The Current State and Future of Universal Studios Florida

[Mad Dog]

Yet lines at Disney are moving and there are like eight people helping to park cars at any given time. They may be hiring, but they’re still operating well with what they have.

The buy-outs have to stop if UO is really gonna deliver on becoming a destination. What does the average tourist paying $600/night for an on-site room do after 7pm when it’s too cold to go swimming?

and....the private parties often take over the entire nightspot bars area too.....I basically cancelled my last vacation over that BS. I booked my onsite hotel as soon as they posted the park hours for Mardi Gras.
Now this is spring break and every day in the parks are crowded. Two weeks before I go, and a good thing I check park hours everyday, they cut the closing hours on three of the days I'm vacationing. Obviously,
party buyouts. I was pi _ _ d. So I CANCELLED the entire vacation. Bad enough the parks are overcrowded, but that's pure BS. Generally I go to Universal twice a year for 20 to 24 days, and most days we stay
at the Deluxe hotels, which have jacked the rates up Disneylike, this year. Sooo, I've skipped Universal all year......I love the holidays at Universal, but no vacation this year due to the overcrowding and private party issues.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Park buyouts are perfectly fine, but shutting down both parks is a bit egregious. If you shut down one park, operate the other park an extra hour or two at the very least.

Never been to a buyout before - does anyone know how long they typically last?

 

[OrlandoGuy]

Park buyouts are perfectly fine, but shutting down both parks is a bit egregious. If you shut down one park, operate the other park an extra hour or two at the very least.

Never been to a buyout before - does anyone know how long they typically last?

It depends on who’s buying it, how many people are attending, and of course how much money they’re willing to drop. I don’t think many go beyond what would be normal HHN hours, though. They’re actually a ton of fun…but not from the outside.

To me the biggest issue is communication. Someone else mentioned that park hours are only posted a couple of months in advance (and yet are still subject to change). Not giving people a heads up that certain days are going to be shorter than others at the point of purchase is making it so that even a more astute customer can’t make the most of their $150+ ticket. I remember when I was little my family took us to Disney during a Grad Nite event and I was so upset…not so much because the park closed early but because if I had known ahead of time (granted I was a kid and my family weren’t big planners) we could’ve rearranged our touring plan to hit the early closure first.

Another wrinkle to the UO buy-outs is the Hogwarts Express. The 2-Park ticket is up-sold at every opportunity and most people will take advantage of it to ride a heavily-advertised marquee attraction…when one park closes early, it’s kind of a dupe.

 

[JoeCamel]

Yet lines at Disney are moving and there are like eight people helping to park cars at any given time. They may be hiring, but they’re still operating well with what they have.

The buy-outs have to stop if UO is really gonna deliver on becoming a destination. What does the average tourist paying $600/night for an on-site room do after 7pm when it’s too cold to go swimming?

What happens on party nights at WDW? No difference IMO
Lines at Disney are maxed out and if you don't spring for the upcharges you don't move much if at all.

 

[JoeCamel]

Park buyouts are perfectly fine, but shutting down both parks is a bit egregious. If you shut down one park, operate the other park an extra hour or two at the very least.

Never been to a buyout before - does anyone know how long they typically last?

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[OrlandoGuy]

What happens on party nights at WDW? No difference IMO
Lines at Disney are maxed out and if you don't spring for the upcharges you don't move much if at all.

I think the Party Night closures at Disney err on the side of unacceptable too (did you not enjoy my story about being a little kid at Grad Nite lol)…although at least a Disney customer has the option to either a.) attend said party or b.) go to another park. In my experience they’re also staggered in a way that avoids would-be peak nights (if I remember right, they don’t do after hours parties on Saturdays for example).

We’ll disagree on lines. They can be long but they do haul (especially in Food Service as someone else pointed out).

 

[JoeCamel]

I think the Party Night closures at Disney err on the side of unacceptable too (did you not enjoy my story about being a little kid at Grad Nite lol)…although at least a Disney customer has the option to either a.) attend said party or b.) go to another park. In my experience they’re also staggered in a way that avoids would-be peak nights (if I remember right, they don’t do after hours parties on Saturdays for example).

We’ll disagree on lines. They can be long but they do haul (especially in Food Service as someone else pointed out).

Are we seeing the same things? Long virtual lines but no one actually in line? Seems to be a bunch of people waiting around for their order to pop up while counters are empty

 

[OrlandoGuy]

Are we seeing the same things? Long virtual lines but no one actually in line? Seems to be a bunch of people waiting around for their order to pop up while counters are empty

I’m not seeing it, that’s my experience when I go

When’s the last time you were in the parks? Maybe an outlier day? I was at IOA last in October and Food & Wine a couple weeks ago…the pace of lines were night and day for me personally.

 

[JoeCamel]

I’m not seeing it, that’s my experience when I go

When’s the last time you were in the parks? Maybe an outlier day? I was at IOA last in October and Food & Wine a couple weeks ago…the pace of lines were night and day for me personally.

I'm not in the parks but it is common enough to hear I don't think it is isolated. Do you look at TP data?

 

[Mad Dog]

Looking at TP most every day...Seems DHS is the main culprit when it comes to long lines. MK isn't usually bad except for 7 Dwarfs. AK is basically just FOP & Navii for long lines. And Epcot's not bad. Just the two new attractions, plus Frozen and Test Track....and TP is saying that posted ride times are still greatly inflated, with real times less than 70% of the posted times. So, it seems DHS is a mess, but the other three parks aren't all that bad except for a handful of headliners.

