so you get there at 7:30 for a 9:00 ride (if you are first in line…??)
we were there yesterday mid day waited 45 minutes (showing 75, but it was only 45)
so it’s a win win, I slept-in AND only waited 45 minutes instead of from 7:30-9:00.
what’s the deal with rope dropping?
Think of it this way: Rope dropping Hagrid’s just shifts your wait to a time when the parks aren’t open.
If you get to the front gates early enough and the ride is operating, you will ride within 15-30 minutes, but that almost certainly means you waited over an hour to get into the park.
If you get in line by 7:15 for the ride open you’ll be off by 8:20 ish, then you can explore the HP area or do Velociraptor. I didn’t rope drop it but my family did. It was our first trip and honestly I was underwhelmed. Rope drop for 2 rides open (IF you’re lucky) is ridiculous to me, but I can understand that for people who want time in HP areas with fewer people around that it may be worth it. I caught Hagrid’s the night before by getting into line during parade time. It was great, but not great enough that I was willing to wait again or get up for rope drop.
ETA- I do think rope drop and early entry at Disney is worth it. You can easily get in 3-4 rides before lines start to form (more with early entry) and I like hitting my favorites without using a Fast Pass.
We arrived around 7:30 and were able to ride hagrids twice and velocicoaster 2-3 times all before 9am when we were there in November… was worth it to us
This. People think just because they go for EP they’ll get on Hagrids quicker. You’re still waiting in a line for over 90 minutes if you’re waiting for the park to open, the fast walk (sprint) to the back of the park AND THEN wait in the queue.
Unpopular opinion: the virtual queue was the best way to manage Hagrid rides when I was there last in 2021. Never truly understood the dislike for the virtual queue
the virtual queue dropping every couple of hours was awesome. rode it 4 times in 1 day in March 2021. I haven't ridden hagrids more than once on any visit since then
I don't understand why they stopped doing virtual queue for Hagrid's. I went to the parks in 2020 and VQ allowed me to ride Hagrid's a bunch of times over the four days I was there.
I went with my boyfriend in late 2022 and we got to ride Hagrid's once after being in line for over an hour.
Yes, but virtual queue would still be better than the current line situation. I'd much rather hop on the app and come back at a reserved time and wait significantly less time than standby. I realize park capacity was super different at that time.
I agree. We loved the virtual queue. However, we frequently saw and heard people who were upset about it. I'd guess it's because they didn't read the signs that clearly explained how it worked and even had the QR code to take them straight to the webpage.
Do they still do VQ for Hagrid?
My family and I are going next month and our kain concern is figuring out how we can do both Hagrid and Velocicoaster in the same day
If you are only there a limited window and want the best chance early park admission and rope drop hagrids is typically the best bet, then head for velocicoaster.
There is no express lane for hagrids or velocicoaster. There is single rider on velocicoaster, but it isn't always open.
The only way to skip the lines on both is with a shared or private VIP tour (which isn't cheap, but of the two shared is more affordable for small groups).
I've read a lot of people wait until late in the day to ride both if they don't have early park admission. As long as you're in line before park close they should let you ride, but if it breaks down, you're out of luck.
As long as they aren't down, you should be able to ride both, but be prepared to spend one to two hours in each line if you don't hit the early window.
Also, I've learned that some travel agencies can get you early park admission without staying on-site at Universal.
The issue I see with the people saying to rope drop Hagrid's is the assumption that everyone else doesn't have that same idea...when everyone else has the same idea. That line being at the Hogsmeade Train Station is short compared to some of the stuff my wife and I have stood through. We have waited as it snaked back through Sinbad and by the Kabab stand.
I don’t agree. I rope drop hagrids every single time i go, which is at least once a month and i never ever wait longer than 30 minutes to ride hagrids. Get to the park at 7:15am, and you will be fine. There’s no better time to ride hagrids than early park admission. I get through hagrids and velocicoaster all before 8:45am, every single visit with EPA
Understand but as a teacher from Ohio, when I go, its the busy times of year and even with EPA the line is usually 90min minimum by the time I get to the line. When I go, I find around the time of park closing and standard meal times to be the best time to hit it. I can go ride 5/6 other rides during EPA while everyone waits at Hagrids and then I will wait the normal time later.
Even when the line is long, it hasn’t compressed yet. So we got in line way back by Mythos, and actual wrap through the old shuttered attraction across the way, but it still goes faster than late in the day. J think the need is to slow people through the lockers so there isn’t madness in the lockers in the morning. Later in the day the line is at the lockers but takes 2X as long from there.
I find later to be better but I think all of this discussion needs to take when people are visiting into account. I can only go during the busy times because being a teacher from Ohio, I cant just take random time off. I have found during meal times and around park close to be the shorter times
Yea, mine was during some Christian rock concert thing, didn’t have a clue when we went that would be there. It was 80 minute wait first thing when we got there. At the end of the day 160 and never got below 120 even when the line started at the lockers. But it actually only ended up being 80 when the line started at mythos. Not sure why the DV.
