Universal Studios Early Park Admission Details & Perks

Want to skip the crowds at Universal Studios, and get to your favorite rides before anyone else? Say hello to early park admission. While there are only 3 ways to get Universal Early Park Admission at Universal Studios Orlando it’s something we highly recommend getting if you can.

Universal Studios Early Park Admission is practically required if you’re planning to do the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in one day. Or if you’re planning a shorter visit, where you really need to maximize your time. But what is it? Who get’s it? And how do you get it? Here is a quick guide to Early Park Admission at Universal Studios!

Universal Studios Early Park Admission Details

Early Park Admission at Universal Studios is just what it sound like! It means you can enter the parks before the park opens, and earlier than everyone else. Early entry at universal studios is only offered certain days and for certain guests.

However, it’s a little more complicated than just arriving to the Parks early and doing everything you want though. So we’ve created this guide to help you understand Universal Early Park Admission if you’re headed to the parks and want to make the most of your day at Universal Studios Orlando. 

How Early is Universal Studios Early Entry?

Universal Orlando Early Park Admission, allows you to arrive up to 1 hour before the park opens.

What Do you Get with Universal Studios Early Entry?

Universal Studios Early Entry gets you access to select rides, without the long line waits.

What Parks offer Early Park Admission at Universal Studios?

Technically, all parks offer Early Park Admission. However, they don’t all offer them all of the time.  Sometimes they alternate which park will open early and other times only one or two parks open early. If you want to use this benefit during your trip to Universal Studios, you’ll want to keep an eye on the Early Park Admission Calendar to see which parks are opening early on the days you are traveling. 

Universal Studios Early Park Admission Options

So how do you get early park admission at Universal Orlando? While you Universal Early Park Admission is something that you can get through three options. 

Book your Hotel Stay at a Universal Studios Resort

Because Staying on Universal Studios’ property will get you early park admission. We most like Universal Portofino Bay. 

Get a Universal Studios Pass

A Universal Studios Season Pass is cheaper than you think. If you’re a preferred or premier annual pass holder at Universal Studios, you’ll also get Early Park Admission as a perk of your pass. This includes Premier Passholders and Preferred Passholders on select days. And Power Passholders on select dates.

Book a Universal Studios Vacation Package

While you can get early entry with a premiere hotel stay, you can also get it when you stay at a Universal Studios Partner Hotel. But only if you a book a Universal Studios Vacation Package. It’s important to note that guests staying at a good neighbor hotel must book a vacation package to get this perk. This includes tickets and lodging. Know that just staying at the hotel alone doesn’t give you this benefit. Check out the Universal Studios Vacation Package Offers.

Universal Studios Early Park Admission Schedule

As part of  the Early Admission options at Universal Studios you can get access to Islands of Adventure, Universal Studios Florida and EPIC Universe up to 1 Hour in Advance of Park Opening. Or you can enter Volcano Bay Up to 30 Minutes in advance of park opening.

Note that Universal Early Admission isn’t always available, so be sure to check the Universal Early Park Admission Calendar for details. This includes which rides are included in Universal Early Park Admission and when they are offered. 

Universal Studios Early Park Admission Benefits

Really, there are so many benefits of getting Early Park Admission when you can. Lower lines, fewer crowds, and the chance to do the important rides before gets too hot are huge perks. Early Entry is also the best way to do the Harry Potter Wizarding World in one day.

While accessing the park 1 hour earlier than everyone else may not seem like a lot, if you’re at the gates, as soon as you’re allowed in, it’s a huge help. You can tackle the most popular rides first, like Hagrid’s Motorbike, and still have time to complete the rides in Hogsmeade before heading over to Diagon Alley.

Even when Universal Studios is not super busy, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is still usually very crowded. It’s a small space and it draws guests who have literally only come for this area; so having early admission is a great perk to be able to use. 

Universal Studios Early Park Admission Rides

Early Park Admission allows you access to a variety of rides, specific to each park. You can check Universal’s website to see what will be available when you go as they do sometimes change. Check out the Rides included in Universal Early Admission for all the details. Here are the ones previously included in each park. 

EPIC Universe Early Park Admission Rides

• Mario Kart™: Bowser’s Challenge
• Yoshi’s Adventure™
• Mine-Cart Madness™
• Stardust Racers

Islands of Adventure Early Park Admission Rides

• Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey
• Flight of the Hippogriff
• Jurassic World VelociCoaster
• Ollivanders
• Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure

Universal Orlando Early Park Admission Rides

• Despicable Me Minion Mayhem
• Diagon Alley
• Escape from Gringotts
• Ollivanders

Volcano Bay Early Park Admission Rides

• Ohno of Ohyah & Ohno Drop Slides
• Honu of the Honu ika Moana
• ika Moana of the Honu ika Moana
• Krakatau Aqua Coaster
• Ko’okiri Body Plunge
• Waturi Wave Pool

Universal Studios Early Park Admission Tips

There are a couple things to know before you go, if you’re hoping to use this perk at Universal. 

Double Check the Early Admission Schedule

As we mentioned before, always check which Park is hosting Early Park Admission and find out what time you need to arrive. This is important because Park hours change throughout the year.

Arrive Early

Plan to be there 30 minutes before early admission begins to allow time to get through security and the gates.

Have your Credentials Ready

You’ll also want to make sure that each member of your party has both their tickets and hotel key or annual pass. If you’re staying at a good neighbor hotel with a vacation package that offers Early Park Admission, we recommend checking with the hotel to see what credentials you will need for early admission. In the past when we’ve stayed offsite, we have just needed to show our room key for whatever hotel we were staying at. 

Have a Plan

Be sure to make a plan. Even though you can get into the Parks an hour before everyone not using this benefit, an hour can go fast! Prioritize what you want to Ride or See or Do. If you’re planning to do the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, the Hogwarts Express usually starts running 15-30 minutes before the official Park opening. Plan to do the rides you want to do in the park hosting early admission and then head over to the Hogwarts Express to be one of the first people in the other park.

Use it on Check in, and Check out Days

You can use your early admission benefit both the day you check-in and the day you check out.  We recommend planning ahead of time what days you want to use early admission. Check out our Loews Universal Portofino Bay Resort Review to get a feeling for what staying on property at Universal Studios and the perks of Early Park Admission can do for you. 

Universal Studios Early Park Admission Review

Aside from rides, early admission also allows you to enjoy the Parks with fewer crowds. So if you want to grab some empty Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley photos, or get a head start on casting spells before the crowds roll in, early admission is a great time to do that. Hopefully, this guide has been helpful in understanding how Early Park Admission works! We love this benefit and think it should be used whenever available.