Today was the day I had been anticipating for many months. As people with a keen interest in theme parks, it’s not every day we get the opportunity to visit an entirely new theme park. We’ve watched countless videos from various YouTubers and influencers, all documenting the construction, anticipation, and visits to this mega new theme park from Universal. We’ve seen what others have had to say about this new Orlando attraction, and now we’re finally getting a chance to experience it first-hand.
We had agreed we would get away earlier than usual today. The plan was to be out of the house by 10 am. That was still relatively late, given the nature of today’s plan, but I’m still striking a balance between active fun and relaxing holiday. Notwithstanding the 10 am agreed-upon departure time, I was still keen to get away earlier, if possible, but on time at the latest, to ensure we had enough time to appreciate the park fully. Unlike the other Universal theme parks, our all-access pass permitted us just a single entry into Epic Universe. Universal recently announced that it will include unlimited access to multi-day park-hopping tickets starting from 2026 onwards. For those of us visiting the park this year, we are limited to just one visit. That means we won’t be able to return to do anything we miss, and I’m expecting to need the whole day to experience it all.
The combination of my eagerness to get going, coupled with the lethargy of slow starters in the family, did not make for a stress-free environment this morning. On previous theme park days, I could have cared less if we were half an hour later out of the gate. The unique nature of today’s opportunity meant I was counting the seconds before everyone was up, active, dressed, packed and out the door. By the time we made it into the car, you could have cut the tension in the atmosphere with a knife.
We arrived at the car park perhaps a little more collectively grumpy than was ideal. Every tiny thing that went wrong was the source of much more irritation than it deserved. For starters, we were directed to a section of the car park that was a long walk from the entrance. Unlike at the Disney parks, there are no trams to whisk us from the car park to the entrance. By the time we were being scanned in, some of us were already huffing and puffing.
Worse still, Joey, as is typically the case, decided to bring some of his toys with him. He always carries some toys with him. It’s a way for him to keep grounded. One of the themed sections of the park is How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk — the Viking/dragon-themed land. Joey loves all things How to Train Your Dragon and had previously bought an Isle of Berk shield and sword, which he had with him when going through security. Despite these being little more than a few pieces of cardboard and plastic, one of the security guards on duty pulled him aside and questioned whether it was permitted to be bringing in such things. Right off the bat, we are now faced with the prospect of not only stressing out Joey, which would have likely put him in an absolutely foul mood for the rest of the day, but it might also have meant someone having to walk half a mile back to the car again. Fortunately, the senior security supervisor noted that the rule in question was quite ludicrous. More to the point, this sword and shield were purchased over at Universal Islands of Adventure and were even sold right here at Epic Universe. Much to everyone’s relief, common sense prevailed, and we were ushered through.
Epic Universe is hands-down the most beautifully themed park anywhere on the planet. It truly gives Disney a run for its money in the level of detailed theming. A lot of thought went into designing and building this fantastic park.
Our first port of call for the day was one of Sandy’s most anticipated areas, How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk. As was the case each time we walked through one of the main themed area portals, our first reaction to what we saw on the other side was a jaw-dropping wow. We didn’t know where to look next; the detail was that impressive. It truly felt like we had stepped into the actual Isle of Berk from the movies. Sandy quickly found Astrid, who was one of several actors walking around in a full Isle of Berk costume. Unlike with most of the other parks we visited on this trip, our cameras were working in overdrive here.
One thing Sandy was especially keen on doing was a photo opportunity with Toothless, a robot from Boston Dynamics dressed up and with behaviours and mannerisms to match the dragon. Although we have express passes, these didn’t apply to the character meet-and-greets. The two-hour queue was a bit too much to swallow. That would have taken up too much of our time, so that was a disappointment for Sandy.
After a quick rummage through one of the shops, I spotted a queue forming for the Untrainable Dragon show, one of two shows at Epic Universe which repeat every hour or so. We were 45 minutes away from the next show, so we decided to find a nearby attraction to experience while we waited. That turned out to be the Hiccups Winged Gliders, a classic family rollercoaster, which everyone just loved. It was a really smooth ride with plenty of ups, downs and thrilling changes in direction. It even went backwards at one point. It’s a launch rollercoaster, as opposed to one that climbs a slope. Multiple launches give, and subsequently add to, the coaster’s momentum. Each launch packs quite a punch, sending you back into your seat. The ride takes you around the Isle of Berk, through some brilliant theming.
We exited the rollercoaster a little later than expected. Although we had Express Pass tickets, they had experienced a delay, so the express lane was fuller than it would have been otherwise. Delays like this were to be an unfortunate occurrence during our day. That turned out to be both a curse and a blessing in disguise, but I’ll get to that later.
Because of the delay, we missed our 12 noon showing of the show, so we wandered through the Isle of Berk for a while, taking it all in. Sandy wandered off with Joey, as he was still a little grumpy, while Jae and I went back into Celestial Park to find Jae a snack. The plan was for us all to meet up at Stardust Racers, one of the main attractions in this central area.
Once finished with her hot dog snack, Jae and I met up with Sandy and Joey near the coaster’s family waiting area. The queue meanders beneath and through the rollercoaster’s main superstructure. You really get a sense that this thing is a substantial piece of kit. The videos I’ve seen don’t do it justice at all. It’s deceptively bigger than it seems from all the videos. We had to put everything in lockers and even go through a dedicated security screening area, complete with metal detector scanners and guards wielding hand-held metal detector wands. They clearly take seriously the need to have nothing on you when you ride. Having now experienced it, I can genuinely appreciate that. When we got to the actual loading point, all of the coaster’s cars were stationary either in the loading area or just outside, with riders still waiting to get off. We never did find out the reason, but the delay lasted 10-15 minutes before the call came through that normal operations were commencing. There was a real buzz in the air. The eruption of applause and cheers from the two hundred or so riders and queues only added to the already heightened sense of anticipation. Those emotions were definitely warranted.
Stardust Racers is a dual-rollercoaster, with each car racing side by side. The launch is explosive–0 to 60 mph in under two seconds. I feared for my life several times throughout. It was at least on par with VelociCoaster in terms of sheer terror.
We all emerged from Stardust Racers a little dazed and sporting hairdos with a more blown-back style (well, those who had that much hair to begin with did). However, we were still all a bit ratty with each other and the world as a whole. What we all needed was some food. In our (my?) haste to get us out of the house earlier than usual today, we neglected to take time for breakfast, choosing instead to ‘find something in the park’. That was naïve defending, as it meant falling foul of another theme-park-101 rule: Go in prepared for what and where to eat. Now we are here, we had to rely on what we could figure out on the spot, which was easier said than done.
Eventually, a cast member suggested the nearby Meteor Astropub, which is one of the smaller eateries. According to Jae, the young man suggested we couldn’t miss it, as there’s a huge meteor atop the building. The young man obviously overestimated the usefulness of the directions he gave. Had we not inadvertently turned a random corner looking for it, we certainly could easily have missed the damned place. That was another minor irritation, adding to the growing pile of other smaller irritations that had been accumulating throughout the morning. Individually, none of these issues would have scratched the surface, but we were already in negative territory before we entered the park, and they had been piling up ever since.
Upon entering the restaurant, a helpful young man rattled off a well-prepared spiel about how the restaurant works. I smiled and nodded politely, but the full extent of his words didn’t register. I needed to sit down and gather my thoughts. It then became apparent that this restaurant did indeed operate with a slightly unorthodox process. You couldn’t place an order with a person. You had to order through the Universal Orlando Resort App. Sigh. That also meant there would be restrictions on how you can modify a given order, such as excluding cheese, dips, etc. I am a fussy eater. In fact, I was recently diagnosed with something called Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID). Nine times out of ten, I have to modify any particular restaurant menu items, as there are frequently things thrown in that I won’t eat. I’ll also refuse to touch anything brushed up against a source or dip that I don’t want, so it’s important to me that I be clear about what I want or don’t want. The ability to provide that clarity is largely absent when ordering through an app. There were some modification checkbox options, but those were limited. So now I’m frustrated as well as irritated.
I must have let my frustration show (I was snapping at everyone, so it would have been self-evident), as Joey picked up on it. He asked me if I was ok, and even reached out to me for a cuddle a couple of times. That was disarming and a real eye-opener. It’s uncharacteristic of Joey to show such empathy, though it’s now the second time he has done so on this holiday. When he asked whether I was ok, I said, “No. I’m frustrated right now, but I’ll be okay once I have something to eat. Thank you for asking about me.” He said, “I can see you are not okay, that’s why I asked. I hope you feel better soon.” This was another huge moment for Joey. Unfortunately, my own autism meant I was unable to appreciate and process it myself fully. My own bucket was completely full at that moment. I needed to climb down from my own frustrations before I could reason again. As if to add insult to injury, when I finally figured out the ordering process, it required me to add a credit card to the account, which I hadn’t yet done. At this point, I was like a coiled spring, snappy at everyone and seconds away from a full-blown meltdown of my own.
