A humble Theme Park Visitor

[HostosFQ]

Hi to all.
I'm new here so bare with me.

I want to take my girlfriend to an Orlando trip.

I was thinking 2 or 3 days to visit parks.
1 Day visit Magic Kingdom
1 or 2 Day visit Universal (Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios)

I'm traveling on April the 20th till April the 24th.

I just wanted to ask bout what tips & tricks you guys could help me out with.

Are there any specific days that are better for crowds? Are these bad dates and the parks will be crowded?

Is it viable to purchase the 1 day park hopper for universal (is one day enough to experience both US and IOA?) Or is is better to buy 1 ticket for each park on 2 separate days?

Is it viable to pay for the express line tickets in Universal?

Are there any tricks to getting the Magic Kingdom tickets at a better price?

Just needed some help because i don't want to blow a wad of cash if there could be any other ways of planning this.

Thanks for the help

[Disney Doll]

You are vacationing over Easter weekend which means you'll probably see pretty significant crowds. You can still have a good experience if you come prepared. Hit the park early, try to get the big attractions knocked out first, and make good use of fastpass.

I don't know as much about Universal Studios, but someone will probably come along who can help with those questions. Good luck!

[BrerGnat]

That's going to be a VERY busy time to visit. If you are headed to Magic Kingdom, my best advice is arrive BEFORE official opening time, which should be either 8am or 9am. Get there early, because it is highly likely that the park will close due to capacity somewhere mid morning. This happened a few days during my trip last year which fell the week before Easter. It's a likely scenario.

Have a plan, write down the attractions you must visit, and get educated on how Fast Pass works.

As for discounted tickets, it's not really an option for a one day, one park ticket. It's not easy to find legit, discounted Walt Disney World tickets. Be prepared to pay full price.

With some planning, you can have a very nice time.

As for Universal, you could do both parks in one day, if you focus on the blockbuster attractions. As for the Express pass...YES, get it! It's probably the only way you'll be able to do much in one day over that time period.

[HostosFQ]

thanks for the help guys!!!!


will any specific days be better?
maybe thursday is less crowded than say saturday etc
Or is it all the same?

i will be asking other stuff while I'm planning if you guys don't mind

So in 1 day I can ride everything of the main attractions in bot US and IOA with the express line tickets.....good to know.

Thanks

[forever a child]

April 22nd and 24th have late night evening EMH's so those may not be the best days to attend unless you are staying on Disney property and can utilize the extra hours too. If you are...you can stay late and the parks "may" empty out quite a bit before the parks close.

Otherwise, I would avoid it and plan on Thursday being your best day at MK (probably universal too). Like others have said...get there early and don't leave the park once you do as you may not likely be able to return if they reach full capacity. If you are staying on property you may have more of a chance to return than if you are staying off Disney property....but I still would not chance it.

[KatieDuck22]

I visited Mk last year on easter and it was suprisingly not as crowded as we were expecting. the simpler the ticket the cheaper it is. Don't be too scared about the crowds but the further away from easter you get the less crowded it will be. Crowds seriously arent terribly bad! well be there at the same time! hope u have a great time!

[BrerGnat]

Last year, the Magic Kingdom closed to capacity by 11am on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of the week PRIOR to Easter Sunday. On Friday, the MK closed very early in the morning. By 10am, guests coming in by car were being re-routed to Animal Kingdom and DHS. Epcot received the brunt of the overflow, as many people took the monorail over from MK to get away from the crowds.

Honestly, any day you visit will likely be mega crowded. Just get there as early as you can. Possibly before sunrise.

[Jillirose]

Read the thread on rides at night!

I had a friend that used the single rider lane at Universal and breezed onto every ride and got to ride with her boyfriend most times (who was also in the single rider line - you do take a chance on getting paired with someone else, but worth cutting out 30 minutes of wait time!)

Also, consider park hoppers. They are so worth the extra $$ if it works for your budget. You can hit MK early, take some time at EPCOT to eat, wander and then go back to MK at night!

[Aurora]

Except for making sure you get there early, the "usual rules" for touring the parks don't apply the week before Easter, because to be blunt, it's one of the four busiest weeks at Disney World. So, as others have said, if you leave the Magic Kingdom with a park hopper and hope to return later in the day, don't count on being able to get back in.

Just brace yourself for long lines, a lot of people, and a festive atmosphere. If you're ready for it, you'll be fine.

[magicalmom]

Can you manage a one night stay at a Universal property, which will get you the front of line pass for most of the attraction there? Then can you add one or two nights at a Disney property? That will give you access to the Extra Magic Hours. Then get one day, 2 park Universal tickets, and two day park hoppers at WDW. By taking advantage of the EMH, you can hit the biggies at all four Disney parks, and by taking advantage of the Express pass and the early entrance at IOA that comes with the Universal Park stay, you can see all the biggies at Universal in both parks.(If you are only going to stay one night at a Disney resort, you'll have to check in at something like 7 in the morning to make all this work. You'll also have to check in at the Universal property around the same time.) It's kamikaze touring - you'll be pooped afterward - but what fun!! And you guys are young, right?

[LVT]

Magicalmom has a good idea, but be sure to find out the details if you take this expensive route. IE You can check in early and get the resort privileges long before your room will be ready. You do not have much time planned, so I would recommend choosing only 1 WDW park for 1 day, according to your tastes. It takes practice to kamakazie WDW. Universal parks are somewhat easier.