HHN '19 - Game Plan

[marip123]

Honestly surprised they haven't utilized the Dreamworks theather for either movie trailers (maybe show the trailer to Blumhouses Black Christmas) or a show, because at this point its going to be near impossible to do everything in one night.

 

[DTH]

Honestly these lines just get worse and worse.

 

[bob albert]

Those lines make orlando look manageable.

 

[Spookies n' Stuff]

Does anyone have the early entry schedule? It seemed very erratic and I need to form a new game plan

 

[Brian G.]

The game plan is Express.

 

[Jerroddragon]

So I went last night...yes its the first night so many were bad BUT you know what doesn't help not all or most mazes opening at the same time....the fact ONE maze is open at 6 then the rest start following after that really fucks up how the lines for some mazes work.
Strangers thing by 5:30 already had an hour line and you have to wait 30 mins before the line would even more....i just moved on to creep show but had to skip many mazes last night because of Us not opening until 7 PM

 

[Freak]

For what it’s worth, as DTH said on the other thread, yesterday was Friday the 13th AND a full moon to top it all off. Factor in opening night and you have a triple-whammy of apocalypse-level crowds. Hopefully tonight should be more manageable.

Did what it’s worth, I went to Scary Farm a couple of years ago on Friday the 13th and it was ridiculously packed....more than I’ve ever seen it. I think it will be a little more manageable tonight.

 

[Spookies n' Stuff]

For what it’s worth, as DTH said on the other thread, yesterday was Friday the 13th AND a full moon to top it all off. Factor in opening night and you have a triple-whammy of apocalypse-level crowds. Hopefully tonight should be more manageable.

Did what it’s worth, I went to Scary Farm a couple of years ago on Friday the 13th and it was ridiculously packed....more than I’ve ever seen it. I think it will be a little more manageable tonight.

I think tonight will be just as bad because it's the first saturday of the event, but tomorrow and next thursday should be a little better

 

[DTH]

Brian G is unfortunately right. The only way to get everything done this year is with Express.
Having no Terror Tram has ruined so many elements of this event.
I did everything except for Stranger Things. Killer Klowns, while not too insanely popular on the other nights, was jam packed all night long starting around 7:30 and stayed 2 hours for the rest of the night. It's popularity is pretty insane and it was getting longer lines than even Ghostbusters and Stranger Things at points.

 

[Spookies n' Stuff]

Brian G is unfortunately right. The only way to get everything done this year is with Express.
Having no Terror Tram has ruined so many elements of this event.
I did everything except for Stranger Things. Killer Klowns, while not too insanely popular on the other nights, was jam packed all night long starting around 7:30 and stayed 2 hours for the rest of the night. It's popularity is pretty insane and it was getting longer lines than even Ghostbusters and Stranger Things at points.

I mean its sorta hard to judge this early on, especially when two of the 3 nights were either a special event or opening night, and one was a saturday, I think later thursdays, sundays, and the occasional friday will be a lot more manageable than the last 3 nights.

 

[DTH]

I really think this has to do with the Terror Tram. Crowds have nowhere to go but the mazes, and if its at capacity, they're all just stuck in the lines. The VIP/FOL have nowhere to go but the mazes because there's so little rides and other options. As you said, Thursdays and Sundays may be fine. I highly suggest anyone going to go on one of those days.

 

[k_peek_2000]

I'm fairly convinced that losing the TT resulted in significant loss of attraction capacity. While I am personally fine losing TT, they should have considered this and found ways to utilize Dreamworks theater, or Animal Actors to eat up crowds. For next year I propose they bring back the JW/JP location for a maze and utilize the WaterWorld venue for a more noise friendly version of SlaughterWorld (or maybe a night time show with temporary fountains, lasers and water screens like a scaled down Marathon of Mayhem (i'm dreaming here).

 

[Jerroddragon]

So I've gone Twice....Friday Was a Mess Sure Saturday want much better....Sunday was better but they changed the Game Play
The First Night US (at least what two CM told me) wasn't uping until 6:45-7 PM...but on Sunday it was open at 6 PM

I called and the people in the call center had no clue what the mazes times were so it feels like every night I go its just me going to have to waste a minute asking CM what is open at 6 PM

Going Thursday and hoping the mazes are even more dead and excited for the 80s music. The Last 3 Mazes I have to go on are Stranger Things, Killer Clowns and the Wolfman....I should get two of them down on Thursday but if Stranger things is over 40 mins...farfanoogin it I might just skip it this year.
Also they need to Open MORE attractions I don't care HOW more things need to be open. Use Dream Works Theater for Fucking Shrek Scary Stories for all I care but you need to open at the VERY least next year Pets, the Dream Works Theater and Despicable Me to help spread Crowds out.
Would be REALLY nice to have Hogwarts even if its only for a Night Time Show and a Meet and Greet with Death Eaters.

