Universal Studios Wait Times for December 2024

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The past month was a confusing one at Universal Orlando Resort.

On the one hand, the Christmas season finally arrived, providing fans with the joys of Grinchmas.

Photo: Universal

Alas, we take the good with the bad here, as the past month also signaled the end of Halloween Horror Nights.

That’s the favorite time of the year for many Universal Studios fans.

Photo: Universal

How does the change impact park attendance? We can make an educated guess by examining Universal Studios’ wait times for December 2024.

Universal Studios Florida – The Big Five

Universal

Rumors are swirling at Universal Orlando Resort (UOR) right now.

Some fans are convinced that the park will announce sweeping changes at some point in 2025.

Photo: Universal

As a reminder, Universal Epic Universe finally opens on Memorial Day Weekend 2025.

Once that happens, there’s a prevailing belief that Universal Studios will close at least one current theme park attraction.

Photo: Universal

In fact, based on recent theme park history, an announcement could come as soon as January.

While that’s entirely speculative in nature, the sheer volume of rumors has triggered suspicions that changes are coming soon.

Until then, we will continue to evaluate Universal Studios Florida by segmenting the park into two sections.

We have the five most prominent rides in one group, and then we list everything else in the next section.

Photo: Universal

Among the Big Five at the park, the attraction with the longest wait last month was Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts.

For the past month, the combo dark ride and roller coaster averaged a wait of 54 minutes, which is one minute less than last time.

The next member of the Big Five is, as usual, Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem.

It averaged a wait of 42 minutes, four minutes less than last month.

Villain-Con Minion Blast

While we’re at it, Illumination’s Villain-Con Minion Blast required an average wait of just 19 minutes.

That’s three minutes more than last time, which confirms my suspicion that this ride is one of the best gauges for overall park crowds.

Then, we have Revenge of the Mummy, whose average wait of 41 minutes was two minutes more than last time.

Finally, Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, the roller coaster you should prioritize just in case, averaged a wait of 31 minutes.

Image Credit: Universal

That’s two minutes more than last time and another sign that the ride has faded in popularity.

Universal Studios Florida – Everything Else

Here are the other average wait times at Universal Studios Florida last month:

• TRANSFORMERS The Ride 3D – 41 minutes, down 7
• Hogwarts Express – King’s Cross Station – 40 minutes, down 6
• T. Adventure – 37 minutes, up 2
• The Simpsons Ride – 33 minutes, down 3
• Trolls Trollercoaster – 33 minutes, up 1
• MEN IN BLACK Alien Attack! – 26 minutes, up 1
• Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon – 26 minutes, up 2
• Fast & Furious – Supercharged – 25 minutes, n/a
• Kang & Kodos’ Twirl ‘n’ Hurl – 25 minutes, up 1

Overall, Universal Studios Florida rides averaged a wait of 25 minutes, which is two minutes less than last time.

I’ll note that the Men in Black and Fast & Furious rides weren’t open the whole time last month. So, their numbers skew the data just a bit.

Universal’s Islands of Adventure

Photo: IG/ @thejourneyduo

Here are the average wait times at Islands of Adventure last week:

• Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure – 98 minutes, no change
• Jurassic World VelociCoaster – 68 minutes, up 5
• Flight of the Hippogriff – 41 minutes, down 5
• Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey – 39 minutes, up 2
• The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man – 38 minutes, up 10
• Skull Island: Reign of Kong – 33 minutes, up 6
• The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride! – 32 minutes, up 12
• The Incredible Hulk Coaster – 31 minutes, down 3
• Hogwarts Express – Hogsmeade Station – 30 minutes, up 6
• One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish – 23 minutes, up 8
• Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls – 22 minutes, down 7
• Doom’s Fearfall – 19 minutes, up 1
• The Cat in the Hat – 18 minutes, up 7
• Jurassic Park River Adventure – 18 minutes, down 2
• Popeye & Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges – 14 minutes, down 1
• Caro-Seuss-el – 12 minutes, up 3
• Storm Force Accelatron – 10 minutes, up 2

Photo: Universal

Overall, Islands of Adventure attractions averaged a wait of 34 minutes, which is five minutes more than last time.

If you’re familiar with the parks, you understand this behavior.

Photo: Universal

Guests flocked to Islands of Adventure to embrace all the Dr. Seuss stuff as soon as Grinchmas began.

So, this had a halo effect on all the Seuss Landing attractions, causing some huge swings and at least modest increases to everything.

Photo: NBC via Getty Images

This trend will continue in December, but it’s typically most pronounced in late November when Grinchmas starts for the year.

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Feature Photo: Universal