Universal Orlando Resort (USO, IOA) Discussion Thread

We pretty much know nothing about it yet. No real details were released.

Let's not judge a park harshly when it won't even open for a few years. We only have one concept art so far.

However, the name.

An elevated light rail system on property connecting the parks and hotels west of Universal then running down the middle of Universal Blvd, turn East at Endless Summer on International Drive then south on Kirkman to Epic could solve the transportation issues and connect all properties.

Assuming the state/county authorities would be willing to grant right of way to Universal for a green transportation idea.

Exciting news!! Can’t wait to see how this develops!

I'm holding out hope this wasn't the real announcement and Universal goes "Oh, haha sorry we accidentally released the draft from our Creative meeting six months ago. Our bad!"

While I doubt this is a full, 1-to-1 of what is coming I really doubt park chains are in the business of releasing fake renderings. But this seems to come up everything a plan is leaked or not much is announced so . . .

I'm holding out hope this wasn't the real announcement and Universal goes "Oh, haha sorry we accidentally released the draft from our Creative meeting six months ago. Our bad!"

While I doubt this is a full, 1-to-1 of what is coming I really doubt park chains are in the business of releasing fake renderings. But this seems to come up everything a plan is leaked or not much is announced so . . .

I am of the opinion that this seems like a very “high concept” rendering of the park and I personally would expect quite a bit of it to change by the time any details are released.

Yeah, I definitely doubt this is "spot on" but it is a very pretty picture to look at. That could be the very reason why they didn't announce any concrete info as they are probably pas the preliminary stage but still nothing is 100% final.

Now, I wonder who they are going with for the coasters! It doesn't seem to be big large coasters heavy like IOA and I only spot like 4 in the rendering.

Cool, we'll see what ends up going there but I'm glad to see the announcement. With all the buildup of hotels recently they're expecting a huge rise in attendance, and a fourth park could definitely do that. Good move on putting more Potter stuff there, we all know that's what's moving tickets right now.

I am of the opinion that this seems like a very “high concept” rendering of the park and I personally would expect quite a bit of it to change by the time any details are released.

I'm not sure I've ever experienced a theme park / themed attraction reveal where that hadn't been the case.

Also, if Universal now has four theme parks, does that mean that Walt Disney World has six?

Thanks to those earlier who answered my questions about tickets for HHN. We’re planning on staying at Turkey Lake Campground and cycling to Universal.

I was wondering if anyone has ever biked into Universal Orlando before? The only information I found was on another forum and said, “first floor of the parking garage near security.” But I can’t imagine riding my bike through the automobile entrance.

The only pedestrian access I can see on google is for the “guest drop off zone” on Universal Blvd, which leads up the escalator to the security checkpoint. Are there any bike racks in that area? Or perhaps at the Lowes hotel?

Thanks in advance.

Anyone else find it funny that USO had world-class dueling coasters,then removed the dueling element from them before getting rid of the rides completely and now are putting a new dueling coaster in their new park?

 

I chuckled at the irony of this too, but I know there were other factors at play with the Dragons removal.

 

Is it irony, or is it Universal recognizing how much people loved having dueling coasters and deciding to bring back the experience in a new ride that's less dangerous and more importantly, less in the way of Harry Potter?

I agree. People loved the ride & it will be great to bring something similar back.

There are reasons for DD going away & clearly this isn't the same type of dueling coaster in design. Meaning, two trains aren't coming directly at each other so loose items wont come directly towards your face. Dueling coasters these days seem more like coasters chasing or wrapping around each-other, which I'm sure this one will be more of. Like Twisted Colossus or the still in development West Coast Racers at MM. Dueling Dragons was much more head-on with the dueling.

I'm beyond excited for the new park. The hub area has a sci-fi theme going on & I have no idea what it is but I like it!

The most intriguing thing for me in the announcement is the size of the plot they're working with. Lots of space to work with and grow!