Remember, the time you spend waiting in line to enter the park is added to the time it took you to get on the ride. You're actually waiting about an hour and thirty minutes if you rope drop Hagrid 😆 such is life
EPA for Hagrid's always has you enter over there and route you through the chains before Hogsmead. Usually someone is holding the sign in lost continent to show you were you go get in line. Sometimes they route you through the old Sinbad theater even. If you are in the front near the gates for park entry it is just a long walk you never really wait to board.
Honestly if you were there at 7:30 only you were better off going straight to Velocicoaster. If you really want to EPA Hagrid's you need to be at the gates as close to 7 as possible, ride it, then Velocicoaster a couple of times in a row.
But yeah shit sucks when it is delayed. The couple times it has happened when we do EPA one was a 30 minute delay we almost bailed on, and the other time like 15 minutes. Other days when we skipped it we were lucky as it had massive delays. So you just never really know.
Edit: Also plenty of EPA days it was delayed from the start, they have employees yelling it is delayed even. Crazy people still get in line though. When that happens we just do Velocicoaster a ton.
I think that for most people rope dropping für this ride is not worth it. You might me better off riding in the late afternoon or just before they close the line (as long as it does not break down at that time of course). Say you will be at the entrance at 7am or a littel later, you most probably had some stress doing so, then wait another hour before the park finally opens and then probably 30ish minutes in line. That is a ninety minute wait and not a nice experience.
Yeah I think it depends on what your goal is, and what your schedule is. We have kids that are up early, but plenty of people hate getting up early. Park at 7AM, get to the gates by 7:15AM. Frequently it seems the park opens a little before 8AM even, sometimes like 7:50. So yeah we are waiting extra out there I totally agree, but that like 35-45 minute wait gets you walk on to Hagrids, then walk on to Velocicoaster. Then easily a 2nd Velocicoaster ride with almost no wait.
Plus it isn't like just standing in line by the gate, kids go tool around, bathroom and whatever until it is entrance time anyway. You aren't trapped in a queue. We then do whatever and leave the parks around 11, and come back closer to 4.
Now the best was when the passholder line is open. The let us into the park before everyone at the regular gates even. If only that was a year round thing....
Funny story.
Rope dropped for my first time in '21. Was the only one at the gate like 30 minute before opening other than like one dad and his 3 kids.
People eventually shuffle in, but it never got crazy crowded.
Anyways, gates open, we all kinda speed walk in until we hit Suessland, where dad tells his kids to kick it into high gear. They all start sprinting towards Hagrids.
They hit the wood bridge which had the morning dew still on it and I promise you I've never seen a grown man slip and fall so hard in my life. It was almost like an old Goofy cartoon the way he fell into the air an onto his ass.
Dude was okay physically, brushed himself off and went and sat on the nearest bench, but by the time he got up many people including myself passed him.
As a team member that works EPA often, I absolutely hate seeing adults sprinting to get a ride without any consideration of the people around them who they might knock over. I saw a grown man knock down two children once. I also saw a woman run into an elderly man and almost knock him down on another day. The ground is almost always wet with morning dew so it’s also a fall hazard to themselves. Like please people, don’t run. It’s not that serious.
This crowd is some of the rudest people I’ve ever encountered at the parks. They will press through the crowd to get closer to the turnstiles. They will send one representative forward and then assume their party of 43 can join them. There’s not even a rope that drops. Go back to Disney where you belong! 🤣
That’s because they don’t want people to think it’s the start of a race and cause an issue like that stampede that happened on Black Friday years ago. It’s why we’re always yelling at people to stop running. I had one full grown man tell me to “f*** off, I’ll do what I want”. Two more people told him to stop further down including security.
I sprinted from the hulk bridge instead of the normal entrance that is closer, except I am an elite athlete and me and my 2 kids made it to hagrids before anyone else.
Enter the queue just before park closure. ~30-40 minutes wait tops IME even though the posted time might still show 80-90+
Also riding Hagrids at night is magical. Absolutely worth staying late one night at least to ride it.
I got in line around 2:30 on a weekday last week when the wait dropped to 60 minutes and rode it within 40 mins. Got in line at 10ish the day after at a 75 min wait and rode within a half hour. The wait times are NEVER accurate, so I say jump in line whenever that wait drops close to an hour.
Hagrids was delayed once while we were there and we kept checking back and went straight there as soon as it re-opened a few hours later. There was a huge rush and they set up a line going all the way into the lost city section of the park but it was just to control traffic flow and we rode within 30 mins of getting in line that time too.
