Upcoming Velvet Sessions at The Hard Rock Hotel

Okay so I’m going to grab bash this year kinda excited and I need help , so a few things but first things first alcohol and weed ?? Is that like a complete no go or ??? Is the actually “grad bash” party everyday or cause my senior trip is for about a week or is the party just one night out of the 5 days and 4 nights and okay even if they don’t serve it and there’s no way for me to get it in there can the chaperones get it ??? Because those is grown adults

I’m planning a week long Disney/Universal Trip in May. The trip will be finishing immediately before Epic Universe opens. I am worried the crowds will be insane in the days leading up to the grand opening. We wanted to start the trip off with Disney then go to Universal but now I’m wondering if we should play it safe and start with Universal to avoid crowds.

Any thoughts? Thank you ✨

Got an interview coming up for Park Operations, what does this mean? Tried asking before, worded it a bit confusing. Any help would be appreciated.

I’ve been an AP for years and never seen anything like this

Are there any better options than booking directly through the Universal website?

We are a family of four with middle school aged kids. Just been so busy with work and this trip creeped up on me.

We’ve been to Disney many times before and I always planned our rides and made dining reservation.

I feel so unprepared. We have 4 day park to park tickets with unlimited express passes. Will we be able to ride everything in that time frame without having to pre plan which ones to go on first, etc? I assume this week won’t be that busy and friends have always said you don’t need more than 3 days at Universal. But since it’s my first time I don’t know what to expect.

Any recommendations on things I should at least try to reserve now? They like Harry Potter and my son is 10 so he likes the typical boy stuff for that age (minions, super heroes etc)

I have an ICD implanted, and it has never gone off. It actually may never, it was just a pre-caution just in case. I have been on all the rides at WWHP except Hagrid’s. I want to ride this so badly as it seems so cool and love all the ‘creatures’ you can see. I’m not one to get “scared” on coasters it’s more fun for me than anything. Is this a bad idea? I don’t want to get my ICD confused with the thrill. If anyone has rode it and thinks it’s too intense please let me know

We (spouse and 10yo child) have been to Universal several times and love it. We are from the Northeast but have family in Fl so are familiar with the heat, humidity, and occasional brief rain showers. We've been to Disney in dead August and enjoyed it despite the sweat soaking.

This year we can only vacation either the first 2 weeks of July OR the last 2 weeks of August. Which is better in your opinion? Why?

I'm leaning a little towards early July as it may be slightly better weather wise but not sure what to expect crowd wise. We can't wait to see Epic, and love spending time in all of the HP areas. We may also do a few days at Disney to mix it up and we will probably hotel hop atleast one to save $ as long as ubers aren't insanely priced.

Looking at reservations oddly even if selecting a premiere hotel the app is trying to suggest I purchase express passes! Why?? All advice welcome.

Does anyone know how the dining part works for the Mardi Gras float and dine package? Is there somewhere to pick up a “voucher”? Do we make reservations for whenever? We are riding Sunday this weekend, it wasn’t sure how to make reservations for the dinner part or when I could. Thanks!

I've been trying for a month to purchase tickets from the official website for the beginning of september. I was only ever able to select tickets for the current and next month (or for may/june for those including the epic park).

Also, I'm not the only one having this problem. As far as I can tell everyone who is trying to purchase tickets from Europe has the same issues.

I contacted the support via e-mail and chat, switched browsers, tried a few VPNs (since I'm situated in Germany), but nothing changed. Contacting the support via the hotline is pretty much out of the question, because I'd rather not pay $100 for a phone call.

I assume there is something wrong with the way the page determines the date. It probably grabs the date-format based on the OS/language the user uses and since the US uses a different format, exceptions/errors pop up.

I visit the website regularly (deleting cookies before I do so) and the ticket selection looks very wrong today:

https://preview.redd.it/apcpfnqt4hge1.png?width=709&format=png&auto=webp&s=f202c4d5bce30a0fcfae09252c09c2edd4fb10f4

Edit: I'd really like to know who is downvoting this and for what reason.

