1Universal Orlando Resort is making major waves in the theme park industry, becoming a legitimate competitor for Walt Disney World Resort.
It is a sprawling complex that includes multiple theme parks, a water park, hotels, dining options, and shopping experiences. The Resort is owned and operated by Universal Destinations & Experiences, a division of NBCUniversal. Universal Orlando is home to two theme parks: Universal Studios Florida and Universal’s Islands of Adventure, as well as Universal’s Volcano Bay Water Park.
At Universal Studios Florida, you can go inside many of your favorite movies with attractions like Transformers: The Ride 3-D, Revenge of the Mummy, MEN IN BLACK: Alien Attack, and Diagon Alley in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Next door, Universal’s Islands of Adventure is home to The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man, Jurassic World VelociCoaster, Jurassic Park River Adventure, and Hogsmeade Village in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, where you can ride attractions such as Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, as well as Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure.
In addition to the theme parks, Universal Orlando Resort offers a variety of onsite hotels, ranging from budget-friendly options to luxury accommodations. These hotels provide convenient access to the parks and offer exclusive benefits such as Early Park Admission and complimentary transportation. The Resort also boasts a vibrant dining and entertainment district called Universal CityWalk. This lively area features a wide array of restaurants, bars, nightclubs, shops, and entertainment venues. Visitors can enjoy diverse cuisine, catch a live show, watch a movie, play mini-golf, or shop for souvenirs.
Even with so many attractions and experiences already in place, Universal Orlando Resort isn’t stopping there. As a matter of fact, there are many theme park insiders who say that Universal Studios Orlando is beginning to break into Disney’s market share because it’s targeting those families who before only felt like they could take their young families to Walt Disney World Resort.
ALL-NEW Minion Land now open at Universal Orlando
Of course, Universal Studios Florida has officially opened its new Minion Land. The land, which took over the area where Shrek 4-D and Universal’s Classic Monsters Cafe once stood, is home to several experiences. The land will be anchored by two attractions, Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem (which has been around for several years) and the newly-built Villain-Con Minion Blast, which is expected to open soon and is currently undergoing Team Member testing.
Even though Minion Land is just the beginning, here’s just a few things you can enjoy in the new land.
Villain-Con Minion Blast
Guests can put their villainous skills to the test in Illumination’s Villain-Con Minion Blast – an all-new attraction where Guests compete against each other in a fully interactive gaming experience that’s so much fun, it’s a crime. Afterward, Guests exit through Evil Stuff, an all-new retail location where they can stock up on Villain-Con and Minions merchandise.
Minion Cafe
It’s Minions in the kitchen, mischief in the dining room, and tons of tasty food at the new Illumination’s Minion Cafe – the marquee dining location within Minion Land. This immersive new eatery offers something for every palate in a highly-entertaining dining experience that features three themed areas designed after beloved Minions Kevin, Stuart, Bob and Otto: the Kitchen – where Guests will get a glimpse of the equipment and gear the Minions have used to whip up the cafe’s menu; the Breakroom – where Guests can dine in the Minions’ break space that includes everything from “Office Safety Tips” to a vending machine stocked with mischievous items; and the Dining Room – a vibrant space adorned with colorful artwork courtesy of the Minions and more. Guests can also enjoy their meal on an outdoor patio that overlooks the fun of Minion Land.
Illumination Theater
Guests can meet, greet and interact with beloved characters like the Minions, Gru, Margo, Edith and Agnes, plus new additions from the hit film “Sing” – Rosita, Gunter and Johnny – at an outdoor Illumination Theater facade.
Other experiences in the land include Bake My Day, Pop-A-Nana, and Freeze Ray Pops, which you can read about here.
But, it doesn’t stop there.
Rumored DreamWorks expansion coming to Universal Orlando
Also inside Universal Studios Florida is the area that once was known as Woody Woodpecker KidZone. The KidZone closed permanently earlier this year to make way for “new and exciting” experiences.
