Did you regret NOT getting an express pass?

[biochemgirl]

We plan to see Universal with park to park tickets March 26/27. It will be DS age 11 and myself. We love theme parks and usually move at a good clip, repeating many rides and staying for 12-14 hours per day starting at rope drop. March will be very busy and want to see and ride everything all while keeping the budget down.

So here's what I'm wondering.... Did you go during a very busy time without any type of express pass? Did you regret not upgrading or would you do it again without the upgrade?

 

[macraven]

when i go during the busy time periods, i always stay deluxe specifically for the free unlimited express.

heck, so spoiled with the EP system, i still stay deluxe in the slower time periods for it.....



if you are staying offsite and only doing day trips to the parks, budget the ep (either single ride use or unlimited) if your dates are during a holiday or peak time period.

if you don't purchase the ep in advance and find out you really need it, you can purchase it at guest services or in the shops that are located inside the parks.
price might be higher though if you buy while there

you can use single rider lines when they are open.
that can be a short wait like the ep lines for the rides.

 

[AngelDisney]

After using EP the first time in 2014, I have regretted not doing it in the past (2010 and 2011). Will definitely stay onsite just for the EP and early entry perks. Touring UO parks is so much easier than touring WDW with EP!

 

[sunsetbeachgal]

We did Universal in November on a crowded Saturday and had the express pass which was great. We were there with two granddaughters who love Harry Potter, so we spent time at both parks in the Harry Potter areas which they absolutely loved and kept going back to. The theming is amazing, you don't want to rush around and miss anything if your DS is a Potter fan. Then we utilized the express pass to ride many of the remaining rides without waiting in lines. We are going back in February with another granddaughter and are staying deluxe to get the express pass.

 

[bumbershoot]

Well, I don't know because we love it so much we can't bring ourselves to book any other way. We stay at the three resorts that include it.

(Apart from the half day or two we've spent in the parks post-cruise pre-flight that is)

 

[Seeker615]

My daughter and I stayed offsite a few years ago and did not have the express pass. It was a less busy time and the waits were not bad.

I will say having gotten the express pass from our last stay at Royal Pacific has spoiled me. I can't even imagine going without it now.

 

[wookiebeck]

No we did not regret not getting it. We had the EP by staying at PBR and RPR in years past. It is wonderful. But we did not let it spoil us. The last trip we stayed at CB. We knew we did not have the EP. We planned to be in some lines. We enjoyed the sights of the longer queues in Mummy, MIB and Spiderman. We did rope drop for headliners. And we still had a most wonderful vacation the entire way.

 

[smallworldnh]

We've never gotten it and don't regret it. However, we usually go around the end of September and during the middle of the week so I think it's a slower time anyway. We've pretty much walked onto everything without too much of a wait. I think it would be good for a busy period though.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Pre-HP, we used to stay offsite for US, and never minded. Over the past few years though, we've mostly stayed onsite with it, and generally find it to be a good benefit.

That said, last summer we tried the new Sapphire Falls, and didn't regret our choice. It is a beautiful resort! I'd happily stay there again.

However...I should add that we ALSO stayed one night at RP, so we kind of had the best of both worlds.

On other trips, we happily save a few $ by staying at a less expensive hotel on our last night.

I think it would be good for a busy period though.

Yes and no. During major holidays, it can slightly go both ways. Rates (I'm kinda thinking of both US and WDW) are often so high, that we just suck up the lack of benefits in favor of lower hotel costs.

During busy times, you just have to accept that the parks will be crowded, and that you'll spend less time on the top rides. It makes sense to have a non-park day or days. April is a great time to visit a FL beach or natural park.

Where crowds are concerned, so much ALWAYS depends upon the weather. Bad weather = less people. Great weather= more people.

 

[Beer Me]

I have stayed off site with no express pass, off site with the limited (once per ride) express pass and, most recently, at Hard Rock with early entry and ep. I regret being cheap on those earlier trips. Now i would never visit Universal any other way.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

It also seems to me....and I could be wrong, but it seems to me that over time the rates for the 3 Express Pass hotels have become more reasonable, perhaps it is only my perception relative to Disney's rates. It also matters how many people you have in the room: 4 per room vs. 1 per room. If you only have 1 person, then it probably makes sense to wait and buy EP if the park is busy.

