Anticipation is quite high for Universal’s Epic Universe.
The new theme park — Universal’s first full U.S. theme park since Islands of Adventure opened in 1999 — is scheduled to open in 2025, and speculation is running rampant about what the company has called their “most immersive and innovative theme park” will contain.
With official details scarce, fans have been poring over the concept art Universal has released to verify rumors and piece together exactly what Epic Universe is going to be.
*SPRING 2024 UPDATE*
With the opening of Epic Universe approximately a year away – Universal hasn’t confirmed a date yet, but they have confirmed 2025 – a slew of new concept art has been released for the park, as well as an official park map that serves as confirmation of many of the rumors discussed below.
Entrance and Celestial Park
After entering through a massive edifice, guests will find themselves in Celestial Park, a massive area featuring lush greenery that will serve as the park’s central hub.
Celestial Park will also be home to two of Epic Universe’s premiere attractions: the massive dueling launch coaster Starfall Racers, as well as the Constellation Carousel.
In addition to the attractions, Universal also released concept art for several other portions of Celestial Park, including the Atlantic restaurant, the Blue Dragon Restaurant, and the interior and exterior of a Super Nintendo Store.
While Universal mainly released concept art for the celestial park area, they did reveal looks at the “portals” guests will pass through to access each of Epic Universe’s lands, as well as confirming their themes and general details of their attractions.
The first officially confirmed land for Epic Universe was a Florida installation of the Super Nintendo World themed area currently open at both Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Studio Japan. As seen above, the concept art indicates that the land will be a near-direct copy of the Universal Studios Japan version of the land, including the Mario Kart attraction and the upcoming Donkey Kong-themed roller coaster, most likely seen below.
The park will have a third Wizarding World of Harry Potter land, mostly based on the Parisian setting of the Fantastic Beasts franchise.
The area is themed to the magical version of Paris as seen in the film series, with shops, restaurants, and a circus show attraction fitting that theme. However, the land’s headline attraction is going to be a massive E-Ticket adventure through the British Ministry of magic as seen in the original Potter films. Guests will “transport” from Paris to London using the magical Flow Network.
Moving on from Potter, the park will also feature a land based on the successful animated film franchise How to Train Your Dragon. The heavily themed area will feature several flat rides, and be headlined by a massive roller coaster that looks to be themed to riding a dragon, as the film’s characters do.
Perhaps the most heavily anticipated land at the park is the one themed around Universal’s Monster properties, including Frankenstein, Dracula, and the Wolf Man.
The land is said to be themed to a European village as seen in many of the studio’s classic horror films. The two major attractions are said to include a massive E-Ticket attractions featuring most of the characters and set in Dr. Frankenstein’s laboratory, and a smaller coaster that mimics the transformation of the Wolf Man.
At the backend of the park, the massive 500-room Helios hotel will rise over Celestial Park, providing Universal’s first U.S. in-park hotel experience.
Does this concept art of Epic Universe whet your appetite for the upcoming park further? Let us know in the comments below.
I know Universal does a great job on coasters but as someone who can’t ride coasters but still enjoys their other parks I hope they have some rides I can enjoy