Extremely excited for this. If we're looking 4 to 5 years out, I'm sure lots will change, so I'm guessing that's why they stayed vague. I also love that they made the announcement right before Disney opens their new land. Lol! (You've got a new land? Ha, we've got a new park/resort coming!) Got to love their continuous competition in CF.

The rumor is that the lands will be Nintendo, Classic Monsters, Fantastic Beasts and How to Train Your Dragon (who knows why), with at least two more expansion pads. I think the idea of having a huge hub which each land being its own contained area that dead ends (you don't connect between the lands) is somewhat interesting and *maybe* makes things more immersive. I also read somewhere that the coaster will not be "dueling."

...and How to Train Your Dragon (who knows why)...

Universal owns DreamWorks now, and How To Train Your Dragon is still a pretty popular intellectual property, with three successful films and two television series (one current, one future).

If there's a How to Train Your Dragon area then Brit will literally buy the entire gift shop.

The whole How to Train Your Dragon area worked quite well at Motiongate. There's enough with that IP to work.

A bit surprised there is no (obvious) Jurassic Worlds section. I wonder if that is evidence that IOA's Jurassic Park section will indeed be transformed into Jurassic World not unlike what they did in Hollywood (there was once talk that IOA would retain Jurassic Park and the new park would have Jurassic World).

Nonetheless, I eagerly await the painfully slow release of new information on this project over the next few years! They should have plenty of remaining material for exciting media releases as this project progresses!

I think the fact that they are building an major coaster in the current jurassic park section of IOA is evident enough that some changes are coming to that area. The good thing is they have more space to do it justice at IOA than they had to work with at USH.

The rumor is that the lands will be Nintendo, Classic Monsters, Fantastic Beasts and How to Train Your Dragon (who knows why), with at least two more expansion pads. I think the idea of having a huge hub which each land being its own contained area that dead ends (you don't connect between the lands) is somewhat interesting and *maybe* makes things more immersive. I also read somewhere that the coaster will not be "dueling."

This is what I find the most interesting idea. With the massive hub concept, each section has it's own land with own admission gate. It opens up the possibility to a tiered ticketing system. For example, the odds of me wanting to visit a traditional kids section like a Sesame Street / Super Silly Fun land are zero. So my ticket/pass would cover basic admission, plus access to Monsters, Beasts and Nintendo. Or for example, a guest shows up and the one ride in a land is say broken or in refurbishment - why pay to access a land with nothing worthwhile in it? Gives the guests flexibility in price of a theme park trip. It would be kind of like a variation on the A - E-ticket system of past days, but instead of per ride, it is per land.

This is what I find the most interesting idea. With the massive hub concept, each section has it's own land with own admission gate. It opens up the possibility to a tiered ticketing system. For example, the odds of me wanting to visit a traditional kids section like a Sesame Street / Super Silly Fun land are zero. So my ticket/pass would cover basic admission, plus access to Monsters, Beasts and Nintendo. Or for example, a guest shows up and the one ride in a land is say broken or in refurbishment - why pay to access a land with nothing worthwhile in it? Gives the guests flexibility in price of a theme park trip. It would be kind of like a variation on the A - E-ticket system of past days, but instead of per ride, it is per land.

The rumor is that the lands will be Nintendo, Classic Monsters, Fantastic Beasts and How to Train Your Dragon (who knows why), with at least two more expansion pads. I think the idea of having a huge hub which each land being its own contained area that dead ends (you don't connect between the lands) is somewhat interesting and *maybe* makes things more immersive. I also read somewhere that the coaster will not be "dueling."

Is Fantastic Beasts really that popular? I feel like most people I know who are Potter fans are quite “meh” on those films. I don’t see that franchise being “theme park land worthy” in any way.

The rumor is that the lands will be Nintendo, Classic Monsters, Fantastic Beasts and How to Train Your Dragon (who knows why), with at least two more expansion pads. I think the idea of having a huge hub which each land being its own contained area that dead ends (you don't connect between the lands) is somewhat interesting and *maybe* makes things more immersive. I also read somewhere that the coaster will not be "dueling."