Whenever we get frustrated with each other as a family, we sometimes start making fake small talk, as though pretending there isn’t any tension will somehow resolve the tension. Sandy and Jae are better at this than Joey and me. It’s as though someone has taught the girls the fake it ‘till you make it strategy. Surprisingly, the strategy does work. Not everyone ordered food, but when the food that was ordered was delivered to the table, everyone started pecking at it. I had ordered the Fish and Chips. To everyone’s surprise, it was really nice. Even Joey was enjoying it. This gave us all a reason to engage with each other civilly. It was enough of a common ground for the fake it ‘till you make it small talk tactic to take hold and start working. The walls of irritation began to come down. I started feeling more human again.
Within half an hour, the dysfunction between us all had mostly eroded. Someone suggested we go and do Stardust Racers again. This seemed like a good idea, as practically walking out of the restaurant meant walking into the ride’s entrance. Sandy elected to remain at the restaurant. She was complaining about her knees and didn’t want the G-forces of the rollercoaster to exacerbate the problem.
Between Jae’s walking frame and our Express Pass tickets, we went straight on, bypassing almost all of the queuing. We still had to be ‘wanded’ with the handheld metal detector for any metal or loose parts about our person, but the process was swift enough. We might have saved some time being wanded had it not been for my reminding the cast member that they had inadvertently skipped that for us after we went up via the lift instead of through the queue. After casually mentioning that, they had us double back to go through the process, much to Jae’s annoyance.
This time around, the kids wanted to sit at the front, which the staff were more than happy to accommodate. Once again, the entire ride scared the living daylights out of me, and I exited the ride somewhat unstable on my feet.
After meeting up again with Sandy at the Meteor Café, we all went over to the next themed area, which was The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic. The setting is 1920s Paris, and the Fantastic Beasts genre. Once again, we marvelled at the meticulously detailed theming. It really did feel like Paris in the twenties.
It looked like people were piling into the Le Cirque Arcanus show. Having just missed the Untrainable Dragon show in the Isle of Berk, I especially wanted to get to see this show, which featured the Fantastic Beasts from the movies. Evidently, Joey was unimpressed with this idea and made it known through his typical slow walking behaviour. When Jae and I were being ushered into one of the pre-show staging areas, and I was beckoning him to get a move on, he stood his ground. This was the straw that broke my camel’s back. If he wanted to stay out in the hot sun instead, then so be it. I walked in with the intention of enjoying the show regardless. I knew Sandy would be following soon after, as she had moments before set off to find the toilets. Joey would have to be her problem. I was cooked. After a few minutes in the queue, Jae decided she didn’t want to leave Joey all by himself, so she chose to go back out and find him. Essentially, Jae once again saved the day.
By the time the other five hundred or so showgoers and I were at the last pre-show staging area, Sandy and I were texting each other about what had just happened. Sandy had joined the queue, and we were in the same space, but not close to each other. Sandy said she was all the way over to the right, but that’s where I was, and I couldn’t see her anywhere. I texted her to wave her hands in the air, which I also did. I was waving for about a minute, much to the bemusement of everyone else around me, when I got another text saying, “Oh, sorry, I meant I’m on the left.”
When I was finally seated, I did eventually spot Sandy. She came and sat with me, and we enjoyed the show. It was all about how a dodgy, unscrupulous circus showman was going to take advantage of the various fantastic beasts from Newt Scamander’s stolen suitcase by putting them on show for the public to line his pockets. It was very artsy, featuring numerous impressive stage effects. I loved it and was glad we got the opportunity to see it firsthand.
We met up with Jae and Joey after the show. Joey was now in a good mood, which surprised me. I don’t know if it was anything specific Jae did with him, but I was glad he was in a better disposition. He had been wanting to buy either a helmet from the Isle of Berk or a wand. I took him off to the wand shop to see what we could find.
Next up was the Battle at the Ministry ride. It is routinely the ride with the longest wait times, so my anticipation level was high. Joey was somewhat reluctant, but agreed to go in with us all the same since we were now here. He had just bought the wand, so his riding the high from that may have explained why he tolerated going in with us.
Despite our Express passes, the queue was quite long. We were in there for well over forty-five minutes. It strained Joey’s tolerance to the limit, so I was using all the tricks in my arsenal to keep him grounded and engaged. The spaces you have to pass through while queuing is like walking through the various Harry Potter movies. It’s arguably as impressive as the actual ride itself. We passed through the Floo Network into the vast, open spaces of the Ministry of Magic and through some of the most impressive staging areas. For any fan of Harry Potter, it would have been a dream come true.
The ride system uses a robot arm that moves the entire 14-person cabin through the scenes. It’s like being inside the Harry Potter story, flying through the Ministry of Magic with the same visceral movement as Forbidden Journey.
