Harry Potter- Wizarding World FAQ

[mickeyluv'r]

Is is "smart"/worthwhile to get the Universal Express Pass?

In years past, probably not so much. now, it depends how you value your time. We usually feel like staying at one of the onsite deluxes is a good deal for us.

One tip - you can print your FOTL pass in the morning of the day you arrive, and use it all night the day you check out. So one night can = two days of FOTLA passes. Two onsite nights= 3 days of FOTL passes, but the value is related to how much time you want to spend unpacking and sleeping.

any of the dining deals?

They would not be a good deal for us. Well, except for one- club level!

Club level has a few complications, but sometimes it is a good deal for us. Adding CL is usually a flat fee per room, per day. So it is a bad deal for one person, but a better deal for a family of four with two teens.

CL is a place to get breakfast and snacks. It usually costs much more than groceries, so not a good deal if you like offsite condos/rental houses. It is sometimes a better deal than food court breakfasts.

However.... CL's generally only become a decent deal if you are also at the hotel for the 5-7pm appetizers or 8pm desserts.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I'll carry on taking pictures that mean something to me.

Like I said, I get why people take them. I was talking for myself and what interests me, not what interests you. I don't know you. I can't possibly answer for you.

There are at least three parts to this:

1. crowd levels- are we inconveniencing someone else? My favorite photo from our visit to US was taken in a quiet courtyard. Lovely gardens. Nothing about the shot screams UNIVERSAL. I kind of love that WE know where it was taken, but mostly nobody else would think- theme park photo!

2. audience- who is going to look at my photo? If I was delivering the Gettysburg Address at a critical point in the history of our nation that will be treasured for years, I'd want it recorded.

Most my photos get replaced with new photos every few months. Only a handful of folks ever see most of them, and mostly I only share/save the shots I personally find interesting, because that's what I enjoy. I think I have that in common with the people I know. When we meet, we usually only share a few of our best shots.

3. originality- Yesterday, I caught an image of a rainbow over a business I like; that turned an every day scene into something a bit special, IMO. The store owner smiled when he saw it!

I like to think I usually consider all three when taking photos, but they are 3 very different concepts. Uncrowded theme park days are very different from crowded ones. Celebrity photos are their own thing! Creative photos are almost always special and worthwhile, IMO. Even if they are strangers I'll never meet.

 

[macraven]

This is a faq thread that is to help others find the answers to questions they need help with.

Let's keep it on track please.


If you have any links for Potter, please share them and i wil include them in the quick access link sticky.

 

[schumigirl]

This is a faq thread that is to help others find the answers to questions they need help with.

Let's keep it on track please.


If you have any links for Potter, please share them and i wil include them in the quick access link sticky.

Wonderful idea Mac...........the thread really shouldn't have taken such a swerve.........

Normal service has been resumed.........

 

[Kivara]

Anyone know if there is any good Fawkes the phoenix merch in the shops? My son LOVES Fawkes, and Fawkes merchandise is hard to come by...their online shop showed nothing.

BTW, I mean like mugs, shirts, etc...he bought the plush Fawkes the first time he saw it!

 

[schumigirl]

https://www.universalorlando.com/Me...rry_Potter/Toys/Fawkes_the_Phoenix_Plush.html

Found this earlier today Kivara........strange coincidence!!!

A friend asked me if I could get one in September if they had them.........haven't checked if they're in stock or not though..........

 

[Kivara]

Thanks so much Schumi! He does have that one (and they usually have TONS of plushies in stock...never seen them run out)

 

[schumigirl]

Lol........did I just read a post and only read half??

Hope you get something he wants.........

I'll definitely get one for friends granddaughter.......heck, I've brought her back every bring else may as well add that too..........

I always seem to have a list for folks..........not this year! Just this though........lol

 

[Meteora]

Hi everyone!

I'm planning to go next Monday. We had originally planned to start in Diagon Alley, since it's the only thing that will be new for us. However, I know that Universal has been doing EE every morning, and we are staying off-site so we won't be able to access that. Would it make more sense for us to start at IOA in the hopes that it might open a bit early for all guests (as I recall Universal parks often do) and then start heading over to DA via the Hogwarts Express around or just after opening time for both parks? I don't want to spend time waiting in line to enter if we could already be in one of the parks. Thank you so much for your insight!

 

[macraven]

by the time you reach the potter ville area, it will already have guests in that section.

those that do EE take the HE to the other park and reach it by 9

 

[andrewilley]

If one of the parks does not have EE (and you are not staying onsite of course) head to that park first, and be there so you are at the gate at least half an hour before its regular opening time (ideally a bit more if you want to be at the front of the crowd). They often let people in 30 mins early, and then head straight for the HP area and the feature ride in that park. With luck, if they let you in early enough, you might beat the Hogwarts Express crowds coming over from the other park. Might.

Andre

 

[Meteora]

Thank you both so much! We've been fortunate enough to do FJ a couple of times already, so we won't be upset if we miss it this time. It just seems like being in an open park and doing SOMETHING is a better use of our time then waiting in line at the other park.

 

[Yumi696]

I have a question...

So I was on Touring Plans earlier creating a tentative touring plan for the USF side of Universal Orlando. We would be going on August 30, maybe also August 31 & September 1, depending on ticket prices.

Aaaand I'm confused because I know people say that Escape from Gringott lines are CRAZY and get super long but Touring Plans is showing me that I have at most a 20 minute wait on any given day for this ride. Does the crowd level in the park really plummet that much at the tail end of August/beginning of September?

 

[macraven]

last few days of aug and early sept/much prior to labor day weekend, the crowds do not have the crowds.

so for a max of a 20 minute wait for some rides, seems logical.

 

[Yumi696]

So if we were doing the 3rd/4th of September the park would actually be crowded, but since it's the middle of the week and it's at the end of August, there's not that many people?

 

[macraven]

who knows..

check the costs for the ep and parks for your dates.
that is a good way to measure crowd levels.


the charts are updated and prices can/will increase when UO predicts crowd level changes.

prices go up, they never come down.

 

[Wendywb]

Quick question about HE. If you start in 1 park and ride HE to the other park, do you now finish your day at the new park? Or ride back to the original park and continue touring it? I am having a hard time finding info on this.

 

[andrewilley]

Quick question about HE. If you start in 1 park and ride HE to the other park, do you now finish your day at the new park? Or ride back to the original park and continue touring it? I am having a hard time finding info on this.

The experience is different in both directions, so if you've got time I'd suggest taking the return journey at some point.

Andre

 

[Kivara]

Wendy, you get off the train at the other side and exit into the other park. Then it is up to you whether you stay in that park or get back in line and ride the other way, returning to the park you started from.

Either way you must exit completely first, you can't just stay put and ride back Hope that make sense!

 

[Richard M Nixon]

Which is the better of the two food locations? I think I remember the podcast really enjoying the Leaky Cauldron much more then Three Broomsticks.