Universal Studios Hollywood Secrets | Money & Time Saving Secrets
Looking to save money, time or get the best seat on every ride? We've got some of the best secrets to making the most out of your visit to Universal Studios Hollywood! From the best way to buy tickets to relaxing strolls through Hogwarts, we're sharing our little known secrets.
- Don't Bring A Backpack
- Experience Hogwarts With No Wait
- Save $10+ On Tickets
- CityWalk
- No Water Needed
- Skip The Lines
- Skip The Lines... For Free
- Access The Park Before Anyone Else
Don't Bring A Backpack!
If you don't need to bring a backpack with you to Universal Studios, leave it at home!
Backpacks need to be placed in lockers before getting in line for many of the rides and sometimes you'll find a lengthy wait just to put your backpack in a locker!
If you need a bag the secret here is using a fanny pack. Most fanny packs are small enough that they don't need to be stored in a locker and get stay with you on the rides.
Experience Hogwarts With No Wait!
It's no secret Harry Potter and The Forbidden Journey consistently has one of the longest wait times in the park, but did you know you can experience Hogwarts without waiting in line?
Simply ask the greeter at the front of the ride if you can just walk through Hogwarts and like magic they'll lead you to a secret passage to journey through Hogwarts.
This is a great way to take pictures, see details you may have missed or simply see Hogwarts without ever needing to wait in line!
Buy Your Tickets In Advance!
This is a HUGE one! Don't wait until you get to Universal Studios to buy your tickets.
There are so many ticket deals available online, at your local grocery store and even at nearby hotels that are significantly cheaper than buying at the entrance to the park.
Not only will you end up paying more money for your tickets at the gate, you'll probably be met with a line of people (who clearly don't know this secret) also waiting to purchase tickets -- cutting into time that could be spent having fun in the park!
When you purchase your tickets in advance with us, you'll be able to skip the line, head straight to the gate and purchase the tickets at a lower price.
You can find out more about our process and how we're able to do this in our Authorized Theme Park Ticket Reseller page.
Don't Forget About CityWalk!
CityWalk is right outside the entrance of Universal Studios Hollywood, but depending on where you park you might totally miss CityWalk. CityWalk is loaded with great food and shopping options!
The secret here is you can leave Universal Studios at any time to visit CityWalk and still reenter the park whenever you'd like.
CityWalk is great option for lunch to avoid some of the crowds inside the park or if you're simply looking for more dining options. CityWalk also has great breakfast options if you arrive early to the park!
While CityWalk is right outside of Universal Studios Hollywood, some dining locations may still be a 5-10 minute walk away as CityWalk is quite large. Keep this in mind if you're on a time crunch.
Leave The Water Bottle At Home!
There is no need to bring a water bottle to Universal Studios. Stop at any dining location or drink cart (with a soda fountain) and ask for a cup of water -- they're free and ice cold!
Large water bottles don't always fit in the storage compartments on the rides, which means might find yourself heading to a locker to store your water bottle.
Plus no water bottle means one less thing to carry around all day!
Skip The Lines!
You heard us right, you can skip the lines! The Universal Studios Hollywood VIP Experience is the ultimate way to experience the park.
When you become a VIP you'll not only get an exclusive tour of the park and studio lot, you'll also get to skip most of the lines and hop right on to most rides.
Of course this comes at an additional cost on top of your admission ticket, but if you're willing to pay extra the Universal Studios Hollywood VIP Experience is totally worth it.
Skip The Lines... For Free!
Maybe the VIP Experience is a bit out budget, but there are still other ways to skip the lines if you're willing to wake up early.
Not all of the rides open at the same time. The best example of this is the lower lot home to Jurassic World and Transformers rides. If you head to the escalators to the lower lot before they open you'll already be first in line for some very popular rides.
Most people in the park will already be in line for rides on the upper lot like Harry Potter and The Forbidden Journey, so this is a great tactic to avoid the crowds and hop on two or three rides with no or minimal wait time.
Access The Park Before Anyone Else!
Be on the look out for "early park admission tickets". Universal Studios Hollywood will occasionally sell tickets that allow for you to enter the park 30-60 minutes before anyone else.
These tickets only go on sale certain times of year and usually won't be announced.