The new $7 billion Epic Universe marks the first new major theme park in the United States in a generation and throws down the gauntlet in Universal’s crosstown showdown with rival Walt Disney World that promises to get even more heated over the next decade.
The new Universal Epic Universe park will officially open to the public on May 22 after passholder previews with more than 50 rides, attractions, shows and experiences.
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The 750-acre Epic Universe will feature five themed lands: Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic, How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk, Dark Universe, Super Nintendo World and Celestial Park.
It has been 24 years since the debut of Disney California Adventure — the last major theme park to open in the United States.
The built-on-the-cheap $600 million DCA opened to low attendance and withering reviews — a rare misstep that Disney acknowledged in 2007 with an ambitious $1.1 billion makeover.
Most of the major theme parks in the United States were built in the 1970s or earlier. Since then, new parks have been few and far between.
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Disney’s Animal Kingdom (1998) and Universal’s Islands of Adventure (1999) were the last major theme parks built in the U.S. before Disney California Adventure.
Legoland has opened parks in Carlsbad (1999), Florida (2011) and New York (2021) — but they all tended to follow a familiar blueprint that hasn’t changed much since the 1960s.
The star-crossed Hard Rock Park opened in 2008 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and only lasted a season before filing for bankruptcy due to poor attendance and other financial problems.
Universal hasn’t repeated the mistakes of Disney California Adventure with Epic Universe and the chances of the new park being forced to close after only a year are close to zero.
I spent a full day at Epic Universe during media previews in early April and Universal’s newest theme park is worthy of all the hype after years of anticipation. Universal Epic Universe will blow your mind and exceed your highest expectations.
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That’s bad news for Disney World and really good news for Universal Orlando.
Epic Universe is expected to siphon a million visitors from Disney World from mid-2025 to the end of 2026, according to estimates from research firm MoffettNathanson.
The debut of Epic Universe could boost attendance across all three of Universal’s Florida theme parks by 8 million during 2025 and 2026, according to an analyst report from MoffettNathanson.
Why does the opening of Universal’s newest theme park matter?
Epic Universe will almost certainly be on the itinerary the next time you plan a theme park vacation to Florida.
Theme parks are all about what’s new and what’s next. Epic Universe will be the newest theme park in Florida for at least the next 5 to 10 years.
A fifth Disney gate in Florida has long been a pipe dream of fans — but Mickey Mouse has laid out plans for the next five years and a new theme park is not in the works.
SeaWorld and Legoland aren’t cooking up any new parks in Orlando either. Six Flags hasn’t shown any interest in the Sunshine State.
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Disney World is laying low in 2025 during the opening of Epic Universe — at least by Disney standards.
There are no new rides or themed lands planned in 2025 for Disney’s four Florida theme parks, which will get a new parade, two shows and a couple restaurants this year.
The closest thing to a new attraction will be the reimagined Test Track at Epcot — which was in desperate need of an update.
Disneyland is also taking it relatively easy in 2025 — with a 70th anniversary celebration, a new nighttime spectacular and a new show starring an animatronic Walt Disney.
But Disney isn’t sitting still over the next five years.
Disney World has four lands in the works themed to the Tropical Americas, Cars, Disney Villains and Monsters Inc.
Disneyland will get a Coco water ride, two new Avengers attractions and an Avatar themed land.
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Overseas, Disneyland Paris is working on Frozen and Lion King themed lands while Spider-Man rides are headed to Hong Kong Disneyland and Shanghai Disneyland.
While Disney is busy building rides and lands, Universal is working on three new theme parks in Texas, Las Vegas and the United Kingdom.
Universal Horror Unleashed debuts in August just off the Las Vegas Strip. Universal Kids is set to open in May 2026 in Frisco, Texas. And Universal will open its first European theme park in 2031 outside London.