Universal Epic Universe (South Expansion Complex) - Now Open!

JT3000

Well-Known Member
Omni??? a continuous/unbroken chain of ride vehicle as in Haunted Mansion, Buzz Ranger Spin, Yoshi, Ariel or Living Seas Nemo??? I must have had it all wrong as I thought we board Kuka arm style independently dispatched vehicles…
It's a Kuka ride. It's only omnimover-like in the sense that the vehicles are dispatched closely together in a chain that never stops moving (with the exception of the secondary loading platform for disabled guests.)
 

mellyf

Active Member
It really depends on crowds. Operationally if Ministry has a good day (like the past few) it is very easy to get on. When I went it had a terrible operational day and only ran for a few hours. But I blew through the single rider like when it luckily reopened.

I personally think I would do two days without express. The problem areas are Nintendo and Ministry and those can be tackled by early entry if your days aren’t slow. I figure Ministry will be operating more consistently by then. You also just need exploratory time in SNW/Paris and those would both be better serviced in two days. If it’s a slow day though you can easily blow through all of epic. I did everything basically except mine cart and left three hours early. That was even complicated by bad ride ops on three attractions and a show that all wasted time.
Agree with this. It seemed like many of the rides were offline at various points, so it could be easy to miss an opportunity to ride if you happen to be in line for something else when they go back online. And even with express pass, some waits seemed crazy at times. I think it might have been Minecart that was up to 300 minutes one night. That same night, ministry was 180.
 

hopemax

Well-Known Member
As proven by the 25 minute wait HP has right now! The last 2 days it looks pretty stable. 45 minutes most of the time I’ve looked. Of course not the 2 days we were there…
I want to redact something. Ministry is actually reasonable capacity - if it is running well. I was timing cycles and was surprised the system can do over 2k/hr. I think the insane wait times have been derived from its poor operational record.
 

BrianLo

Well-Known Member
As proven by the 25 minute wait HP has right now! The last 2 days it looks pretty stable. 45 minutes most of the time I’ve looked. Of course not the 2 days we were there…

Sundays in September… the way to do Epic. I’m here. 😀

Side note - since my last post, apparently the pre-show for Monsters Unchained has gone back to being down often and every day several animatronics in the ride are stationary.

Pre-show is on today. I think victoria is removed though unless it just lowers for B-mode.

Igor is behind a shower curtain (ha actually) and there was maybe a curtain or two more than I recall. But the first Dracula and wolf animatronics were working, along with a tree branch above the monster from the lagoon. There may have been an extra bride flying. Those all were not working for me a week and a half ago.


IMG_7353.jpeg
 
Last edited:

BrianLo

Well-Known Member
I'm trying to decide if I want to go again next Sunday the 14th. It's a $116 day and the weekdays are $135 and I'm nervous that the one Sunday I would go, it would be busy because of the cost differential.

I think because of tourists going home and school still being early back combined with APs not rushing to fill in the gaps… I would go for sure next Sunday if you have the option.
 

hopemax

Well-Known Member
It would be my 5th paid Epic day, between previews and now. I’m only in FL for most of a month because it made more sense to just stay at my Dad’s between D23 and the WDW pin event which is 9/20 then go home between them. The take away is I’ve spent a crap ton already between D23, our 4 nights we just spent at UOR, and the pin event.

OTOH, what is another $116+tax+enormous amount on food & snacks when we go to Epic. Compared to what we just spent, lol. YOLO! Especially since I can’t import all my fun stuff from Japan until the tariff dust settles.
 

MickeyLuv'r

Well-Known Member
Sorry if this is more of a trip planning post - Since you had a similar experience to the trip my family is thinking of near President's week, do you think all the rides can be achievable in one day w/ Express and EE? The debate is between 2 days no express or 1 day with it. If Ministry can be done twice in one day then we won't consider doing 2 days.
Historically speaking from trips to WDW, Pres week is variable. By that I mean many people visit over the long weekend (2/14-2/16 in 2026) but if you are visiting for longer than 3-4 days, and your Epic day is not on the actual weekend, that will make a significant difference in crowd levels. Orlando in Feb before 2/14 is quiet, there is also a historical drop-off in crowds after 2/16.

Hard to predict what the holiday weekend will be like, but if the rides are all operating, most days pargoers can come pretty close to hitting all of the rides without EP in one day, if they start at EE, stay as late, and minimize meals/breaks.

Though that assumes good weather, and we don't yet have any idea what the park hours will be. During my visit it stormed, so a number of rides go down during storms. It was also summer, so the heat was a factor. But summer also had great park hours. Feb temps should be quite a bit cooler.

With Epic, I'd say strategy and luck are both factors. the day I didn't go, my group did MarioKart, Monsters, Werewolf, Stardust, and Racer'sRally all before 10:30am. Then Fyre Drill, Carousel, and Ministry before noon. (Ministry was posted 75, but was act much shorter) Next was Wing Gliders. After that came multiple weather delays/attempts to get on rides that re-closed before getting to front of line. At 4, group re-rode Monsters. At 4:30. Hiccups, a bit of shopping, then they got in line for Minecart. Posted was 90, but it was delayed due to more weather. They waited 95minutes, and made it all the way to the loading dock, when there was another weather delay. They waited another 25minutes, then bailed. The storms continued for a bit. Their next ride was Hiccups, Carousel, then was the night show, and they called it a day.

They did not ride Minecart Madness (despite 2hr waiting for it), Yoshi's Adventure, nor did they see Hiccup or either of the shows that day. They did have short interactions with some of the roaming characters, and managed 3 re-rides.

On the day I went, we opted to Ministry Single rider. It would have been pretty quick, about 20min, but just as we were near boarding, the ride had a 20min delay. Since it was also storming outside, we waited.
 

MickeyLuv'r

Well-Known Member
But my above post only tells part of the story. A theme park is more than just the rides.

On the day I went, the storms somewhat forced us to take a break. We used that time to explore Paris and Darkmoor in the rain, and also stopped for a round of hot beverages.

Post-trip, we all had the same thought, that we easily could have/should have spent a more time exploring and taking in all the atmosphere and details.

I don't fault anyone for trying to get on rides, and I appreciate wanting to avoid long waits and the expense of visiting, but I think you'd be better off doing the park over 2 days without EP so you can take time to explore.

The most enjoyable time of our 2 days was the time we allowed ourselves to casually explore the lands noticing small details. The lands are full of immersive details that are worth exploring!
 

Stripes

Premium Member
That's a bit much.
Is it?

Universal circa 2008 was not headed in the right direction…not by a long shot.

Universal Creative has, more or less, copied and pasted this brilliant man’s designs for over a decade. Stuart Craig designed Hogwarts and Hogsmeade, not UC. Stuart Craig designed Diagon Alley, not UC. Stuart Craig designed the Ministry of Magic, not UC.
 
Last edited:

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom