Halloween Horror Nights 32 (UOR) - News & Info

[JungleSkip]

^^^Dont get me started on those poor dogs having to go to this event.

Anyway, I think the “Getting rid of rush of fear will solve everything!” is probably a pretty unlikely scenario. Most will probably just repent and move to FFP+ at only ~90 more.

 

[Frank Drackman]

Sunday being quiet is definitely a result of RoF no longer available. We'll see what happens in October when more of the "GP" make up the higher percentage of guests.

You can see the shift by referencing Rockit's queue as the GP loves it.

the WED after RoF ended did not feel as light as what SUN sounds like, we went on WED, didn't stay long, it was rainy and Yeti and Dragons were down which most likely added to my feelings of crowd level.

Rockit was often over 90 mins when I would walk by, saw MiB at 45 when walking by -- this was a night or two during the week of 9/13- 9/17

Obviously, I still expect busy days, especially with Columbus Day Weekend and local schools being out and a Fall Break coming up; but it should be expected during those days. Not on a random Wednesday in the 2nd or 3rd weekend.

I find it interesting that that you mention Columbus day weekend due 'local' schools being out as the week of 9/13 - 9/17 included Rosh Hashanah when I know SE FL has many school districts have time off -- many who do not celebrate travel to Orlando. I also wonder if something was up w/ international visitors -- I went through a maze behind a big group that seemed like foreign visitors, I found it neat as they stopped to applaud anytime a scare actor 'got them good', but I also noticed a lot of folks who I believe were speaking Portuguese.

I don’t understand the people who say you can’t do the event in one night.

We went 3 nights, and did 44 or 45 runs. I think we did 15, 16, and 13 or 14. One night was even sold out and one night 4 houses were closed at once for flooding.

We did stay and scream and also had express but we definitely could have done all houses every night if we had not had express and only did each one once.

I'd rather go two nights -- try and get 5 houses done each night without using Express -- I feel (without any add ons) one does need at least two nights to experience all the event has to offer.

 

[Tbad556]

Anyway, I think the “Getting rid of rush of fear will solve everything!” is probably a pretty unlikely scenario. Most will probably just repent and move to FFP+ at only ~90 more.

Yeah. I always did FFP+ previously, but decided to drop down to ROF after the price jumps this year just because it was convenient. But if they removed ROF, I'd definitely just run right back to FFP. I don't think that would scare most locals off. If anything, it would end up with locals having access to more dates.

 

[Midnight Detective]

I don’t understand the people who say you can’t do the event in one night.

Going to sound kind of goofy, but if you've attended theme parks regularly, or are from Florida, you're going to be literally built different than someone who just shows up to the event.

Most people have little experience with the time management, layout, crowd navigation, Florida weather, etc needed to easily knockout the whole event in a night.

If you attend HHN with someone for the first time, and they've only been to Universal once or twice, they'll think you're a wizard showing them around.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Yep, I would not be surprised in the slightest if they don’t see any issue at all with crowd levels. More tickets sold, more vacations sold, etc., more money spent will always be top priority.

Yeah, it's the reason why I've been leaning more toward increasing capacity (via shows) versus curbing attendance by increasing prices. Current crowd levels are fine by me if they can find other places to put people in.

The overall atmosphere needs some work. There’s just too much dead space in the back end of the park.

Considering the zone at the front of the park isn't the best each year, I'd like that budget to go to "generic" Halloween decor that can be utilized each year throughout the non-typical Scare Zone areas (park entrance, Cafe La Bamba, etc.)

They can fix congestion without touching multi-night passes.

Yes, multi-night passes are still undervalued, but they do need to address show/dining (and adjust zone design) before dramatically changing passes. Express should be removed though.

^^^Dont get me started on those poor dogs having to go to this event.

Anyway, I think the “Getting rid of rush of fear will solve everything!” is probably a pretty unlikely scenario. Most will probably just repent and move to FFP+ at only ~90 more.

After this year, it might be better to move Rush of Fear from Week 2 - Week 5, versus Week 1-4. Then again, I don't think Universal cares about crowding.

the WED after RoF ended did not feel as light as what SUN sounds like, we went on WED, didn't stay long, it was rainy and Yeti and Dragons were down which most likely added to my feelings of crowd level.

Yeah, this past Wednesday was absolutely horrendous. Might have been the last TM comp night?

 

[Frank Drackman]

Yeah, this past Wednesday was absolutely horrendous. Might have been the last TM comp night?

yes, I have heard that TM's had a lot of free options for themselves in SEPT vrs one night in OCT -- I did forget about that factor.

 

[SeventyOne]

I also have to ask the question... how confident are we that Universal even believes there is a problem that requires action?

They didn't cut off a cash cow and take a big hit on social media (and in local fan circles) just for funsies. GSAT scores for September must have been abysmal.

 

[grlhowl]

I have little to add, having not been yet this year, but in years past, I've never seen GP complain about crowds. I've seen a number of videos from people outside of the HHN/haunt and wider theme park community posting about how bad crowds and waits were. Not even headliner combos like ST + Ghostbusters + Us got this reaction from GP, from what I've seen

 

[Clive]

They didn't cut off a cash cow and take a big hit on social media (and in local fan circles) just for funsies. GSAT scores for September must have been abysmal.

This is true, and unprecedented.

