RicketyCricket
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- Taron
Just back from our first time back in Florida since 2018, so plenty to catch up on.
Had been putting off due to the cost but then we realised we don't actually *have* to do Disney, especially with Epic Universe now open. We had continued to visit other parts of the USA during this swampland hiatus but it was time to return to the theme park capital.
We got a great deal on a package holiday for 10 days, staying at the Avanti Resort. Had stayed here previously and thought it was great but it felt a bit dated this time around. Still though it's a great location and fine for a place to sleep.
I won't do a full day by day breakdown but summarise the parks and rides. Let's start with the big one.
Epic Universe: Yeah this place is special. Felt quite homely walking around Celestial Park, as if Epic Universe has existed for decades despite everything being all new and sparkly.
Our first visit was on the Sunday which was a tactical decision due to the grim looking weather forecast. It was a good decision as the park was very quiet. We received a complimentary second day from Universal which we redeemed on the Friday. It was a much warmer day and significantly busier but the park looks perfect in the sunshine.
Stardust Racers is a phenomenal coaster. Got a good few rides in early on our first day, with a plan to marathon it in the evening. Rain was forecasted from 2-10pm, but we didn't account for a thunderstorm which kept Stardust Racers closed for the majority of the afternoon/evening. Fair play to them, they got it open at 8.45pm. You may have heard of the Zadra magic gate, but did you know there is a Stardust Racers magic gate? Spent an hour lapping it in the pouring rain without the long walk and locker/metal detector faff. Even had a front row ride where I was the only person across both trains. Turns out Orlando gets very chilly in the evenings in December but there were a few other like-minded idiots doing the same thing as me.
It was hard to judge the coaster during the Sunday night waterboarding session but the weather was great on our second day and I got several more night rides. One thing is for certain, it's the best night ride in the world and I'm not convinced it will ever be beaten. As well as the obvious relentless airtime and pacing of the ride, you've got the dueling, the music, the lighting, the launches all combining to deliver a truly euphoric experience. I don't know how people can have preferred side as they are both too similar and both elite. I have no idea where to rank it overall but it is definitely a top 10 coaster and possibly top 5. Compared to the other Mack's, I think I'd give it a slight edge over Voltron and it is absolutely miles clear of Hyperia and RTH.
Isle Of Berk - This was probably the best area in the park. It's the largest in scale and there is so much attention to detail. The Untrainable Dragon show was a huge highlight of our day, did not expect to see Toothless flying overhead. And when the rain cleared the park out we only had a 5 minute wait to meet Toothless. Toothless is the true icon of Epic Universe, so many people were repping him with merch all over the park. The pulled pork Mac and cheese cones were great btw.
Hiccups Wing Gliders is a perfect fit for the park, a lengthy coaster with some great theming and another fantastic Toothless interaction on the first launch.
Dark Universe - Our favourite part of Epic Universe and the place we spent most of our time. We spent about 4 hours here in the dark, mostly riding Monsters Unchained and drinking pints in the outdoor seating area of Das Steakhouse, overlooking Darkmoore in heavy rain with thunderstorms lightning up the area. Perfection.
Had been avoiding all Epic spoilers but was aware of the hype around Monsters Unchained. It's possibly my favourite dark ride ever but it's not perfect. The organ playing scene with the fire is a ballsy way to start the ride but it continues to impress throughout with some huge animatronics and perfect screen blending. It seems there are a couple of dead spots with dark spots or black curtains - did they run out of budget or have these sevens been removed? Also I love the ride system but hoped it would be a touch more aggressive with the movement. Forbidden Journey utilises this potential more IMO. Overall though from some retrospective reading it appears we got lucky with pretty much all major effects working. It's the best ride in the park along with Stardust.
Curse of the Warewolf on the other hand was a bit of a letdown. I get it's a family coaster but it really doesn't do much at all. Glad we only had to wait 10 mins as it seems to get regularly long lines.
Super Nintendo World - Actually a very pleasant surprise. Possibly the most impressive reveal as you enter the land. Banging music, plenty of colour and loads of moving animatronics in all directions. Donkey Kong Country takes it up a notch and offers some relief from the claustrophobic feel of the area.