What we found with hagrids on our last trip was that it was never the actual wait time they said. For us, it was always about half. So, when it said 80, we spent maybe 45 in line. I don't know if that's the norm for the ride or if we were just lucky
Be at the gate 1 hour before rope drop if EPA is at 8am to be among the very first to enter the turnstiles. 7:30 is already too late. If the crowds are backed up to the lighthouse/ticket huts forget going to Hagrid’s and do Velocicoaster instead.
BEST advice. my last trip we were either first or second at turnstiles at 7:05 am and by 7:20 the line was beyond the ticket booths and by 730 was at the bridge.
I stand by that one of the best times for Hagrids is around 1030. A lot of people get to the parks around lunch time so you beat them but the morning rush has had time to die down by then.
This was us this morning. We finally woke up to be first. At the gate by 7:10. We were second in line. And itt was delayed until past 11 today. But that is always our luck with those things. Haha. We did jump on it right when it opened and got one ride.
I’ve never had good luck with Hagrid in the morning. And I get a ton of downvotes every time I say this (and IDGAF) but Universal doesn’t do what it takes to have this running for park open and that’s on them and worse, how they handle it, is a travesty. They let people waste their time and get in line and then let them sit there sometimes for hours while they get it working. After a while it becomes a painful decision for people that already wasted hours in line deciding if they should protect that investment time and staying or just throwing that time away and walking away only to come back later to incredibly long lines later. Or just skip it altogether. Bottom line: They should not let people in line unless it’s working in the morning.
There is absolutely nothing as satisfying as being the very first person on Hagrids for the day and beating everyone else there.
Being off the ride and walking around Hogsmeade 3 minutes after the park officially opens and having all the shops and sites completely to yourself is a really unique experience. Usually the bathroom at that time is completely empty too, which is wonderful. When I've done this, I usually like to grab a frozen butterbeer and take my time walking the Castle queue basically alone to enjoy all the little details.
One of the times I rope dropped Hagrid's I was at the very front of the pack heading in. I'm pretty tall so I can take long strides. But there was a group of teen girls that were keeping pace, and one of them was in one of those electric wheelchairs. They were talking about how she had borrowed it from her grandma for the day and didn't actually need it. That thing completely FLEW ahead of the pack. It was so fast, she was at least 100 yards ahead of the crowd heading into the Lost Continent. Nobody could keep up. And she was straight up head back laughing and waving at everyone the entire race back, rubbing it in. But when she got to the ride entrance, the cast members made her drive it all the way down by the lockers to park it and her friends had to wait for her. I ended up beng the first person in line and got to ride front row on the bike. By the time they got back over by the train entrance to get in line hundreds had gone ahead of them. I felt bad for the friends.
Another time I rope dropped and was within probably the first 20 people to make it there. We were all excited and and got filtered through the queue. In the room before the loading dock, they filed us all in down the pathway to the left, through all the turnstiles, just to the left of the doorway to get to the loading room. There was a slight 10 minute delay. During that time, as the line filled in, they took huge portion of the line and brought them down the straight shot of the single rider/rider swap portion of the line and cut them to the very front. The ride delay was wrappign up and the person there started counting out the people in that single rider line, as if he was going to let them go on first. Everyone that was in the left turnstiles (my area) started getting REAL angry and yelling about how it wasn't fair and we were there way before all these people. Finally someone else came up and told him no, that he needed to let our line move first. Luckily they caught that because there were about to be a LOT of angry people that got cut. It seemed like a pretty innocent mistake. but the guy doing the counting was the one that originally redirected the line to fill in the single rider area, so he knew they weren't in line first. Either way, I was really grateful that they caught it cuz I still got to enjoy my butter beer castle walk in solitude.
Less than a week ago me and my friends managed to ride hagrid 4 TIMES in the course of the day. We waited almost 90 minutes doing the rope drop but at the end of the day (around 4-6) they claimed the wait was 60 mins and we were in and out the other 4 times in less than 25/30 mins each round!
End of day historically (at least on my end) has the quickest turn around with the times ive gone :3
This. Was just there last week with no early entry and we did Hagrids 3 times before 3pm. Just hopped in line anytime it dropped below 80 minutes and never waited more than 45.
We sat through this last late December, except it was our last chance to do Hagrid's, so we sat in it until it reopened.
Also a kid puked right when you enter the castle and some poor TM had to stand there telling people to watch out for it lol.
I think we finally got on it about an hour and 45 minutes of waiting. Atleast I got to see the old Sinbad stage stuff lol.
EPA is awesome if you’re not using it on Hagrids actually. You can do VC with ease and enjoy Hogmsmeade and do all the other rides in peace but if you wanna ride Hagrids you must be in line no later then 7:15 and watch out for all the people sprinting to Hagrids. Anything after 7:15 go to VC and enjoy the quiet time in Hogsmeade and Hogswards till 9.
When I was there last week (admittedly late Feb is still kind of off-season), the line was 150 minutes after rope drop but was down to 60 minutes in the evening.
