Universal Studios has two very popular theme parks in Orlando, Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure. Each has a Harry Potter themed land (The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade at Islands of Adventure and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley at Universal Studios Florida), which continue to drive Universal Studios attendance numbers higher and higher. How can you see these two parks without spending all day waiting in line? Universal Studios has the answer with Universal Express Pass and Universal Express Unlimited Pass.
The passes will give you front of the line access to almost all rides at both parks (with the exception of the headline attractions at each Harry Potter themed land, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey at Islands of Adventure and Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts at Universal Studios). There are other rides and/or attractions that don’t have Express Pass queues, notably Hogwarts Express. The Express Pass queue is the way that you get your front of the line access, very similar to the Fast Pass+ entrances at Disney World and Disneyland.
The difference between the two passes is that the Express Pass will allow you front of the line access once per ride for the day you purchase the pass while the Express Unlimited Pass will allow you front of the line access an unlimited number of times for any ride for the day you purchase the pass. For example, with the Express Pass, you could ride the Hulk once while the Unlimited Pass will allow you to ride it as much as you, right up to the point you turned green.
The Express Pass starts at $39.99 for both parks ($34.99 for a single park) and the price rises as more passes are sold for that day. The Express Unlimited Pass starts at $59.99 for both parks or $49.99 for a single park and the price vary depending on projected attendance (busier days cost more). These prices are per person and are on top of the admission price. During the most heavily attended days at the parks, these passes can be very expensive, but that is when you would want to have them the most. On lightly attended days, the passes are less expensive, but may be unnecessary.
How can you save money, yet not stand in line all day? Universal Studios guests that stay at one of their original three resorts (Loews Portofino Bay Hotel, Hard Rock Hotel, or Loews Royal Pacific Resort) receive free Express Unlimited Passes for both parks for each day they stay on property. The free Express Unlimited Pass can represent a significant benefit (starting at $59.99 per guest) over staying off property if you were planning on purchasing the passes. This benefit is in addition to the early one hour entry into one of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter lands that you receive as a guests at one of the above resorts. Combining the two together allows you to ride almost everything at one of the parks in a single day.
If you are planning a multi-day visit to Universal Studios and don’t want to wait in lines, then consider a stay at a one of the original three Universal Studios resorts (note that stays at the newer Loews Sapphire Falls Resort and Universal’s Cabana Bay Beach Resort don’t qualify for Express Unlimited Passes). Staying on property with the Express Unlimited Passes has saved us a lot of time and money during the busy summer months.
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