View Full Version : Definetly buy a Express Pass For IOA
lee@sheff
4 Sep 07, 12:20 PM
We bought our express passes fo $19.99
It saved hours in queueing
peter+lynne
4 Sep 07, 12:37 PM
depends when you go, we bought some for universal last september and didnt use them.
Mr & Mrs Jones
4 Sep 07, 12:39 PM
Did you buy the passes on the day or in advance?
lee@sheff
4 Sep 07, 12:39 PM
Did you buy the passes on the day or in advance?
buy them at the gate
lee@sheff
4 Sep 07, 12:40 PM
is that per person?
yes it makes the day less stressful
Buying these things only gives the parks ideas more chances to make money. Get there early or go late in the day to ride what you want. Disney's Fast Pass system is the best way then everyone gets a fair chance. I'm certainly not going to pay again after it's cost so much to enter the park in the first place.
Even at $20 each, it would've cost me another $120 per day we were in Universal to get these. They've already had enough of me from the cost of admission to the park.
:mad:
We bought our express passes fo $19.99
It saved hours in queueing
Absolutely agree we paid £100 for the five of us last month. We managed to do 17 rides. So much so that Spiderman was a 75 min wait we got on so quickly they had to chuck the glasses in at us as we forgot to pick them up.
depends when you go, we bought some for universal last september and didnt use them.
I agree. In fact my friends who are just back from Orlando stayed at RPR for two nights in the 3rd week of August. They said that they walked straight on to the rides without having to use their passes. They loved staying at RPR but they definitely didnt need the passes.
Margaret
lee@sheff
4 Sep 07, 12:44 PM
Buying these things only gives the parks ideas more chances to make money. Get there early or go late in the day to ride what you want. Disney's Fast Pass system is the best way then everyone gets a fair chance. I'm certainly not going to pay again after it's cost so much to enter the park in the first place.
Even at $20 each, it would've cost me another $120 per day we were in Universal to get these. They've already had enough of me from the cost of admission to the park.
:mad:
i would rather pay then be tight and not enjoy my day
i would rather pay then be tight and not enjoy my day
I don't think it's fair to call someone 'tight', if they've already shelled out a fortune for tickets/hotel/flights/food for a large group of people.
Redfoxcar
4 Sep 07, 12:49 PM
Hiya
imho, id only get the express passes if you are not planning to get to the parks early, we got back 2 weeks ago and got to universal for 830am ( official park hours were 9am), and we did jimmy neutron, shrek, the mummy 3 times in a row and men in black twice all within the first hour n a half, similiar in IOA, with the popular rides, passes good idea for those who havent done these parks before but not necessary with planning.
Nick
I think it depends on the time of year ,we stayed at RPR April12/13 this year and we were really grateful to have FOTL because the queues were horrendous ,I agree that it would be better not to have to pay again when you have already paid to get in but I'd rather have them and get on the rides than be frustrated and miss out because the lines are too long.
The only annoying thing was late in the evening on the hulk the staff were not checking who had passes and loads of kids were using the express line which really really bugged me having paid to stay in RPR
Cyclospora
4 Sep 07, 12:53 PM
I agree. In fact my friends who are just back from Orlando stayed at RPR for two nights in the 3rd week of August. They said that they walked straight on to the rides without having to use their passes. They loved staying at RPR but they definitely didnt need the passes.
Margaret
I second this! We stayed there on Friday night of Labor Day weekend and didn't really NEED to use the fast passes on the Friday or Saturday. In fact I have posted pics of the queue times of rides a day or 2 before the weekend in my trippies (Yoohoo from thundery Orlando!)
We loved staying at the hotel though and would definitely do it again. :D
Its not a matter of being 'tight' (which isnt a pleasant thing to say). Some people choose to buy them (I have) and some dont. Buying them made for a far more pleasant experience.
However it is difficult to work out sometimes whether you need them or not. Our friends said they didnt in the third week of August, but how do you judge before you enter the park?
