Up next in 10
10 Tips For Adults Visiting Universal Orlando Resort Florida
Jan 29, 2025
Discover 10 things that all adults visiting Universal Resort (Universal Studios, Universal Island of Adventures, Volcano Bay) without young kids need to know to have a successful and fantastic tip. This includes what it is, who it is for, best time to go, what tickets to buy, how to see all of the Harry Potter attractions, how to prepare, how to make the most of your days in the park and what to take.
I would love you to give the video a "thumbs up" and if you subscribed to the channel.
Every week Gary Bembridge's Tips For Travellers Channel posts a video to help you make the most of your precious travel time and money on both land and at sea. First-hand travel inspiration, advice and tips based on the over 20 years I have been travelling every month.
Follow me on these social media platforms:
- YouTube: http://bit.ly/TFT_YouTube2
- Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/tipsfortravellers
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tipsfortravellers
- Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/garybembridge
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
in this video you're going to learn ten
0:02
things that adults visiting Universal
0:04
Orlando Resort absolutely need to know
0:07
to have a great time I'm gay beverage
0:09
off tips for travelers my first thing is
0:12
what exactly is Universal Orlando Resort
0:15
well it consists of two theme parks a
0:17
waterpark ad a shopping complex so you
0:20
have Universal Studios which opened in
0:21
1990 and it celebrates all things to do
0:25
with film and television islands of
0:28
adventure which is located right next
0:30
door opened in 1999 has a whole series
0:32
of different adventure areas again
0:34
themed around television shows and
0:36
movies volcano Bay is the waterpark
0:39
CityWalk is a shopping and dining an
0:43
entertainment area where you have lots
0:45
of bars lots of restaurants movie houses
0:48
and also of course associated with the
0:50
whole Universal Orlando Resort are a
0:52
number of hotels which are linked to the
0:56
whole complex the second thing you need
0:58
to know is that the Universal parks are
1:00
waterboxx
1:00
are much more adult focus than the
1:03
Disney parks and water parks which are
1:05
located of course also in Orlando so if
1:08
you're looking for a much more adult
1:09
experience Universal Studios Islands
1:11
adventure the hotels and the waterpark
1:13
are going to give you a much more adult
1:15
experience a lot of the rides are
1:17
restricted to certain height levels
1:20
which of course excludes a lot of the
1:21
younger kids so it's more teenagers all
1:24
the kids and of course much more adults
1:27
it doesn't mean the kids aren't catered
1:29
for doesn't mean the kids aren't welcome
1:30
saying that the third thing you need to
1:32
know the best time to go to Universal if
1:34
you're an adult and you're not traveling
1:36
with kids who have to go in school
1:38
holidays the best time to go are
1:40
weekdays avoid weekends definitely avoid
1:43
any week which has school holidays
1:45
whether it's in the United States or the
1:47
big countries in Europe like the UK and
1:49
also avoid public holiday weekends like
1:52
Easter visit on weekdays and avoid any
1:55
times when there's any sort of holiday
1:57
so some of the really good times to go
1:59
for example are from early January
2:01
through to that mid-february is very
2:03
good time to go and also early June then
2:05
avoid all of the middle of summer he
2:07
gets again quiet sort of September
2:09
October time and early in December is a
2:12
great time to go
2:12
for all of the hard stuff kicks in the
2:15
fourth thing you need to know is how
2:16
long should you visit now each parks
2:17
gonna take you at least a full day so a
2:20
full day at Universal Studios are full
2:22
day and Islands of Adventure a full day
2:24
of the waterpark
2:25
you could probably spend a whole day at
2:27
City Walk as well although of course you
2:29
can just combine that and you can stay
2:31
there much later after you've been to
2:32
visit a park the fifth thing you should
2:34
decide is whether you should stay at one
2:36
of the on-property hotels there's a wide
2:39
range of them bring a different prices
