Universal Studios Wait Times for January 2025

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Welcome to 2025!

This is THE year that Universal Studios fans have anticipated for a looooong time. I mean glacially long.

Universal

Universal promised us an Epic Universe, but then a global pandemic threw the brakes on that plan.

Construction crews dutifully kept the flame lit in 2020-2022, but COVID-19 slowed down progress. At times, we were at a standstill.

Universal

In May, we will finally enter the portals and experience Universal Epic Universe for the first time. So, our eyes are squarely on the future.

However, we should still take a quick look back at how Universal ended the year.

Universal

Here are the Universal Studios theme park wait times for January 2025.

Universal Studios Florida – The Big Five

Image Credit: Universal Orlando

I mentioned several times that I was just about ready to drop Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit from The Big Five.

That never happened because Universal officials stubbornly refused to comment on the ride’s future.

The writing was on the wall (in blood), and anybody paying attention knew it was a goner.

Still, with no new rides of note coming to Universal Orlando in 2024 – don’t even start with the Trollercoaster – I decided not to make a change.

Image: Universal

Now, right as the year ends, Universal lamely attempted to sneak a permit through on December 23^rd when they thought nobody was watching.

Spoiler: In this day and age, somebody is ALWAYS watching. So, word quickly that Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit was closing.

Photo:instagram/universalorlando

Eventually, Universal somewhat grudgingly admitted that the roller coaster will close in September 2025, which we will just call September from now on.

So, the Big Five becomes the Big Four next month. If Universal no longer cares about the ride, why should I give it stature?

Photo:instagram/universalorlando

Anywhere, here are the average wait times for what we have called the Big Five up until today:

• Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts – 61 minutes, up 7
• Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem – 43 minutes, up 1
• Revenge of the Mummy – 43 minutes, up 2
• Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit – 34 minutes, up 3
• Illumination’s Villain-Con Minion Blast – 20 minutes, up 1

Universal Studios Florida – Everything Else

You can tell that the most popular rides at Universal (and also Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit) were up due to the holiday rush.

Some analysts believe that Universal experienced a bigger percentage bump than Walt Disney World in December.

Therefore, we should notice more growth with the other attractions…but did we?

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

• TRANSFORMERS The Ride 3D – 44 minutes, up 3
• Hogwarts Express – King’s Cross – 38 minutes, down 2
• Trolls Trollercoaster – 35 minutes, up 2
• T. Adventure – 34 minutes, down 3
• MEN IN BLACK Alien Attack! – 33 minutes, up 7
• The Simpsons Ride – 33 minutes, no change
• Kang & Kodos’ Twirl ‘n’ Hurl – 27 minutes, up 2
• Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon – 25 minutes, down 1
• Fast & Furious – Supercharged – 21 minutes, down 4

Photo: Universal

Overall, guests waited for an average of 35 minutes, which is ten (!) minutes more than during the month of November.

So, yeah, I think we can safely say there was a bit of a holiday rush.

Universal’s Islands of Adventure

Did that trend hold at Universal’s Islands of Adventure? Here are the park’s average wait times for last month:

• Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure – 99 minutes, up 1
• Jurassic World VelociCoaster – 69 minutes, up 1
• Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey – 44 minutes, up 5
• Flight of the Hippogriff – 43 minutes, up 2
• The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man – 42 minutes, up 4
• Skull Island: Reign of Kong – 42 minutes, up 9
• Hogwarts Express – Hogsmeade Station – 37 minutes, up 7
• The Incredible Hulk Coaster – 37 minutes, up 6
• The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride! – 35 minutes, up 3
• One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish – 28 minutes, up 5
• Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls – 25 minutes, up 3
• The Cat in the Hat – 21 minutes, up 3
• Doctor Doom’s Fearfall – 17 minutes, down 2
• Jurassic Park River Adventure – 15 minutes, down 3
• Popeye & Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges – 14 minutes, no change
• Caro-Seuss-el – 13 minutes, up 1
• Storm Force Accelatron – 10 minutes, no change

Photo: Universal

Overall, guests stood in line for an average of 39 minutes per attraction, which is five minutes more than last time.

I think this data shows that people are more into Grinch-mas than they ever have been in the past.

Photo: Universal

Given that both parks have experienced noticeable attendance drops in 2024, it’s surprising to track this sort of growth.

Universal Studios definitely finished up strong in 2024, and 2025 promises to be – you know I have to say it – EPIC!

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Feature Photo: Universal