Margaret
peter+lynne
4 Sep 07, 12:56 PM
buy them at the gate
its cheaper to buy them online
digdisney
4 Sep 07, 01:00 PM
Mid August as were about to enter IOA a lovely kind family who must have had enough gave us 6 of these that had hardly been used. I was very grateful to them. It was great not having to queue, but I doubt very much I will ever buy them.
stassyc
4 Sep 07, 01:01 PM
Is that price per day or is it for the duration of your flexiticket?
I know i used to say id never buy them as i thought it was a rip off BUT then we went in mid July. We flew around the park (IOA) and did every ride (ones we'd never have done had we had to q). I definitley would buy them again IF it was really busy. You get your moneys worth as you'd probably do twice as much as if you had to q all day.
lee@sheff
4 Sep 07, 01:07 PM
Is that price per day or is it for the duration of your flexiticket?
per day per person
The boss and I went to IOA and US last September and we were on the rides faster that those with express passes :d: I personally don't like the idea of them, aren't we all supposed to be valued guests or are just some of us second class :mad2:
However it is difficult to work out sometimes whether you need them or not. Our friends said they didnt in the third week of August, but how do you judge before you enter the park?
Margaret
You can buy them while in the park, we saw someone practically begging for the tickets quickly from the staff early in the morning even though queue weren't that long. You get a feeling 10mins wait to some people is just too much.
Strangely I enjoyed MIB more with a 10min wait than I did with a 5 min wait as they took us through a different entrance with a sort of pretend lift, when I'd done the ride a week before we bypassed all that and we were put straight on the ride.
dibbaholic
4 Sep 07, 01:14 PM
What time of year do you go? We usually go in early Feb when the ques aren't big anyway.
lee@sheff
4 Sep 07, 01:15 PM
What time of year do you go? We usually go in early Feb when the ques aren't big anyway.
august but it was quiet but i dont like queueing and for $20 it was nothing
we got some 2 years go to use on 26th Dec, a complete waste of money for us, as we only used them to go on the Mummy as the park was empty!
If going when the park is busy could be a good idea.
we got some 2 years go to use on 26th Dec, a complete waste of money for us, as we only used them to go on the Mummy as the park was empty!
If going when the park is busy could be a good idea.
We went August this year with 5-day tickets, I fully intended to see the parks and do a few rides on the first four visits and get express passes on the last day to do the rides we couldn't do. We actually only went four days in the end and did everything without passes which saved a few $$s.
I think everyone should wait a see what its like first or only buy in advance if you know you really want a lie-in as rides such as Spiderman, Jimmy Neutron and earthquake (not sure why it does) will always have a queue which builds up steadily over the day.
disney owl
4 Sep 07, 01:36 PM
If paying out £100 for passes I'd pay a little bit more & stay 1 night at an onsite hotel. We stayed at the Hard rock hotel this August & got breakfast & 1 night stay for 4 of us for $270 approx £135 . That price also included paying extra for a roll away bed so that my DD & DS didn't have to share a bed.
With passes you can only get front of line once for each ride whilst with a hotel pass you can go on each ride as many times as you want.
lee@sheff
4 Sep 07, 01:37 PM
If paying out £100 for passes I'd pay a little bit more & stay 1 night at an onsite hotel. We stayed at the Hard rock hotel this August & got breakfast & 1 night stay for 4 of us for $270 approx £135 . That price also included paying extra for a roll away bed so that my DD & DS didn't have to share a bed.
With passes you can only get front of line once for each ride whilst with a hotel pass you can go on each ride as many times as you want.
were all wednesday arnt we
Georgetuk
4 Sep 07, 02:16 PM
i would rather pay then be tight and not enjoy my day
I definitley think thats unfair (and a little rude) there are many, many people on this forum who stetch their means to allow themselves and their families to travel to a dream destination.
peter+lynne
4 Sep 07, 02:24 PM
were all wednesday arnt we
whats that mean????
:confused2 :confused2
FLGirl-UKNow
4 Sep 07, 02:31 PM
It certainly depends on what time of year you go for this to be worth it. If this is something you would consider I would enter the park first and see what the queues are like. It can make a day easier for bigger groups and a lot less stressful on some of the lil ones having to wait.
I can not stress it enough on how much the express pass is worth when attending Holloween Horror Nights. I would never consider going without it. We've seen people waiting for over 2 hours to go through a haunted house and with the pass the wait is often less than 15 minutes.