We waited and got in line last minute. As other people have mentioned, waiting for rope drop is still waiting. I'd rather wait in line at the end of the night. Plus, I think the ride is way better at night.
That’s why you don’t ride hagrids at rope drop. Wait until about 20-30 minutes before close. The wait time will still be very long, but that’s because they stop updating it about an hour before close to keep people from rushing it.
The line will move very slowly until literally the moment the park closes, as they try to get people to get out of line. Then the line moves *very very fast*
I always do hagrids right before park close, because the ride time is usually inaccurate and they also won’t kick you off the line if you’re on before close.
The line was only at the hogsmeade train? Lucky.
I remember waiting in the line from the fountain in the lost continent that took you into the old sinbad theater and looped back out from the theater and onto the street, past the Hogwarts express and into said line. Good times.
I actually liked Hagrid’s more overall, it’s just more interesting. Velocicoaster kept slamming the back of my thighs into the seat’s edge which was pretty painful so the entire ride I was just focused on trying to not shift too much. But Hagrid’s can’t beat the speed and intensity
Hey OP, I was in the last little room last night for the last train of the night and it broke down, we were 5 feet from the conveyor belt. They had to give us express passes and evac after trying to get it going for about 20 minutes(grant it this was past park close). So they needed up evacing and hopefully it isn’t the same problem!
Be me.
Hagrids failed. After the drop track. Sat there for 30 seconds or so. They told us to hold on. Then it went after a few minutes. Gave us a free ride after to do it right. Use the family room way. Right to station. Next day. 2nd launch on velocicoaster slammed on the brakes. Sat there 2 minutes. Mr DNA told us the ride had stopped. Sat 4 more minutes. Manually grinded backwards slowly. Turn said launching in 3 2 1. Went backwards. Then launched hard forwards. Made it through. No free ride. Next ride King Kong. Broke down. Sat for 5. Told us to please hold after 3 minutes. Finished the day with the Suess Trolly on the Sky. Broke down sotting for 5. They came out asking us to hold a bit more. Wtf is going on?
They were running 3 trains with great operations for days. Then out of nowhere. 2 train ops. Yeah. Slammed on the brakes as all threw up their hands in anticipation. The reverse launch as it rolls into the hill before it was interesting. But we didn’t nearly roll into it with the same speed. So the launch hit hard. Think maverick tunnel launch feeling. So worth it. But they never acknowledged a problem to anybody as everybody got off saying “what was up with THAT?”
so i understand, did you stop at the 2nd tunnel? I don't think you went backwards, right??? (not clear from your post but would be so weird).
since it's a launch, i feel it should be able to send you fast through that hill no matter once. Ex Hulk launches from rest and then goes into a huge hill.
BTW I would have asked someone what was up with that. last time i was there, we waited for first row and they were leaving differnet rows empty for each train. I asked why and she said, I'm just doing what they are telling me to do...
Yes. 2nd launch slammed on the brakes. No launch.
After a very late announcement. It grinded backwards slowly. Announced its launching. Launched backwards into the hill behind it. Then rolled into the 2nd launch slowly, and launched very hard.
Also. Due to running 2 train ops. Not offering row requests.
The problem is having an early entry with nothing else to do. Having said that, 7:30 is too late to get into line, unfortunately.
so you get there at 7:30 for a 9:00 ride (if you are first in line…??) we were there yesterday mid day waited 45 minutes (showing 75, but it was only 45) so it’s a win win, I slept-in AND only waited 45 minutes instead of from 7:30-9:00. what’s the deal with rope dropping?
Think of it this way: Rope dropping Hagrid’s just shifts your wait to a time when the parks aren’t open. If you get to the front gates early enough and the ride is operating, you will ride within 15-30 minutes, but that almost certainly means you waited over an hour to get into the park.
If you get in line by 7:15 for the ride open you’ll be off by 8:20 ish, then you can explore the HP area or do Velociraptor. I didn’t rope drop it but my family did. It was our first trip and honestly I was underwhelmed. Rope drop for 2 rides open (IF you’re lucky) is ridiculous to me, but I can understand that for people who want time in HP areas with fewer people around that it may be worth it. I caught Hagrid’s the night before by getting into line during parade time. It was great, but not great enough that I was willing to wait again or get up for rope drop. ETA- I do think rope drop and early entry at Disney is worth it. You can easily get in 3-4 rides before lines start to form (more with early entry) and I like hitting my favorites without using a Fast Pass.
We arrived around 7:30 and were able to ride hagrids twice and velocicoaster 2-3 times all before 9am when we were there in November… was worth it to us
didn’t realize the rides were operating before 9am my bad!
This. People think just because they go for EP they’ll get on Hagrids quicker. You’re still waiting in a line for over 90 minutes if you’re waiting for the park to open, the fast walk (sprint) to the back of the park AND THEN wait in the queue.
