The Perfect 2-Day Epic Universe Park Strategy
Toothless Meet and Greet is an absolute must!
One Day for the Thrills, One Day for the Magic
Epic Universe at Universal Orlando is massive — with five unique worlds, blockbuster attractions, and an endless list of food and shows. To truly make the most of it, you’ll want to split your visit into two distinct days:
Day 1: Maximize rides with Express Pass.
Day 2: Explore, relax, and catch anything you missed.
This is the exact strategy we used — with minimal waits, full bellies, and plenty of time for surprises.
Before you head to the parks, there are a few things you should know and I recommend confirming this information close to your park day to ensure it is still correct! Things have been known to change, especially what is open during Early Park Admission. Always check on the official Universal Orlando websites to ensure the information is accurate.
Park Hours
Check the Universal Orlando website or app for current park hours when you visit.
Attractions included with Express Pass (Universal Orlando webpage with Express Pass Attractions):
Constellation Carousel – I recommend riding this at night!
Curse of the Werewolf – This line can get surprisingly long.
Fyre Drill - Prepared to get soaked on this ride!
Hiccup’s Wing Gliders - One of the best family-friendly coasters!
Le Cirque Arcanus™ - Since this is a show, I recommend prioritizing the rides on your Express Pass day.
Mario Kart™: Bowser’s Challenge – The wait times can get pretty long for this ride and many people head here first for the day.
Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment – This has consistently low wait times throughout the day, so I would wait to ride it at the peak times when the other rides are at high wait times.
Stardust Racers – One of the most exhilarating coasters in the park. You may want to ride it both during the day and night!
The Untrainable Dragon - Another show option, if you arrive early enough, Express Pass really isn’t necessary.
Yoshi’s Adventure™ – A fun and colorful ride with incredible views of Super Nintendo World.
Early Park Admission (EPA) Offerings
These are always subject to change and sometimes rides that should open may experience a delay. I recommend having a backup plan in place and being flexible in case things don’t go as expected! Find the current Early Park Admission information here.
Up to 1 hour prior to park opening
July 15, 2025 - December 31, 2025
Available Attractions:
Mario Kart™: Bowser’s Challenge
Yoshi’s Adventure™
Stardust Racers
Constellation Carousel
Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment
Curse of the Werewolf
Day 1 – The Ride Power-Through (with Express Pass)
Goal: Knock out headliners, especially those with the longest waits, while still soaking in the atmosphere.
Below is how our day went, but be mindful weather, ride delays or closures could affect your plans! I recommend having a back up in place in case you have to be flexible.
Sample Day 1 Schedule (Our Real Timeline)
8:30 AM: Enter Helios Grand Hotel security
8:50 AM: Enter park, we went straight to Isle of Berk to wait for the portal to open.
9:50 AM: Isle of Berk opened – Headed to Toothless meet & greet and were done by 10:10 AM
10:15 AM: Dragon Racer’s Rally (15 min standby wait) - This is not included in Express Pass so we wanted to check it off the list before lines were long!
10:45 AM: Hiccup’s Wing Gliders – Express Pass (65 min standby line reduced to 15 mins with EP)
11:05 AM: Fyre Drill – EP (55 min standby reduced to 15 mins)
11:30 AM: Grabbed a snack at Spit Fyre Grill!
12:00 PM: Monsters Unchained – EP (15 min standby reduced to 10 mins) We could have saved our EP for this, but only planned to ride it once.
12:18 PM: Curse of the Werewolf – EP (65 min standby reduced to 20 mins)
Afternoon Break: Back to hotel for rest/swim. Grabbed some ice cream from Frosty Moon on the way out.
3:15 PM: Yoshi’s Adventure – EP (25 min standby reduced to 15 mins)
3:30 PM: Mario Kart™: Bowser’s Challenge – EP (135 min standby reduced to 30 mins)
4:15 PM: The Blue Dragon Pan-Asian Restaurant to eat (we had a reservation, but checked in early and were sat!)
5:30 PM: Head to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter™ - Ministry of Magic™, bought a wand from Cosme Acajor Baguettes Magique™, tried a few spells.
