Universal Epic Universe (South Expansion Complex) - Opens May 22 2025

[lazyboy97o]

How can you say it was announced before it was designed when it's a clone of an attraction that already existed in another park? Sure, there are probably differences in the minutiae of the structure's design & construction, but practically all of the design work on the attraction itself would have already been completed & implemented elsewhere prior to the announcement of Magic Kingdom's version.

Frankly, if they hadn't already completed the design phase prior to the attraction's announcement, even if we're just talking about the structure's differing technical details and not what guests will see while riding, that's pretty irresponsible on Disney's part, especially after the backlash they had already received for taking so long with Pandora. They don't have to copy Universal's "that obvious roller coaster is a churro stand" approach, but utilizing the polar opposite strategy is a recipe for discontent (and even then, it still wouldn't explain how long it's taken.)

I’m familiar with the project’s schedule. The “differing technical details” and minutia are not a small component, they represent the bulk of the design work and it extends beyond just the structure.

It is not fully designed and that is what I have been trying to explain. Knowing where walls will go and what it will look like is only part of what is needed to build.

Design is far more than just what is seen as a guest. It includes how everything, literally everything, goes together.

Hypothetically, let’s just look at the bathrooms as an example. This won’t be specifically about the bathrooms in the TRON building but I know it does have Cast Member bathrooms and that Chinese and US regulations do not align. Bathrooms are an area with very specific regulations, especially when it comes to accessibility. The following are some of the specific regulations that a wheelchair accessible toilet must meet: height, distance from the wall, clear space around the toilet, location of grab bars and location of the toilet in relation to the stall door.

Let’s say the accessible toilet, which is in a corner, has to move to the other wall. That wall may not be big enough to hold the plumbing for the toilet, so it has to get bigger. If it is a wall mounted toilet then the wall may be getting even bigger still. How does “stuff” get out of the toilet? You have to move those pipes too and they have to maintain a certain slope which means they could be taking up more space. And what is on the other side of that wall that had to get bigger? What if there is other equipment that has certain to be in a certain sized room that just got smaller?

That’s just a few issues that could arise in moving a toilet. The structure needs to be redesigned, or maybe even changed completely, for the local soil and wind loads. The HVAC system needs to be redesigned for the local climate. The electrical systems need to be redesigned for the local power supply. The location of waterproofing on the exterior walls might change based on climate. The type or amount of insulation can change based on the climate and energy codes. Emergency exit doors have to studied to ensure they are in the right locations, maybe more are needed or the exit path needs to change. All of those changes can and do have ripple effects like the toilet example above.

That’s just the legal and due diligence changes. Then there are possible operational or creative changes, even if minor. Ratatouille has an upcoming closure to fix its floor, so it makes sense to not make that mistake twice.


Steel coasters do routinely go from idea to opening day in 18-24 months but they are also not a lot. Most stations are little more than a roof and the maintenance area is a rather simple shed. The coasters themselves are all fabricated offsite and then assembled on site.


When did fabrication of the rooms start?


You are way off.

Look at slide 6 of this presentation:
https://network.aia.org/HigherLogic...tFileKey=25eadd48-6fff-4a2f-ae26-cef8a77d4f6d

Disney very often announces projects shortly after the Feasibility phase. There are exceptions like the Skyliner but it’s quite common, even with TRON. The end of Schematic Design is usually considered to be around 20% completion of design. That’s a lot of design work left to be done after an announcement and even at least some sort of art release. “Working plans” are not done. This is also why a project site will sit untouched after an announcement.

Approvals and plans are not done before the first dirt is moved. For large projects Disney often makes some use of the fast-track process where design and construction are overlapped. You don’t need a finished design to start site work, you don’t even need a finalized building footprint. Look at some of the South Florida Water Management District permits and you will see some that are just based around a general area and not any specific buildings. Even parts of actual vertical construction can and are overlapped with design.

 

[DonniePeverley]

Just think ... if Universal hadn't stopped construction (something they admit was a mistake) this would be open next year.

Time wasted.

 

[OG Runner]

So more accurately, it will take a clone attraction to be finished building the same amount of time it will take to build a whole brand new campus complete a theme park, two hotels and connecting road.

If you are even more accurate and also confirm that it will take Universal longer to build Epic Universe that Disney took to build EPCOT,
with no cloned rides. Universal also has a cloned land with Nintendo. Honestly who really cares? What was the point of the snarky comment to begin with?

 

[JoeCamel]

Just think ... if Universal hadn't stopped construction (something they admit was a mistake) this would be open next year.

