Halloween Horror Nights 32 (UOR) - Tips, Tricks, & Planning

[dxwwf3]

who among us wouldn't want to wait two hours in line to avoid waiting two hours in line?

Obviously, it does make a difference if you're using "park time" or "HHN event time", and it does open up the rest of the night, but that's a tough wait to just stand here and not move during that time too

 

[Jake S]

Obviously, it does make a difference if you're using "park time" or "HHN event time", and it does open up the rest of the night, but that's a tough wait to just stand here and not move during that time too

absolutely. I'm just not enough of a maximalist (or, let's face it, a stranger things fan) to stand in the orlando sun for two hours in the middle of the afternoon.

 

[Drummanmatt]

absolutely. I'm just not enough of a maximalist (or, let's face it, a stranger things fan) to stand in the orlando sun for two hours in the middle of the afternoon.

I’m already dreading my hour tomorrow. Hoping to join the queue in some shade!

 

[wutisgood]

Stay and scream used to be a place where people would hang out for a bit before the line even really formed. If I can't get in a stay an scream to get in the first house quickly it would ruin my entire plan for the night. I can usually get through around 3 houses in the first hour.

 

[Tobias]

If one isn't wanting to stand in a big standstill of a line out in the sun, one of the best options is honestly hitting up the house in the late hours of the event. For one, you won't be standing in a big line out in the sun, so that's a plus right there. Also, you might be waiting in a shorter line compared to what it is at the start of stay and scream and most of the night, so there's also that. And even if there's still a bit of a wait, you've probably been able to hit up everything else beforehand, so that's not eating into the prime time of earlier.

With big IP's like ST4, you really have to pick your battles on how you want to approach it.

 

[wutisgood]

If one isn't wanting to stand in a big standstill of a line out in the sun, one of the best options is honestly hitting up the house in the late hours of the event. For one, you won't be standing in a big line out in the sun, so that's a plus right there. Also, you might be waiting in a shorter line compared to what it is at the start of stay and scream and most of the night, so there's also that.

Yes I would definitely go to another zone where I could get to the house first and come back late.

 

[HandsomePete]

Stay and scream used to be a place where people would hang out for a bit before the line even really formed. If I can't get in a stay an scream to get in the first house quickly it would ruin my entire plan for the night. I can usually get through around 3 houses in the first hour.

This was my recollection of it - would grab a pretzel and a beer from Duff Gardens, sit in the A/C, let the crowd go first once they announced the first house was opening, then walk right into the back three after that first wave passed. Now you’re just immediately getting to a line.

However, over time it’s become progressively more 1) known … I was always surprised how few people with regular APs knew about it … and 2) essential to getting through all of the houses in a timely fashion if you don’t have express.

 

[kingcooger]

What time are the Stay and Scream zones opening at?

 

[Fritz]

What time are the Stay and Scream zones opening at?

Not sure about the other two zones, but New York opens up at 4.

 

[Tobias]

What time are the Stay and Scream zones opening at?

Generally, the Stay and Scream areas open up at 4pm.

 

[wutisgood]

First year or two around hhn25 months in the Finnegan's zone I got drinks at there and still basically left right at early opening. A few later years I just tried to get in about 4:30 and stick to the front of the line where it exited to the first house. Last year they moved the front of the zone into a cut off line I nearly missed because they it didn't seem that crowded yet. If this year it's lining up to get into to the line for the line I am just going to need a table to flip. If it gets to the point where I can't plan and get to every house in September without express I am prob going to spend that extra money and just fly to LA and do Knotts again for which I think is a better Halloween event anyways.

 

[krazyhorrorkid]

First year or two around hhn25 months in the Finnegan's zone I got drinks at there and still basically left right at early opening. A few later years I just tried to get in about 4:30 and stick to the front of the line where it exited to the first house. Last year they moved the front of the zone into a cut off line I nearly missed because they it didn't seem that crowded yet. If this year it's lining up to get into to the line for the line I am just going to need a table to flip. If it gets to the point where I can't plan and get to every house in September without express I am prob going to spend that extra money and just fly to LA and do Knotts again for which I think is a better Halloween event anyways.

Bad news about the “line for a line” thing buddy.
Exactly what happened for me on Sunday

It’s the worst crowd levels I have ever seen.

 

[SeventyOne]

It’s the worst crowd levels I have ever seen.

I agree--Sunday was the worst traffic I've ever seen--yet Thrill Data shows only the two main headliners averaged over an hour wait (with ST still around 90). Not great but hardly the stuff of legend, especially with the event down a show this year.