 

This is what I find the most interesting idea. With the massive hub concept, each section has it's own land with own admission gate. It opens up the possibility to a tiered ticketing system. For example, the odds of me wanting to visit a traditional kids section like a Sesame Street / Super Silly Fun land are zero. So my ticket/pass would cover basic admission, plus access to Monsters, Beasts and Nintendo. Or for example, a guest shows up and the one ride in a land is say broken or in refurbishment - why pay to access a land with nothing worthwhile in it? Gives the guests flexibility in price of a theme park trip. It would be kind of like a variation on the A - E-ticket system of past days, but instead of per ride, it is per land.

God no please don't even say that out loud in case the devil is listening and makes it happen

The rumor is that the lands will be Nintendo, Classic Monsters, Fantastic Beasts and How to Train Your Dragon (who knows why), with at least two more expansion pads. I think the idea of having a huge hub which each land being its own contained area that dead ends (you don't connect between the lands) is somewhat interesting and *maybe* makes things more immersive. I also read somewhere that the coaster will not be "dueling."

Is Fantastic Beasts really that popular? I feel like most people I know who are Potter fans are quite “meh” on those films. I don’t see that franchise being “theme park land worthy” in any way.

I am a pretty big fan of the IP and the first film was OK at best, and I didn't even bother with the 2nd. Meh is the perfect word for it. But they're pulling in a lot of money so somebody's watching them, the 2nd film came in 400 million over budget. I totally agree that there isn't land worthiness to them, there's nothing iconic at all to reference. The concept art looks like old time New York for the outdoor areas, which I guess has some potential but it's not all that original, right? Like Diagon Alley - instant recognition and they translated it pretty much perfectly. Nothing in FB has that punch.

I can't be the only person that thought of that second-rate animated film when they announced that the name was "Epic..."

Anyhow, not much to go off of. Based on the (early) concept art, it looks a little lean as far as the park itself goes. However, as long as they stuff it with popular IPs, I'm sure it will be a success.

 

And to expand on this idea a bit: It's a ride that parents and kids can do together, no matter the kids ages. We are coaster enthusiasts but also Potter fans. I rode Dragons several times and liked it (although I could never "marathon" it because that would make me sick) but when you look at any group of regular suburban moms and dads in their 50's, most of them are not "coaster enthusiasts" and aren't as willing to ride something THEY consider big and intimidating like Dragons. All the Potter rides are now rides that almost anyone can do, so parents and kids can go together instead of mom and dad sitting on a bench waiting for the kids. And several of those parents are fans as well so there is something they can share with their kids. That makes the whole area attractive to the majority of families. After all you have way more vacationing families at UO than your local regional theme park or even a lot of Six Flags parks where kids are just getting dropped off for the day or Mom goes and hangs out at the water park while kids ride because it's just a day trip. They are making a sound business decision based on their demographics.

 

Agreed that the Jurassic coaster will potentially be much more intense.

I don't know, there are still tons and tons of adults without kids in line for Hagrid's. Sure, there are kids, but there are noticeably more people in line over the age of 18 than under the age of 18. And there's nothing stopping kids from riding big roller coasters, I see it happen all the time. You could even argue at this point that HP has been around for long enough, that the kids who grew up reading the books when they were new and are full-on addicts would be over the age of 18 at this point. And a "family friendly approach" doesn't explain how Universal continues to double down on HHN, which is actually a much bigger money maker for them than Harry Potter, and is pretty much R rated.

I mean, it wasn't an accident that they got rid of Dueling Dragons. I think its like people are saying, they wanted Harry Potter World to fit the theme. Having two random B&M inverts in a Medieval castle with name only Harry Potter theming is like when Six Flags slaps "Wonder Women" on the name of a random ride, gives it a color scheme, does nothing else and calls that "theming."

It sucks that DD got caught in the crosshairs of Harry Potter mania, but it is what it is. At least we have the credits for DD.