Further, it also matters if you will use the Express Pass on your arrival and departure days.

 

[macraven]

I have been staying onsite since the first hotel went up


Prices increase all the time
Hotel, tickets, food etc

I go solo and stay in a king suite

Sure I could trim my budget and do as you mentioned but then it would not be they type of vacation for me

I stay at the onsite hotels for all the amenities and comforts they provide

I stay close to two weeks and not all of my time is in the parks
Ep is the best but not the main reason I stay deluxe

I don't rush but totally relaxed at UO

My vacations totally relax me which I need

I return home recharged

 

[pigletto]

No we did not regret not getting it. We had the EP by staying at PBR and RPR in years past. It is wonderful. But we did not let it spoil us. The last trip we stayed at CB. We knew we did not have the EP. We planned to be in some lines. We enjoyed the sights of the longer queues in Mummy, MIB and Spiderman. We did rope drop for headliners. And we still had a most wonderful vacation the entire way.

This is exactly us. We like to have it for a busy time, and have stayed at RPR several times and Portifino once. But we've chosen Cabana Bay for the past two trips and the kids (19 and 12) say they like Cabana Bay the most. I think the difference with us is that we are now booking longer trips and not just one or two days like we used to. There is no problem seeing and doing everything multiple times when you have a whole week.
If you just have the two days, I would book one night at the Deluxe hotel if it's looking like it will be high crowds. If not high crowds, I think you could get it all done. The Harry Potter areas don't take the Express Pass for the headliners anyway, and if you are concentrating your time in those two areas you may find the pass unnecessary.

 

[bchbetha]

We had 3 days last year and stayed at Cabana Bay. I didn't miss them but it was also not busy. I like the themes of the ride queues; it enhances the experience for me.

 

[Planogirl]

There is no doubt that the EP is great but we love Cabana Bay. We have been during busy days so we use early entry and hit the popular attractions as quickly as possible. Keep in mind that you can always buy EP if you get overwhelmed.

 

[nighttowll]

Our first trip, we had the EP for half of the trip (booked 1night) and went without for the other half. It was fine, we didn't regret it because we focused on repeat rides and headliners the days we had the EP, and saved parades, shows, shopping, meals, and less popular attractions for the days without the EP. This plan worked great for us because it saved us a ton of money, but allowed us to still have a couple of days where we could really ride the most popular rides over and over without waiting. We have done this a few times. Book 1 night and get two days EP, then the rest of trip do without EP.

I have also done no EP at all. On those trips, I wouldn't say I regretted it, but I definitely missed it. You just get so spoiled.

I always try to do the EP if I can work it out. If it becomes a choice between going without or not going at all, I'll go without it, but I'll miss it.

 

[okeydokey]

Your dates will be VERY busy. For the big attractions, you will be waiting in line for a long time. We will only go now if we can stay onsite to get the express pass.

 

[kbelle8995]

No. Then again I have a tendency to be there during slow periods. I also take advantage of a Single rider line when it is available.

 

[2Monkeys]

We have only been one time and stayed at RPR with the Express Pass. When we saw the wait times for the non-EP lines, it made the money we spent on the room well worth it!

We are going back in May and are staying at RPR again. We priced buying the EP and staying at a cheaper place, but we came out cheaper just to book at RPR even at rack rate. We are hoping to get an AP rate for our stay, b/c even with adding the cost of upgrading one ticket to an AP we will still save $$.

I can't imagine doing it any other way!

 

[Alison_in_Wonderland]

Just got back today. We were there 1/19-1/22. Per Touring Plans (and other sites) crowds were supposed to be low (2/10-3/10.) However, Transformers had a 80m wait, Kong 105m wait, Spiderman 40m wait. I cannot tell you how many times we said to each other that we were so thankful to have the passes. We had waffled about the $300 price difference between CB and RPR and decided that we would spend the $$ for the UEP. It was so worth it. Rather than a 105m wait, we were completely through the ride in 30m. One of my kids was obsessed with Flight of the Hippogriff and while the wait was only 15m, he rode it 4x in those 15m (he would get off, run through the UEP line and be the only one!)

I was skeptical, but I cannot recommend it enough.