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Best time of the year to visit Universal Orlando Resort

At Orlando Informer, we work diligently to keep information up to date. This page was last updated on March 27, 2024.

There may not necessarily be a good or bad day of the week to visit Universal Orlando Resort (it’s a slightly complicated story, and we walk you through it all in our complete guide), but there absolutely are good and bad times of the year in which to take your vacation. The question, then, becomes just when those are, and which is the very best?

The time of the year you choose to visit Universal can have an impact on crowd levels, park operating hours, and ticket cost, to name a few things. But never fear! With the help of this page, along with our FREE crowd calendar, you’ll have no trouble selecting the ideal stretch of time to explore Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure, and Volcano Bay.

Skip to: Best times to visit | Busiest times to visit | Holidays | Bonus tips and tricks

The globe at Universal Orlando Resort
The globe at Universal Orlando Resort

Best Times to Visit Universal Orlando Resort in 2024

Let’s start with the basics: in general, theme parks have both a slow and busy season. For most guests, the “best” time to visit is when crowds are the lowest, which usually correlates to lower wait times and easier navigation within the park. In 2024, these dates will include:

  • January 4 to 15 (between the New Year and Martin Luther King, Jr. Day)
  • January 22 to February 16 (between MLK Day and Presidents’ Day)
  • February 26 to the Beginning of March (between Presidents’ Day and spring break)
  • Weekdays throughout September to December (minus Thanksgiving week and Christmas/New Year’s week)

Halloween Horror Nights is an enormously popular event that takes place on select nights, typically in September and October. Event nights often attract larger crowds during the day. Friday is the weekday that draws the most guests, so it may be wise to avoid this day entirely during HHN‘s run.

It’s also worth noting that there are some drawbacks to visiting on dates with low crowds; the parks tend to have shorter operating hours, and some restaurants only operate seasonally. In fact, if you’re a bit more flexible on the crowd-level aspect, we recommend heading down when crowds are moderate, such as weekends (rather than weekdays) in October and November. As we’ve mentioned before, you’ll find there’s more “excitement in the air” when there are some more people around, and Universal’s unique brand of excitement is one of its most incredible features.

If you’re looking for the absolute least-crowded month to stay at Universal Orlando, September is a solid bet. Most kids have headed back to school by this time, so you can more reliably count on lower crowds as a result.

Best Times to Visit Universal Orlando in 2025

As you look toward planning your visit for 2025, we anticipate similar periods of time that will be an excellent time for you and your family to enjoy everything that Universal Orlando Resort has to offer. Our prediction for the best dates to visit include: 

  • January 6 to 17 (between the New Year and Martin Luther King, Jr. Day)
  • January 27 to February 14 (between MLK Day and Presidents’ Day)
  • February 24 to the Beginning of March (between Presidents’ Day and spring break)
  • Weekdays throughout September to December (minus Thanksgiving week and Christmas/New Year’s week)

Busiest Times to Visit Universal Orlando in 2024

The most crowded time to tour the parks is also the most popular time of the year for families looking to take their vacations: summer. The kids are out of school and in the theme-park resorts, and that – combined with the blazing Florida heat – is reason enough to try visiting in another time of the year, if possible.

In addition to the summertime, you’ll want to avoid any other holidays that kids have off from school. In 2024, the busiest dates include:

  • January 1 to 3 (New Year’s)
  • January 15 to 21 (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day)
  • February 19 to 25 (Presidents’ Day)
  • Beginning of March to Mid-April (spring break)
  • May to Mid-August (summer break)
  • Thanksgiving week
  • Christmas week to the New Year

If descending upon Orlando during summer break is the only viable option for your family, your best bet is to avoid arriving on the weekend; while most days in the summer will be crowded, weekdays are typically a little less so.

Busiest Times to Visit Universal Orlando in 2025

It is safe to say that we predict the times of year when many are off from work or school will cause larger crowds within the Theme Parks. We anticipate the busiest times of year to visit the Universal Orlando Resort to be: 

  • January 1 to 3 (New Year’s)
  • January 18 to 26 (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day)
  • February 15 to 23 (Presidents’ Day)
  • Beginning of March to Mid-April (spring break)
  • May to Mid-August (summer break)
  • Thanksgiving week
  • Christmas week to the New Year

What about holidays?

Universal's Holiday Parade Featuring Macy's
Universal’s Holiday Parade Featuring Macy’s

Wondering why we suggest avoiding the parks on holidays? Well, just like summer break, the kids are out of school – but, in addition, the parents are off work, as well. Many families plan their vacations around annual holidays for this very reason.

The most crowded holidays that you’ll almost certainly want to avoid visiting on are:

  • New Year’s Day
  • Easter (March 31, 2024 & April 20, 2025)
  • Thanksgiving (November 28, 2024 & November 27, 2025)
  • Christmas Eve
  • Christmas Day
  • New Year’s Eve

If you’re concerned about missing out on seasonal experiences, like Christmas in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter or Universal’s Holiday Parade Featuring Macy’s, don’t fret! These offerings are available for much longer periods of time than just the holidays themselves – for example, the Holiday Parade usually takes place from mid-November through early January. That means you can still embrace the holiday spirit on a weekday in November – you just won’t have to embrace the crowds, too. Holidays at Universal Orlando Resort will be celebrated all season long, typically from mid-November to the beginning of January.

Of course, when it comes to those crowds, not all holidays are created equal. Smaller holidays like Labor Day (September 2, 2024 & September 1, 2025) and Veteran’s Day (November 11, 2024 & November 11, 2025) will still attract more people, but it will be a significantly smaller amount than, say, Christmas Day.

Bonus tips and tricks

If you’re still conflicted about the time of year you’d prefer to visit, we have a couple of other tricks up our sleeve to help you decide.

Perhaps most importantly, we want to stress the usefulness of our completely FREE crowd calendar. When it comes down to planning the specific dates you want to spend in the parks, this resource is the best way to determine how crowd levels will fluctuate from one day to the next. Thanks to our precise algorithm and the magic of self-learning technology, you can be sure you’re getting impeccably accurate and up-to-date predictions for Universal Orlando‘s crowds.

In addition to our calendar, you may find it helpful to check out Universal’s pricing for the dates you’re considering. The reasoning behind this tip is that, in August 2020, Universal switched to a date-based pricing model – simply put, tickets to visit on more popular days now cost more, and tickets to visit on less popular days cost less. That means looking at how admission prices vary throughout the dates you’re considering may help you decide which will be more or less to your liking in terms of crowdedness.

Last, but certainly not least, if you’re planning to visit on a more crowded date, we recommend investing in Express Passes. Sure, the crowds will still be present, but you’ll have a much easier time experiencing all the rides and shows that you want to without worrying about wait times. Be sure to check out our complete insider’s guide to Express Passes for the full lowdown.

Do you have a question about the information on this page or would you like to provide feedback? Please let us know by posting in our Orlando Informer Community on Facebook.

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