negative change with Express Pass lines

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

They were running it through the middle entrance with the standby people. Sometimes you had to sit through the preshow sometimes you didn't. Than the lines split again after the preshow. Even after the split it took way longer than years past.

I've actually never seen the preshow before with the elevator. The whole process made it a no go for EP riders wanting to ride a few times in a row.

That is very disappointing.

 

[murmer]

When we went in Feb the year after Covid shut down on Jurassic park River ride we watched the standby line walk on while they held the express line. It was ridiculous and we mentioned and the TM basically was I have to let x number of people in standby in for every express. Even though it was walk on.

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

When we went in Feb the year after Covid shut down on Jurassic park River ride we watched the standby line walk on while they held the express line. It was ridiculous and we mentioned and the TM basically was I have to let x number of people in standby in for every express. Even though it was walk on.

Yep it’s the same thing for any pay to front of the line service (like genie plus or quick queue)

 

[schumigirl]

The first 2 or 3 days it seemed some lines were taking longer than they needed to. So after that I started paying attention to what was going on.

It seemed to me that on certain rides they weren't favoring the EP line as much as others. It wasn't quite deal breaker slow or formal complaint slow, however for those of us the go frequently it was noticeable. I was wondering if each ride has it's own manager and if those managers were giving different instructions to the TM's?

My wife really likes FJ and the EP line was pretty much walk on our entire trip regardless of whether stand by was 30 mins or 90 mins. Gringotts on the other hand was 20-30 mins every time regardless of the stand by line.

Two similar rides: Spider-Man was normal EP times and Transformers seemed to be longer then needed.

MIB was a disaster. This is a ride we would normally walk on in EP 3 times in a row to compete with each other for scores. However they were really slowing down the EP line compared to previous trips.

We were there for 11 days so these observations were made over a lengthy enough time to be considered valid.

The EP with the Premium resorts is part of what makes UOR such a great experience for us so hopefully they don't screw it up.

The hotels know they wouldn’t fill up as much as they do, conferences and conventions aside, without the EP perk. We see it here all the time, folks staying for one night to get the perk for two days.

Yes, that whole MiB pre show before the elevators is completely avoidable usually, we went through it once with EP for no apparent reason and the group in front of us went bananas……that was annoying I agree. I do think on a lot of occasions it’s poorly trained TM’s or people who have been put in a management position without the required experience or ability.

Completely believe your and others experiences, it’s not good enough….what’s the point of a perk if it’s not really a perk.

 

[Captain Morgan Sparrow]

We are scheduled to go in 3.5 weeks for spring break, and booked Hard Rock. I had gravitated here over Disney for the Express Pass and ease of getting around.

Now I'm nervous. We could have gone to Dollywood and sprung for time-savers!

 

[saskdw]

We are scheduled to go in 3.5 weeks for spring break, and booked Hard Rock. I had gravitated here over Disney for the Express Pass and ease of getting around.

Now I'm nervous. We could have gone to Dollywood and sprung for time-savers!

I don't want to start a panic just yet.

My observation was that on some rides the EP line wasn't moving as quick as it should have based on previous experiences. It wasn't to the point that I would be writing a letter or screaming from the rooftops that I'm never going back. I've always been impressed with the EP lines at UOR and I'm hoping this was just anomaly, not a conscious decision by UOR management.

 

[MsVanderquack]

We were there last week and had a good experience with EPs. Many were walk ins with EP even while the regular line was backed up. Longest wait was with the Hippogriff coaster. Regular was 60 min and we waited about 25. The guy at the front said it would be about half and it was. We roads Gringotts twice in a row and it only took about 15 minutes to reach the elevator and the regular line was nearly an hour.
I wish the ice cream shop had an EP line though

 

[Dmto4]

Here now. EP have been amazing the last couple days. Gringots was posted at 45 min. It took 5 minutes from entrance to the pre show. We were on and off twice in less than 40 minutes. Transformers was 75 min. On the ride in 9. Mummy was 40 min. Entrance to boarding was 6 minutes. Incredible!! I have never had EP so quick! Most rides have been almost a walk on. The slowest line was Kong yesterday. Posted 95 minutes. On in 20.

 

[christophfam]

Here now. EP have been amazing the last couple days. Gringots was posted at 45 min. It took 5 minutes from entrance to the pre show. We were on and off twice in less than 40 minutes. Transformers was 75 min. On the ride in 9. Mummy was 40 min. Entrance to boarding was 6 minutes. Incredible!! I have never had EP so quick! Most rides have been almost a walk on. The slowest line was Kong yesterday. Posted 95 minutes. On in 20.

