Crowds, we dislike ’em! Going during a crowded time throws off your vacation’s vibe – more crowds mean longer waits for rides, busier restaurants, and more guests around the parks. Avoid the crowds and use our Crowd Calendar to find the perfect time to visit Universal Orlando. In this article, we’ll go over five great times to visit based on our Crowd Calendar data.

Crowd Calendar

TouringPlans uses collected data and statistically advanced prediction methodologies to predict crowds and plan your vacation.  TouringPlans’ Crowd Calendar predicts the perceived crowds and forecasts wait times for Universal Orlando. Our crowd calendars are driven by hard data: 10 million wait times submitted by users, local and national school schedules, holidays, special events, and more. The dates below are pulled from our full 2025 crowd calendar and are accurate as of January 2, 2025, we do update our crowd calendar throughout the year so double-check before booking. The full Crowd Calendar is available with a TouringPlans.com subscription and comes with customized touring plans and real-time wait time predictions.

Now, let’s look at the best times to visit Universal Orlando in 2025. We are searching for several days with Crowd Calendar predictions at 3 or lower, perfect for a few days at the parks.

Now – January!

Drop what you are doing and go NOW! That’s right, right now is a great time to go! Right after the new year, not including weekends and the very crowded Presidents Day weekend, is a great time to visit the parks. While all the Christmas decorations are down and Mardi Gras has yet to begin, wait times and prices are low. You will walk onto most rides and Express Passes won’t be needed. Universal cycles through refurbishing its water rides during this time, so you might be out of luck if you want to visit Volcano Bay or a particular water ride in Islands of Adventure.

Early February

Want to visit my favorite festival at Universal during low crowds? Visit between February 4 and 6 and 11 and 13 for crowd level 3 and 4 days! Mardi Gras is a fantastic time to visit Universal—all festivities are included in park admission and include a bead-tossing parade, concerts, zydeco bands, dozens of food booths, and much more! Crowds will be low at attractions, parade route, and booths making this a perfect time to experience Mardi Gras!

Pre-Epic May

Early May is shaping up to be a wonderful time to visit Universal Orlando – from the good weather to the pre-Epic crowds (and maybe even a sneak peek at the park). Sundays through Thursdays in May leading up to the opening of Epic are looking to be fantastic times to visit with crowd levels between 2 and 4 on our calendar. While Epic Universe won’t officially be open, it will be running previews for select employees and guests.

Mid-Week September Weeks

Are you a Halloween fan? Want to attend Halloween Horror Nights with minimal waits? Sundays through Thursdays in September at Universal Orlando are your best bet for low daytime waits in the parks and short lines for HHN houses. Epic Universe will be open at this time with three months of operation under its belt so all the locals and super fans will have visited and the wrinkles ironed out. Then if you want to spend your time getting scared at night the house wait times will be lighter than during the weekend or in October (when normal people think about Halloween).

Week Before & After Thanksgiving

My favorite pro-trip for visiting during a low-crowd time is to visit Universal Orlando the week before or after Thanksgiving. Crowds don’t start picking up for Thanksgiving in the US till the Sunday before the holiday and they dissipate over the weekend. This leaves a wonderful period immediately before the holiday and before Christmas to visit – the holiday decorations are up, the Macy’s balloons are inflated, and the Grinch is bringing the drama to Grinchmas. Oh, and did we mention Epic Universe? We suggest looking at November 17 through 20 and December 2 through 5 as great times to visit.

Have you booked your trip to Universal Orlando in 2025? What are your favorite times to visit? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!