Universal Studios Hollywood is a popular theme park to visit in the Hollywood area and draws a whole host of fans of films, celebrities and families looking to a fun day out. While so many people are visiting the park you might be wondering when the best time to visit is.
The best day to go to Universal Studios Hollywood is between Monday to Thursday within the off-season from October – February with the exception of holidays such as Halloween, Christmas Day, Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve.
In the post, we will highlight the different times that are the best time of year to go along with the best days to visit and which days to avoid.
Best Time Of Year To Visit Universal Studios Hollywood
Overall the best time of year to visit Universal Studios Hollywood is in Fall and Winter or also known as the off-season. There are some exceptions to this which are holidays such as Thanksgiving, Halloween and Christmas.
These holidays usually last just one day but many people travel to see friends and family and so spend a week spreading over the dates of the holiday sightseeing and going to theme parks.
The off-season is the best time of year to visit Universal Studios Hollywood as it is much quieter with crowds and guests.
The weather is often not as nice and there are fewer main holidays for schools and colleges that take place at that time of year.
Universal Studios in both Hollywood and Orlando can be very popular for holidays and events such as spring break and graduation.
Best Day Of The Week To Visit Universal Studios Hollywood
As a general rule, Monday to Thursday are the better days to visit Universal Studios Hollywood as they are much quieter with many people at work and school and so the queues are much quieter and fewer people in the park.
On the other hand, weekends are much busier as people aren’t working or come to Universal Studios Hollywood for a day out.
Of course, if there is a main holiday such as Thanksgiving, Halloween or Christmas then the park will be busier, this includes the days that are leading up to the day or just after.
Days To Avoid Visiting Universal Studios Hollywood
There are a number of days and holidays when you should Universal Studios Hollywood. These are due to a high volume of people heading to the park and so it would be very busy, hard to get around and long wait times for rides.
Days such as Friday, Saturday and Sunday are wise to avoid as these are days that many people don’t work and so use the weekend to get away or go do something fun.
Other days to avoid are Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve. These are very popular days to be at the park and so it can often be hard to get on rides and enjoy the day.
There is a special event that is held on New Year’s Eve which includes dancing and a special fireworks display.
There are other dates such as Martin Luther Day which will make the parks busier from around the 19th January until the 21st of January. There is also President’s Day which can create an influx of guests in the park from February 15th until February 24th.
While there are no specific days, the whole time between March 9th and April 15th is busy with those on Spring Break and Easter holidays.
Another time period which is wide to try and avoid if you can is the time between mid-June and all of August due to the school holidays and summer vacation.
What Are Peak Days & Non-Peak Days At Universal Studios
While booking your Universal Studio Hollywood park ticket you might see the term ‘peak days’ and ‘non-peak days’.
These are referring to the days that land in the busy days, weeks, months or peak season and the days that land in the off-season, quieter days, weeks or months within the year.
When looking at booking your tickets online you may see a coloured chart above the calendar. The days and colours are referring to these peak or non-peak days. Universal Studios Hollywood block out certain days and weeks that are much busier and so expect a high flow of traffic.
These are also days in which the price of tickets are much higher, this can refer to buying in advance online and at the gate.
You have a better chance of getting a non-peak day ticket online as you can pick and choose which days are cheaper and you can choose which works better for your schedule.
It isn’t uncommon to find full months such as November and February blocked out as a non-peak as this will be a much quieter time for people visiting the park and will charge less for entry.
If you buy a non-peak ticket but wish to use it on another day, you can upgrade your ticket upon arrival but there is never a definite upgrade price as it depends on the day you go. If you booked a non-peak ticket and wish to go to the park on a peak day you can pay quite a large amount to upgrade it.
Best Time To Arrive At Universal Studios Hollywood
While you might not always time the park day as well as you would like you can get the time to arrive right. The best time to arrive at Universal Studios Hollywood is early in the morning to get there for the park opening.
There is a fine line of getting to the park with enough time to get parked and to the gate and being able to walk in or wait a few minutes and waiting at the gate too long.
Even if you have to wait 10-15 minutes to wait before going into the park you will have a better chance of getting into the park and heading to the rides.
We advise arriving between 20 and 30 minutes before park opening to give you enough time to get parked and over to the gate entrance ready to scan your ticket and enter the park.
If you are buying your tickets at the gate you will want to arrive a little earlier so you have time to get your tickets and then into the park.
Buying tickets on the door is common for visitors so the line can get quite long and you don’t want to use too much of your park time waiting for tickets.