Update September 2015: Even more tips for Battlestar Galactica
Before I begin, let me share the typical wait time of rides in USS on a non-public holiday weekend:
Morning
|
Afternoon
|
Evening
|
|
Transformers
|
20 mins
|
70 mins
|
20 mins
|
Revenge of the Mummy
|
10 mins
|
30 mins
|
10 mins
|
Treasure Hunters
|
10 mins
|
50 mins
|
20 mins
|
Jurassic Park Rapids
|
20 mins
|
60 mins
|
45 mins
|
Canopy Flyer
|
30 mins
|
45 mins
|
35 mins
|
Puss in Boots
|
20 mins
|
60 mins
|
40 mins
|
Battlestar (Regular)
|
20 mins
|
90 mins
|
45 mins
|
Battlestar (Express)
|
15 mins
|
20 mins
|
5 mins
|
This adds up to over 4 hours of queue time, or 50% of your visit. It means you experience your favourite rides fewer times.
Before I begin, let me first say that this post is a bit...complicated. So, if you have some money to spare or find all this planning a pain, you can consider looking at express tickets. I mean, now you can even get express tickets online from tour agencies like Voyagin, so no need to spend time queuing to get Universal Express tickets!
1) Arrive at the park between 1030 and 1045
Although people are aware of the ride queues, most forget that there is also a long line to get into the USS when the park just opens. In fact, just before the park opens, there are about 300 people waiting to enter. This means that if you arrive at 0945 and the park opens at 1000, you may have to wait till 1020 before you enter - a 35 minute wait. At 1030, the queue to enter the park usually shortens to about 10mins.
However, do not arrive too late either. Most tour agencies arrive at about 1200-1400 and the signature attractions will suddenly see explosion in queue lines.
Time saved: 25mins
However, do not arrive too late either. Most tour agencies arrive at about 1200-1400 and the signature attractions will suddenly see explosion in queue lines.
Time saved: 25mins
2) Buy your tickets online
Time saved: 10mins
3) Take Transformers: The ride at the end of the day
So instead of following the pack, take time to explore the park and return to this ride about 1hour before the park closes. By then, all the tour groups will have left and I was even able to ride 2-3 times back to back within 20-30mins.
Time saved: 50mins
4) Avoid the whole Jurassic Park section 1 hour after each WaterWorld Show
The 1 page information leaflet gives information on WaterWorld show times.
Time saved: 30mins
5) Eat your in-park meals after 2.30pm
Secondly, most people like to eat at about 1pm, this means it is harder to find (good) seats at the restaurants and longer queues to buy the food.
Finally, USS food servings are actually quite big, so you can actually take your 2pm-4pm meal as a Lunch+Dinner combo and only have to eat a night snack.
Time saved: 10 mins
6) Use Single Rider line, ESPECIALLY PUSS IN BOOTS!
For the 2 rides at Jurassic Park, the single rider is less useful as you need to wait very long (sometimes 15 minutes) before 1 single rider gets to board. Also, do not use single rider for Revenge of the Mummy from 2pm-4pm, as South Asia tourists like to hoard it.
The best one, though, is Puss in Boots' Giant Journey. With an unusual 3 seats in 1 row, there is almost at least 1 empty seat every train. In fact, Single Riders are so desperately needed here that you can be ushered to overtake 30mins of Universal Express queue!
Time saved: 30mins if in a small group, 1 hour if going alone
7) If there are kids, visit the top kids rides the evening
Besides, isn't it great if your child gets to choose whatever character he wants to ride on for the carousel?
Time Saved: 30 mins if you are with children
8) Annual Pass Thrillseekers and Coaster Wannabes, this template works 100%!
- At 9.50am, wait at the entrance of the USS Priority Queue, for Season/Annual Pass holders only.
- 10.00am, run, (yes run!) straight to the entrance of Battlestar Galactica. Dump everything in the lockers.
- 10.05am, Your first ride of the day
- 10.20am. You should be on your second ride. By now queue has built up to 10 mins. If you have not taken Cylon yet, go now as the queue for Cylon usually build up faster
- 10.30am. Your third ride of the day. By now queue will reach 25-30mins.
If you see the list of queue time above, most people will need to queue about 2 hours just to take Battlestar Galactica 4 times, but this strategy allows you to ride 3-4 times even before the queue reaches its full length.
[note] Battlestar Galactica usually operates 1 train per side on weekdays and often does 2 trains per side on weekends/public holidays after 12pm, so there is very little reduction in queue on weekdays!
It also works well for first time Galactica pilots. Do the exact same thing except go ride Revenge of the Mummy first (which is just beside) to warm up. Should be able to take 1 round of mummy plus 2 rounds Human with no problems.
[note] Battlestar Galactica usually operates 1 train per side on weekdays and often does 2 trains per side on weekends/public holidays after 12pm, so there is very little reduction in queue on weekdays!
It also works well for first time Galactica pilots. Do the exact same thing except go ride Revenge of the Mummy first (which is just beside) to warm up. Should be able to take 1 round of mummy plus 2 rounds Human with no problems.
Time Saved: Up to 90 mins, if you can squeeze in 3 rides
Total Time Saved: 2 hrs 15 mins to 3 hrs 45 mins
Additional tips:
- If you are about to buy or renew your season/annual pass, visit the annual pass lobby during noontime since there will be fewer people making their cards then.
- If you are a passholder, it is advisable that you visit the park only in the last 2 hours of opening. You may not experience all rides in one day, but you don't need to
- The queue time boards for Treasure Hunters and Canopy Flyer is actually over-inflated. This means if you see 45mins, the actual queue may be closer to 30mins (courtesy of Luke, see his blog here)
- Enchanted Airways will operate 2 trains during Friday and Saturday afternoons, so even though the queue may look long from the outside, it actually moves very fast
- For express passholders: A lot of people with express rush into battlestar galactica first thing in the day, so you can sometimes expect shorter express queue after 3pm when people use up their express (yes, even for express pass holders there are ways to save time!)
But trust me, the queue lines at USS are already very reasonable. Maybe you can test your patience at
Anyways, you may also like this post: 8 ways to save money at USS. And Please don't forget to like the Second Drop Facebook Page.
- Nagashima Spa Land - worst operations in Japan?
- Shanghai Disneyland on a nearly sold out day.
Anyways, you may also like this post: 8 ways to save money at USS. And Please don't forget to like the Second Drop Facebook Page.