I Visited Universal’s New Theme Park: Highlights, Disappointments

After walking under the Chronos, the park’s main entry structure, you’re inside Celestial Park. This themed world is packed with star imagery, plus tons of greenery and flowers.

I loved how wide the sidewalks are and how open this area feels. The floral landscaping and water features really do make it feel like a park or garden.

All of this gave me a great first impression of Epic Universe as a whole.

I love meeting characters from my favorite movies and franchises, and all around the park, there are opportunities to meet icons like Princess Peach and the Invisible Man.

The one character you must see is Toothless, a dragon from the How to Train Your Dragon franchise. The interactive animatronic is impressively cute and lifelike.

There are several Wizarding Worlds of Harry Potter throughout the world in places like California and Japan. Even so, the newest Orlando addition focused on the Ministry of Magic is exceptional.

There are so many small details and interactive areas inside the world that you could really spend all day enjoying it.

Even the queue for the ride Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry was breathtaking. Between the giant wizard banners, intricate statues, and lighting design, I felt like I was inside the movies.

I also appreciated that this land had many spots where guests can use special wands to interact with “magical” objects and buildings.

I typically don’t like spooky, scary, or intense things, so I was surprised I really enjoyed Dark Universe.

It’s themed after famous monsters and creatures, from Dracula to Wolf Man. It has two rides, and I found myself especially impressed by how much walk-around entertainment was packed into this land.

As I walked through, I passed tons of storytellers and characters ready to interact with guests and take photos. I especially loved meeting Gregor, a funny monster hunter who hangs around at the land’s Burning Blade Tavern.

I stayed at the newest Universal Orlando hotel, Universal Helios Grand Hotel, during my visit. It opened earlier this year and has its own entrance into Epic Universe.

Staying here meant it was incredibly easy for me to walk to the park. I was able to get from my room to Epic Universe in under five minutes.

For me, it’s always a win when theme parks have hotels just steps away.

I’ve been to many theme parks over the years, but I still found myself impressed by the creative and delicious culinary options at Epic Universe.

My favorite sweet treat ended up being the DK Crush Float from Super Nintendo World. It’s pineapple-and-banana-swirl soft serve in a waffle bowl topped with caramel popcorn and chocolate pieces that’s loaded into a cup filled with pineapple soda.

It’s a total sugar rush worth trying.

As I walked around Epic Universe, I noticed it didn’t have many shaded spots.

This felt especially unbearable when the day was at its hottest in the afternoon. Light-colored paths throughout the park seemed to reflect the Orlando sun.

Although there are some air-conditioned restaurants and attractions in Epic Universe, I could see this sun exposure being especially tough for young guests or those who struggle with the heat to navigate.

Most quick-service restaurants at Epic Universe rely on mobile ordering instead of having guests wait in line. Although this seems like it could be time-saving and efficient, I struggled to use this system during my visit.

My phone wasn’t able to get a strong enough signal for my order to go through or for me to input my table number in many spots throughout the park.

This could also make ordering food a bit tricky for those who aren’t as tech-savvy.