EP or no EP? Desperately needing advice!

[Tuckercountrygirl]

Hi all, I'm new to this forum and HHN but have been to US many many times over the last 10 years.

My son and I will be at US on Oct 22-26 as a pre-surgery trip for him (he'll be having his ACL reconstructed in november or december).

I'm debating whether we should get FF pass with express or FFP pass without. With the Cdn $ continuing to fall, I'd rather go three nights without express than two nights with it. The cost difference is $325 Cdn.

Taking advantage of early entry, would it be possible to see 3 houses with reasonable waits (under one hour per house) per night?

I'm ok with not repeating houses and skipping any with bad reviews.

Any advice/opinions would be greatly appreciated. And quickly, if possible , before the $ falls again!!Thx!

 

[Brian G.]

Welcome!

I personally recommend Express, but understand money is an issue. Since you're going for 3 nights, you should be able to enjoy the event without having to worry about missing what you want to see.

Another alternative - You can always buy express at the event. Granted, it runs the risk of selling out, but at least you have that fallback option. Hope that helps!

 

[Hockeyman55]

Hi all, I'm new to this forum and HHN but have been to US many many times over the last 10 years.

My son and I will be at US on Oct 22-26 as a pre-surgery trip for him (he'll be having his ACL reconstructed in november or december).

I'm debating whether we should get FF pass with express or FFP pass without. With the Cdn $ continuing to fall, I'd rather go three nights without express than two nights with it. The cost difference is $325 Cdn.

Taking advantage of early entry, would it be possible to see 3 houses with reasonable waits (under one hour per house) per night?

I'm ok with not repeating houses and skipping any with bad reviews.

Any advice/opinions would be greatly appreciated. And quickly, if possible , before the $ falls again!!Thx!

First off welcome.

Second is the age old question of whether or not to express HHN or not. If you can afford it I would def invest in it. If not you will find yourself in some pretty long lines especially around the time you are going. Not sure when Hell week is but it might be around then. Incase you dont know, Hell week is exactly as it sounds, super super crowded.

I have gone to HHN without express more than I have gone with it and it is manageable but its does involve a lot of hustling around, doing stay and scream and trying to beat the crowds and not really a relaxing night at the park. Plus with the event getting more and more popular it makes it more difficult to get everything done if only there for a few nights.

 

[ThemeParks4Life]

Given that you're going multiple nights, Express doesn't seem necessary at first. However, as Hockeyman mentioned, Hell Week is going on when you're there. It's a draw, but you can probably buy Express when you're there if needed.

 

[MrRoamer]

I never really cared about express until we got the FFP+Express pass a few years ago. Will not go without it again. Even being able to go multiple days and saying you aren't going to be rushed, with how long the lines have been getting, the EP allows you to enjoy the scarezones and themeing more, take your time, and still know you will get to see the houses no matter what. Another nice little perk is being able to check out the Scare Zones in the light and at night (would have been really nice for 7), which also allows your eyes to adjust to the dark. We were doing Forsaken first thing most times when it was around and missed so much detail and ran into so many things it would have been much nicer to wait till later.

 

[Andy]

My advice...

Get a second job, third job, sell a kidney, do whatever it takes and get express. You'll be glad you did..

Trust me

 

[Tuckercountrygirl]

My advice...

Get a second job, third job, sell a kidney, do whatever it takes and get express. You'll be glad you did..

Trust me

LOL!!!!

Ok...here are my options as I see them (this has been giving me endless anxiety which is unusual since Im generally a very relaxed, happy person) and very much appreciate everyone's counsel!

Anyway, the options:

1. $260 cdn-FFP 3 nights no EP
2. $469 cdn - FF 2 nights, 1 night EP purchased separately
3. $518 Cdn - FFP, 3 nights, 1 night EP purchased separately
4. $584 cdn - FF with EP included, so 2 nights of EP
5. $700 Cdn - FFP with EP included, so 3 nights of EP.

Keeping in mind that option 4 is verging on divorce territory and option 5 is ver much within divorce territory and therefore not really an option... What would my trusty HHN gurus recommend? What will get me the most bang for my sucky cdn buck?

BTW...thx so much for the kind welcomes!!!

 

[MrRoamer]

Become an AP Holder and get major discounts on HHN? In seriousness, you're going to be smack dab in the middle of hell week. I would focus heavily on EP.

 

[OrlandoGuy]

You're asking a very interesting sample, where a lot of us are hardcore Horror Night fans. It seems like you're perfectly ok not doing houses 100 times in a row (meanwhile, correct me if I'm wrong, but there was a thread here last year made up completely of people posting how many times they had done a certain house).
You can EASILY do every house once over the course of three nights. And with you doing early entry, you can bang out at least 3 in the first hour alone (check the planning advice around here).
I personally like to save money where I can...I can afford Express but refuse to buy it because it's still overpriced (IMO) and not necessary if you go multiple times. You also may be surprised at how much you want to buy souvenirs or alcohol when you're there, which adds up quick. So obviously my vote is no lol but I think you're gonna have a really good time no matter what.

 

[ThNdIzNiR]

Well... My wife tells me that she won't go to HHN without the express option. She loves the event, but those lines can be quite absurd.

