Upcoming Velvet Sessions at The Hard Rock Hotel

Hi! We are planning a trip to Universal for x-mas and we are debating on hotels. We are thinking of:

-Cabana Bay -Aventura -Endless Summer

Which is best for a family of 5? (2 adults and 3 young adults) Thoughts?

I’m so excited!!! Have been planning this trip since January and now will be there tomorrow!!

We broke up our park days with a visit to Volcano Bay and a splurge with a cabana rental. We were in the parks for a week in mid-November.

Our group consisted of eight adults, we had never been to a water park together and 5/8 of us had never been to a water park before. We absolutely loved Volcano Bay.

Our cabana rental was a last-minute splurge, and was worth the money, despite the cost being hard to justify. Having access to the TapuTapu machine was amazing. Our own server was also a great addition to have as well.

It was also better than premium seating in two main ways - no sand or hot concrete as our flooring and a sense of privacy with being able to curtain it off. 

We were there open to close and rode everything we wanted and several things multiple times. 

I would suggest walking around with your flip-flops or water shoes on because the sidewalks can get quite hot. At the entrance of the waterslides there is a place to put your shoes, hats, sunglasses, or other belongings before you ride. That being said, they still do a good job "flooding" the pavement with lots of sprinklers along the footpath. Our group had to go back to our cabana to grab shoes because the sidewalks were burning our feet.

We also learned that Volcano Bay does not provide any free towels, so be sure to bring your own if you do not want to pay for a rented towel (they cost $7). Wish we knew to get towels from the hotel pool.

Create your Universal account and connect a credit card to use the tap-to-pay functionality of TapuTapu. You need to link your party's Volcano Bay tickets and create a PIN that your whole party will use for purchases. You'll find it super easy to eat, drink, and rent a locker when your credit card is already tied to your account. Our group loved not having to go back to retrieve our wallets for every purchase.

All in all, it was an amazing addition to our trip.

https://preview.redd.it/lhnaxtoygb4e1.jpg?width=427&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=10169870a7609e007577b2dbaca2156c30c9611d

I priced everything out and it’s the same exact price for my family to buy two days of express passes and stay in a poolside suite at Dockside versus stay in a standard 2-queen room at Royal Pacific (where express passes are included). I’m struggling to decide which to choose.

What would your preference be and why? (My daughter is 5 years old and we’re going the last week of March, if that factors in at all). Thanks for any input!

We (party of 10) are going to Universal the 12th-16th to celebrate my husband's birthday. I need help finding a place to go for his birthday dinner! We don't know the area well, so I figured I'd ask here to get good recommendations. We'll be staying in the Kissimmee area. Only things I'm working around are:

1. Has to be good with small kids, we have a lot. Out of our 10, we only have 3 adults. No fine dining just yet lol
2. He wants a good steak. That's his only birthday request, so it has to be good.
3. Please don't break the bank lol i'm fine with paying for good food, but i can't do $100+ a plate with 7 kids that probably aren't even going to eat what they order lol

Hi all, visiting Universal Dec 10-14 and was curious about the holiday decorations around city walk and the hotel properties. I haven’t spent much time at Universal around Christmas and would like to spend an evening after park close walking around Citywalk and the Hotels just taking in the holiday vibes. Basically I’d like to do some bar hopping and grab a few cocktails while enjoying the holiday cheer. Any suggestions on places to check out?

Thanks!!!

I have build the blueprints of an itinerary for my next trip. If you guys can pitch an idea or two would be greatly appreciated.

October 21, 2025: Arrival and Exploring Orlando

1.	Morning:
•	Arrive at Orlando International Airport and pick up your rental car from Enterprise.
•	Check in at Rosen Inn on International Drive.
2.	Afternoon: Explore International Drive:
•	Visit ICON Park:
•	Ride the Wheel at ICON Park for panoramic views of Orlando.
•	Enjoy dining at Yard House or Tin Roof for casual bites.
•	Stop by the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Orlando for unique exhibits.
3.	Evening:
•	Dine at The Capital Grille or Tapa Toro for a more upscale experience.
•	Relax at the hotel to prepare for the week ahead.