I want to try to ride everything at least twice so I am thinking of doing express pass plus.

My question is: If a return time is like 30 minutes for something, and I don't want to use the one time express pass for it, can I accept the 30 minute return time with tapu tapu and not use the express pass until later when the return time is longer?

I know if it says Ride Now you can go on without using express, but I'm wondering about a quick return time.

let me preface with the trip im planning. i'm 17, turning 18 in october. i'm planning a trip for late next year (november), so i'll be 19 at that point. i have struggled with multiple forms of anxiety since 2022 among other things (ptsd, adhd, and depression). it is important for me to note that my anxiety's defense mechanism is to make me feel like i need to use the bathroom. awkward, i know. ironically enough, the first time i ever experienced anxiety (which i've experienced every day since) was the first day of my last theme park trip. because of this, i can't wait in lines. when i went to disney/universal in 2022 i spent the entire first day ( magic kingdom day 😔 ) at the hotel with my dad because i felt i needed the bathroom and we kept needing to get out of line. half the time i don't even have to, but imagine feeling like you need to every time you enter a line? what if one time it ISNT just in my head (which has happened before) i don't want my parents and i to spend thousands of dollars on a trip that will ultimately be another hotel stay instead. i will say i have started taking medication and it helps a lot. i also have a fast acting one for acute anxiety episodes that works like a charm, it single-handedly is the reason i am in school this year after not being in person since covid hit. but i can only take it once every other day or it stops working its magic. it also only lasts a few hours before making me tired, so i want to make the most out of my trip while im awake for it. i'd also like to note that this anxiety mainly hits when i feel i am too far away from a bathroom or it isn't an option to use in the moment (vehicles, lines, etc). not when im just walking around the park.

i hear the accessibility pass is much more open than disney's and allows things other than physical set backs to be eligible. is anxiety an eligible disability/disorder? if not, would you recommend getting express pass instead?

if there is any more information you need to give an answer please let me know!

ps: the trio is to epic universe, universal, and islands of adventure. luckily we're gonna stay at stella nova which is VERY close to epic universe, we can walk instead of driving !!

Getting excited for opening!! Do you guys think they are starting to get the character costumes together? What do you think they will look like?

To be fair we know what the Nintendo characters will look like. We have seen Donkey Kong from Japan, Mario and Friends at Hollywood as well.

Frankenstein and Dracula might be a bit different then their usual appearances? Perhaps a more detailed look for more frequent appearances?

Who might we see in the Paris section? Death eaters? We are sure to see some new actors at the Circus tent show!

Toothless appeared after "The Hidden world" 5 years ago but it wasn't a costume they continued to use (nor did I want them too). Hopefully he has a fresh look next to a new Hiccup actor. Perhaps they are making big dragons like Storm fly similar to Blue at raptor encounter. The twins Ruffnut and Tuffnut are referenced on their page so I wonder who else might be there!? Hiccup's mom?

Going in a little over a week. Currently temps should be in the low 80’s. Worth it?

We’ve been to Disney a ton, but never Universal. We’ll be there for about 2.5 days and have park hopper tickets.

We definitely intend on going to both parts of the Wizarding World.

My middle child (8) loooooves roller coasters. We haven’t found one yet that’s too intense for him. He’s also pretty into the Avengers / Spider Man. He’s absolutely into dinosaurs, hasn’t seen the JP movies but loves the cartoon Jurassic Park show on Netflix.

He and our eldest, 11, both like Transformers, but haven’t seen the movies.

My daughter, 6, loves Despicable Me. She also loves Trolls, Shrek, etc so def want to check out Dreamworks Land.

I’d love to check out some of the Studios section with NY, Hollywood etc.

We really don’t care about the Simpsons at all.

How would we best spend our time? Also any great dining ideas? It’s tough to figure out dining on the website when we’ve never been to the parks before.

ETA: We’ll be going during Mardi Gras. Any tips or suggestions there?

ETA2: We’re staying at Portofino.