Spending a very large portion of your night in a line is just annoying, especially when there is so much fun to be had all around you. If your idea of fun is getting there early when the sun is still up and rushing through houses right when you get there, maybe you could get by without the pass. If you get there when it's dark (maybe around 8ish) and don't have express, don't expect to see much other than other people standing next to you in a line (especially since you're going during the busier time). Once all the guests start pouring in, the lines can range anywhere between an hour to 3 hours. So ask yourself this... Do you want to wait in a line for 3 hours? Express Pass is a necessity in my book. Besides... It really feels extra good walking by the mile long line of people on a busy night.

 

[sjago13]

If you do stay and scream you can for sure do at least 3 houses a night. You just have to use the way the crowds flow around the event to your advantage. But if you do stay and scream at simpsons you should be able to get through all 3 of the houses there in 30 mins. Then at the very least you should be able to hit up some houses later in the night. Use the 8-11pm clusterfuck time to watch the shows and relax and take in the zones and whatnot. I'm sure once the event starts we should be able to figure out the optimal way to take it all in depending on people respond to all the houses.

 

[Tuckercountrygirl]

For me it boils down to this 3×3×3:

Can i do 3 houses per night within 3 hours using early entry over the course of 3 nights without express pass?

Night 1 : 3 houses between 6 and 9.

Night 2: 3 different houses between 6 and 9.

Night 3: 3 houses (maybe repeat 1 or 2 favourites instead of seeing new houses) between 6 and 9.

If yes, i'll go with the FFP and only buy EP onsite (if available and necessary) for one night.

Orlando Guy has a said this is entirely doable (thank you!!) but my increasing anxiety :saywhat: level is demanding futher reassurance!!!!

 

[Tuckercountrygirl]

If you do stay and scream you can for sure do at least 3 houses a night. You just have to use the way the crowds flow around the event to your advantage. But if you do stay and scream at simpsons you should be able to get through all 3 of the houses there in 30 mins. Then at the very least you should be able to hit up some houses later in the night. Use the 8-11pm clusterfuck time to watch the shows and relax and take in the zones and whatnot. I'm sure once the event starts we should be able to figure out the optimal way to take it all in depending on people respond to all the houses.

Thank you! Anxiety level is decreasing!

 

[Frank Drackman]

1st off, welcome to the forums!

I really do not feel I can comment much as we typically go during the 2nd week of the event and I am sure that Hellweek is far more crowded than anything I've experienced.

We tend not to do Express but we do tend to do stay and scream. I have noticed it helps to know which houses are open for each stay and scream area. What I mean by this is that you can safe time by knowing what house they expect you to go to. I think they tend to open the event to the public a little earlier than the advertised start time. To me, it seems as if they open a couple of houses for each stay and scream area, get those folks going, then at some point they open a house or two up front as they open the park. last year, on our last night, we decided to go to the Walking Dead house 1st, but it did not open until the advertised event start time....I think we could have gotten the two house that opened for stay and scream done in the time we spent waiting on TWD to open.

I do agree that if you set a goal of three houses a night, I would think you could see all three house over three nights.

Now, doing two nights with Express, you're still going to have long waits, just not nearly as long as the regular queue. One thing to keep in mind is that you will do a lot of walking at the event and some of the Express queues save you from some of that walking. Doing stay and scream w. While having Express, you could get a few houses in w/o using Express so you can save it for later in the night to repeat a house.

 

[sjago13]

They are open til 2am each of the nights you will be there. I feel express is a nice thing to have, and if all the people i went with could afford it i would do it. but its doable. for reference last year on halloween i did 12 houses and bill and ted and mummy without express. And that night i did not have stay and scream. I would say worst case go the first night and see how it goes. And if it wasnt to your satisfaction then get one night of express for one of your other nights.

 

[Tuckercountrygirl]

Thx for the info. Ive decided on FFP for 3 nights, utilizing stay and scream, and getting EP onsite if necessary and still available. My son is salivating over TWD merchandise (which will eat up some cash) and Im sincerely hoping that house returns for one more year. We were at US during the first go-round of TWD but kids were too young for the event at that time (even tho TWD is our favourite show and officially designated as "family fun night").

One more question... Is it possible to leave HHN for the crazy busy 8-11 stretch for dinner, let's say, and then return at midnight for the last couple of hours?

 

[sjago13]

And also someone mentioned that they sell express passes half price after 10 or something if they are still available. So perhaps someone more knowledgeable can shed some light if they can usually be found at the time of the month you are visiting.

 

[Tuckercountrygirl]

Ok..done. Purchased FF+ right before the $ fell AGAIN to the lowest it's been since 2004. It's predicted to go as low as .65 usd before the year is out. Sigh....I think this will be our last trip to the States for a good long while.

I appreciate all the advice about EP and am cerainly not ignoring those who encouraged me to buy EP but, unfortunately, money is an issue. My husband and i are both professionals and earn a decent income but we have one child starting university in the fall and the other not too far behind. Also, we have animals to feed and the price of hay is rising this year due to adverse growing conditions. I cant justify spending what amounts to 4 months of feed on EP tickets.

So, we will brazen the crowds and do without.

Thanks again for the advice. Now that everything is booked and bought, I'm really starting to get excited- esp. about TWD. I'Ve come to realize that die hard HHN fans are rather upset about this franchise possibly returning, but to a TWD devotee and HHN rookie, this is the best thing ever!!

 

[Teebin]

^ I am confused (as ever), a special pass for only 65 cents???

 

[sjago13]

I'm assuming they are taking conversion rate