Circumstances are different for everyone. It's a good suggestion but worth considering after looking at your own situation.
My mum is in Orlando at the moment and she said that they had to buy them when they went to US/IOA last week because the queues were really long and they found the wait, in the heat, unbearable. However they have been getting to the parks midmorning (do they listen to me!!???!!). I've been in October and December before and never felt the need to purchase them, especially if we've gotten there really early and are going in as the park is opening. I guess it depends when you go, what time you get to the park and if you mind waiting. For us in the past I've thought that it would be an unnecessary extra to buy them (another way for the parks to squeeze more $ out of you) when we didn't mind waiting a bit.
Hmm ... flights & villa in one of the most expenisve times of the year, car hire, park tickets, spending money, taxi to from the airport .... I've seen little change from £9,000.
What do I need to shell out to avoid being called "tight"? Universal have had enough of my cash without trying to screw any more from me. For a single day we'd be paying the entrance fee, $11 to park and $120 for express passes. Might as well just hand over my wallet and say "it's yours".
lee@sheff
4 Sep 07, 03:59 PM
Hmm ... flights & villa in one of the most expenisve times of the year, car hire, park tickets, spending money, taxi to from the airport .... I've seen little change from £9,000.
What do I need to shell out to avoid being called "tight"? Universal have had enough of my cash without trying to screw any more from me. For a single day we'd be paying the entrance fee, $11 to park and $120 for express passes. Might as well just hand over my wallet and say "it's yours".
Isnt money for spending!!!!
lee@sheff
4 Sep 07, 04:05 PM
whats that mean????
:confused2 :confused2
were both wednesday fans
In semi-defence of Universal their ticket prices were incredibly cheap in the first place (for me) and seem to still be fairly cheap. If they choose to keep prices low and try to charge additionals I don't have to take I'm more than happy.
But don't feel obliged to take Express passes, get there early and just walk on the rides, relax later in the day and do the shows. It doesn't make you tight, just sensible with money, only spending on things you need to.
hayleyneeyore
4 Sep 07, 04:13 PM
We stayed the 1 night in RPR and it was sooo worth it for both of us - and it would be even moreso I imagine for a family of 4.
We got to stay in a lovely hotel overnight, just a boat ride away from the parks, and the room keys were just worth their weight in gold, I can't stress. There was a 75minute wait for Spiderman and we went straight on 3 times in a row. It was just awesome walking onto the rides over and over again. Next time we do US/IOA, I'll definately stay the night!!
peter+lynne
4 Sep 07, 04:25 PM
were both wednesday fans
has sheffield still got two teams then???? blimey i thought they had given up!! ;) ;)
It bugged me this year, as previously the Fastpass was free and now it's another add-on, but every organisation is out to screw everyone, so Universal are no different. I don't like the separation into 1st and 2nd class visitors this pay system produces and would rather see an honest across-the-board price rise.
After all that, we go early. If there's a queue we don't bother, but we only missed Jimmy Neutron this time because of the line. No great loss.
Even so, Universal are still cheaper than Disney and you can get good deals - fre days, etc. I don't think Disney does free anything, does it?
peter+lynne
4 Sep 07, 04:46 PM
yes free magic!!!!!
scottishmum
4 Sep 07, 05:08 PM
Universal know what they are doing by charging extra for these passes, it kind of stuck in my throat when we were there at easter/spring break they were charging $50 each for an express pass, to buy these for my family would have added an extra £75 for one day at the park!! rather than tight i think i would have been MAD to pay that, they are getting greedy and makes me think whatever you pay they will always want more, after all everyone has paid in the 1st place to go in there. :angry:
lee@sheff
4 Sep 07, 05:12 PM
Universal know what they are doing by charging extra for these passes, it kind of stuck in my throat when we were there at easter/spring break they were charging $40 each for an express pass, to buy these for my family would have added an extra £60 for one day at the park!! rather than tight i think i would have been MAD to pay that, they are getting greedy and makes me think whatever you pay they will always want more, after all everyone has paid in the 1st place to go in there. :angry:
yes but it is only once a year and £60 is only what you would pay for a night out in england and it is the only way you can get finished for the afternoon.
when we went to seaworld we didnt leave until 4.30 which is way to late if you want to go out and have some drinks
you can get 7 days at universal for $90 - compared to Disney prices, that's very cheap, so I can see why they feel they can charge for extras.
scottishmum
4 Sep 07, 05:32 PM
err lee I dont know where you go out in england but i wouldnt pay £60 for a night out , even if was in scotland! That £60 would be extra to what i have already paid to go on the rides etc, now maybe if it had been the $19.99 that they were charging when you were there I maybe would have paid it, but $49.99 each for 3 people I dont think so.