ETA3: The 8 year old is 55”

I am trying to go to Universal this year because Epic Universe is opening but I also really want to see either Christmas at Hogwarts in December before kids get out for winter break or Halloween at Hogwarts in October. Looking to see everyones opinion on,

1. Is Christmas or Halloween more entertaining and fun at Hogwarts
2. Is it better and less crowded to go to Universal in October or December before kids get out of school for break? or are they both bad times or about the same?

We are going to Uber to Publix tonight. We’re staying at sapphire falls. I’m hoping to get sushi and pick up a few groceries there. What’s the best Publix to Uber too? I saw like 4 pretty close.

Hello all!

I’m going to Orlando next week but won’t be visiting universal. My best friend is obsessed with Harry Potter and wants me to get her some things from Harry Potter world. She’s insisting there’s a store I don’t need admission to the parks to shop at, but I can’t find it anywhere. Does anyone know if that’s a thing? Thanks in advance!

I’m visiting Orlando w my son (13) in the spring and thinking to do one day at universal. He’s not into Harry Potter but enjoyed that side of the park. He’s been a few times. This time my parents - who are mobile but a little slower- would be joining us. Thoughts on which park at universal would be better? I’d like them to enjoy it too. We have done the 2 park w the train ride back and forth but not sure that’s too much walking. I’m also thinking of one of the Disney parks although we did those last year for a couple days. TIA!

I'm so bummed. I have had passes for years and I told my daughter that I was getting rid of them if we don't start using them.

We decided that Friday nights would be an awesome time for us to get a few hours in after work/school.

It's been closing so early, though. 7pm for both parks tonight 😕

I work and live 30 minutes away. I imagine it is another event? Does anyone know why?

Does anyone know if Dippin Dots are available anywhere at Universal or where would be the closest place to get them? TIA.

I'm an annual passholder so its usually spur of the moment when we decide to visit the parks. Apparently for the AAP you have to fill out some form and call a month before your visit? Is there a way to just get it at guest services? I was recently diagnosed with ASD and was wondering if there's a way to just pick it up at guest services and if there is, how to do so since I don't have the paperwork for my diagnosis? (I was diagnosed but I don't have any paperwork or anything and we're thinking of going to the parks like tomorrow)

I'm taking a three day trip to Universal to be there on the day Epic Universe opens (try to talk me out of it if you want, I want to be a part of theme park history and I just want to be there for the first day) and will be visiting IoA and US the next two days, with no park to park. I'm a pretty hardcore Disney parks person and have only visited Universal for one day on a school trip 10 yrs ago where I only rode Spider-Man, Hogwarts Express, and Rip Ride Rockit.

I could not care less about Harry Potter, and I'm pretty indifferent about roller coasters. I thought Spider-Man was one of the best rides I've ever ridden. I love dark rides. Every rope drop strategy/touring plan I can find assumes I am prioritizing Harry Potter, Hagrid's, or Velocicoaster and I am just not. I don't dislike coasters but I like immersive theming much better.

I do plan on bringing my boyfriend on a Universal trip next year and he's a big Potter nerd, so eventually I'll hit the Potter rides. They're just not a priority at all for this solo trip. I know that the whole resort will be incredibly packed on the week I go, so I'm just not gonna even try to hit the things I'm not super interested in.

All that to say, what should my game plan look like for my days at Islands and Studios? A rough idea of my top priorities at Islands are Spidey, the Seuss High in the Sky Trolley, and Kong maybe? For Studios I'm most excited for Mummy, ET, and Men in Black.

I'm also looking forward to wandering through the remains of the Last Continent (I got a reservation at Mythos both to give myself a sit down break and to try the "best theme park restaurant ever") and just generally soaking in the vibes at IoA. I'm a big theme park history buff and I think the literature-ish theme of IoA is so unique and I want to see it all before universal decides it's dated. My Studios day I'm hoping to be a bit more relaxing, just hit the best rides and chill.

TL;DR: What should my park days look like as someone who isn't a huge coaster enthusiast or Potter fan?