Thanks for posting, I’ve been a bit concerned as I have a trip next week. I didn’t have any issues in November but after reading some of the earlier posts, I was worried things had changed. I do know that there are times that express can be backed up here and there. I just pass by that particular ride and catch it later. Has always worked for me. Let’s hope those that posted having an issue just hit it at a bad time or was just a fluke. I’ll post my findings when I return in March.

 

[DisGhost]

We were just there between Xmas and NY and EP was great - Posted wait time for Forbidden Journey was 90 minutes, we were off in 15. Hulk was a walk on with a standby time of over 100 minutes. Only one that was bad was Minions and we just left the line. Simpsons broke down and we waited an extra 30 minutes. Mummy was about a 25 minute wait but not a big deal. And it was CROWDED.

They seemed to let on at least 3x as many EP parties as standby. We will be there again Saturday - Tuesday so now I'm a bit nervous!

 

[keishashadow]

I very much doubt it’s left up to the individual CMs at the attractions to decide how many guests to process in each line. The parks have managers for the managers as to efficiency

JMHO instead of the actual line access, it could be the flow/number of people in the EP lines causing things to back up.

things that may very well be inflating the EP lines…

1. Could be selling more day EPs than in the past

2. Influx of new visitors (priced out of market WDW faithful) increasing the gate of standby

3. Possible influx of those seeking/awarded disability access passes Which use the EP line

As mentioned above, Spring Break will be true test of how U handles their crowds.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I very much doubt it’s left up to the individual CMs at the attractions to decide how many guests to process in each line. The parks have managers for the managers as to efficiency

JMHO instead of the actual line access, it could be the flow/number of people in the EP lines causing things to back up.

things that may very well be inflating the EP lines…

1. Could be selling more day EPs than in the past

2. Influx of new visitors (priced out of market WDW faithful) increasing the gate of standby

3. Possible influx of those seeking/awarded disability access passes Which use the EP line

As mentioned above, Spring Break will be true test of how U handles their crowds.

I do wonder how the closures of the attractions near Simpsons area and E.T. affect things. They were primarily kid-oriented experiences/attractions so maybe not much affect on the bigger attractions but I could see that just creating more crowding with the other rides out there since it won't absorb people anymore.

 

[kevtlas]

Booked Universal for the first time since 2005. It’ll be the first visit for my wife and kids, and basically for me too since there is pretty much nothing still there that was in 2005 (not that I’d remember anyway). We booked at Royal Pacific specifically for the express pass perk, so hopefully it cuts down on the wait.

 

[skuttle]

We just finished our second day at universal and EP have been worth it! With the holiday lines have been long. We’ve walked on everything except flight of hippogriff (we were told slow because only using one train?). And today Velocicoaster was about 30min EP (regular line around 90min). It’s been a life saver for sure! We’re a family of 5 so we’re staying at hard rock since that was the cheaper option for us.

 

[DL1WDW2]

Hi …love Hard Rock Resort , glad you are having fun.
Currently Universal Resort Annual Passholders can enter the Express after 4 or 4:30. Have you noticed if this has an affect to the EP lines for guests , making them longer. ?

 

[skuttle]

Hi …love Hard Rock Resort , glad you are having fun.
Currently Universal Resort Annual Passholders can enter the Express after 4 or 4:30. Have you noticed if this has an affect to the EP lines for guests , making them longer. ?

If it has, It hasn’t been enough to make it noticeable. We did velocicoaster twice after 4, and I just assumed the wait was longer because it was the first day with EP for that one. But I don’t know what it was before that time. The rest all seems the same.

 

[MousetersInc]

If it has, It hasn’t been enough to make it noticeable. We did velocicoaster twice after 4, and I just assumed the wait was longer because it was the first day with EP for that one. But I don’t know what it was before that time. The rest all seems the same.

My perception is that, over the past few months, a "good" Velocicoaster time is around 45', and a bad one was over 90. I believe this week has been/will be a very high traffic one, so my guess is that 30', or even the 90' standby, is a great time "considering"!

 

[rmclain73]

Yesterday it was 45 mins with EP for Veliocoaster. Posted standby was 95 mins. Minions was a 30 min wait as was RRR. Very busy day.

 

[smdigh]

Yesterday it was 45 mins with EP for Veliocoaster. Posted standby was 95 mins. Minions was a 30 min wait as was RRR. Very busy day.

 

[Amirah95]

Yep. Experienced this on our last trip especially on Gringotts, MIB and at the Hogwartz Express. But what can we do about it?