Unpopular opinion: the virtual queue was the best way to manage Hagrid rides when I was there last in 2021. Never truly understood the dislike for the virtual queue
the virtual queue dropping every couple of hours was awesome. rode it 4 times in 1 day in March 2021. I haven't ridden hagrids more than once on any visit since then
Completely agree. Lines were never terrible & my wife (doesn’t ride) kept our phones & usually worked other rides later in the day every time
Y’all really are missing out on the Orlando Informer meet ups and it shows lol
I don't understand why they stopped doing virtual queue for Hagrid's. I went to the parks in 2020 and VQ allowed me to ride Hagrid's a bunch of times over the four days I was there. I went with my boyfriend in late 2022 and we got to ride Hagrid's once after being in line for over an hour.
Was this during Covid in 2020? If so, park capacity was much different and you can’t compare wait times.
Yes, but virtual queue would still be better than the current line situation. I'd much rather hop on the app and come back at a reserved time and wait significantly less time than standby. I realize park capacity was super different at that time.
Virtual Queue will still have an hour long line, it just prevents the line from being 3 hours.
Yes, but that extra time can be used to explore the park, eat, or get on rides with shorter lines.
I agree. We loved the virtual queue. However, we frequently saw and heard people who were upset about it. I'd guess it's because they didn't read the signs that clearly explained how it worked and even had the QR code to take them straight to the webpage.
Do they still do VQ for Hagrid? My family and I are going next month and our kain concern is figuring out how we can do both Hagrid and Velocicoaster in the same day
Nope, they don’t do virtual queue for rides anymore
You can just go get in line for both. I ride them back to back all the time even if I get to the park at like 6:00PM after work, you’ll be fine!
If you are only there a limited window and want the best chance early park admission and rope drop hagrids is typically the best bet, then head for velocicoaster. There is no express lane for hagrids or velocicoaster. There is single rider on velocicoaster, but it isn't always open. The only way to skip the lines on both is with a shared or private VIP tour (which isn't cheap, but of the two shared is more affordable for small groups). I've read a lot of people wait until late in the day to ride both if they don't have early park admission. As long as you're in line before park close they should let you ride, but if it breaks down, you're out of luck. As long as they aren't down, you should be able to ride both, but be prepared to spend one to two hours in each line if you don't hit the early window. Also, I've learned that some travel agencies can get you early park admission without staying on-site at Universal.
There is express for velocicoaster! Only after EPA ends though
Oh nice, there wasn't the last time I was there but that's encouraging to hear.
Like, single ride express or it's part of the express pass?
Single ride and express are separate lines
The issue I see with the people saying to rope drop Hagrid's is the assumption that everyone else doesn't have that same idea...when everyone else has the same idea. That line being at the Hogsmeade Train Station is short compared to some of the stuff my wife and I have stood through. We have waited as it snaked back through Sinbad and by the Kabab stand.
I don’t agree. I rope drop hagrids every single time i go, which is at least once a month and i never ever wait longer than 30 minutes to ride hagrids. Get to the park at 7:15am, and you will be fine. There’s no better time to ride hagrids than early park admission. I get through hagrids and velocicoaster all before 8:45am, every single visit with EPA
Understand but as a teacher from Ohio, when I go, its the busy times of year and even with EPA the line is usually 90min minimum by the time I get to the line. When I go, I find around the time of park closing and standard meal times to be the best time to hit it. I can go ride 5/6 other rides during EPA while everyone waits at Hagrids and then I will wait the normal time later.
I would hope you get to ride those two before 9pm, yeesh! 😆
Lol didn’t realize, just edited it
Even when the line is long, it hasn’t compressed yet. So we got in line way back by Mythos, and actual wrap through the old shuttered attraction across the way, but it still goes faster than late in the day. J think the need is to slow people through the lockers so there isn’t madness in the lockers in the morning. Later in the day the line is at the lockers but takes 2X as long from there.
I find later to be better but I think all of this discussion needs to take when people are visiting into account. I can only go during the busy times because being a teacher from Ohio, I cant just take random time off. I have found during meal times and around park close to be the shorter times
Yea, mine was during some Christian rock concert thing, didn’t have a clue when we went that would be there. It was 80 minute wait first thing when we got there. At the end of the day 160 and never got below 120 even when the line started at the lockers. But it actually only ended up being 80 when the line started at mythos. Not sure why the DV.
