Universal studios first timer

Which day is best

  • Sunday 9-7

    Votes: 1 33.3%
  • Monday 9-6

    Votes: 1 33.3%
  • Tuesday 10-6

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Wednesday 10-6

    Votes: 1 33.3%
  • Thursday 9-6

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    3

LoveDisneyDad

Earning My Ears
Joined
Mar 24, 2015
Hey,

We’ve done Disney several times but this time we are adding a day at universal studios Hollywood. My oldest is a HUGE Harry Potter fan. We are there during spring break (March 15-21) and are trying to figure out the best day to do USH.

We are staying right near the Disneyland park so the drive according the google maps is about an hour. We are trying to decude which day would be best between Sunday March 15, the hours are 9am-7pm, Monday 9-6, T/W 10-6, Th 9-6.

How long will we need at the park? Our priorities are Harry Potter, Jurassic world, transformers, the studio tour. I’d love to see everything but those are the top MUST SEES.

Last question, is it better to go Sunday and avoid rush hour? Or how much time would rush hour add to the trip on a weekday?

Thanks
 
Avoiding rush hour to get into LA is a real bonus. Rush hour not only adds time, it adds uncertainty to the time estimates. Plus you'd get a little more park time that day than some of the weekdays. During that touristy time of year, I don't think the swing of crowds between weekends/weekdays is as much, and whatever "lower crowd" day you pick for one park will mean higher crowds at the other.

So I vote for Sunday because of the travel time difference.

I can't speak to current crowds but the Jurassic World ride is the newest.

PHXscuba
 
I would plan to be there for the park’s open hours if you can manage it. Our Potter fan has happily spent hours casting spells with her interactive wand, soaking up all the detail in the shops, watching the performances, etc. You don’t want to cut that short because you planned for USH to be a half day.
 
I would plan to be there for the park’s open hours if you can manage it. Our Potter fan has happily spent hours casting spells with her interactive wand, soaking up all the detail in the shops, watching the performances, etc. You don’t want to cut that short because you planned for USH to be a half day.
We definitely plan to be there when the park opens and we will be staying until closing. I was trying to figure out which day is best? Does Sunday make sense to avoid rush hour? We are leaning towards Sunday because the park is open for 10 hours. Was hoping for some tips from people that have done it.
 


Sunday is best for local traffic and longer hours.

Tuesday is best for lower crowds.
 
Agree, Sunday for less traffic, M-Th for better crowds. A lot of the crowds on the weekends/breaks are local passholders, so weekdays during your spring break will probably not be too bad. The big districts around her (OC and LA have the week before or after Easter off so the locals will still be in school.
 
Agree, Sunday for less traffic, M-Th for better crowds. A lot of the crowds on the weekends/breaks are local passholders, so weekdays during your spring break will probably not be too bad. The big districts around her (OC and LA have the week before or after Easter off so the locals will still be in school.
Thanks for the input. I’m confused about the local school districts being in school. When I googled the Orange County public school district calendar, it said that they were on spring break March 16-20. Is this not accurate?
 


Thanks for the input. I’m confused about the local school districts being in school. When I googled the Orange County public school district calendar, it said that they were on spring break March 16-20. Is this not accurate?
There are multiple districts in Orange County, none of them are large large when comparing to LAUSD. It’s possible you ended up on the city of orange’s school district site.
 
There are multiple districts in Orange County, none of them are large large when comparing to LAUSD. It’s possible you ended up on the city of orange’s school district site.
Ok thank you. I am from Canada so I’m unfamiliar with how the US districts are set up.
 
Exactly, some OC schools have break that week but the majority have one of the three weeks after your trip. My kids have March 22-29 and most of my friends/relatives have the week before or after Easter.
 
PURCHASE YOUR TICKETS IN ADVANCE
GET TO THE PARK ABOUT 5 MINUTES BEFORE OPENING
HEAD TO UNIVERSAL STUDIOS FIRST
HEAD TO THE BACK OF THE PARK FIRST AND WORK YOUR WAY AROUND TO THE FRONT ENTRANCE
AVOID GOING TO THE PARKS ON THE WEEKENDS
GO TO THE PARK WITH A SMALL GROUP
IF A RIDE IS LONGER THAN A 15-25 MINUTE WAIT, USE THE SINGLE RIDER LANE
PLAN THE NEXT RIDE YOU WANT TO GO ON WHILE WAITING IN LINE AT YOUR CURRENT RIDE
These are the Points kept in mind while traveling to Universal Studios.
 
Thanks for the input. I’m confused about the local school districts being in school. When I googled the Orange County public school district calendar, it said that they were on spring break March 16-20. Is this not accurate?
This current thread lists many school districts (with links) so that you can find their holiday breaks throughout the year: 2020 Calendar of Events & School Breaks and DLR.
 
If you have only one day, get there about 30 minutes before hand so you can be at the gates when they open. Take those kids straight to Harry Potter and you may beat the rush. There's usually an hour wait in the mornings that lasts for most of the day. The best time to hit Harry Potter land, though, is the last hour of operation. It's usually walk on by that time.

If you want when you get in, you can head straight down to the lower lot and ride Jurassic, Transformers and the Mummy (the best coaster on property). These usually fill up later in the morning because everyone tries to hit HP first.

Your kids will LOVE the animal trick show. It's always fun and funny.

The Simpsons ride is not all that great, but it always has a 60 minute line. Don't bother.

Try the Butterbeer: it's yum! And the waffle and chicken sandwich at Cletus' Chicken Shack is the best park faire I've had in a long time. But use a fork and knife, because it's sticky.

The customer service at this park is second to none. They beat the pants off DL cast members. Really!!! When I'm there, it feels like the great customer experience I got when I used to go to WDW.

Whatever you do, stay all day and take advantage of the empty park in the evening.
 

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