View Full Version : Universal Express Plus Card - Your opinion
What do you think about the Universal Express Plus Card. It is a card you can buy, (we paid $100 each) and you don't have to queue at all. It also enable you to go on all the rides within a short time, as there is virtually no queue. You can only use it for the day, and can be used at Island of Adventure and Universal Studios, but only for one day. When we went last year, Universal had run out by 9am, (apparently there is a big queue for it in the morning) but our hotel at the Rosen Centre had them for $100 each. What do you think, too expensive? or can it be bought cheaper.
ujpest doza
23-11-2004, 15:04
When we purchased our tickets at Islands of Adventure in May the girl behind the counter advised us not to upgrade as she said the park was quiet.
Too right it was! very quiet and meant the Toon Lagoon Kiddies park was a breeze with no queues etc.
Universal Studios was very busy the next week but only because it was the day The Mummy officially opened.
Shared a table with a man from Jacksonville in MGM who had annual Disney passes and also special privelages for Test track due to him working at General Motors. He said that Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure were not doing as well as Disney and were usually pretty quiet in comparison. Disney being aimed at a younger more family orientated audience as opposed to the perceived thrill ride teenage audience that Universal is aimed at.
floridadreamvilla.co.uk
23-11-2004, 16:12
Blimey - you have been well overcharged - we buy ours at the parks on arrival for about $30 each (perhaps slightly less - cannot remember the exact figure). See http://www.park-tickets.com/UniversalExpress.aspx for more details.
You do have to get to the parks early to get them, but we've bought them as late as 10am - even on New Years Day.
These tickets are only available in the parks so it looks like a ticket tout may have popped to the parks first thing and bought a stack of these tickets for less than $30 each and then sold them on to you at a massive profit of $70+ each ticket. Not bad work if you can get it [msnmad]
Some non Universal hotels visit the parks 1st thing in the morning to buy a stack of these at $15 each (or $27 for 2 parks), then resell them at the hotels hotels at a huge profit. Not sure whether it's legal or not, but they are certainly make some decent profit on them!
I knew it couldnt be as much as $100 each, but twice we went to the park very early in the hope that we can get the Express Plus Pass, but they had sold out. We even went at 9am, and they said they only sold 10 on that day and that was it. I am shocked it is less than $30 dollars. I am not referring to the Express Pass, but the Express Plus Pass, which you use for the whole day.
floridadreamvilla.co.uk
23-11-2004, 16:35
It's the Express Plus pass we are talking about - a single park one is about $15 on the gate and a combo one is less than $30 on the day.
The Express passes are free as they are included with your park entrance and work in a similar way to the Disney Fastpass system.
I'm afraid you have been well and truly seen off [msnsad].
If you get to the park first thing you should have absolutely no problem buying them. Maybe the problem with them selling out is being exacerbated by ticket touts buying them in bulk first thing in the morning [msnmad]
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by jtijani
I knew it couldnt be as much as $100 each, but twice we went to the park very early in the hope that we can get the Express Plus Pass, but they had sold out. We even went at 9am, and they said they only sold 10 on that day and that was it. I am shocked it is less than $30 dollars. I am not referring to the Express Pass, but the Express Plus Pass, which you use for the whole day.
[/quote]
WE got these in July at around 10.30 and they were only $30. I am shocked that you were asked to pay $100[msnmad]
jolliffee
23-11-2004, 17:33
WE used these last May, though I think we paid about $25 each, well worth it no Q's to speak of, and they didn't bother marking the card so we did the rides loads of times. But you need to be there when it opens otherwise they have all gone.[msnwink]
When we were there in June we were charged about $35 each at the gate for just one park and as there are 5 of us its quite a bit extra I think.
We thought we'd get them as we only had one day there so wanted to make sure we got on everything. What a waste of money! The girl on the gate had told us they would save us so much time in the queues but actually it was quite quiet that day so we really didn't need them. Also you can't use them on all the rides anyway.
We definitely felt we had been ripped off.