This question gets asked a lot. Is it worth getting an annual pass to Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure? We’re going to take a deep dive into this question and see if we can help you with this decision. Before we proceed though please know I’m not affiliated with Universal Orlando Resort or any of its related companies, I’m just a fan hoping to share some information and opinions!
First we need to lay out some general pricing as of April 10, 2024. We’re going to assume a couple of things for consistency: we want to visit 2 parks, Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure. We're looking at a ticket for 1 adult with our first visit being June 1st, 2024. The best promo currently running is the “2-Park Play 4 Days Promotional Ticket” ; these tickets start at $77 per day and allow for park to park visits of Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure. However, once selecting our June 1st date to begin our tickets that price is $376.99 then tax brings your total to $401.50 for the 4 day promotional ticket.
Now, if we look at a 2 Park Annual Preferred Pass, which is currently running a special for 15 months for the price of 12. Remember, the pass becomes active and the 15 month time frame starts on your first visit using the pass. The Preferred Pass, which I personally feel offers the best value, is $629.99 which once tax is added comes out to $670.94. I know this seems like a big jump up in price over regular park tickets but keep in mind this pass has no blockout dates and is good for 15 months currently where the ticket promo is only good for 4 days. In addition, the Preferred Annual Pass will also provide discounts on select merchandise and food as well as discounted hotel prices via Annual Passholder rates.
So, now that we’ve laid out the cost of each, you should ask yourself a few questions to see if it makes sense to you. The first question is how many days are you going to be visiting? If you plan on visiting more than 5 days you really have to begin considering the annual pass because the costs will start getting very close. This leads us into a secondary question, are you planning on making multiple trips to the parks in the coming year? If you’re going to be making at least two trips and want to stay on-site then the hotel discount with the annual pass will help alleviate a lot of the cost difference plus you’re probably going to be at the parks for at least six days in total between two trips, even if you just did two 3 days trips. This seems to be the point where the benefits of the Annual Pass surpass the standard tickets.
Next, what time of year do you think you’ll be visiting the parks? There are cheaper annual pass options that have blockout dates, meaning you can’t visit the parks with those lower level annual passes at certain times of the year. However, if you like to go at non peak times this may be a good option. But keep in mind that these lower tier passes do not provide a discount on foods and merchandise in the parks or CityWalk. All annual pass options do give you hotel discounts though so keep that in mind when making this decision.
Also, how much do you typically spend on food and merchandise in the park? This is a discount you get with the top two tiers of annual passes. Although not every place in the parks and CityWalk participates, it does provide a discount on a variety of foods, snacks, and merchandise at most locations. This also helps close the gap on the cost difference between standard tickets and the top two annual pass options.
These are just a few options to consider if you’re on the fence about the annual pass at Universal Orlando. However, from my personal experience, I’ve loved being a passholder and it’s made a huge difference in how much my trips have cost in total having the passholder hotel rates and food discounts. I love the parks and go as often as I can but the Annual Pass actually makes me feel like the responsible thing to do is to visit again whenever I have time. So if nothing else just think about getting that pass or just go visit and see if it would make sense for you and maybe we’ll see you in the parks!
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