Universal Orlando Resort Wait Times for February 2023

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The start of a new year means a slowdown at theme parks. While Comcast executives recently stated that Universal Studios is exceeding expectations for its early 2023 attendance, it’s still, you know, January.

Photo: Universal

So, our wait times for the past month likely won’t seem bad. So, they’ll probably underscore why January remains one of the best times to visit.

Universal Studios Florida – The Big Four

We should mention that Universal Studios Florida has entered a transitional phase.

Photo: Discover Universal orlando

In mid-January, the park closed the following attractions:

• Curious George Goes to Town
• DreamWorks Destination
• Fievel’s Playground
• Meet Shrek and Donkey
• Woody Woodpecker’s Nuthouse Coaster

Photo: Universal

We will include Curious George and Woody Woodpecker’s Nuthouse Coaster one more time for posterity’s sake.

The absence of these attractions will create a vacuum at the park. With fewer entertainment options available, the wait times should expand for everything else.

This behavior will be more pronounced in future months but only impacted two weeks of January.

Photo: UNIVERSAL ORLANDO

Did the Big Four at Universal Studios Florida creep up in wait times due to the closures?

Well, Transformers: The Ride 3D somehow required the longest wait at 72 minutes, which is seven minutes more than the December holiday period.

As a rule, theme park attractions should have much lower wait times in January. So, that’s interesting.

Image Credit: Universal Orlando

The Transformers attraction isn’t technically a part of the Big Four, but that’s two straight months it’s required one of the longest waits at the park.

Among the Big Four, Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts required a 71-minute wait, which is only half of last time. Yes, its wait time dropped by 71 minutes.

Photo: Universal Orlando

Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem averaged a wait of 51 minutes, down 44 minutes, while Revenge of the Mummy dropped 26 minutes to 50 minutes.

Finally, Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit’s wait was 43 minutes, down 28 minutes.

Photo:instagram/universalorlando

So, the Transformers wait appears odd relative to everything else at the parks.

Universal Studios Florida – Everything Else

Photo: Discover Universal Blog

Here are the other average waits at Universal Studios Florida:

• Hogwarts Express – King’s Cross Station – 38 minutes, down 21
• Fast & Furious – Supercharged – 34 minutes, down 3
• MEN IN BLACK Alien Attack! – 31 minutes, down 14
• The Simpsons Ride – 28 minutes, down 27
• Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon – 27 minutes, down 22
• T. Adventure – 26 minutes, down 14
• Woody Woodpecker’s Nuthouse Coaster – 25 minutes, down 17
• Kang & Kodos’ Twirl ‘n’ Hurl – 23 minutes, down 16
• Curious George Goes to Town – 5 minutes, no change

Photo: Universal

Overall, guests waited for an average of 37 minutes per attraction at Universal Studios Florida. That’s 25 minutes less than during the holiday season.

However, these numbers reinforce what Universal executives are saying about the park.

This past month, its attractions required 15 minutes more line time than in January 2022. As a reminder, Florida was facing a COVID-19 outbreak at last year, though.

Universal’s Islands of Adventure

Photo:instagram/universalorlando

We know that Islands of Adventure wait times are likely to drop significantly as well.

That’s not because of anything happening in January. Instead, it reflects what a strong December the park experienced in terms of crowds.

Photo: Universal

Islands of Adventure averaged an hourlong wait per attraction during the holidays, which is one of the highest numbers I’ve ever tracked.

Universal Orlando Resort’s surging appeal with theme park guests has led to this sort of behavior.

Photo: The Apopka Voice

As such, we should expect a drop from December but a much higher total for January 2023 than the same time in 2022.

Again, that’s partly because of pandemic conditions a year ago, though.

Photo: Thrillist.com

Here are the average wait times at Islands of Adventure:

• Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure – 107 minutes, down 42
• Jurassic World VelociCoaster – 60 minutes, down 47
• Flight of the Hippogriff – 55 minutes, down 21
• Skull Island: Reign of Kong – 54 minutes, down 66
• Pteranodon Flyers – 53 minutes, down 17
• The Incredible Hulk Coaster – 46 minutes, down 39
• Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey – 40 minutes, down 52
• The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man – 37 minutes, down 47
• Jurassic Park River Adventure – 32 minutes, down 29
• Poseidon’s Fury – 29 minutes, down 17
• Hogwarts Express – Hogsmeade Station – 26 minutes, down 8
• The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride! – 24 minutes, down 28
• One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish – 17 minutes, down 22
• Doom’s Fearfall – 16 minutes, down 16
• Storm Force Accelatron – 10 minutes, down 2
• Popeye & Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges – 9 minutes, down 1
• Caro-Seuss-el – 8 minutes, down 11

Photo: Universal

Overall, guests waited for an average of 35 minutes for Islands of Adventure attractions. That’s a dramatic drop of 25 minutes from the holiday season.

Notably, wait times are 10 minutes higher than this time last year, though.

Let’s Talk about Islands of Adventure Wait Times

Photo: Universal

As a reminder, some of these attractions, like Jurassic Park River Adventure, didn’t operate for the full month.

Some of the ones that did are still either wet rides or outdoor attractions that aren’t ideal for January weather.

Photo: Universal

In particular, I would NEVER ride Pteranodon Flyers during sub-50-degree weather. Obviously, many park guests disagree, but we all have our limits.

These various tolerances impact our willingness to experience several attractions during the heart of winter.

Still, the overall trend at both parks is a significant increase from 2022, which bodes well for Universal Studios as we advance in 2023.

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Feature Photo: Universal