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Credit: Universal StudiosUniversal Orlando Resort Parkgoers are up in arms about a “lack of integrity” from its team members when it comes to one important theme park rule – claiming that Universal cares less about the issue than Disney.
Plenty of things go into making a theme park experience special. Sometimes it’s jaw-dropping attractions like Disney Hollywood Studios’ Rise of the Resistance or Islands of Adventure’s Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, or immersive lands like the Wizarding World of Harry Potter or SUPER NINTENDO WORLD. Other times it’s the tasty treats from your favorite theme park restaurant or unique events like Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party or Halloween Horror Nights.
But a huge factor in a memorable theme park experience is the employees who make it happen. At Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort, and other Disney parks worldwide, cast members are trained in the art of “making magic.” While Universal’s team members may not have as famous a legacy, they’re also equally talented at immersing guests in the magic of the movies.
However, some guests feel that Universal’s team members fall short of Disney in one particular area.
Is Universal More Lax on Line-Cutting Compared to Disney?
In a Reddit thread, one guest claimed that Universal team members ignore—if not allow—fellow guests to cut in line.
One user reportedly experienced Guests openly jumping from the Universal Express Unlimited Pass line to the regular queue, something they found particularly irritating as they themselves had bought Express Passes.
“I bought unlimited Express Passes for our stay for two people which [cost] a pretty penny,” they wrote. “The same family (one would have a [Universal Studios Express Pass]) and the other [four] would wait in normal queue where just after you can scan the express pass you can cross over from the regular queue to the other one. So all 4 from the normal queue crossed to the express and then they acted like they were meeting people a little further up and they did that until just about the front.”
When the user spoke to a team member working on the ride, they “seemed un-phased” and said “we know and that was it, probably because so many complained. But that same family did it multiple times and I’m just baffled why it’s even allowed.”
They went on to explain that it was their first time visiting Universal Orlando Resort and that they had just spent a week at Walt Disney World prior to this visit. In their experience, Disney’s cast members “care a bit more” about line-cutting.
Some users responded that they wouldn’t be surprised if Universal Studios Florida team members were “taught to not confront these people directly to avoid confrontation,” and argued in favor of the team members who risk facing a guest’s wrath if they call them out.
“It’s a cheat on the system and [Universal Orlando] should absolutely find a way to fix it,” wrote another user. “But I’m not expecting a teenager on 16/hr to try and confront full-grown adults who are more liable to scream at them and call them names than actually listen to reason and admit they’re being ridiculous. These situations are on management.”
Related: Disney World Addresses Line Cutting Issue, Begins Punishing Guests
A separate user experienced one such issue when a guest became aggressive with a team member who called them out for line-cutting. “We saw a woman cutting the line on Cat in the Hat,” they wrote.
“I do believe she was legitimately just trying to catch up with her husband and kids. There was a 50yo line attendant trying to argue with her insisting her husband and kids needed to come back to the back of the line with her, and she was just going to piss off other guests. He argued with her for a good 30-45 seconds, and she still just ended up doing what she wanted anyway.
I was actually kind of surprised the employee pushed the issue with her as that was a pretty minor thing all considered. But definitely made me think how defensive, confrontational, and angry entitled guests are likely to get if you try to call them out on a more egregious violation of policy.”
Disney Also Experiences Line-Cutting Issues
Meanwhile, others claimed to have experienced something similar, but that this behavior is rampant across all theme parks, including both Universal and Disney.
A separate Reddit thread on the topic at Disney World saw some guests criticize the “ridiculous” amount of line-cutting going on at the most magical place on Earth, while others suggested that the issue isn’t as prevalent as one might have thought.
“I recently saw a group try the move where 2 of the younger people in a party of 6-8 or more run up to the line and then once the group catches up they all cut,” wrote one Reddit user.
“This particular time the runners were looking back to see where the rest of their party was. The CM at the head of the queue asked how many were in their party and the people gave them the number of people that were with them and asked if they were currently together. The runners said they’re coming now, the CM had them pull to the side and wait for the entire party before they entered the queue. I think it was at [Seven Dwarfs Mine Train].”
Another guest wrote: “I witnessed it once for my first time on my trip and it was AWFUL. 3 cheerleaders bum rushed the Elsa and Anna meet and greet holding pen line area as it was nearing closing, our kids were holding on by a thread and those 3 made it so our party or 3 had to stay back even longer.
Our kids went from hanging in there to meltdown mode as it extended out wait even longer, and we had to leave the line. Terribly frustrating and it negatively impacted our experience.”
However, some have also noted that Disney cast members can, and do, clamp down on those violating the rules against line-cutting. One guest shared their frustration waiting in line for PeopleMover as a kid behind them acted out, swinging under the chains. Things escalated when a family of eight shoved through the line, claiming they were catching up with their party.
“Not a gentle ‘excuse me,’ but literally pushing people trying to get up to their rat,” the guest recalled. Fortunately, a cast member intervened, pulling the family aside to a member of security.
“The family behind us mumbled ‘finally’ and told us they’d been dealing with them all day,” the user wrote. “They kept waiting to see which attraction they’d head to next and go somewhere else only to be met by the same kid screwing around wherever they were.”
Whether it’s at Disney or Universal, line-cutting does seem to be an issue raised more and more often by guests in recent years and definitely isn’t representative of a theme park’s workers. Fingers crossed that Universal Orlando Resort – which will welcome its third theme park, Epic Universe, in May – can find a line-cutting solution that doesn’t put team members in a sticky situation.
Do you think Universal or Disney is better at tackling line-cutting?