Just Spread people out and open more walk ways.

 

[Rub]

Do you guys think going to the Metro Sets, then the Lower Lot, then the Upper Lot is a good idea? Or would it be better to go to Stranger Things first, then the Backlot? This is considering I am utilizing early entry advantageously and going on a night that closes at 2:00 AM.

 

[DTH]

I have a couple of ideas...

I did Metro, Lower, Upper, then Tram. I missed Stranger Things though. Granted, my KKFOS wait time estimate was wrong by an hour, which messed up my plans heavily, but I still don't think I would've made it anyway.

So my next thought is... do Metro... Tram, Upper... back down to Lower.

Or Tram, Metro, Upper, then Lower.
The reason for this is, Killer Klownz opens at 7, so lower will be last or middle regardless. You'll want to hit as many mazes in EE as possible, which means having as many mazes near each other as possible. ST and KKFOS will be long in the middle of the night anyway.
Tram mazes are only short in the beginning of the night.
Upper lot is fairly empty for most of the night, which is why it'll be good to hit in the middle.

If you're one of the very first for ST, like literally a 10 minute wait, then I'd say it may be okay to hit that first, but then run to Tram or Metro.

 

[ghostsarejerks]

So I’m mad cause my group agreed to go early to do EE but of course we’re running super late and I’m probably barely gonna make the 7:00 opening. What’s a good emergency game plan to salvage the night?

 

[AlexanderMBush]

So here's a question, how much would it be to upgrade to an Express? Asking, as this is legitimately starting to worry me for the night that I do go.

 

[DTH]

So I’m mad cause my group agreed to go early to do EE but of course we’re running super late and I’m probably barely gonna make the 7:00 opening. What’s a good emergency game plan to salvage the night?

Plan 1 - Leave your friends behind.

Plan 2 - If you don't wanna be THAT guy that does Plan 1, just pick 2 or 3 mazes your group doesn't mind skipping. Stranger Things and Corpses are consistently on the lower end of rankings, even with people that haven't seen the 2010-2011 one of Corpses and fans of ST. Other lower ranking mazes are Pandora and Ghostbusters. They're both love 'em or hate 'em. Creepshow and FMTW are both usually in the middle, so I'd recommend those. Do not miss Us or Killer Klowns, as those are everyone's top. Skip Jabba and dinner, you have no choice now. Limit your groups snack and bathroom breaks. This is harsh treatment but they screwed you over by being late in the first place. Also harsh on yourself, as we all gotta eat, but you wanna see as many mazes as possible, right?!

In addition to Plan 2, never wait around for "what next?" Just have the plan ready and have everyone start walking. If people need a bathroom break, just have them meet you at the line so someone can be a placeholder so at least SOME time can be shaved off the wait time, instead of waiting around for everyone to finish their bathroom break.

Plan 3 - (looking at the time, hoping you see this before than) Get the Express pass that goes on sale at 11 PM. I don't know the price, but last year it was usually an extra $20-50, depending on the night.

Plan 4 - Divide and conquer. I tried this and it didn't work because line times were drastically wrong. But in theory, it should work amazingly well. Have half your group go wait in one long line. The other half goes off and waits in a much shorter line. They return after doing the maze and then you guys switch off, re-converging back in the really long line so you can all enjoy. It's two mazes down in the time for one really long maze's wait time. (Example: Wait in the 2 hour US line, but have people go off and do the Holidayz in Hell line that's only 35 minutes, then switch -- in theory, everyone should be back with about 20-30 minutes to spare before finally reaching the front of the US line). This ultimately saves you one less maze to do and can gain you time to hit one extra maze. Remember, you can get into a maze as long as you're there one second before closing, so always have in mind what your home stretch will be, and plan accordingly to make that run for it.

 

[HorrorNightsFan13]

So here's a question, how much would it be to upgrade to an Express? Asking, as this is legitimately starting to worry me for the night that I do go.

I went on Friday night and upgraded to Unlimited Express. It cost $117 for Unlimited and I believe the worker said $77 for one use express Then there is also the option of after 11 pm express which I never got a price for and is only available on certain nights.

The prices will differ based on when you attend though. I emailed Universal to ask what the prices would be on the night I went and while they couldn’t give me an exact amount, they said that the range was between $50-$190 for upgrading the ticket to express or unlimited express

 

[ghostsarejerks]

Lol the lines were all about 15-20 minutes, I waited maybe half an hour for Creepshow