Do we need a plan? 2-Park - 1 Day Ticket

[2bug]

Hi guys, I have just logged into my old profile … and it worked! 10 years ago I spent hours on here preparing touring plans for Disney World.

10 years later we are in Orlando again … but only for one day. Kids are older now and definitely no more fairies, princesses etc for them.

So Universal it is! I'm trying to come up with some plan on which rides to do and what order.

We are: Me, Rebecca (43) my Partner, Patrick (42), Teenagers Liam and Caitlin (16 & 14)
Big Harry Potter Fans but also Roller Coaster Junkies. Show's are not on our priority list.
We are staying at Universal's Endless Summer Resort for 2 nights. We get into Orlando late afternoon on Sat, 8 February. So our full day at Universal is Sunday, 9 February 2020.

So where to start?
Early Admission seems to be at USF so we will be up at Main Entrance at about 7.30 am (early enough?)
I am a planner and love to have something to go by so we don't miss anything. My Kids still remember Disney and we got to see everything with hardly any waiting times.
Has anyone been lately and can recomend a plan to go by? That would be fantastic! Thanks a lot.

 

[bchbetha]

There is a sample itinerary plan on the Orlando Informer website that’s great for Harry Potter fans. I’d give that a look
Is it at all in budget to do Royal Pacific, Portofino or Hard Rock so you can get Express Passes? 1 day and 2 parks is a challenge without them, especially if you want a balance of Harry Potter exploring and riding. The parks often close on the early side at night so it might be a short day to accomplish a lot.
I’d sit down and make your must do list together. Download the wait time app and start to see how lines stack up (wait til the holidays are over). I’d probably have your 3 must dos per park and everything else will be just gravy. If you want to do Hagrids, you really, really will want to consider EPs since you know you have 1 really long line to get through.

 

[damo]

You might want to centre your plans around the Hagrid Coaster. It is a great combo of the two things your kids love. Download the app and watch times. You can set the app to a desired wait time and watch for that.

 

[Rinzler84]

I was at Universal in mid november 2019 and I would say check crowd calendars for that date. If you already have your hotel booked at Endless Summer Resort then that's okay otherwise I was going to recommend Sapphire Falls or Aventura as its quicker to get into the park.
I would make a plan of must do rides first and hit those as soon as possible. Only certain rides will be open for early admission.
If you want to ride Hagrid's motorbike ride then you will need to be at the gate when Islands of Adventure opens and walk fast (don't run) to the back and get in line for it. I did this in November and I still waited about an hour.
If Hagrids is not a must then I would hit all the must do rides first a list like Hulk, Kong, Forbidden Journey, Rip Ride Rockit, Gringotts, Revenge of the Mummy(my personal fav), and Men In Black. If you still have time after that then you can hit some of the other rides.
If you love roller coasters I think Revenge of the Mummy will be a hit. It has everything you could want on a ride.