Taking deep, yoga-like breaths and gripping the restraint, I looked over at my 16-year-old nephew, Charlie, and asked if he was ready. He glanced at me and gave a nervous yet excited smile before turning his attention straight ahead. Steeling ourselves, we were off like a shot, soaring 133 feet into the sky and reaching speeds of more than 60 miles per hour on Stardust Racers, the new dual-launch coaster at Universal Epic Universe, the first major theme park to open in the U.S. in 25 years.
Universal Epic Universe, which officially opened to the public on May 22, is the fourth theme park at Universal Orlando Resort in Florida; the other three are Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure, and Volcano Bay. The much-anticipated 110-acre park features five themed worlds:
- How To Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk
- Super Nintendo World
- The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic
- Dark Universe
- Celestial Park
There is some thematic overlap with franchises like Harry Potter, as the new park builds upon the super-popular The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade at the Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure theme parks, respectively, as well as some new-to-Florida Universal characters such as Nintendo’s Donkey Kong and How to Train Your Dragon’s Toothless.
When I heard Epic Universe was opening for public preview to Universal Orlando Resort hotel guests last month, I surprised my nephew, who was visiting me in my native Florida (I live in Tampa, about 75 miles from Orlando) with my sister Karen over his spring break, by making reservations at Universal Stella Nova Resort. After we checked in, we snagged our Epic Universe tickets for the following day and charted our course.
With Epic Universe now officially open to the public, here’s a look at what we loved about the new theme park, plus a few things we’ll keep in mind for our next visit.
What’s great about Universal’s Epic Universe
Of the five themed worlds, Dark Universe was one of the author’s favorites for its celebration of Universal’s iconic monsters and villains.
Photo by Kilby Photo LLC/Courtesy of Universal
Something for everyone
Whether you and your family are big into roller coasters or would rather take it easy riding a carousel in a parklike setting, Epic Universe truly has something for everyone. Guests can learn how to train dragons, race like Mario, practice their wizarding skills à la Harry Potter, or mingle with classic monsters like Frankenstein and Dracula.
Upon entering the park, guests will first encounter Celestial Park, an expansive, lush, landscaped park area that runs the entire length of Epic Universe. From there, the property flows into the four other intricately themed and incredibly immersive worlds. Within each world are plenty of attractions, character interactions, and dining and shopping opportunities. I’m a fan of the dark side, so I really loved seeing Igor wandering about Dark Universe, being frightened on the thrill ride Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment (also in Dark Universe), and watching the incredibly charming Toothless in How to Train Your Dragon.
Early access for hotel guests
Guests at all of Universal Orlando’s hotels enjoy early entry into select portions of its parks, including Epic Universe. The day of our visit, Celestial Park and Super Nintendo World opened at 10 a.m. (versus 11 a.m.) for hotel guests, so we made a beeline for Mine-Cart Madness, a four-seater ride that brings the Donkey Kong video game—my favorite as a 13-year-old girl—to life, track-jumping included. The coaster, with little waiting, was a terrific way to start our fun-filled day.
You can use the Universal Orlando app to check wait times for popular rides, such as Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge.
Photo by Kilby Photo LLC/Courtesy of Universal
Real-time updates
As the day progressed and more guests entered the park, we found it easy to assess ride wait times using the Universal Orlando Resort App. When we saw that a queue was longer than we wanted to wait, we shifted gears and headed to another ride within the world, or even to another world altogether, returning to that initial ride when we saw the wait time had lessened.
Enticing food options
In addition to monitoring ride wait times, we also used the app to order our lunch and dinner and have it delivered directly to our tables at Das Stakehouse, a restaurant run by vampire servants in Dark Universe, and Mead Hall in How To Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk, where I’ve found my new favorite salmon salad. For a more relaxing dining option, you can take in the sights and sounds of 1920s Paris from a French sidewalk café at Café L’air De La Sirène in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Ministry of Magic, where the menu includes French onion soup, quiche Lorraine, and a Butterbeer crepe.
Sit back and relax with a Butterbeer crepe at Café L’air De La Sirène in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic at Epic Universe.
Courtesy of Universal
Room to relax
Intentionally designed to “bring the park back to theme park,” according to an official press release, Celestial Park offers plenty of quiet spaces for visitors to sit back and take a break during an action-packed day. Take a seat near the park’s fountain and stream; test your horticulture skills by identifying the myriad olive and flowering trees, plants, and florals; or take some time for shopping “around the universe” or dining at Pizza Moon, Star Sui Bao (for Asian bao), CelesTiki for tiki drinks, or the Blue Dragon Pan-Asian Restaurant. When you’re recharged, the thrills of Stardust Racers and the tranquility of the Constellation Carousel await.
Some of the drawbacks of visiting Universal’s Epic Universe
Celestial Park is a gorgeous place to rest and take a break from the nonstop action. It’ll be even more beautiful once the foliage grows in a bit more.
Courtesy of Universal
Lack of shade
As lush as the landscaping is throughout Epic Universe, the theme park is still brand-new, and it will take years for the trees to reach their full shade-bearing maturity. Shade is at a premium, but there are ways to escape the warmth of the Florida sun.
By and large, thoughtfully designed ride queues keep waiting riders out of the sun and in air-conditioning, which will be a very welcome reprieve as the Florida summer heats up. While Karen, Charlie, and I were waiting in a covered outdoor area for Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment, I was pleased to discover a water-bottle filling station in the middle of the queue.
Too much to see and do
Epic Universe spans 110 acres and five worlds, which is a lot of ground to cover in a day, making it almost impossible to see and experience everything. During our visit we raced from one ride to the next, but I wish we had taken the time to see the two stage shows, The Untrainable Dragon in the Isle of Berk and Le Cirque Arcanus in the Wizarding World, as I heard they were fantastic, and meet more of the characters, though we did squeeze in a visit with Frankenstein’s Monster and his bride.
The writer was disappointed to have missed the Le Cirque Arcanus stage show at Wizarding World, as she didn’t have enough time to see and do it all.
Photo by Kilby Photo LLC/Courtesy of Universal
The verdict
At the end of our 11-hour and 25,000-step day at Epic Universe, we left having experienced every single ride (a few twice and even three times). Our favorites? Charlie loved the thrills and spills on Stardust Racers in Celestial Park, and he and my sister Karen had fun being terrified on Monsters Unchained in Dark Universe. As for me, it’s a tie between Mine-Cart Madness for its nostalgia and Curse of the Werewolf for the spins.
When Charlie rode Stardust Racers once more before we left Epic Universe, he joined the single-rider line. I told him I’d ride with him again . . . on our next visit.
Now that Epic Universe is fully open to the public and given all the hype, it’s sure to be a lot more crowded than what we experienced last month. And it will be rather hot in the coming weeks and months. Nevertheless, if you love roller coasters and want to bring your childhood to life, it is absolutely worth a trip to Orlando to check out this exciting new addition to the theme park landscape.
