Universal Unveils Themed Lands for ‘Epic Universe’ Park!
Days have turned to weeks, weeks to months and months to years since Universal Destinations & Experiences first announced the forthcoming ‘Epic Universe’ theme park in August of 2019. Although technically the fourth Universal-owned park in Orlando, Florida, ‘Epic’ (shorthand) was announced as the long-awaited third gate - a metric not inclusive of Universal’s Volcano Bay water park - and was rumored to contain as many as five themed lands and areas based on some of Universal’s strongest-performing intellectual properties. In the years since the original announcement, we’ve seen construction on the 750-acreage park move ahead at breakneck speeds, persisting even through the pandemic era of 2020 to 2021. And although we’ve been able to see physical progress through the eyes of vloggers and enthusiasts such as Super Enthused and bioreconstruct, and have been able to make some educated guesses based on the detective work of theme park channels such as Theme Park Stop, Universal Destinations & Experiences have themselves kept relatively quiet on the titles, IP’s and details of Epic’s themed lands….that is, until today.
Aerial first look at the portal of Dark Universe.
— bioreconstruct (@bioreconstruct) November 4, 2023
Scaffolding down, revealing the beautiful sculpture of rock, tree roots, and vines.
Entrance of classic Universal Monsters land in Epic Universe. pic.twitter.com/VcdPFNGKUt
Theme Park Enthusiasts across the United States - as well as all over the world - awoke this morning to some of the most exciting news of 2024 as Universal officially unveiled all five themed lands throughout the Epic Universe park in Orlando. “Over my thirty-five years, I have often been asked what my favorite ride is,” says Mark Woodbury, chairman & CEO of Universal Destinations and Experiences, “my standard answer is ‘the next one’. We live by the ethos that the next thing we do is going to be better than the last thing we did.” Even as Universal continues work on two destination experiences in Las Vegas and Texas (respectively) and continues ongoing work on the Dreamworks Playland at the Studios park in Orlando, there is no project underway that is more reflective of Mark’s words than the massive undertaking that is the Epic Universe. Mark, along with Molly Murphy and several other representatives of Universal’s creative department, went on to unveil exciting details about each of the themed areas in Universal’s newest, grandest and most exciting theme park in a seven-minute video that was quickly shared all around the world.
The Concept of Portals
In something of a departure from Universal’s standard theme park blends, each of the themed lands in Epic Universe are set to be entered through a grand facade known as a ‘portal’. These are large, fanciful tunnels bearing the insignia, themed elements and sound effects that help to sell you on the idea that you are leaving the world of bills, business meetings and car problems behind and entering a fantastical realm of vampires, wizardry and 1UP Power-Up boxes. This adventure begins at the very front of the park, where guests will be met with a massive ‘Epic Universe’ park gate featuring the first of five different portals. The exterior of the park gate features gift shops, bathrooms, and guest relations offices in addition to the standard turnstiles; and although it is not yet confirmed, we also suspect that there will be lockers available here for those who arrive with more than they might wish to carry. So gather your imagination and brace yourself for a world of pure fantasy, because once your tickets are scanned, you will make your way into one of the grandest welcoming areas of any theme park in recent history…Celestial Park.
Above: The first “portal” of Epic Universe will take you into the main gate of the park to be met with the Celestial Park hub area.
Celestial Park
Celestial Park will serve as the ‘hub’ between the themed lands built up around IP. This land will consist of several dining venues - including the now-confirmed restaurant ‘Atlantis’ - shops, pristine and beautiful water features and three interactive attractions which are sure to thrill and immerse visitors of all ages. The headliners for this land will be the Constellation Carousel, an interactive 360-degree flat ride built for families, an interactive wet-play area known as Astronomica for those who are willing to risk soaked shoes exploring the universe…and, of course, the much-anticipated roller coaster Starfall Racers, which will be a multi-launch dueling coaster that is expected to reach speeds of over 60mph. Universal Creative promises an incredibly immersive experience whether you visit during the day or the night, but nightfall will really give this area a chance to shine (pun very much intended) as every celestial attraction has been outfitted with a light package that will bring the glory of the night sky within physical reach of the evening visitors.
Above: The scenic areas of 'Celestial Park' in Epic Universe will encompass a number of captivating water features.
Super Nintendo World
Of particular interest to many who have not yet been able to visit Universal’s flagship parks in California or Japan will no doubt be the East Coast’s first-ever Super Nintendo World, an interactive land featuring the Super Mario Bros.’ ongoing battle against Bowser in the Mushroom Kingdom. Although the headlining attraction will be the realm’s augmented reality dark ride Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, this incredibly vibrant world will also feature a first-of-its-kind Donkey Kong family coaster themed to the Mine Cart levels of the Donkey Kong Country games which is expected to, among other things, jump the tracks at a few points along its route! There will also be a Yoshi-themed steeplechase-style attraction which will move at a slower pace for the younger crowd, and of course you can expect to meet Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach at character meet-and-greet spots throughout the land. While we await further details about this particular world, it seems plausible to speculate that we’ll be seeing Orlando’s variation of the 1UP Power Up Challenge using interactive wristbands throughout the realm, and we can likely expect a Toadstool Cafe to sprout up near the main attractions, tool! Might we see Diddy or Donkey Kong pop up as character meets? We don’t yet have a hard confirmation, but we have our theories! Only time will tell…
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic
Interestingly, one of the themed lands that was discussed the least throughout Universal’s official press release this morning was the upcoming third Harry Potter area, which will officially be known as the Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic. Although it seems logical that you won’t be able to reach this particular realm by way of the Hogwarts Express, due to simple logistics…there may well be a chronological reason for the isolation of this themed area, too! It has now been confirmed that scenes, experiences and moments from both the Fantastic Beasts prequel franchise and the original Harry Potter films will make their way to the area for Wizards and Witches of all kinds to enjoy, making this land truly ‘magical’ in its placement outside of the known timeline of Hogwarts. Universal Creative took a ‘lips sealed’ approach to discussing the world’s headlining attraction, but we have good reason to believe that the Ministry of Magic itself might offer a thrilling, multi-pronged dark ride experience not unlike that of neighboring Disney’s Rise of the Resistance attraction. We’ll be keeping our ears to the ground for more information on this magical land as it becomes available!
