose between two types of seats – the motorbike or the carrier. Each seat is going to give you a different experience on the ride. Hart enjoyed the motorbike the best, but I think I’m leaning towards the carrier. Once you’re seated, you’ll ride through the grounds of Hogwarts with Hagrid talking to you throughout. This ride goes fast, but it doesn’t have any inversions.
PRO TIP: I’d recommend you ride this one at least twice so you can test out both seats. I’d love to hear what your favorite is!
2. The VelociCoaster
This is the newest roller coaster at Universal Orlando and is one of the best thrill rides I’ve been on in a long time. It’s located in the Jurassic Park area of Islands of Adventure and rides right over the water. There are two high-speed launches with one being right at the start and four inversions. The maximum speed is 70 miles per hour. IT IS AWESOME.
This is another ride that does not have the Express pass option. It does have a Single Rider Line, but it was so packed that they didn’t have it open at all times. We waited about 75 minutes each time we rode it and I’d say it was worth it. Standing is line gives you a good view of the water and some of the other attractions. Once you get into the building, there are cool features like the realistic velociraptor above. What’s cool about this ride is that once you get to the front, you can opt to wait in the first-row line. It added about 5 extra minutes to our wait time, but I’d do that every time. It increased our experience tenfold.
3. The Incredible Hulk Coaster
This ride was the ride Hart remembered being his favorite from his childhood. It’s at the front of Islands of Adventure and I think this helped keep the lines a little shorter. Most people enter and head straight to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and the newest ride, the VelociCoaster. We rode this ride FOUR times over two days. The Express line was always a 5 – 10 minute wait when we went while the standby wait time was around 55 minutes. On our day with just the standard Express pass, we rode standby while the line was super short then used our Express pass to ride again once the line was a little bit longer. I’d recommend this to anyone using the standard Express passes.
This ride is a thrill ride and like the VelociCoaster, you ride over the water. There is music playing throughout the ride that really pumps you up as you speed over the water. This ride probably has one of the coolest starts. You kick off full speed through a light tunnel like you’re becoming the Hulk before going through a series of twists and inversions.
4. Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey
This is one of the few rides throughout the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and one of my favorites as well. It’s a 3D/4D motion-oriented that takes you flying throughout the Hogwarts Castle. The line navigates throughout the Castle dungeon and once you get on the ride you’re flying with Ron and Harry guiding you. This isn’t considered a thrill ride nor a roller coaster at all, but it’s quite fun and realistic. You genuinely feel like you’re flying over the castle with twists and turns (and no inversions.) It may be a little scary for children thought as there are dementors throughout the ride. The ride really makes you feel the magic of Harry Potter.
We rode this twice and both times the Express pass line was pretty quick. On our second day, we hopped in line around 1:30 PM and it was empty. We went right to the front.
5. The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman
Okay, this ride is dated. It is old, but still pretty fun. As you wait in line, you navigate through the Daily Bugle office with the Spiderman cartoons playing on the TVs. Once you get to the front, you hop into a Daily Bugle car to follow Spiderman and run into a few villains along the way. Even with being an older ride, the chase is quite thrilling. Similar to other motion rides, you don’t do any inversions but you do spin, twist and drop. What I loved most about the Spiderman ride outside of the excitement of being twist and spun was that the ride did an amazing job and making you feel like you’re a part of the movie just like Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey.
PRO TIP: Lockers aren’t required for this ride so you can take all of your items with you into the car. The Express lane was always fairly quick. There was a 75 minute standby wait time and we were able to get on the ride within 15 minutes using our Express passes.
The Bottom Line
- There are several benefits to staying at one of the Universal Orlando Resort hotels like early park admission and free Express passes at select hotels
- If you don’t want to splurge on the Express passes, you could opt to use the Single Rider Line to get to front more quickly
- Everyone goes to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and VelociCoaster first thing when the park opens. I’d recommend go to those places closer to around lunch to avoid peak crowds.
- You can also download the Universal app to keep an eye on current wait times for each ride.
- City Walk has a ton of additional attractions outside of the park but if you want eat dinner at one of the restaurants, make reservations in advance! You may be able to get bar seating if not.
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