Thats why next year we arent doing universal at all, :omg:
its cheaper to buy them online
Express pass is the same price either online or at the gate. I always recommend waiting and see if you need them. Arrive early and beat the crowds. Buy a 7 day ticket for $89 and arrive at the turnstiles by 8:30 AM. Then save the afternoons for the shows or leave early.
If you are doing the parks in one day, then get them. Otherwise just get there early.
annie-lisa
4 Sep 07, 06:04 PM
we usually go on a thursday/friday, reccomended non busy days. get there about 10 am, do ioa first and the universal and very rarely have to wait in line for anything :wave:
We stayed one week at RPR and therfore got the FOTL passes which was great as you can go on each ride as many times as you like not just once that the Express pass lets you. It would have been great but we were there from 16th December for one week and are early park getters to, so we walked onto every ride anyway!!
Having said that, I would always stay at a Universal hotel as they are lovely and you never know if the park is going to be busy or not.
We were there in June and at one point the wait for Spiderman was 90mins. We had FOLP and stayed at Portofino bay, which was beautiful. It was great just to walk on everything, but we had the benefit of staying in a nice hotel, the water taxis to City Walk and were able to have a meal and a drink without Dh driving. We are going again in a couple of weeks and are staying a couple of nights at HRH. Maybe we wont need the passes but its still nice to have them.
coombsyl
4 Sep 07, 07:56 PM
you can get 7 days at universal for $90 - compared to Disney prices, that's very cheap, so I can see why they feel they can charge for extras.
I agree with Bev - we get annual power passes for $119 - now I think that is cheap in anyone's book . I think Universal keep their entry prices low all in all.
I think a night in one of their resort hotels probably works out cheaper than buying two days worth of Express Passes and makes for a nice experience if you can manage it.
doradaxplorer
4 Sep 07, 07:58 PM
what about for the HHN can you get them and do you need them for this???
LizzyBear
4 Sep 07, 08:01 PM
We won't be buying them unless it looks busy, don't see the point on spending money on something that'll be of little or no use. We have 2 days planned for Universal and even when we went last time and it was relatively busy we found we didn't need a full day for US (didn't use any express passes either and this is when they had the free system like Disney still do)
Shellzbelz
4 Sep 07, 10:08 PM
I've always looked longingly at the express passes when we've been there at busy times but they were never as cheap as $19.99. Also with 6 in our party it does make a difference. If I was on my own I probably wouldn't mind forking out $20 but to get us all passes would cost $120 and I would resent paying that (reduces the amount you can speand in Wal-mart ;) ). We make good use of the 5 day flex pass and leave early if it gets busy and come back another day.
wrpac00
4 Sep 07, 11:09 PM
We bought our express passes fo $19.99
It saved hours in queueing
Bad mistake, we did IOA in 3.5 hrs and Universal in 3hrs and saved ourselves $80. These passes are a waste of money, just get to park when it opens and you do half of it before most people arrive, you live and learn.
We bought the 2 park FPs when we went because we wanted to do both in one day and they were worth every penny & we would probably buy them again :thumbs-up
ju_itfc
5 Sep 07, 10:40 AM
We thought about it in November last year but were glad we didn't. Certainly Universal was busier than IOA at the time we went but even so the longest queue was for Jaws of all rides, and that was only 30mins.
IOA was dead when we went in comparison to other times we have been. We actually went on everything at least three times (Spidey about 10 times) and were finished in the park by 2pm after getting there at 9am. IOA is a very small park and when ride times are low it can easily be done in 4 or 5 hours, even with revisiting the rides a few times.
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