Time wasted.

Just think of the characters wasted......

 

[My95cobras]

If you are even more accurate and also confirm that it will take Universal longer to build Epic Universe that Disney took to build EPCOT,
with no cloned rides. Universal also has a cloned land with Nintendo. Honestly who really cares? What was the point of the snarky comment to begin with?

Why take the time to respond?

 

[JoeCamel]

Why take the time to respond?

Takes two to play

 

[DonniePeverley]

How many days left for this ?

 

[Disstevefan1]

If you are even more accurate and also confirm that it will take Universal longer to build Epic Universe that Disney took to build EPCOT,
with no cloned rides. Universal also has a cloned land with Nintendo. Honestly who really cares? What was the point of the snarky comment to begin with?

According to Google it took 3 years to build all of EPCOT from nothing. At the time it was considered the largest construction project on Earth.

Today's EPCOT overhaul stated in 2019 with some projects cancelled, should be done (hopefully) in 2023.

If we subtract a year for COVID it's about three years also.

I really do not think we can't compare workers and work being done in 1979 to today especially when they are intentionally dragging their feet today for whatever reason.

 

[drew81]

EU needs a Land Before Time meet and greet.

 

[J4546]

A land before time area would be so chill imo, even though they ready have capitalized dinosaur ip with jurassic stuff.

 

[My95cobras]

Takes two to play

Depends on the game

 

[Cmdr_Crimson]

I'm sure bus service to this park from the studio side resorts are going to be busy when it opens but, was their plans on a tram of some kind to this considering the distance apart EU is from the UOR side?

 

[Rich Brownn]

I'm sure bus service to this park from the studio side resorts are going to be busy when it opens but, was their plans on a tram of some kind to this considering the distance apart EU is from the UOR side?

There's a dedicated bus lane, so its always been to use in-house buses between the resort areas

 

[donsullivan]

I'm sure bus service to this park from the studio side resorts are going to be busy when it opens but, was their plans on a tram of some kind to this considering the distance apart EU is from the UOR side?

Keep in mind that (unlike WDW) all of the land and roadways between the properties are public roads and the land is owned by a multitide of other entities. You have to cross I4, International Drive, Sand Lake and many others as you traverse from one site to the other. Anything they use to transport guests will require full (DoT) licensing and safety features like any public transit system - just like Disney’s bus system. That’s why they’ve chosen buses.

Details on the road project to connect the parks.

Animatic of what the drive will be like.

 

[JoeCamel]

I'm sure bus service to this park from the studio side resorts are going to be busy when it opens but, was their plans on a tram of some kind to this considering the distance apart EU is from the UOR side?

If past performance is any indication Universal will call in extra busses and drivers to the point it works like an omnimover. They have one waiting to load while another loads or it pulls in as the first bus leaves. The service is amazing and I doubt it will be much different in the future. Good time to be a driver in Orlando and as the other poster said there are dedicated bus lanes for much of the route to speed things along.

 

[Poseidon Quest]

Just putting it out there in the air, I would anticipate that Universal's bus transportation might be far quicker than getting around WDW property. The distance between both parcels of Universal property isn't as far as people tend to think and with dedicated bus lanes and much less complexity in their transportation needs, it might be a lot quicker to get from Epic to the other parks. I've waited on Disney busses and they seem to get slower and slower.

 

[tommyhawkins]

I think I have spoken about this already

The actual driving distance is 4 miles

There's 15 bus stops at the Epic Drop off point.

Even if only around half /two thirds of those are for transport between North and South campus, 6, 8, 10 buses an hour??

We might expect a bus leaving every 6-10mins. If you're only waiting 20mins for DT you're doing really well, so 15mins or less feels fair to me

Just putting it out there in the air, I would anticipate that Universal's bus transportation might be far quicker than getting around WDW property. The distance between both parcels of Universal property isn't as far as people tend to think and with dedicated bus lanes and much less complexity in their transportation needs, it might be a lot quicker to get from Epic to the other parks. I've waited on Disney busses and they seem to get slower and slower.

If past performance is any indication Universal will call in extra busses and drivers to the point it works like an omnimover. They have one waiting to load while another loads or it pulls in as the first bus leaves. The service is amazing and I doubt it will be much different in the future. Good time to be a driver in Orlando and as the other poster said there are dedicated bus lanes for much of the route to speed things along.

 

[DCBaker]

"As enthusiasts spot roller coaster track at the construction site of Universal’s upcoming theme park Epic Universe, NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell said the Orlando attraction is “right on track” to open by summer 2025.