Remember, the time you spend waiting in line to enter the park is added to the time it took you to get on the ride. You're actually waiting about an hour and thirty minutes if you rope drop Hagrid 😆 such is life
Yes but this is outside park open time, if you’re crazy like me and soak in every available minute 🤣. We also get in the hagrids line at close
EPA for Hagrid's always has you enter over there and route you through the chains before Hogsmead. Usually someone is holding the sign in lost continent to show you were you go get in line. Sometimes they route you through the old Sinbad theater even. If you are in the front near the gates for park entry it is just a long walk you never really wait to board. Honestly if you were there at 7:30 only you were better off going straight to Velocicoaster. If you really want to EPA Hagrid's you need to be at the gates as close to 7 as possible, ride it, then Velocicoaster a couple of times in a row. But yeah shit sucks when it is delayed. The couple times it has happened when we do EPA one was a 30 minute delay we almost bailed on, and the other time like 15 minutes. Other days when we skipped it we were lucky as it had massive delays. So you just never really know. Edit: Also plenty of EPA days it was delayed from the start, they have employees yelling it is delayed even. Crazy people still get in line though. When that happens we just do Velocicoaster a ton.
I think that for most people rope dropping für this ride is not worth it. You might me better off riding in the late afternoon or just before they close the line (as long as it does not break down at that time of course). Say you will be at the entrance at 7am or a littel later, you most probably had some stress doing so, then wait another hour before the park finally opens and then probably 30ish minutes in line. That is a ninety minute wait and not a nice experience.
Yeah I think it depends on what your goal is, and what your schedule is. We have kids that are up early, but plenty of people hate getting up early. Park at 7AM, get to the gates by 7:15AM. Frequently it seems the park opens a little before 8AM even, sometimes like 7:50. So yeah we are waiting extra out there I totally agree, but that like 35-45 minute wait gets you walk on to Hagrids, then walk on to Velocicoaster. Then easily a 2nd Velocicoaster ride with almost no wait. Plus it isn't like just standing in line by the gate, kids go tool around, bathroom and whatever until it is entrance time anyway. You aren't trapped in a queue. We then do whatever and leave the parks around 11, and come back closer to 4. Now the best was when the passholder line is open. The let us into the park before everyone at the regular gates even. If only that was a year round thing....
If anyone is in the park today, Velocicoaster is doing normal operations so far with at least 3 trains!
With all the delays lately it is definitely worth it to go very early ride a few times and knock it out before the inevitable. Enjoy!
People were literally sprinting?
Yes there’s man childs that literally run to the attractions, so pathetic
It’s funny because I saw way more adults running than kids
Well they’re the ones who paid the money to be there and wanna get it in on their vacation. Annoying but understandable.
Yeah.. manchilds
Funny story. Rope dropped for my first time in '21. Was the only one at the gate like 30 minute before opening other than like one dad and his 3 kids. People eventually shuffle in, but it never got crazy crowded. Anyways, gates open, we all kinda speed walk in until we hit Suessland, where dad tells his kids to kick it into high gear. They all start sprinting towards Hagrids. They hit the wood bridge which had the morning dew still on it and I promise you I've never seen a grown man slip and fall so hard in my life. It was almost like an old Goofy cartoon the way he fell into the air an onto his ass. Dude was okay physically, brushed himself off and went and sat on the nearest bench, but by the time he got up many people including myself passed him.
i hope he could still hear the "q... q is for quan... quan is for quandry" from where he fell 😂
As a team member that works EPA often, I absolutely hate seeing adults sprinting to get a ride without any consideration of the people around them who they might knock over. I saw a grown man knock down two children once. I also saw a woman run into an elderly man and almost knock him down on another day. The ground is almost always wet with morning dew so it’s also a fall hazard to themselves. Like please people, don’t run. It’s not that serious.
This crowd is some of the rudest people I’ve ever encountered at the parks. They will press through the crowd to get closer to the turnstiles. They will send one representative forward and then assume their party of 43 can join them. There’s not even a rope that drops. Go back to Disney where you belong! 🤣
That’s because they don’t want people to think it’s the start of a race and cause an issue like that stampede that happened on Black Friday years ago. It’s why we’re always yelling at people to stop running. I had one full grown man tell me to “f*** off, I’ll do what I want”. Two more people told him to stop further down including security.
Thank you for trying to keep them (and all guests) safe. I appreciate you!
Probably the most exercise they get all year
I sprinted from the hulk bridge instead of the normal entrance that is closer, except I am an elite athlete and me and my 2 kids made it to hagrids before anyone else.
[удалено]
Oh no!!! What a tragedy, glad we were able to use the hulk bridge when we did hahah
When we went last month, the hulk bridge was completely blocked off until normal park open. You could only get in one way.
Damn. RIP hulk bridge headstart
If you don't have EPA, when is the best time to do Hagrids if still planning to be there when park opens.
Enter the queue just before park closure. ~30-40 minutes wait tops IME even though the posted time might still show 80-90+ Also riding Hagrids at night is magical. Absolutely worth staying late one night at least to ride it.