While Universal Orlando Resort has not officially announced what is coming to the area, we can glean through permits and patents– as well as signs on the construction walls placed around the area– that it’s going to become a DreamWorks Land.
Aerial photos of the demolition happening in this area show us that the coaster– which once was Woody Woodpecker’s Nuthouse Coaster– still stands. The rumor is that this coaster will be transformed into a Trolls-themed coaster.
As for the rest of the land, there are rumors that we’ll see Shrek’s Swamp constructed next to the wall that will separate E.T. Adventure from the DreamWorks area. The expectation is that an interactive Kung Fu Panda meet and greet will be placed at the back of the new area and that the DreamWorks Destination theater will have some kind of show and meet and greets. For now, however, we’ll have to wait and see what Universal dreams up for the area and exactly how it all comes together.
Poseidon’s Fury replacement
Poseidon’s Fury was a longstanding attraction that was housed next door at Universal’s Islands of Adventure in the Lost Continent. The attraction is massive in size and featured a walk-through tour where Guests went on a journey searching for the last professor with their tour guide, named Taylor.
Poseidon’s Fury officially closed permanently just a couple of months ago, but nothing has been said about its replacement at this time. Though Universal Orlando is in the early stages of replacing the attraction, not much construction has been seen on the outside of the building.
Though there aren’t any confirmations of what might go here, the biggest rumors are that it could either feature an expansion of Jurassic Park or the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. If Universal does not expand one of these lands, the strongest rumor for years has been that a Legend of Zelda attraction could go in its place.
The big question here, of course, is if The Lost Continent is on its way out. Other than the world-famous restaurant Mythos, the land is essentially only used as a buffer between Seuss Landing, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, and Jurassic Park.
All three of the attractions that we’ve mentioned thus far– Minion Land, DreamWorks, and the Poseidon’s Fury replacement– are all examples of Universal Destinations & Experiences working hard to attract families, even families with younger kids, to its theme parks and we can easily see how Universal Orlando is beginning to take market share from those who may have made a Disney trip instead just a few years ago.
Epic Universe at Universal Orlando
Finally, we’ve got the largest and most anticipated construction project happening at Universal Orlando Resort: Epic Universe. It is set to be the fourth theme park at the Universal Orlando Resort in Orlando, Florida, joining Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure, and Volcano Bay.
Epic Universe was announced in August 2019 and is being described as Universal’s “most immersive and innovative theme park” to date. It will feature a variety of themed lands, attractions, and entertainment experiences inspired by popular intellectual properties. The theme park aims to create a fully immersive environment for visitors, utilizing cutting-edge technology and storytelling techniques.
The new theme park is slated to open in the summer of 2025 and when it does, the expectation is that it could put attendance for Universal Orlando on the same exact playing field as Walt Disney World Resort, even with its heavy-hitting Magic Kingdom.
The only land that has officially been announced for Epic Universe is SUPER NINTENDO WORLD. The expectation is that this world will essentially be a carbon copy, perhaps a little large, of the one that just opened in Universal Studios Hollywood.
Outside of SUPER NINTENDO WORLD, the strong rumors for lands in Epic Universe include How to Train Your Dragon, a Central Hub that will be space-themed, an addition to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter that is expected to be themed to Ministry of Magic, and Classic Universal Monsters. Through patents, we can essentially glean that the Wizarding World of Harry Potter will have a dark attraction as its anchor attraction in the land. The Classic Universal Monsters Land will have a dark attraction, as well as a roller coaster. The Central Hub will feature racing coasters, as well as other small attractions, and How to Train Your Dragon Land will feature a roller coaster, as well as other themed rides for kids.
Just like the other three expansions, we’ll have to wait and see what comes to fruition at Epic Universe. In addition to attractions, the new theme park is currently having three hotels built around it– one that will be located directly at the back of the Park– and once these hotels are completed, Universal Orlando will be up to 11 total hotels, reportedly with plans for more in the future.
What do you think about the expansions happening at Universal Orlando Resort? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments!