Where and how to meet the Grinch at Universal Orlando with no wait
Meet the Grinch at Universal Orlando with no wait during the 2024 holiday season — learn where to find him and how to skip the long lines in our guide.
The Grinch is back for another holiday season at Universal Orlando Resort in Florida, but how do you meet him without spending hours waiting in a long line?
At the classic character’s meet & greet spot — located in the Honk Honkers shop within Seuss Landing at Universal Islands of Adventure — the Grinch commands quite the queue. According to the Universal Orlando app, the wait time for the Grinch’s line at 10 a.m. on Nov. 23, 2024 was 240 minutes. That’s four hours!
If you want to meet the Grinch at Universal Orlando without waiting in a long line, there are two ways to do so.
Universal Holiday Tour
A meet & greet with the Grinch is included as part of the Universal Holiday Tour, a guided program spanning both Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida next door. Your tour group will walk right up without waiting in the regular line. As a bonus, you’ll also get to meet the Grinch’s dog, Max, a tour-exclusive character (and an actual dog).
In addition to meeting the Grinch, guests on the Universal Holiday Tour also receive reserved seating for “The Grinchmas Who-liday Spectacular” stage show, snacks, desserts, non-alcoholic drinks, a meet & greet moment with Santa Claus, and an after-hours showing of “The Magic of Christmas at Hogwarts Castle” (a projection show within The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade).
The price of the Universal Holiday Tour starts at $100 per person, and can reach up to $120, depending on the date. Park-to-park admission is required, but not included in the price of the tour. At the time of this writing, only eight dates remain available for the 2024 season.
The Grinch & Friends Character Breakfast
Note: The Grinch & Friends Character Breakfast is currently sold out for the 2024 season at the time of this writing. If more tables happen to become available, you can book them online via Universal’s website, through the Universal Orlando app, or by calling 407-224-3663.
The Grinch & Friends Character Breakfast takes place at Circus McGurkus Café Stoo-pendous in Seuss Landing at Islands of Adventure. No waiting in a long line to meet the Grinch for you! Or at least, no waiting in the long line; you may still have to wait. According to posts in the Universal Orlando annual passholder Facebook group, in 2024 the Grinch does not meet guests at their table during the character breakfast. Instead, when diners are finished with their meal, they go wait in a line to meet the Grinch in an area exclusive for breakfast patrons (aka not the four-hour-long line with other guests). The wait for breakfast guests can be around 20-30 minutes. (The citizens of Whoville are also present; they do visit diners at tables.)
Prices for The Grinch & Friends Character Breakfast start at $59 for guests ages 10+ and $33 for guests ages 3-9, increasing depending on the day. The meal is hosted on select dates now through Dec. 30, 2024. Park admission for Islands of Adventure is required, but not included in the meal price.
Breakfast comes with assorted muffins and fruit, one entrée, and one non-alcoholic drink. Menu choices include pancakes, chicken and waffles, and, of course, green eggs and ham.
Seeing the Grinch without meeting him
For those who wish to merely lay eyes on the Grinch at Universal Orlando, but don’t have any desire (or the time) to meet him, you can also see the character in “The Grinchmas Who-liday Spectacular” live stage show, performed several times daily at Islands of Adventure now through Dec. 31, 2024.
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