How to do Universal Orlando in One Day

Year after year, friends and colleagues ask the most essential question. That question is: Is one day enough for Universal Orlando? I am here to tell you the answer is yes! Though most seasoned theme park-goers, even myself, would recommend 2 days to really enjoy, it certainly is possible to do it all in one day. In fact, with my annual pass, I have had many one-day trips where I was able to do it all. 2 days at Universal is the best way to take things easy and really enjoy all the little slow details the park has to offer, however, not everyone has the opportunity to spend more than a day. If you only have one day during your vacation or a smaller budget, here is how to do Universal Orlando in one day!

Buy your tickets in advance

When asking how to do Universal Orlando in one day, the first thing you want to do is buy your tickets in advance. Firstly, purchasing tickets at the front booth is primitive in today’s day and age and only creates more hassle than it should. It would be like going to the movie theater and buying your ticket at the booth. Sure, it will get the job done, but it is more standard to buy online to avoid any problems, settle any issues, and schedule what you need before you arrive. 

Secondly, buying your ticket online saves so much time. As with the movie theater example, you could wait in a long line to get your ticket and hope there is a seat, or you could simply buy your ticket online and walk right in. The same goes for universal. Those who don’t buy their ticket in advance have to wait in a very long line just to get into the park. Whereas those who purchased their tickets online can head straight to the gate, scan, and walk right in. Trust me, the line to purchase tickets is no joke, it wraps around and around and you’ll waste a precious half hour or more watching families settle credit card issues and pass costs. 

Make sure to purchase a one-day two-park ticket. You can get yours here. 

Arrive early at Islands of Adventure

Next on how to do Universal Orlando in one day, you want to arrive early and head to Islands of Adventure. When I say arrive early, I really mean arrive early. If you only have one day to vacation at Universal Orlando, you want to leave the sleeping in for after your trip. Now is the time to set your alarms, get everyone dressed, eat breakfast, and leave your hotel by 8:15. Both parks open at 9:00 am. You want to arrive at the parking entrance at least by 8:30 am. This is because many people underestimate the time it takes to actually get into the park. You have to wait in the car line to get into parking. Then after you do, there is a long walk through the parking garage before you reach bag check.

Then there is another unpredictable line during bag check. You may find a short line, just for the family in front of you to have issues in their bag or stroller, causing you to have to wait longer. Then, once you have finally exited the bag check and metal detectors, you have a good walk through CityWalk before you reach any park. All in all, arrive early, very early. The time your GPS says you will arrive is not the time you will get into the park. Don’t read your GPS notification stating that you will arrive at 9 am, though you are in the vicinity, you won’t be getting into the park until about 9:30 or later. 

Once you finally reach the fork in the road leading you to Universal, or Islands, you want to take a left and start your day at Islands of Adventure. I will continue to explain why in the paragraphs below. 

Purchase expresses passes

Next for how to do universal Orlando in one day is to purchase express passes. Now this isn’t entirely necessary if you are traveling during a weekday in late January or a rainy day in August. However, if you are traveling to Universal Orlando during, say, the weekend of Christmas, or in the middle of the summer in June, you will need express passes. Use my guide here: The best time to visit Universal Orlando in 2024, in order to pick the right time to visit and gauge what crowd levels would be when you visit.

If your visit falls on one of the peak days I have listed and if it fits in your budget, make sure you invest in that express pass. With an express pass, you can skip the line on every ride throughout the whole day. This is incredibly useful during the summer and holiday season, as sometimes wait times can reach 80 minutes for most rides. 

You can find Universal Express passes here. 

Ride the most popular rides first thing in the morning.

Then one of the most important tips for how to do Universal Orlando in one day is to ride the most popular rides first thing in the morning. As soon as the park opens, park-goers rush to the first ride in the park and go in the order until the back. This is not what you want to do, what you want to do is immediately head to the most popular ride in the park and work way way down to the least popular. This is because for those most popular rides, after the first hour of the day, you will see wait times of up to 120 minutes until the last hour of the day. 

Since we are starting at Islands of Adventure, this means you want to head straight to Hagrid’s motorbike adventure. This is, by far, the most popular ride in the park and the ride with the longest wait all day. After riding this, next to it you will find Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. Then on the next Island, you want to ride Velocicoaster, one of Universal’s newest rides. After the most popular, you are free to do the rest of the rides in Islands of Adventure in whichever order you choose. Depending on the time that you go, most of the rest of the rides will be around a 40-minute wait, a lot less if you purchase express passes. 

Schedule reservations to eat lunch 

This next tip goes right along with purchasing your tickets online instead of at the gate. The lunch hours at Universal can get pretty hectic, and if you are trying to do both parks in one day, it is hectic enough. To ease your troubles, you want to reserve dining for a sit-down restaurant such as Mythos or mobile order for an indoor restaurant. This way you don’t have to wait in a long hot line for food and spend another long time finding a place to sit and eat. As a plus, most reserved restaurants have indoor seating in a/c. You want to take this time to take a mid-day rest, eat food, and relax before continuing your day. 

Ride the train to Universal 

Finally, we reach the middle of the day. This should be around 3 pm. At this point, take the Hogwarts Express from Islands of Adventure to Universal Studios. This train is more than just a ride from one park to the next, it is an immersive experience. During the train ride, you’ll watch the transfer from Hogsmeade to Diagon Alley and even see a dementor or two. This is not the only way to get to the next park, if you would prefer not to wait in the train line, you can simply walk over to the next park through city walk, it would likely take the same amount of time. 

Ride the rides in the back of the park.

Once you arrive at Universal Studios, you want to ride the rides at the back of the park first, since that is the area you are walking into after the train ride. This means Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts, the Simpsons, Men in Black, and even E.T. After riding these rides, by this time of the evening, most young park-goers and their families will be heading back to their hotels for the night. Now is the time to hit the big rides of Universal. This means riding Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, the mummy, transformers, and the minions. Each should have less than an hour wait. Use the app to check wait times and pick the closest and lowest. 

Watch the lagoon show

Then on how to do Universal Orlando in one day, we must include the lagoon show. Universal’s Brand new Cinesational: A Symphonic Spectacular. This is an incredible drone, fireworks, and water show that takes place in the center of the park. I have made sure to include enough time for you to watch this show. Make your way to the central park section of Universal Studios and take some time to awe at the music, projections, and dancing fountains to really get a feel for what this park is about. 

Get in line for the last ride before 8:59 pm.

Lastly on how to do Universal Orlando in one day and my favorite tip. Run to a ride before 8:59 pm. Most guests assume that because the theme park closes at 9 pm, you must be out of the park at exactly that time. The reality is that you can ride all the rides up to exactly closing time. If the clock is at 8:59 pm and you are two steps away from the mummy, run! Run straight to the queue! Keep this tip in mind if there are any rides left that you haven’t gone on or any rides you want to ride again. Even if the wait is an hour, you are still able to get in that line to ride. All queues remain open until 9:00 pm. 

Looking for more Universal Orlando and Islands of Adventure tips? Check out Tips to Maximize Your Time at Universal Orlando and Guide to Universal Orlando’s Wizarding World.