Universal Orlando Resort (USF, IOA, Epic) Discussion Thread

[SharkTums]

^Yup, but then a couple hours later after that initial rush the choke points seemed fine. This is why so many places are doing reservations and staggered opening times to avoid these rushes.

[pianojohn]

Some more retro-ish pics

 

These are from May 2004, right before Mummy opened.

 

Enjoy!

Twister was still there but RR Rockit was years away

Getting ready for their media event

[RollerManic]

This flyover by a local news chopper gives a really good view at the construction progress of the Jurassic Park coaster.

 

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It’s insane just how accurate this video is turning out to be; all the way down to the supports and buildings so far. I guess it’s to be expected after the concept videos for Hagrid’s where also right on the dime and I know from a friend who interned there a few summers back that both projects were leaked by the same thing.

 

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[TrippinBillie]

Not a family Intamin like Hagrid’s this time either. Oh no. It’s a blitz coaster along the lines of iSpeed.

 

If you scrounge other sites, there are leaked plans for it. Double launch, top-hat, show scene, spaghetti bowl of insaneness and worlds longest multi launch. It will sweep across the front of the Discovery Center on the water, as well. It's more along the lines, speed and length of Taron + a couple inversions and show scenes. I'm BEYOND stoked for this one.

[Krandor]

Universal is going to be presenting their plans for reopening to the orange county board at 2pm which is supposed to include a reopening date so we should know something about universals plans very soon

[Krandor]

Universal is going to be presenting their plans for reopening to the orange county board at 2pm which is supposed to include a reopening date so we should know something about universals plans very soon

[Krandor]

Universal open June 1-2 for CMs and family, 3-4 for invited guests and open to public on June 5gh

[A.J.]

The dates that were mentioned today are NOT FINAL as of yet and are still pending approval from the Orange County Mayor and the Governor.

 

I get that people wanted to "break the news" but there is no news yet! When these dates are made official, Robb, Elissa, or one of the moderators will post about it.

[SharkTums]

^&^^ Yup, we're all hopeful, and these are the dates that they're shooting for but there are still two more hoops to jump through first. I hope they get the approval and open on that track, that would be great!

[southpuddle]

I get that people wanted to "break the news" but there is no news yet! When these dates are made official, Robb, Elissa, or one of the moderators will post about it.

 

Not only this, but people want to break the news - grammar, spelling, punctuation and basic sentence composition be damned!

[Satans Hockey]

I'm really curious to see what they end up doing for Halloween Horror Nights. I had such a great time last year and was really looking forward to seeing what they are going to do with the 30th anniversary. I would still like to try to go but I'm definitely going to wait and see how things play out over the summer.

[SharkTums]

^That is a HUGE question that many of us are wondering about.

[jarmor]

I would be devastated if it's canceled. Those houses are the anti-social distancing to the grand scheme of it all. Even if they pulse, they will still eventually form a conga line. ALso, how would they sanitize sets that are meant to look old and decrepit?

[viola_ted]

I originally was going to postpone my trip to October so I could go to HHN, but I decided to move it to July 27th instead. Who knows what's going to happen with HHN... all we can do is wait and see. I'm excited to go during this historic time! I do wonder if they'll keep all the social distancing protocols in place after a vaccine has been widely distributed; again, only time will tell.

[SharkTums]

It's official!

[SharkTums]

Universal Studios - 9-6pm Daily

Islands of Adventure - 9-6pm Daily

Volcano Bay - 10-5pm Daily

CityWalk - 8am - 10pm Daily

 

No reservation system for park entry, all normal tickets and passes accepted. (Check your blockout dates as they all still apply)

 

No dates set for Hotels yet.

 

Masks Required.

 

Social Distancing, temperature check in the morning, all the 'new normal' stuff we're used to.

Edited May 22, 2020 by SharkTums

[A.J.]

There's a new thing too:

 

Use hand sanitizer when required

At select locations including prior to boarding ride vehicles, guests will be required to use hand sanitizer.

As far as I know this is the first time this procedure has been put in place.

[SharkTums]

^I did see that in the FAQ. Note, you don't need to provide your own as they will provide the hand sanitizer. Interesting.

[Canobie Coaster]

It will be interesting if they use the hand sanitizer before boarding to prevent wipe-downs after each cycle or if they will do both as preventative measures.

[miffiffippi]

Glad to see these actions all in place. Here's hoping for a successful reopening! We postponed our March trip to Orlando to early October so we're happy to see they are taking these great precautions to keep guests safe and providing things like hand sanitizer where needed.

 

We are preparing for a lower capacity at the parks which might mean less rides overall, but that's perfectly fine with me if it means they are able to keep guests as safe as possible. As things were getting worse here (I live in Queens, NYC so things got pretty bad) I basically mentally prepared for 2020 to not have any major trips and so anything that does end up happening is a bonus as far as I'm concerned!

[SharkTums]

^That's a great attitude. We have the same. 2020 is a wash, anything we get to do is a bonus.

[Haymaker]

Lots of track laid for the Jurassic Park coaster.

[Nrthwnd]

^ It all looks very......uh......"swervy".

[thrillseeker4552]

I won't post pictures because I am unsure of the source, but it looks like there is a low-to-the-ground heartline roll ala Maverick. Plus some other wacky elements. Why aren't more people talking about this ride?!

 

God I love Intamin so much. I am so happy to see Universal add some big awesome coasters again and not just simulators and screens.

[KarlaKoaster]

Yes, I'm loving the look of this one. It will be interesting to see what shape the top hat takes as we're starting to see a lot of interesting transitions in and out of them lately. The inline twist and the little speed hill before look really fun, and the sightline across the lagoon with the Discovery Center behind should be a great photo opportunity. It should be a pretty fast coaster too because there's nothing of much height after what appears to be a very tall tophat.

 

I was getting fatigued with the number of screens at Universal too (I think rides like Forbidden Journey and Transformers get the balance just right, but Fast and Furious etc were extremely lazy additions), but I feel Universal wanted a lot of quick wins while Universal Creative focused on Epic Universe and the more-recent additions. Most of the new additions at Epic Universe look like they're going in the right direction too.