I think the main issue is the growth of a "smart" crowd. With social media, everyone knows about stay & scream now, and which houses they want to hit. Also, with the de facto elimination of free parking, and word of that likely spreading, the incentive to "wait until 8" that motivated a lot of guests is gone, so now the incentive is to show up as close to 6:30 as possible. Obviously just a theory but S&S closing just doesn't check with the wait times we're seeing.

 

[HandsomePete]

Sunday was the worst traffic I've ever seen

I looked at Google maps a few times over the weekend to check out all the red lines… it really defies belief just how poorly the garages have been operated since Covid. They’re designed to ingest huge numbers of cars at once, yet Ops perpetually does dumb things like route the entire main parking plaza down to a single lane to go to the south garage (to also merge with the people also entering via the south plaza!). Or refusing/being incapable of double barreling the rows as you park (inside lane goes down one row, outside goes down another). They’d honestly be better off just getting rid of all of the cones and letting people find a spot on their own.

Yes, they have to deal with the day crowd and whatever they’ve done to the Volcano Bay floor, but HHN prep needs to start at 9am. Start the day parking the garages top to bottom. Aggressively backfill from 2-5pm when arrival rates are lowest. Have multiple floors in both garages ready to accept vehicles from 6-8pm. But they don’t want to staff/pay people for full shifts for a 2-3 hour rush.

SeaWorld/Aquatica used to clog up all of the surrounding roads on weekends until the local residents started reporting it to the police because emergency vehicles wouldn’t be able to get through. Maybe that would finally get them to run the garages like they used to be run.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

I looked at Google maps a few times over the weekend to check out all the red lines… it really defies belief just how poorly the garages have been operated since Covid. They’re designed to ingest huge numbers of cars at once, yet Ops perpetually does dumb things like route the entire main parking plaza down to a single lane to go to the south garage (to also merge with the people also entering via the south plaza!). Or refusing/being incapable of double barreling the rows as you park (inside lane goes down one row, outside goes down another). They’d honestly be better off just getting rid of all of the cones and letting people find a spot on their own.

Yes, they have to deal with the day crowd and whatever they’ve done to the Volcano Bay floor, but HHN prep needs to start at 9am. Start the day parking the garages top to bottom. Aggressively backfill from 2-5pm when arrival rates are lowest. Have multiple floors in both garages ready to accept vehicles from 6-8pm. But they don’t want to staff/pay people for full shifts for a 2-3 hour rush.

SeaWorld/Aquatica used to clog up all of the surrounding roads on weekends until the local residents started reporting it to the police because emergency vehicles wouldn’t be able to get through. Maybe that would finally get them to run the garages like they used to be run.

Stop using logic

They had maybe 5/6 booths open this past Saturday at 3:30 with 1 TM each. Great guest experience!

They also need to figure out the traffic situation on Universal Blvd. With Epic probably doubling the need for additional bus transportation, it's gonna cause havoc if they don't do something.

 

[coastercody]

I personally never use the main entrance. We usually come in from the south on Universal Boulevard make the U-turn at the light and then take the exit to the back parking booths. Nine times out of 10 we breeze in with no issue.

 

[SeventyOne]

I personally never use the main entrance. We usually come in from the south on Universal Boulevard make the U-turn at the light and then take the exit to the back parking booths. Nine times out of 10 we breeze in with no issue.

That was my thought when I saw I-4 was stopped ahead (cut off at Sand Lake). I first saw traffic backed up "behind the curve" last year. But Sunday was the first time it was backed all the way to the on-ramp from Universal Blvd.

FWIW few were turning off Hollywood Way., most of the traffic was being diverted from the main entrance to the back entrance.

 

[DodgsonHere]

Is it smart to use Express on your first house after waiting in Stay and Scream? I saw a guide suggesting to do this for Stranger Things but I feel like that completely defeats the purpose of doing Stay and Scream if you’re just going to use an express you could have used later anyways.

 

[coastercody]

Is it smart to use Express on your first house after waiting in Stay and Scream? I saw a guide suggesting to do this for Stranger Things but I feel like that completely defeats the purpose of doing Stay and Scream if you’re just going to use an express you could have used later anyways.

It’s normally not but for something like stranger things I might consider it. We did stay and scream and still ended up waiting an hour without express. If you use you express you can also avoid an hour line in stay and scream, just relax and have a couple drinks.

 

[DodgsonHere]

It’s normally not but for something like stranger things I might consider it. We did stay and scream and still ended up waiting an hour without express. If you use you express you can also avoid an hour line in stay and scream, just relax and have a couple drinks.

Would it be a better idea to use NY Stay and Scream to do Dueling Dragons with no express? Is that possible? I definitely would like to do DD twice for both paths, banging it out once early without express would make that much easier, and hopefully we'd be able to hit Stanger Things later using express. Not sure if I could convince my party to stay until 2:00 for the shorter late night house lines haha