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10 Tips for Visiting Universal Orlando

Many people are very familiar with the Walt Disney World Resort and the top tips and tricks for visiting, however, the same is not always true for Universal Orlando, so we wanted to make sure you were prepared with our top 10 tips for visiting the Universal Orlando Resort!

1. Don’t take a large backpack

Many, if not most, of the attractions require guest to put their personal belongings in a locker before getting on the ride. This is not optional, so there are complimentary lockers provided at these select attractions. The lockers are approximately 8in x12in and can’t accommodate a larger bag. If you need to rent a larger locker, the cost is $2, which I'm sure you'd rather spend on some goodies at Honeydukes instead.

2. Take advantage of the Coke Freestyle mug

If you are a soda drinker, the Coke Freestyle mug is a great value for your park days. Refill locations can be found all throughout the parks, unlike the Disney World Resort mugs, which can only be refilled at - you guessed it - resorts. Note that they do not have a handle, so you’ll want a bag that it fits into when not in use.

3. Bring your own lanyard

This is the best way to store your park ticket, Express Pass, and resort key for easy access as you will need to scan it when going park to park and at every attraction where you use Express Pass.

4. Download the app ahead of time

You will definitely want to be familiar with the Universal Orlando app before you get to the park. This is especially important for entering Virtual Queues, mobile ordering food, and checking attraction wait times.

5. Exchange your money at Gringotts

You can visit the goblins at Gringotts to exchange your muggle money for wizarding coin. This is a super cool experience, and the money can then be used to purchase food and souvenirs around the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

6. Purchase a Park-to-Park ticket if you want to ride the Hogwarts Express

Because the Hogwarts Express truly takes you from inside Universal Park to inside Islands of Adventure (or vice versa), you must have a Park-to-Park ticket in order to ride. You'll also want to be sure to ride the Hogwarts Express in both directions because the experience is different depending on which direction you are traveling.

7. Make your dining reservations ahead of time

Visitors can make dining reservations at Universal Orlando 180 days in advance. Be sure to plan ahead!

8. Take a photo of your park passes

In the unlikely (or likely, you be the judge) that you lose your park passes, having a photo on hand makes it much faster for guest services to assist you with printing a replacement.

9. Take advantage of Express Pass

At Universal, Express Pass can save you tons of time and allow you to make the most out of your day. The regular Universal Express Pass allows you to bypass lines once for each participating attraction. The Universal Express Unlimited Pass will let you bypass the lines for attractions as many times as you want!

10. Purchase your tickets through an On The Road Travel agent

Purchasing Universal tickets through the team at On The Road Travel gives you early entry access to the parks - the equivalent of Disney World's "Extra Magic Hours." If you purchase tickets directly through Universal online they do NOT include that benefit.

To start planning your next trip, contact your On The Road Travel agent. You can also connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 
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