Once we were out into the sunshine again, via the obligatory exit shop, of course, Sandy took Joey back to the How to Train Your Dragon area, where he had designs on acquiring a particular Viking helmet from the Isle of Berk. Jae and I walked over to the Dark Universe area to experience the Monsters Unchained ride and the Curse of the Werewolf rollercoaster.
The theming in Darkmoor Village was no less spectacular than that of the other areas—truly amazing. The Dark Universe section of Epic Universe is all about monsters, like Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, the Creature of the Black Lagoon, and so on.
The queue for Monsters Unchained wasn’t nearly as long as it typically is. It’s another similar ride system to the Harry Potter ride we just did. However, this ride features more physical sets and some next-level animatronics. There’s also a much wider range of movements the ride car is put through. Because of Jae’s mobility walker, we had to take a lift a couple of times, so we missed out somewhat on some of the pre-show storyline. This has been the case for many rides we’ve experienced over the past few weeks.
In the exit shop, Jae picked out a few things she really liked. The dark, horror-like theming is much more in tune with Jae’s personality. I made sure to treat her so she didn’t have to dip into her spending money.
The one remaining major ride/attraction in Darkmoor Village was the Curse of the Werewolf rollercoaster. It’s more of a family coaster, with no inversions, and nothing like the speed or intensity of Stardust Racers. What it lacks in pure thrills, it makes up for in originality.
Jae wanted to pick out a couple more things from the Monsters Unchained gift shop, so we doubled back there after completing Curse of the Werewolf.
The final themed area we hadn’t yet done was the Super Nintendo World area. It was like stopping into a Nintendo game with bright primary colours, and all the characters and figures from the Super Mario game series all moving about in larger-than-life forms everywhere we looked. It was much more crowded than any other section. Sounds from the Nintendo world rang out from every direction, and it was nearly impossible to keep your attention on any one thing. Everything everywhere was moving. I knew Sandy and Joey were in here somewhere by now, and I worried it would be too overwhelming for Joey. After a few seconds, I was already straining to keep my own sanity.
Jae and I went in to try the Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge—a dark ride in a four-person car running along a predetermined track. You wear special headsets which enable you to see activity on a virtual track that your car physically moves through. As you make your way around the track, you aim with your head to shoot at game elements, scoring points as you go. A steering wheel helps you orient the direction your car is facing, and buttons on the wheel enable you to shoot the virtual Koopa shells you accumulate as you go. It’s terrific fun—especially for anyone familiar with any of the Mario flavour of the Nintendo games. Jae thrashed me with the number of points she accumulated compared to mine.
Back into the Nintendo world, my head was starting to spin from the sensory overload, but we went into the Donkey Kong Mine‑Cart Madness ride all the same. This is more of a classic rollercoaster, but, like most other rides here at Epic Universe, it has something of a twist. The Donkey Kong coaster has a clever trick – the visible track is an illusion. The car runs on a hidden track below, making it feel like you’re constantly jumping gaps and running off the rails.
I had been texting back and forth with Sandy as we waited in line for the Donkey Kong ride. She was also in the queue, but much farther behind Jae and me. We agreed this would be the last ride of the day for all of us, and we would meet up at the car at the front of the park.
Throughout the day, a range of things went wrong for us. Some rides temporarily stopped working, causing delays; there were no conveniently located toilets in the Nintendo World area, and other issues. Sandy felt there were enough of these problems to cumulatively spoil some of our enjoyment. She wanted to stop by Guest Services to bring this to their attention. She did so after she and Joey returned to the Isle of Berk one last time to return the Viking helmet Joey had earlier purchased. Apparently, it was too small, and only one size was available.
I parked Jae at the front of the car park area, while I went to fetch the car to bring it as close as I could. While waiting for everyone to arrive, I received a call from Sandy. She indeed popped into Guest Services and laid out all the issues we faced for them. To her surprise, they acknowledged her concerns. Without Sandy prompting them, they then volunteered four more complimentary tickets for an afternoon at the park (usable from 2 pm onwards on any day we like) as an apology. This means we can now revisit the park another time while we’re here without having to pay another $600. It means we can go back and do the things we really liked again, and I can catch that Untrainable Dragon show after all.
Our time at Epic Universe had come to an end. It was truly a fantastic theme park, and I’m glad we got the opportunity to explore it. I’m doubly pleased that we will get another chance at it, also thanks to Sandy. We finished the evening at the same TGI Friday’s we had frequented the night before, although we were more discerning about our orders this time, resulting in a bill that was $60 less than before.
To appease Joey regarding the Viking helmet issue, Sandy promised that Joey could check at a nearby Walmart for a particular LEGO set of similar value, which we did before heading home.