What is Hagrid's like now not open during early admission?

I thought July 2021

That was the website?

I just checked: when it first opened in 2019 Universal announced it would use the VL when needed. When Universal reopened in June 2020 it opened with the virtual line (in the app). Other attractions used the app too. I believe it switched to the website sometime spring/summer of 2021?

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I will be there next week. Should we use EE to get in line for Hagrid? Do they let you libe up before it opens?

Welcome to the forum!

I would do something else during EE and then join the line after or later.

Hagrid, Fallon, and F&F have used the in app virtual line, which is this:

This summer they tested a new version on just Hagrid that opened up new time slots as available and adjusted return times. Will they switch to the new one? Maybe, maybe not. But it was a test.

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If they do plan on a wide VL implementation at Epic Universe, surely we’ll see a lot more periodic testing at USF & IOA in the coming years.

I don’t think they’ll go that way, they’ve largely abandoned it after F&F (which barely uses it) and only adopt it when lines spill out into walkways.

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Any strategy to report yet? Do they keep a line from forming during early entry?

I’d ride later in the day after our recent trip. By the time we got off VC the Hagrids line wrapped way way far from the entrance (it used to do that but it had social distancing and now doesn’t so that’s scarier to me now). It was posted 125 min right after opening I believe. We did it in the later afternoon with a 60 minute wait when it was posted 75 (and we had to sit on the ground because of a “delay” for about 10 minutes). We did it one minute before park closing and waited 43 min (when it was posted 90 min) with about a 5 min “delay”. I’d say just ride it later in the day and use EE for other stuff.

Also yes, people are lining up during EE. This is why I’d just wait.

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They weren’t using VL for Hagrid’s when the line was spilling into the walkway and across the entrance to Hogwarts Express this last week. :frowning:

Current Strategy is to steer clear of Hagrid’s until noonish!

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I was there last week, too and nothing ever went up on VL. You could wait during EE, but even if you’re first in line, you’re waiting for an hour. And, you lose your whole EE time. We went later in the day (after lunch) and waited about an hour.

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ditto…I wonder if we passed each other in the night. I was there T-F.

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Seems like the best idea is to do everything else and then at one hour before closing, join the Hagrid line.
(And convince yourself that you’re entirely satisfied not riding it.)

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ha ha ha…yup! Do like me and get in 1 min before closing and only wait 43 min. Pray the entire time it does not break down.

When it did have downtime I was literally in the final line switch back in the final room and could peer around the corner and see it not moving. I was absolutely terrified I was gonna be one train away from riding when it broke!

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So what’s the best plan now in the first 2 hours with EE to rope drop? Head to Velocicoaster, wander around and maybe see Olivanders (not going to vomit on FJ), then take the train to try and do Gringott’s? Nothing else is open? Not Hulk or anything? When does the first train go to UO? Or is the entire park open, including the train back and forth, but only the the few rides in IOA are running for the first hour?

Only limited rides are open for EE…mostly just HP stuff, although for now VC was swapped in for Hagrid’s. That may change in the spring or summer.

Typically, only one park has EE at a time, so taking the train isn’t possible until the other park officially opens.

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Well going the 19ty, so EE is almost a bust. The only ride open that I want to do is VC, so I imagine most people will be going there. And without another headliner, unless people still like FJ, it would seem HP will be packed and nothing else really to do for the remaining time after riding one ride. And at park opening, I imagine you can’t really leave and then get in a huge line to get into the other park. Is the train faster anyway if it opens on time? So if anyone can help with a rope drop strategy, what would you do for the first two hours in the park in order? Do more in IOA, or rush over to UO to get in line for Gringott’s?

Yesterday Gringotts was showing a 10 minute (probably walk on) wait from 9:20 to 10:00. Looks like a great time of the day.

HP is more than the rides, though. I took my son into WWoHP for EE one day just so he could do the spells with his wand. Crowds tend to be quite low in WWoHP during EE as compared to later in the day. My son had no wait for any of the places to do spells during EE. Later in the day, every wand location was busy with people lined up, it seemed.

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