Above: The portal to the ‘Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic’ at Epic Universe
How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk
In what will no doubt be this author’s favorite land of the four, Dreamworks’ most expansive and one of their most successful animated franchises will be brought to life in ways that nobody could have foreseen five years ago. How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk will feature three yet-unnamed attractions in the form of a Gerstlauer Sky Fly, a multi-launch family roller coaster and a splash battle wet ride that will place riders on a number of slow-moving viking ships to launch water cannons at one another. You’ll also be able to dine with vikings in the Great Hall and take photos with the iconic Viking statues that welcome weary travelers to the Isle of Berk in the films. There are rumors, though yet unconfirmed by Universal Creative, that this land may also feature some kind of immersive How to Train Your Dragon theatre performance not unlike the one recently unveiled at Universal Studios Beijing. Although the land is expected to be the ‘family area’ of the park as a whole, you can be sure that fans of the long-running ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ franchise will number across all age groups. As an adult male in his 30’s, I can tell you that I would personally wait in a three-hour line to meet character actors portraying Hiccup and Astrid…add Toothless into the mix, and I’ll go as far as to commit to a six-hour line!
Dark Universe
Last but not least, fans of Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights events will be thrilled to hear that Universal will be opening the portal to a land of darkness, terror and monster mayhem. Although the promotional video has not yet unveiled the attractions for Universal’s Dark Universe land, eagle-eyed theme park detectives have already uncovered tentative plans for a thrilling, monster-themed dark ride which will match the technology and the overall tone of the insanely-popular Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, a spinning roller coaster themed to the Wolfman and a yet-unnamed building which is suspected to be a theatre. Fans of the iconic Universal Monsters movies will also be able to dine at the tavern where Frankenstein once wreaked havoc, and presumably take photos with the classic Universal Monsters who may freely roam throughout the village inside the castle walls. This land promises to further invigorate a series of stories which are already seeing a renaissance rebirth through the September and October events hosted at Universal properties, and may yet justify the devastating decision to permanently close the Monsters Cafe at the neighboring Universal Studios park last year. As longtime fans of horror and regular attendees of seasonal haunts, you know that we’ll be saving this immersive land for last and looking to get some good spooks and scares in after the sun goes down!
Above: The portal for the 'Dark Universe' themed land featuring the Universal Classic Monsters at Epic Universe.
Helios Grand Hotel
With all of these themed lands to explore, you’ll definitely want somewhere close by to stay! Luckily, Universal Creative will be opening the doors of its all-new, massive and in-park resort property, the ‘Helios Grand Hotel’ in parallel with Epic. While this hotel will not be the most cost-effective of the resort properties nearest Epic - that honor goes to the already-announced Universal Stella Nova and Universal Terra Luna hotels, which will offer a combined 1500 rooms across the street from the main gate - this newest and grandest hotel will most assuredly offer the most convenient and the most immersive of possible resort stays, as it will be the first Universal resort to be seated inside any of their theme parks. Guests of the Helios Grand will no doubt be able to pay a premium for park-view rooms which will allow them to look down on Celestial Park and see the closing ceremonies and water spectaculars expected to play out at the massive fountain just out front of the Helios; an occasion expected to be on par with the Bellagio Fountain shows in Las Vegas. This stay will cost you a pretty penny, but might turn out to be one of the most captivating resort stays in Orlando - we’ll be looking out for information on pricing, rooms and experience packages as they become available between this year and the next!
Above: Universal's Helios Grand Hotel will be the flagship, in-park resort at Epic Universe in Orlando.
But When Will it Open?
Universal has long held that Epic Universe will be opening all lands simultaneously somewhere in the year 2025. Although rumors have flown about freely regarding an official opening date, the only confirmation (hard or soft) that we have received thus far came from the head of NBCUniversal in 2022. “Epic is full steam ahead. I was down there a few weeks ago and the construction is going really well… We expect that park to open ’25, and certainly in time for the summer of ’25. We will get back to you when we get more granular on the date.” From this statement, it sounds like we can expect Epic to open its portals by Memorial Day weekend of 2025 - but a lot of things can change over the course of construction, and this statement is almost two years old. All we can say for sure is that the park’s opening date will be a spectacle unlike anything central Florida has ever seen or known, and that you’ll want to move fast to book your trip once the opening date is officially announced! Until then, we will continue keeping our ears to the ground and dreaming of the day when we will finally be able to fly on a dragon, escape Dracula’s castle and race on rainbow road all in the same afternoon.