To-Do Prior: • Confirm your hotel reservation at Rosen Inn. • Set up toll payment for your rental car, as many Orlando highways require electronic toll payments.

October 22, 2025: Universal Studios Florida + Halloween Horror Nights

1.	Morning:
•	Arrive at Universal Studios Florida by 8:30 AM.
•	Must-visit attractions:
•	The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley (ride Escape from Gringotts).
•	Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit for thrill-seekers.
•	Transformers: The Ride 3D for a cinematic experience.
2.	Afternoon:
•	Lunch at The Leaky Cauldron in Diagon Alley.
•	Explore areas like Springfield (ride The Simpsons Ride) and classic attractions like ET Adventure.
3.	Evening:
•	Halloween Horror Nights (HHN):
•	Start at 6:30 PM.
•	Visit top-rated haunted houses (TBD based on 2025 themes).
•	Use an HHN Express Pass for shorter wait times.
•	Snack on HHN-themed treats and drinks.

To-Do Prior: • Purchase tickets for Universal Studios and HHN. • Consider adding an HHN Express Pass for faster entry to houses.

October 23, 2025: Universal’s Islands of Adventure

1.	Morning:
•	Arrive by 8:30 AM for early access to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade.
•	Ride Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure and The Incredible Hulk Coaster.
2.	Afternoon:
•	Explore Marvel Super Hero Island and Jurassic Park.
•	Don’t miss Jurassic World VelociCoaster.
•	Lunch at Three Broomsticks or Mythos Restaurant (reserve ahead).
3.	Evening:
•	End the day with Skull Island: Reign of Kong and other less crowded rides.
•	Head back to International Drive for a casual dinner at Miller’s Ale House.

To-Do Prior: • Pre-book dining at Mythos for a unique experience. • Pack a waterproof pouch for rides like Jurassic Park River Adventure.

October 24, 2025: Epic Universe

1.	Morning:
•	Arrive early for a full day at Epic Universe.
•	Begin in Super Nintendo World:
•	Ride Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge and explore Donkey Kong Country.
•	Visit How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk for interactive rides like Hiccup’s Wing Gliders.
2.	Afternoon:
•	Explore Dark Universe, focusing on attractions like Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment.
•	Lunch at themed dining options (e.g., in Super Nintendo World).
3.	Evening:
•	End the day at The Wizarding World: Ministry of Magic, featuring a motion-based ride and live performances.

To-Do Prior: • Purchase tickets for Epic Universe and consider adding Universal Express access. • Check Universal’s app for real-time wait times and updates.

October 25, 2025: Departure

•	Spend the morning relaxing or exploring any missed attractions.
•	Return the rental car and head to the airport.

General Notes: • Keep Universal’s app handy for ride wait times, dining reservations, and park maps. • Plan for additional parking fees at the parks (around $30/day). • Wear comfortable shoes and bring sunscreen for long days outdoors.

My husband is active duty and I have a spouse ID. We are moving up to the panhandle but are from Orlando so we are visiting for the holidays. While we are here… My sister, her husband, two kids, and then his sister and her husband want me to buy them the 6 passes for the 2025 year. I see on the Shade of Green website that I am allowed 6 tickets but I have to be one of these tickets, correct? I can’t just buy 6 tickets and get them in? I was going to go to MWR by the airport and then walk them into universal but neither my husband or I want to purchase a ticket for ourselves since we won’t even be living here. And yes I know it’s good for if we visit but we are not wanting to do that. Thanks for any info!

Hi there everyone, going with my husband Jan. 8-12, it's their first time ever so we're super excited! I've been several times before, but never during this time of the year, was wondering how bad crowds are going to be as well as any other tips for a January vacation to Universal. Thanks!

does anyone know if epic will be selling fast passes ?

I'll start with mine

1 - Velocicoaster
2 - Hagrids
3 - Mummy
4 - Doom
5 - Rock it
6 - Hulk
7 - River adventure
8 - Gringotts
9 - ET
10 - Forbidden Journey

Transformers and spiderman are honourable mentions just missing out.

https://vimeo.com/492068294

Taped at USF in October 1995.