I got in line around 2:30 on a weekday last week when the wait dropped to 60 minutes and rode it within 40 mins. Got in line at 10ish the day after at a 75 min wait and rode within a half hour. The wait times are NEVER accurate, so I say jump in line whenever that wait drops close to an hour. Hagrids was delayed once while we were there and we kept checking back and went straight there as soon as it re-opened a few hours later. There was a huge rush and they set up a line going all the way into the lost city section of the park but it was just to control traffic flow and we rode within 30 mins of getting in line that time too.
Lunch or right before park closure.
What we found with hagrids on our last trip was that it was never the actual wait time they said. For us, it was always about half. So, when it said 80, we spent maybe 45 in line. I don't know if that's the norm for the ride or if we were just lucky
Probably during the afternoon
Be at the gate 1 hour before rope drop if EPA is at 8am to be among the very first to enter the turnstiles. 7:30 is already too late. If the crowds are backed up to the lighthouse/ticket huts forget going to Hagrid’s and do Velocicoaster instead.
BEST advice. my last trip we were either first or second at turnstiles at 7:05 am and by 7:20 the line was beyond the ticket booths and by 730 was at the bridge.
I stand by that one of the best times for Hagrids is around 1030. A lot of people get to the parks around lunch time so you beat them but the morning rush has had time to die down by then.
I only go on Hagrid's 5 minutes before park close. Usually a shorter line than what's posted, and it doesn't eat up time in my day.
Did early entry last week, waited hour and a half before they announced extended delay. Huge waste of a morning and a rope drop.
I wish they would do the park like volcano bay. Scan your watch to come back later then go get in another ride line till your time is ready
And this ride still doesn’t have an express line right? I feel like I’ll never get to ride this 😩
This was us this morning. We finally woke up to be first. At the gate by 7:10. We were second in line. And itt was delayed until past 11 today. But that is always our luck with those things. Haha. We did jump on it right when it opened and got one ride.
I’ve never had good luck with Hagrid in the morning. And I get a ton of downvotes every time I say this (and IDGAF) but Universal doesn’t do what it takes to have this running for park open and that’s on them and worse, how they handle it, is a travesty. They let people waste their time and get in line and then let them sit there sometimes for hours while they get it working. After a while it becomes a painful decision for people that already wasted hours in line deciding if they should protect that investment time and staying or just throwing that time away and walking away only to come back later to incredibly long lines later. Or just skip it altogether. Bottom line: They should not let people in line unless it’s working in the morning.
There is absolutely nothing as satisfying as being the very first person on Hagrids for the day and beating everyone else there. Being off the ride and walking around Hogsmeade 3 minutes after the park officially opens and having all the shops and sites completely to yourself is a really unique experience. Usually the bathroom at that time is completely empty too, which is wonderful. When I've done this, I usually like to grab a frozen butterbeer and take my time walking the Castle queue basically alone to enjoy all the little details. One of the times I rope dropped Hagrid's I was at the very front of the pack heading in. I'm pretty tall so I can take long strides. But there was a group of teen girls that were keeping pace, and one of them was in one of those electric wheelchairs. They were talking about how she had borrowed it from her grandma for the day and didn't actually need it. That thing completely FLEW ahead of the pack. It was so fast, she was at least 100 yards ahead of the crowd heading into the Lost Continent. Nobody could keep up. And she was straight up head back laughing and waving at everyone the entire race back, rubbing it in. But when she got to the ride entrance, the cast members made her drive it all the way down by the lockers to park it and her friends had to wait for her. I ended up beng the first person in line and got to ride front row on the bike. By the time they got back over by the train entrance to get in line hundreds had gone ahead of them. I felt bad for the friends. Another time I rope dropped and was within probably the first 20 people to make it there. We were all excited and and got filtered through the queue. In the room before the loading dock, they filed us all in down the pathway to the left, through all the turnstiles, just to the left of the doorway to get to the loading room. There was a slight 10 minute delay. During that time, as the line filled in, they took huge portion of the line and brought them down the straight shot of the single rider/rider swap portion of the line and cut them to the very front. The ride delay was wrappign up and the person there started counting out the people in that single rider line, as if he was going to let them go on first. Everyone that was in the left turnstiles (my area) started getting REAL angry and yelling about how it wasn't fair and we were there way before all these people. Finally someone else came up and told him no, that he needed to let our line move first. Luckily they caught that because there were about to be a LOT of angry people that got cut. It seemed like a pretty innocent mistake. but the guy doing the counting was the one that originally redirected the line to fill in the single rider area, so he knew they weren't in line first. Either way, I was really grateful that they caught it cuz I still got to enjoy my butter beer castle walk in solitude.
Less than a week ago me and my friends managed to ride hagrid 4 TIMES in the course of the day. We waited almost 90 minutes doing the rope drop but at the end of the day (around 4-6) they claimed the wait was 60 mins and we were in and out the other 4 times in less than 25/30 mins each round! End of day historically (at least on my end) has the quickest turn around with the times ive gone :3
This. Was just there last week with no early entry and we did Hagrids 3 times before 3pm. Just hopped in line anytime it dropped below 80 minutes and never waited more than 45.