2:41
well there is a number of benefits one
2:43
of the benefits is if you're staying at
2:45
the hotel you get into the parks an hour
2:47
before opening time non-normal opening
2:49
time it's nine o'clock in the morning
2:50
which you can get the inn at eight
2:52
o'clock now getting in earlier is really
2:53
fantastic because you have a greater
2:54
chance of getting on those really really
2:56
popular rights and have a great time
2:58
before the crowds now depending on which
2:59
hotel you stare some of the hotels also
3:01
include in the hotel rate the Universal
3:05
Express this is the Fast Pass which
3:06
allows you to go on rides by skipping
3:09
queues this is a real boon i'ma talk
3:10
about that a little bit later so if you
3:12
are gonna stay on property look at the
3:13
hotels which include that because that
3:14
is a real big plus has some other perks
3:17
where for example if you buy things in
3:19
the parks they will send it back to the
3:21
hotel for you they also have free
3:23
transport to tune from the hotels to the
3:25
parks and to city wok and also you can
3:28
charge items and food in the park to
3:31
your hotel rooms the downside is they do
3:33
tend to be often a little bit on the
3:35
more pricey side so as an adult you
3:37
might want to stay more down on
3:38
International Drive at one of the more
3:40
business or conference hotels because it
3:42
will probably be cheaper now for example
3:44
I stayed at places like the Crowne Plaza
3:46
and it's you know a couple of minutes
3:49
away it was much cheaper but it was
3:51
still really easy to get to the parks so
3:53
what's the ticket should you buy now you
3:55
do need a individual ticket for each of
3:57
the parks what I suggest you do is look
3:59
online at the Universal site or on the
4:01
app and you'll find various permutations
4:02
based on the number of days you want to
4:04
buy the number of parks and whether you
4:06
want to move between parks and in
4:07
particular day so take a look and
4:09
compare prices to find the right ticket
4:11
the other thing I would strongly suggest
4:13
you look at is look at the Universal
4:15
Express or the Fast Pass now at Disney
4:18
parks you automatically get three Fast
4:20
Pass two different rides including the
4:23
ticket no matter what type of tickets
4:24
you've bought at Universal it's
4:25
different
4:26
by the base ticket and then you have to
4:28
buy a Fastpass Universal Express
4:30
separately they have one which allows
4:32
you one Fast Pass on a ride so you can
4:35
only basically go once or the unlimited
4:37
it does cost much more and they can cost
4:39
almost as much as a whole ticket but it
4:41
is a way of really maximizing your time
4:44
in the park so if you can stretch it I
4:46
would strongly recommend you buy the
4:47
Universal Fast Pass and it can really
4:50
give you a great time in the park you
4:52
can ride many more of the rides and you
4:55
can ride them multiple times within your
4:56
limited time in the park on a day now my
4:59
seventh tip is sort of link to that The
5:00
Wizarding World of Harry Potter is
5:02
spread between both Universal Studios
5:04
and islands of adventure you put
5:06
Hogwarts in the islands of adventure and
5:08
you've got Diagon Alley in Universal
5:10
Studios if you want to go between them
5:12
in the same day you can ride on the
5:14
Hogwarts Express it's a great experience
5:15
but you do have to have a to park ticket
5:18
so it's another way of making you spend
5:20
more money but it's very important if
5:22
you do want to ride on the Hogwarts
5:24
Express you're going to have to buy a to
5:26
park ticket for that particular day that
5:29
you want to do that
5:30
now my eighth tip is that I do recommend
5:33
that you go to both of the parks because
5:35
the great rides are spread between the
5:36
two parks but what you do need to do
5:38
before you get there before you go on
5:41
your trip is you look at the rise you
5:42
want to do and put them in order you
5:44
want to do them this becomes very
5:45
important when you look at how you
5:47
tackle a park so what rights do I
5:49
actually recommend you do in Universal
5:52
Studios the rides I recommend are the
5:54
following Harry Potter and the escape
5:56
from Green Gods raced through New York
5:59