Minecart Madness was difficult to get on but worth the wait. We tried to squeeze a ride in before the rain came but were unsuccessful after over an hour in the cattlepen room of doom. Managed to get one ride in on our second day after a 60 minute wait and we really enjoyed it. Made sure to focus on the track in front and it's a very trippy effect with some big drops that take you by surprise. Sure it's janky but it's part of the theme I guess. Shame it's so hard to ride as I'd imagine it gets better with repeat rides.
Mario Kart Bowsers Challenge was OK. The best part is the themeing throughout the queue and the ride. The AR tech is a mess though. Would like to do it again with the glasses off.
Harry Potter - The scale of this area is seriously impressive but it doesn't feel as immersive as the other Potter areas. Just an exceptionally well themed Parisian vibe. We gave the show a miss but sounds like we should have done it in hindsight to maybe appreciate the area a bit more. Great food and drink options again though.
Battle at the Ministry was a bit of a blur tbh. We only waited around 10 minutes so didn't get to fully appreciate the queue. As for the ride my expectations were sky high and it didn't quite live up to the hype for me. I don't know if we didn't get a great run through maybe but it felt a bit messy. There was some fun lateral movements but I was hoping for some more forceful drops. Was hoping to ride it a lot more but unfortunately it suffered a lengthy closure late on our first day, and the queue was too long on our second day.
We had two fantastic days at Epic Universe, but at the moment it's probably a one day park as there aren't enough rides. During the lengthy weather delay, only two rides were open - Monsters Unchained and Mario Kart. It wasn't a huge problem for us as we enjoyed some drinks and food during this time, but not ideal really for a Florida park. The biggest compliment I can give is that it feels like a day at Epcot but with some world class rides dotted around the place. In ten years time with some expansions it could comfortably be the best theme park in the world. The park really comes alive at night, so much so that I think they should be open til midnight every day to really show it off for as long as possible.
Next up, IOA including first impressions of Velocicoaster and Hagrids.
Had been putting off due to the cost but then we realised we don't actually *have* to do Disney, especially with Epic Universe now open. We had continued to visit other parts of the USA during this swampland hiatus but it was time to return to the theme park capital.
We got a great deal on a package holiday for 10 days, staying at the Avanti Resort. Had stayed here previously and thought it was great but it felt a bit dated this time around. Still though it's a great location and fine for a place to sleep.
I won't do a full day by day breakdown but summarise the parks and rides. Let's start with the big one.
Epic Universe: Yeah this place is special. Felt quite homely walking around Celestial Park, as if Epic Universe has existed for decades despite everything being all new and sparkly.
Our first visit was on the Sunday which was a tactical decision due to the grim looking weather forecast. It was a good decision as the park was very quiet. We received a complimentary second day from Universal which we redeemed on the Friday. It was a much warmer day and significantly busier but the park looks perfect in the sunshine.
Stardust Racers is a phenomenal coaster. Got a good few rides in early on our first day, with a plan to marathon it in the evening. Rain was forecasted from 2-10pm, but we didn't account for a thunderstorm which kept Stardust Racers closed for the majority of the afternoon/evening. Fair play to them, they got it open at 8.45pm. You may have heard of the Zadra magic gate, but did you know there is a Stardust Racers magic gate? Spent an hour lapping it in the pouring rain without the long walk and locker/metal detector faff. Even had a front row ride where I was the only person across both trains. Turns out Orlando gets very chilly in the evenings in December but there were a few other like-minded idiots doing the same thing as me.
It was hard to judge the coaster during the Sunday night waterboarding session but the weather was great on our second day and I got several more night rides. One thing is for certain, it's the best night ride in the world and I'm not convinced it will ever be beaten. As well as the obvious relentless airtime and pacing of the ride, you've got the dueling, the music, the lighting, the launches all combining to deliver a truly euphoric experience. I don't know how people can have preferred side as they are both too similar and both elite. I have no idea where to rank it overall but it is definitely a top 10 coaster and possibly top 5. Compared to the other Mack's, I think I'd give it a slight edge over Voltron and it is absolutely miles clear of Hyperia and RTH.