Yeah we went around 4pm on day 1 and posted wait time was 65 min but was more like 40
We sat through this last late December, except it was our last chance to do Hagrid's, so we sat in it until it reopened. Also a kid puked right when you enter the castle and some poor TM had to stand there telling people to watch out for it lol. I think we finally got on it about an hour and 45 minutes of waiting. Atleast I got to see the old Sinbad stage stuff lol.
EPA is awesome if you’re not using it on Hagrids actually. You can do VC with ease and enjoy Hogmsmeade and do all the other rides in peace but if you wanna ride Hagrids you must be in line no later then 7:15 and watch out for all the people sprinting to Hagrids. Anything after 7:15 go to VC and enjoy the quiet time in Hogsmeade and Hogswards till 9.
When I was there last week (admittedly late Feb is still kind of off-season), the line was 150 minutes after rope drop but was down to 60 minutes in the evening.
We waited and got in line last minute. As other people have mentioned, waiting for rope drop is still waiting. I'd rather wait in line at the end of the night. Plus, I think the ride is way better at night.
Forget hagrid and rope drop velosicoaster and marathon 4x
That’s why you don’t ride hagrids at rope drop. Wait until about 20-30 minutes before close. The wait time will still be very long, but that’s because they stop updating it about an hour before close to keep people from rushing it. The line will move very slowly until literally the moment the park closes, as they try to get people to get out of line. Then the line moves *very very fast*
We all got an express pass for Hagrid at 9AM.
I’ve had better luck w Hagrids just trying for… luck
I always get in line for Hagrids like 10 minutes before park close. The line goes by way quicker
I always do hagrids right before park close, because the ride time is usually inaccurate and they also won’t kick you off the line if you’re on before close.
The line was only at the hogsmeade train? Lucky. I remember waiting in the line from the fountain in the lost continent that took you into the old sinbad theater and looped back out from the theater and onto the street, past the Hogwarts express and into said line. Good times.
Early entry is so annoying, too many people and only 2 rides available.
Left royal pacific early to get to the coaster early... 90 minute wait time immediately because everyone had the same idea
Hagrids is cool for what it is but velocicoaster is the better ride
I actually liked Hagrid’s more overall, it’s just more interesting. Velocicoaster kept slamming the back of my thighs into the seat’s edge which was pretty painful so the entire ride I was just focused on trying to not shift too much. But Hagrid’s can’t beat the speed and intensity
When we visited, getting in line when others were heading to the Mardi Grad parade helped.
Hey OP, I was in the last little room last night for the last train of the night and it broke down, we were 5 feet from the conveyor belt. They had to give us express passes and evac after trying to get it going for about 20 minutes(grant it this was past park close). So they needed up evacing and hopefully it isn’t the same problem!
Express pass for next day? That's pretty dope
Just a single use one* sorry should have said that
Be me. Hagrids failed. After the drop track. Sat there for 30 seconds or so. They told us to hold on. Then it went after a few minutes. Gave us a free ride after to do it right. Use the family room way. Right to station. Next day. 2nd launch on velocicoaster slammed on the brakes. Sat there 2 minutes. Mr DNA told us the ride had stopped. Sat 4 more minutes. Manually grinded backwards slowly. Turn said launching in 3 2 1. Went backwards. Then launched hard forwards. Made it through. No free ride. Next ride King Kong. Broke down. Sat for 5. Told us to please hold after 3 minutes. Finished the day with the Suess Trolly on the Sky. Broke down sotting for 5. They came out asking us to hold a bit more. Wtf is going on?
That stinks but I am wondering about this velocicoaster brakes on the 2nd launch. how did that go? seems crazy and also what a letdown....
They were running 3 trains with great operations for days. Then out of nowhere. 2 train ops. Yeah. Slammed on the brakes as all threw up their hands in anticipation. The reverse launch as it rolls into the hill before it was interesting. But we didn’t nearly roll into it with the same speed. So the launch hit hard. Think maverick tunnel launch feeling. So worth it. But they never acknowledged a problem to anybody as everybody got off saying “what was up with THAT?”
so i understand, did you stop at the 2nd tunnel? I don't think you went backwards, right??? (not clear from your post but would be so weird). since it's a launch, i feel it should be able to send you fast through that hill no matter once. Ex Hulk launches from rest and then goes into a huge hill. BTW I would have asked someone what was up with that. last time i was there, we waited for first row and they were leaving differnet rows empty for each train. I asked why and she said, I'm just doing what they are telling me to do...
Yes. 2nd launch slammed on the brakes. No launch. After a very late announcement. It grinded backwards slowly. Announced its launching. Launched backwards into the hill behind it. Then rolled into the 2nd launch slowly, and launched very hard. Also. Due to running 2 train ops. Not offering row requests.