Welcome to r/UniversalOrlando!

The community is here to help you plan your trip to Universal Orlando Resort and give you as much advice as possible. For any newcomers or basic trip planning questions, this is the perfect place to start.

We will be at US on December 14, 15, and a half day on the 16th. We’re staying onsite beginning the 13th (coming from Disney but will be at Disney 90% of the 13th). While we’re there, Islands of Adventure is the early entry park. I’ve seen a lot of people say that everyone bolts for Hagrid’s right away but then there’s a lull late morning and in the evening. My plan is on our first day there to go to Universal Studios to see a hopefully mostly empty Diagon Alley, then work our way over to IOA and try for Hagrid’s mid morning or at night. Is this a waste of the early entry we could get bc we’re US resort guests? My reasoning is that since we have 2 other mornings after that we could early entry Hagrid’s if needed, might as well start like Harry does at Diagon Alley. I’m a BIG HP nerd, and while I’m excited for the rest of the rides at US, I’m mostly coming for HP (& we don’t plan to ride velocicoaster/ Hulk while we’re there).

I am planning a trip for my family of 4, hoping to do a week long trip the first week of February, with 3 days in the park. I was hoping to get some recommendations on what the best on-site hotels are to bundle with tickets.

I am hoping to do the trip on $5k total (driving not flying) but I am a little flexible on that, and I’m trying to find the balance between providing the best possible experience for my kids, while also making sure we have plenty of money to do other activities while we’re there. I’ve seen that some hotels offer express passes with your stay. Will it be busy enough in February to justify spending the extra money? TIA

I'm planning to bring a small bag and buy an all day drink cup. I know some rides require putting everything in a free small locker, but I'm wondering where things like cups or small bags go on the other rides. Do these rides have cubbies by the boarding/exit area that riders can put their things in and retrieve once they exit the ride?

This is a stupid question but, I don’t come to universal often and am not up to date on all the “new merchandise” and stuff from vloggers and other stuff, does the universal website have all the merchandise on their website?

Just wondering is there a limit of exhange money in Gringotts.

As the title says, for the first time in 15 years i have always gotten on it, today was the first time the ride was literally broken. The scoop car kept stopping and stopped in between the screens and room, when it got to a screen it didn’t play and if it did play it was hydromans part. At least they gave us a one use express pass (excluding velocicoaster, the flying dinosaurs ride and hagrids motorcycle ride). Gonna try again later and hopefully its fixed by then. Also this isn’t a complaint, just funny it happened. Also it happened like at 10 am that i went on

I've been seeing rumors on the internet that this may (Someday) be coming to either Epic or to replace one of the lands in Islands (Toon Town or...what's the one where Sinbad and Poseidon used to be? I always forget its name!) Anyway, I was thinking about all of that and thought...wouldn't Toon Town be amazing? Because think about it, there's already a raft ride that could very easily become 'BarrelRider' and now we're hurtling down a white water river ride escaping orcs with elves saving us. But then I thought, what if they just turned the entire thing into Hobbiton! And then the barrel ride is still "BarrelRider" but instead of 'real' orc animatronics it's like the Hobbits all got together to reenact the stories Bilbo and then Frodo used to tell so the ride is Hobbit made. Which made me think the Fall's ride could also be like a retelling of Lord of the rings by the Hobbits. Then the restaurant becomes The Green Tavern. I'm curious (JUST FOR FUN) what ya'll would love to see if they ever actually did it. I also like the idea of a Dwarf Mine rollercoaster but not sure where they would put that in Toon Town. What ideas do ya'll have?

I want a Woody Woodpecker shirt but a lot of the ones sold at places like Kohl’s aren’t very good. Preferably in a 3XL size.

Me and the family were in VelociCoaster and it kept experiencing delays. We even got the extended delay instead of the temporary delay. When we finally got on we CRAWLED over the tophat and the train after that made the delay sound go again. If you work there or saw it please lmk

Have a half day before the parks, where should I be going!

I’m going on a one day trip in a few weeks and would like advice! We’re gonna do park to park and bought express passes. Any advice on making the most of everything and what to prioritize?