Isle Of Berk - This was probably the best area in the park. It's the largest in scale and there is so much attention to detail. The Untrainable Dragon show was a huge highlight of our day, did not expect to see Toothless flying overhead. And when the rain cleared the park out we only had a 5 minute wait to meet Toothless. Toothless is the true icon of Epic Universe, so many people were repping him with merch all over the park. The pulled pork Mac and cheese cones were great btw.
Hiccups Wing Gliders is a perfect fit for the park, a lengthy coaster with some great theming and another fantastic Toothless interaction on the first launch.
Dark Universe - Our favourite part of Epic Universe and the place we spent most of our time. We spent about 4 hours here in the dark, mostly riding Monsters Unchained and drinking pints in the outdoor seating area of Das Steakhouse, overlooking Darkmoore in heavy rain with thunderstorms lightning up the area. Perfection.
Had been avoiding all Epic spoilers but was aware of the hype around Monsters Unchained. It's possibly my favourite dark ride ever but it's not perfect. The organ playing scene with the fire is a ballsy way to start the ride but it continues to impress throughout with some huge animatronics and perfect screen blending. It seems there are a couple of dead spots with dark spots or black curtains - did they run out of budget or have these sevens been removed? Also I love the ride system but hoped it would be a touch more aggressive with the movement. Forbidden Journey utilises this potential more IMO. Overall though from some retrospective reading it appears we got lucky with pretty much all major effects working. It's the best ride in the park along with Stardust.
Curse of the Warewolf on the other hand was a bit of a letdown. I get it's a family coaster but it really doesn't do much at all. Glad we only had to wait 10 mins as it seems to get regularly long lines.
Super Nintendo World - Actually a very pleasant surprise. Possibly the most impressive reveal as you enter the land. Banging music, plenty of colour and loads of moving animatronics in all directions. Donkey Kong Country takes it up a notch and offers some relief from the claustrophobic feel of the area.
Minecart Madness was difficult to get on but worth the wait. We tried to squeeze a ride in before the rain came but were unsuccessful after over an hour in the cattlepen room of doom. Managed to get one ride in on our second day after a 60 minute wait and we really enjoyed it. Made sure to focus on the track in front and it's a very trippy effect with some big drops that take you by surprise. Sure it's janky but it's part of the theme I guess. Shame it's so hard to ride as I'd imagine it gets better with repeat rides.
Mario Kart Bowsers Challenge was OK. The best part is the themeing throughout the queue and the ride. The AR tech is a mess though. Would like to do it again with the glasses off.
Harry Potter - The scale of this area is seriously impressive but it doesn't feel as immersive as the other Potter areas. Just an exceptionally well themed Parisian vibe. We gave the show a miss but sounds like we should have done it in hindsight to maybe appreciate the area a bit more. Great food and drink options again though.
Battle at the Ministry was a bit of a blur tbh. We only waited around 10 minutes so didn't get to fully appreciate the queue. As for the ride my expectations were sky high and it didn't quite live up to the hype for me. I don't know if we didn't get a great run through maybe but it felt a bit messy. There was some fun lateral movements but I was hoping for some more forceful drops. Was hoping to ride it a lot more but unfortunately it suffered a lengthy closure late on our first day, and the queue was too long on our second day.
We had two fantastic days at Epic Universe, but at the moment it's probably a one day park as there aren't enough rides. During the lengthy weather delay, only two rides were open - Monsters Unchained and Mario Kart. It wasn't a huge problem for us as we enjoyed some drinks and food during this time, but not ideal really for a Florida park. The biggest compliment I can give is that it feels like a day at Epcot but with some world class rides dotted around the place. In ten years time with some expansions it could comfortably be the best theme park in the world. The park really comes alive at night, so much so that I think they should be open til midnight every day to really show it off for as long as possible.
Next up, IOA including first impressions of Velocicoaster and Hagrids.