 

[Speed]

One thing that can really hamper Universal's ambitious goals is the continued early closures of the parks, especially on weekends.

I know that private events generate a great source of revenue, but they really shouldn't be closing the parks before 9PM with the crowds they are receiving... especially at IOA at least on weekends. For example, both parks close at 7PM tonight... the start of a busy Thanksgiving holiday week. Both close at 8PM tomorrow... on a Saturday.

IOA should be closing at 10PM having the 2 most popular rides of the resort.

The amount of times this year that I've thought about going in for a afternoon trip only to see that both parks close at 7... but hey at least OI gets to hold another buyout

 

[UniversalRBLX]

DAK/Epcot are pretty easy parks to visit now. The new rides have spread crowds throughout the park now, and unless you want to do Frozen, the park is easily manageable. You can easily visit 3-4 booths at Food & Wine during the same time it takes to order 1 item at Bumblebee's or a HHN twisted tater lol. Disney really showed Universal's who boss in the quick service game with Satu'li Canteen, Regal Eagle, and Connections... Universal pretty much just took a nap (Hopefully Epic reinvigorates them)

The food operations comparison made by OrlandoGuy is 100% correct, it's a complete night-and-day situation. Disney food quality (just in the Quick Service/Counter Service game) has really elapsed Universal. With the debut of Potter & Springfield's Fast Food Boulevard, I thought Universal was trying to differentiate... but it's kinda fallen dramatically. Shockingly, pricing at WDW (outside of Table Service) is better than at UOR.

I hate to complain about something as silly as theme parks, but I really want Universal to succeed when Disney is slowing itself down.

 

[shiekra38]

DAK/Epcot are pretty easy parks to visit now. The new rides have spread crowds throughout the park now, and unless you want to do Frozen, the park is easily manageable. You can easily visit 3-4 booths at Food & Wine during the same time it takes to order 1 item at Bumblebee's or a HHN twisted tater lol. Disney really showed Universal's who boss in the quick service game with Satu'li Canteen, Regal Eagle, and Connections... Universal pretty much just took a nap (Hopefully Epic reinvigorates them)

The food operations comparison made by OrlandoGuy is 100% correct, it's a complete night-and-day situation. Disney food quality (just in the Quick Service/Counter Service game) has really elapsed Universal. With the debut of Potter & Springfield's Fast Food Boulevard, I thought Universal was trying to differentiate... but it's kinda fallen dramatically. Shockingly, pricing at WDW (outside of Table Service) is better than at UOR.

I hate to complain about something as silly as theme parks, but I really want Universal to succeed when Disney is slowing itself down.

Forget Potter v. Star Wars lands

Where is Universal's answer to Satu'li Canteen?

Also Connections is theme park quick service perfected

I will say, Universal has some pockets of much improved quick service menu items (Today, Burger Digs, Comic Strip), it's just uneven

 

[Parkscope Joe]

Early park buyouts (before 9pm) are big pre-Potter energy and should have stopped years ago.

 

[GAcoaster]

Obviously they feel like they can make more money with those buyouts than staying open for the regular guests. Until that math changes the situation doesn't.

 

[Alicia]

Park buyouts are perfectly fine, but shutting down both parks is a bit egregious. If you shut down one park, operate the other park an extra hour or two at the very least.

Never been to a buyout before - does anyone know how long they typically last?

I was impressed the OI Meetup could happen at both parks yet they still stayed open till 8pm last night. I always thought the parks closed at like 5 when they had these things.

 

[DodgsonHere]

Forget Potter v. Star Wars lands

Where is Universal's answer to Satu'li Canteen?

Also Connections is theme park quick service perfected

I will say, Universal has some pockets of much improved quick service menu items (Today, Burger Digs, Comic Strip), it's just uneven

Hope the rumored Minion Cafe helps with this. The food at the one in Hollywood looks creative if nothing else.

 

[JoeCamel]

I was impressed the OI Meetup could happen at both parks yet they still stayed open till 8pm last night. I always thought the parks closed at like 5 when they had these things.

When I have gone the change over was the 6 -7pm hour when they pushed the day guests out at a hard 7. That first time they closed all the QS and TS during that hour, couldn't get a drink let alone a bottle of water but OI recognized the problem and now there are options during that time.
I'm glad you had a good time, Taylor has come a long way since that night at the Navigator's club.

 

[Alicia]

When I have gone the change over was the 6 -7pm hour when they pushed the day guests out at a hard 7. That first time they closed all the QS and TS during that hour, couldn't get a drink let alone a bottle of water but OI recognized the problem and now there are options during that time.
I'm glad you had a good time, Taylor has come a long way since that night at the Navigator's club.

I was looking at pics of me and Taylor from that night in 2015! AmaIng how far that event has come. Wait, isnt that where we first met too

The Meetups give you a food gift card you can use from 5-8 before the parks close to general guests now too, since most of the free food doesn’t start till 9, so we grabbed pizza and breadsticks, and then Butterbeer Ice Cream in a cone before park close to kick things off.

 

[JoeCamel]

I was looking at pics of me and Taylor from that night in 2015! AmaIng how far that event has come. Wait, isnt that where we first met too

The Meetups give you a food gift card you can use from 5-8 before the parks close to general guests now too, since most of the free food doesn’t start till 9, so we grabbed pizza and breadsticks, and then Butterbeer Ice Cream in a cone before park close to kick things off.

Yep, the Navigator's club. Had no idea he was the new owner and it wasn't a hobby project.