6:00 PM: Battle at the Ministry only had a 75 minute standby line, so we decided to give it a try! This is NOT included in Express Pass and we were planning to try later at night or on our next day. There was a brief period where it was delayed so it ended up being around 90 minutes total (including ride time).
7:50 PM: After exploring the portal longer, we decided to head to Le Cirque Arcanus™ since the show was about to start. Our Express Passes got us ahead of most of the long line, which was nice!
8:40 PM: Stardust Racers (20 min standby reduced to 15 mins)
9:00 PM: Constellation Carousel (20 min standby reduced to 10 mins)
9:15 PM: Ordered Pizza Moon (they have to-go boxes now, so we grabbed it to-go and found a spot for the evening Cosmos Fountain show!)
10:00 PM: Park closed and the fountain show began!
💡 Day 1 Tips:
Since we were Club Level at Helios, we stopped by the Club Lounge for a quick breakfast for a fuel-up before rope drop. This was also great for midday snacks!
Use your Express Pass strategically — save it for rides with waits over 60 minutes when possible. It was especially useful midday when ride lines were longest.
Take a midday break to recharge (the park is gorgeous at night).
Day 2 – The Epic Stroll (No Rush)
Goal: Enjoy shows, food, and the worlds you didn’t fully explore on Day 1. Especially those attractions without Express Pass.
Start Again with Early Park Admission
Our goal this day was to head straight to Super Nintendo World, which opened for Early Park Admission and wait outside Mine-Cart Madness. Mine-Cart Madness is not currently part of Early Park Admission, but we wanted to get in line and knock it off our list immeditely. While waiting there for awhile, they announced the ride would have a delayed opening and would not open at the normal park time either. We decided to pivot and use this time to explore the rest of Super Nintendo World while most people were in line for rides, especially Mario Kart, where most people go for early park admission.
Explore Super Nintendo World
Make sure you get a PowerUp band to participate in the fun! We bought ours at our hotel so we could be ready to go. There are games to play and if you want to challenge Bowser Jr., you have to collect 3 keys. There are different games to gather keys from and some are harder than others. You can repeat games to earn keys so if there is one that is easy enough for your kids to beat, go for that one to earn your keys! You can then head to the Bowser Jr. Shadow Showdown, which was really cool!
Toadstool Cafe – We decided to eat early before the lunch crowd.
Yoshi’s Snacks – Grab a smoothie for a fun mid-morning treat.
At this point, Mine-Cart Madness was still not open so we decided to head to Isle of Berk and catch the Untrainable Dragon Show! This is a must-do so make sure you plan for time in your schedule to watch it!
It was pretty hot midday now and Mine-Cart Madness was still delayed! We decided to take a midday break at our hotel. Those midday showers and a change of clothes is life-changing!! It made staying at Helios Grand Hotel so worth it!
3:00 PM We headed back to the park refreshed for our reservation at the Atlantic.
You may want to consider the Darkmoor Monster Makeup Experience on your non-Express day as well!
Gives yourself time to explore and enjoy the magic!
The rest of our evening was spent exploring the Harry Potter Wizarding World again - Practice spells, explore hidden alleys, and soak up the magic.
Bar Moonshine – Unique cocktails in a French-inspired setting (one of my favorite spots for a drink!)
Café de l’Air Sirène – Butterbeer crepes (yes, they’re as good as they sound). They are cold, which I’ve heard complaints about, but in the Florida heat, we found them refreshing!
Meet the characters roaming the world, this was a real treat to interact with them!
Cirque Arcanus (if missed Day 1) – Don’t skip this show!
It was so fun exploring this world at night! We found some exciting things that we didn’t see during the day (for example, we spotted a white owl in a window high above and a Mooncalf in another window)
Day 2 Tips:
Use the second day for photos, snacks, and low-pressure exploring.
Catch any rides you skipped or want to repeat from Day 1.
Spend time in each land after dark — the lighting is spectacular.
Why This Strategy Works
Day 1 with Express Pass keeps you ahead of the crowds and lets you ride everything without stress.
Day 2 without the rush gives you time to explore shows, restaurants, and themed details you’d miss if you were just running from ride to ride.
You leave with zero FOMO — and all the best snacks checked off your list.
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Happy Planning!
Shelby and Ramil Reyes
Reyes Family Adventures LLC