 

[JungleSkip]

This is true, and unprecedented.

If this was a Rush of Fear problem, cutting off FFP doesn’t make sense.

I have to wonder if they’re considering anything actually drastic for next year, or if they think it was just an outlier year

 

[Brian G.]

If this was a Rush of Fear problem, cutting off FFP doesn’t make sense.

I have to wonder if they’re considering anything actually drastic for next year, or if they think it was just an outlier year

Would stop the “hack” of RoF holders upgrading to FFP, though.

 

[Clive]

By the way, I'm also an out-of-towner who has relied on Rush of Fear w/ Express the last few years, so these speculated changes would directly impact me. Again, I'm not sure what (if anything) will happen, but it's true that FFP has never actually sold out in the history of the event's run. That's gotta prompt some soul-searching from the top brass who make these decisions.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

I have little to add, having not been yet this year, but in years past, I've never seen GP complain about crowds. I've seen a number of videos from people outside of the HHN/haunt and wider theme park community posting about how bad crowds and waits were. Not even headliner combos like ST + Ghostbusters + Us got this reaction from GP, from what I've seen

People have always complained about lines, but that's about it. This year there is definitely animosity towards overcrowding in all aspects of the event outside of house queues (food, not being able to get into Nightmare Fuel as it fills up way before showtime, etc.). If HHN is seeing a problem with locals hanging out in the park - either price them out (the Disney way) or find somewhere they can hang out... whether it's another show, themed bar, etc.

 

[jseal777]

As an out of towner I always get ROF because its still cheaper than buying tickets for wed, thur,fri, and sat nights when we go. Change the tickets to like a weekly pass, mandatory scheduling, and increase price I guess and you can manage crowds better without pricing people out of the event.

 

[JungleSkip]

Would stop the “hack” of RoF holders upgrading to FFP, though.

True, but how many people actually do that?

By the way, I'm also an out-of-towner who has relied on Rush of Fear w/ Express the last few years, so these speculated changes would directly impact me. Again, I'm not sure what (if anything) will happen, but it's true that FFP has never actually sold out in the history of the event's run. That's gotta prompt some soul-searching from the top brass who make these decisions.

I think the best overall solution is a length of stay pass tied to you hotel stay, and then either a (more expensive) Ultimate FFP being the only option for locals, or a FFP with a number of visits you have to make (sorry locals) reservations with.

People have always complained about lines, but that's about it. This year there is definitely animosity towards overcrowding in all aspects of the event outside of house queues (food, not being able to get into Nightmare Fuel as it fills up way before showtime, etc.). If HHN is seeing a problem with locals hanging out in the park - either price them out (the Disney way) or find somewhere they can hang out... whether it's another show, themed bar, etc.

Sorry, I think this year was a million times better with food lines than last year.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Just want to add some numbers as to how low HHN capacity is at the moment.

Fear Factor Live Theater currently sits (approximately) ~1,750 per show. At 4 shows a night, that's only 7K guests out of the average 25-30K HHN averages each night... that's only 28% of guests (not even counting locals who repeat, and RIP reserved seating capacity that takes away from everyone else).

Sorry, I think this year was a million times better with food lines than last year.

Far better than last year's hot mess, but it still isn't that great. (No idea why they removed stanchions)

 

[Clive]

True, but how many people actually do that?

I think the best overall solution is a length of stay pass tied to you hotel stay, and then either a (more expensive) Ultimate FFP being the only option for locals, or a FFP with a number of visits you have to make (sorry locals) reservations with.

Sorry, I think this year was a million times better with food lines than last year.

This is a compromise I could get behind that would give a viable option to just about every type of event guest.

 

[JungleSkip]

Just want to add some numbers as to how low HHN capacity is at the moment.

Fear Factor Live Theater currently sits (approximately) ~1,750 per show. At 4 shows a night, that's only 7K guests out of the average 25-30K HHN averages each night... that's only 28% of guests (not even counting locals who repeat, and RIP reserved seating capacity that takes away from everyone else).

The good news is if you saw the show any of the previous years, you're not missing much!

Far better than last year's hot mess, but it still isn't that great. (No idea why they removed stanchions)

I dunno, maybe the week I went no one was eating, but I never had an issue walking up and ordering something, and even if there was a line it moved well.

This is a compromise I could get behind that would give a viable option to just about every type of event guest.

I think there probably needs to be some sort of reckoning with the tickets, but I also think Universal needs to be careful not to alienate the biggest spenders (hotel guests) when considering it, while not completely screwing over the locals.

That being said, a more expensive ultimate FFP, or restricting the event to a reservation based system, would probably really cut down on the gangs of youths (get off my lawn!) that use the place like mall kids did in the 90s/early 2000s

 

[UniversalRBLX]

This is a compromise I could get behind that would give a viable option to just about every type of event guest.

Still think they can attempt 1-2 more stage shows + lagoon before doing something drastic like this. Most locals are not getting into a 90+ minute wait for Stranger Things, need to move those bodies elsewhere.

 

[sparky]

As an out of towner I always get ROF because its still cheaper than buying tickets for wed, thur,fri, and sat nights when we go. Change the tickets to like a weekly pass, mandatory scheduling, and increase price I guess and you can manage crowds better without pricing people out of the event.

I gotta have express. Willing to pay for it, but the switchback lines would make me go bonkers