Newbie heading to US/IOA.... Suggestions?

[bobandkevin]

Hi. We are heading to Orlando to enjoy universal studios and Island of adventure starting tomorrow June 14. We will be arriving mid day around noon. We are going to be staying until the middle of the day on Thursday so will have a full two days. Knowing that, and knowing it will be starting mid day tomorrow, probably arriving at the parks around two, any suggestion of where to start? We've only been here once before and it was before the Harry Potter area was finished. I would really appreciate any suggestions for a touring plan or at least a place to start. Thanks 1 million for your help. Kevin

 

[macraven]

love the orange kitty.
i have one just like her

are you staying on site?
if not, use the single rider lines to lessen ride line waits.

give more info so i can help you.
a lot depends if you are staying onsite at the deluxe hotels or off site.

 

[Sarahbelle341]

Preferred parking isn't really worth the price increase in my opinion. It just puts you on the same level as the park but there are escalators and elevators so its not a huge deal.

 

[bobandkevin]

We are staying at Royal pacific.
Thanks for your reply

love the orange kitty.
i have one just like her

are you staying on site?
if not, use the single rider lines to lessen ride line waits.

give more info so i can help you.
a lot depends if you are staying onsite at the deluxe hotels or off site.

 

[damo]

There have been Kong softs the past few days. You might want to keep an eye on that area around 3pm.

Are you going to do early admission? If so, that may help you to formulate a plan.

 

[macraven]

perfect answer, staying on site at my favorite hotel !

with the hotel stay, you will create a photo id card which is the express pass.
any ride or show in the park that has the express lines, you can use them.
unlimited usage you have with that photo id express pass.

you can cover both parks in the 2.5 days you will be there.

at the potter sections, gringotts and FJ, use the single rider line if lines are long.
you will miss some things by doing that so use the Early entry for hotel guests in the morning.
the potter sections will be open for one hour before the park officially opens.
do the potter rides then...
the two major rides have less line waiting at the end of the park day.
try it again the hour before the parks close.

hippograf at IOA in potterville has express lines.
there is another ride of potter that has ep but the name escapes me at the moment.

go to the park that has early entry and do the potter secction.

if you are at the studios, by pass TF/DE if they are open in EE and catch them later using the express line.

 

[bobandkevin]

Thanks for this great advice!!!


QUOTE="macraven, post: 55927956, member: 49094"]perfect answer, staying on site at my favorite hotel !

with the hotel stay, you will create a photo id card which is the express pass.
any ride or show in the park that has the express lines, you can use them.
unlimited usage you have with that photo id express pass.

you can cover both parks in the 2.5 days you will be there.

at the potter sections, gringotts and FJ, use the single rider line if lines are long.
you will miss some things by doing that so use the Early entry for hotel guests in the morning.
the potter sections will be open for one hour before the park officially opens.
do the potter rides then...
the two major rides have less line waiting at the end of the park day.
try it again the hour before the parks close.

hippograf at IOA in potterville has express lines.
there is another ride of potter that has ep but the name escapes me at the moment.

go to the park that has early entry and do the potter secction.

if you are at the studios, by pass TF/DE if they are open in EE and catch them later using the express line.[/QUOTE]

 

[bobandkevin]

Great. Thanks.

There have been Kong softs the past few days. You might want to keep an eye on that area around 3pm.

Are you going to do early admission? If so, that may help you to formulate a plan.

 

[soniam]

Even with Express Pass, the line at Minions at Studios can get long. If the line looks short, go for it. If you have park-to-park tickets, be sure to do the train in both directions. Dragon Challenge and Hulk, not sure if it is open yet, require completely empty hands and pockets. You go through a metal detector. Gringott's and Forbidden Journey use the lockers, but no metal detector. Forbidden Journey tosses you around, so hold be sure your pockets are tight or hold on really well to things. Allow time to look around Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade. Sometimes the Gringott's line is cut off about 30 minutes before closing. However, sometimes closer to closing the line is shorter. Grab a butterbeer or Tonnuck's caramel bar to snack on in the Gringott's and Forbidden Journey lines. The Mulberry St bakery in Seussland is really good. We thought Poseidon's Fury was a nice, cool, dark, hidden gem. It's long though.