“I don’t think we’ve said the exact date that we’re opening in, but we will have an impact in ‘25. It will open in time for the summer of ‘25,” he said Monday.

Shell gave additional context on the theme park during the UBS Global TMT Conference on Monday, saying it has “perfect timing” as Orlando sees high demand from tourists. He mentioned recent hotel booking trends and the Orlando International Airport opening its new Terminal C in September as evidence of that.

Epic Universe’s design will also help attract conventioneers with limited time, as the theme park is built so visitors can “come into one land and not the whole park,” Shell said. The site is just northeast of the Orange County Convention Center, and some areas of Universal-owned land attached to the theme park are directly across Universal Boulevard.

Universal Orlando’s third theme park began rising from land between West Sand Lake Road and Universal Boulevard earlier this year. It will span roughly 750 acres as Universal’s largest theme park.

It was originally expected to open in 2023 before the COVID-19 pandemic delayed construction for nearly a year. Earlier this year, executives said they expected it to open by summer 2025, but analysts wondered if global supply chain delays would affect deliveries of critical construction materials.

On Monday, Shell indicated the theme park has not encountered major issues in getting materials, though he said their prices have fluctuated during the construction timeline.

“We’re right on track as far as spending. We were worried earlier on because of raw materials costs and steel and things like that,” he said. “We’re largely past that now ... All the infrastructure’s in, a lot of the steel is in, and now it’s just a question of building out. Our peak spend will be in ‘23.”

Video game-themed Super Nintendo World is the only land Universal has confirmed is coming to Epic Universe. Universal Studios Japan’s version of the land, which opened in March 2021, is “driving a lot of that attendance” at the theme park, Shell said.

“Given that we’ve bet on Nintendo, both for Hollywood and for Epic Universe ... [we’re] very encouraged by that,” Shell said Monday."

Orlando Epic Universe work is ‘right on track,’ executive says

As enthusiasts spot roller coaster track at the construction site of Universal’s upcoming theme park Epic Universe, NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell said the Orlando attraction is “right on …

www.orlandosentinel.com

 

[MisterPenguin]

"As enthusiasts spot roller coaster track at the construction site of Universal’s upcoming theme park Epic Universe, NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell said the Orlando attraction is “right on track” to open by summer 2025.

“I don’t think we’ve said the exact date that we’re opening in, but we will have an impact in ‘25. It will open in time for the summer of ‘25,” he said Monday.

Shell gave additional context on the theme park during the UBS Global TMT Conference on Monday, saying it has “perfect timing” as Orlando sees high demand from tourists. He mentioned recent hotel booking trends and the Orlando International Airport opening its new Terminal C in September as evidence of that.

Epic Universe’s design will also help attract conventioneers with limited time, as the theme park is built so visitors can “come into one land and not the whole park,” Shell said. The site is just northeast of the Orange County Convention Center, and some areas of Universal-owned land attached to the theme park are directly across Universal Boulevard.

Universal Orlando’s third theme park began rising from land between West Sand Lake Road and Universal Boulevard earlier this year. It will span roughly 750 acres as Universal’s largest theme park.

It was originally expected to open in 2023 before the COVID-19 pandemic delayed construction for nearly a year. Earlier this year, executives said they expected it to open by summer 2025, but analysts wondered if global supply chain delays would affect deliveries of critical construction materials.

On Monday, Shell indicated the theme park has not encountered major issues in getting materials, though he said their prices have fluctuated during the construction timeline.

“We’re right on track as far as spending. We were worried earlier on because of raw materials costs and steel and things like that,” he said. “We’re largely past that now ... All the infrastructure’s in, a lot of the steel is in, and now it’s just a question of building out. Our peak spend will be in ‘23.”

Video game-themed Super Nintendo World is the only land Universal has confirmed is coming to Epic Universe. Universal Studios Japan’s version of the land, which opened in March 2021, is “driving a lot of that attendance” at the theme park, Shell said.

“Given that we’ve bet on Nintendo, both for Hollywood and for Epic Universe ... [we’re] very encouraged by that,” Shell said Monday."

Orlando Epic Universe work is ‘right on track,’ executive says

As enthusiasts spot roller coaster track at the construction site of Universal’s upcoming theme park Epic Universe, NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell said the Orlando attraction is “right on …

www.orlandosentinel.com

And people thought Chapek was too cheery at his last Quarterly call...

 

[Haymarket]

The construction site looks super busy now.