Starring Jimmy Fallon The Simpsons Ride
6:01
transformers the ride is another great
6:03
ride fast and furious a brand new ride
6:06
which opened in 2018 now if you enter
6:08
thrill rides there are two fantastic
6:10
thrill rides the first is revenge of the
6:12
mummy which is in the dark and Hollywood
6:15
Rip Ride Rockit in terms of islands of
6:17
adventure the rights that I strongly
6:19
recommend you do are the following first
6:22
of all my favorite ride of all which is
6:23
Harry Potter and The Forbidden Journey
6:25
the second which is another big favorite
6:27
of mine is spider-man with the King Kong
6:29
ride which is really good
6:31
another great ride is the Jurassic Park
6:34
River adventure and as a Dudley do-right
6:37
rip saw Falls
6:39
and Popeye and Bluto x' bilge rat barges
6:43
now for thrill-seekers is the Incredible
6:46
Hulk right be really clear about the
6:48
rights that you want to do and put them
6:49
in order that you want to do them so you
6:51
make sure that the rights you absolutely
6:53
want to do you do and you get to them at
6:55
least once and this becomes really
6:56
important when I head into my next step
6:58
but how do you make the most of your day
7:00
in the park first thing you should do is
7:02
on your smartphone is download the
7:05
Universal Studios app it's a really
7:06
important app because it not only gives
7:08
you directions and information but it
7:10
also helps you track the wait times it
7:12
tells you the wait times in each of the
7:15
right through the day so you can adapt
7:17
and adjust as you go there's lots of
7:19
information that's maps it helps you
7:21
find places it'll give you directions to
7:23
places around the park on the app you
7:25
can also do things like buy tickets by
7:27
the Universal Express fast passes so
7:29
download the app before you go make sure
7:31
you familiar with the app very important
7:33
as you head in though is grab the map
7:35
and the flyer for that day because that
7:37
will also tell you if there's any be any
7:39
changes or rides closed and short notes
7:41
I found the app doesn't always tell you
7:43
if rides are closed on a particular day
7:45
but the flyer will tell you so don't
7:46
just grab it on your way through the
7:48
second thing you do is whether you're
7:50
staying in an on sub property so that
7:51
means by 8:00 o'clock or your property
7:54
by 9:00 o'clock make sure that you there
7:55
before the park opens now bear in mind
7:58
if you are staying either you know
8:00
on-site or off-site it's going to take
8:02
you a while to get there so if you're
8:03
driving there for example you've got a
8:05
park or quite a long way you've got
8:07
security
8:08
so make sure that you're at the park way
8:10
before it opens now very importantly
8:12
because what I've discovered although
8:13
there's the early opening at 8 o'clock
8:15
in the morning things aren't that busy
8:16
they'll actually open the park to the
8:19
general public who not staying on
8:20
property way before 9 o'clock so make
8:22
sure you get there early
8:23
the miniature in make a beeline for
8:27
number one ride that you have on your
8:29
list get there as quickly as you can
8:31
you'll find this probably no waiting
8:32
time at all or very little waiting time
8:34
and you can go on it and if you want to
8:36
you can go on again and get to your
8:38
second and third guys and basically by
8:39
sort of 10:00 10:30 you've done your top
8:41
three rides at least once and you'll
8:43
find it start to get really busy from
8:46
then onwards and waiting times increase
8:48
now if you have decided that you can't
8:50
stretch to the
8:52
fast faster Universal Express another
8:54
little tip is on many of these rides the
8:56
very popular rides and the thrill rides
8:57
there's a single rider line so one of
9:00
the things to do is head for the single
9:02
rider line
9:03
assuming that you don't feel you have to
9:05
travel with your travel companions
9:07
you'll find the waiting times can be
9:08
very very quick and you know most the
9:10
rides only last you know a couple of
9:11
minutes anyway so you're doing them by
9:13
yourself as a single ride is not a big
9:15
issue
9:16
I didn't think if you've using a
9:17
universal pass of course you know just
9:19
use it and use it and use it you'll find
9:21
it incredibly quick they're really good
9:23
at moving that line through really
9:24
quickly keep checking that out look at
9:27
waiting times because if this arrived
9:28
further down your list that you find has
9:30
really low waiting times you might want
9:32
to make a beeline for that one and get
9:34
on it before it gets already popular the
9:36
other thing I would suggest you do is
9:38
eat at the self-service places there are
9:40
obviously sit-down restaurants but in
9:42
terms of maximizing your time each of
9:44
the self-service places the food's fine
9:46
those perfectly good but you're going to
9:48
be in and out there really quickly of
9:49
course another important thing to do is
9:51
most people will eat sort of a twelve
9:52
o'clock to 1 o'clock time so if there
9:55
are really popular rides you might want
9:57
to eat early already eat late and kind
9:58
of get to those rides at that sort of
10:00
lunchtime period because things do slump
10:02
and you'll find the restaurants are very
10:03
busy and so the rides are less busy the
10:07
other thing you might want to bear in
10:08
mind it is at 3 o'clock there is the
10:10
parade which happens every day which
10:12
weaves its way through the park a lot of
10:14
people stop to watch that so 3 o'clock
10:16
is also a good time if you want to get
10:18
on other rides that the actual
10:20
procession is really good fun so you
10:21
still might want what you might want to
10:23
do is get yourself right by the entrance
10:25
of one of the Rises you want to do where
10:28
you know that the parade goes past make
10:30
sure you kind of right there as the
10:31
parade passes you can hit straight into
10:33
that attraction and of course make the
10:35
most of it my last tip is what should
10:37
you bring to the park well very
10:38
importantly bring you a smartphone
10:39
because that app is really important to
10:41
also bring add-on charges so you don't
10:43
run out of power because that's the app
10:45
is gonna be really important for
10:46
planning your day it gets very hot and
10:49
very muggy in Florida so make sure you
10:51
bring sunscreen I recommend you bring a
10:53
hat also very importantly what I would
10:55
strongly recommend you do is bring with
10:57
you one of those plastic ponchos because
11:00
Florida often have a little downpours of
11:02
rain you know on and off and so
11:04
Pancho's is great they can scratch up
11:05
into a little very small size which you
11:07
can put in your pocket or inch in order
11:09
the rucksack or whatever
11:10
also very important to cover the rise
11:12
you will get really waste if you don't
11:13
have them the other thing I'd recommend
11:15
you do is try not to bring a rucksack or
11:17
bag first of all because you get through
11:19
security much quicker but there are a
11:20
couple of rides where you can't take you
11:24
know rucksack sandbag so some of the
11:25
Harry Potter rides for example obviously
11:26
the big roller coaster so rather than
11:28
have to you know faff around and find
11:30
the locker and put something locker if
11:32
you've got everything that you basically
11:33
put in your pockets your phone lock
11:35
plastic poncho or whatever you'll find
11:37
it so much easier of course what you
11:39
need to do is make sure you bring credit
11:40
cards or cash to buy things or of course
11:42
if you stay on property your room key so
11:44
you can charge things very important
11:47
make sure you wear great walking shoes
11:49
shoes that you know that you can walk
11:51
for a long time you will walk a lot of
11:52
distance in the parks you know an
11:54
average I was walking way over 20,000
11:57
steps I was walking up to 7 miles a day
11:58
just getting around the park to keep you
12:00
moving between different rides so they
12:02
have it those are 10 tips that I have
12:04
for adults visiting the Universal
12:07
Orlando Resort and parks if you found
12:09
this video helpful I'd love it if you
12:11
gave a thumbs up and very importantly
12:13
though please subscribe to the channel
12:14
because you'll get much more travel
12:16
inspiration advice and tips
12:18
[Music]
12:22
[Applause]
#Hotels & Accommodations
#Specialty Travel
#Tourist Destinations
#Theme Parks
#Adventure Travel
#Vacation Offers
#Travel Guides & Travelogues
#Travel Agencies & Services