It’s been a while since I have visited any Universal theme park after buying an annual pass to Universal Studios Hollywood and going for my last visit back in February 2024.  I was in Orlando to do a Disney cruise last month with a friend and wanted to combine that trip with a visit to Universal’s brand new theme park: Epic Universe.

Getting There

We were staying at Universal’s Endless Summer Resort: Dockside Inn and Suites which includes free shuttle service to anywhere within the Universal Orlando resort area.  After my friend grabbed a few food items at Pier Market 8, we went to the shuttle bus stop in front of the hotel.  Since Universal hotel guests get 1 hour early admission to any of their theme parks, we were at the bus stop early enough to arrive at Epic Universe for 9 AM, which opens from 10 AM to 10 PM that day.

The weather was cold and only had a high in the low 50’s (12 Celsius) and it was windy, gloomy and predicted to have a few drops of rain throughout the day.  Because of the cold weather, the park was not as busy as it could have been.

Universal Epic Universe

Universal Epic Universe finally opened at the end of May 2025 after construction started in the summer of 2019 which had construction delays due to Covid in 2020 and 2021.  Epic Universe uses a hub and spoke layout, consisting of 4 themed lands branching off a central hub called Celestial Park.  Each of the 4 lands: Super Nintendo World, Dark Universe, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic, and How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk; features a uniquely themed gateway.

Since we arrived for the early admission, lines weren’t too long and everyone was let inside a few minutes before 9 AM.  We quickly went to Guest Services to book a 9:30 visit with an employee to get an  Attraction Assistance Pass (AAP).  This helps guests who find it difficult to wait in a standard queue due to a disability or health problems.

This is the first time for me that the AAP is now on the Universal Orlando Resort app.  My last visit 2 years ago, the AAP was still on a piece of paper.  I researched ahead of our visit and was excited to ride all 4 of their accessible rides where I can stay in my wheelchair.

Here is how our day went:

Celestial Park

Celestial Park is the first area we enter into after passing through the gates.  There is a garden with walkways, fountains and ponds based on astrology which connects the other 4 areas together.  The first ride my friend went on was Stardust Racers, which is a twin tracked roller coaster.  I wasn’t even able to try going on this ride as a disabled man recently died on this ride.

After my AAP interview, we went to Constellation Carousel which is a wheelchair accessible ride.  This space themed carousel has carriages like celestial lions, dragons, rabbits and more.  This is more of a kids ride but I wanted to check its accessibility.  Unfortunately when we went up to the ride, we were told that the accessible ride vehicle was out for repairs.  I had the option to be lifted in a ride vehicle but declined.

Super Nintendo World

We got Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge time on the AAP, so while waiting, we went to explore the two part area.  The first area of Super Nintendo World we enter to was Super Mario Land.  My initial reaction was just how much bigger the area is compared to the Hollywood version.  It actually felt empty as all my past 5 visits in Hollywood was crazy busy.  The area looked amazing though even though it was a gloomy day.

There was also an entrance to the second area which was Donkey Kong Country, which had a cool jungle theme.  This area was smaller than Super Mario Land but still had 1 ride, a few food and drink kiosks, shops and some cool photo op sections.

We went back to Super Mario Land to ride Yoshi’s Adventure since it was wheelchair accessible.  Again, we were told that the wheelchair accessible ride vehicle was down for repairs.  We were quite surprised that another ride wasn’t available for me so we moved on from it.

Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge

It was time for us to go on Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, which I have been on 3 separate trips.  This ride was not wheelchair accessible at the Hollywood location so I was curious to see how it differs here.  Getting to where guests are loaded on the karts required us to take an elevator up so we missed the entire queue area with the giant Bowser statue and other cool sculptures and artifacts.

Once it was our turn, an employee brings us to the side and puts me with my wheelchair in some kind of wheelchair frame similar to the Men In Black ride at Universal Studios Florida.  Once we were inside the accessible kart we were given a Mario visor with 3D glasses.  The rest of the ride is very similar to the Hollywood one but since it was wheelchair accessible, we rode it twice in a row.

We went back to Guest Services to let them know that out of the 3 wheelchair accessible rides that we went to so far had only 1 that was operational.  We were then told that the only accessible ride left that we didn’t go to was called Fyre Drill and it is closed for the day as it is too cold to operate the water boat.

Lady gave us 10 Single Attraction passes to skip queue lines to any attraction excluding Harry Potter and Donkey Kong ride. She also made a phone call to someone to have it set up which would allow us to skip the line for Toothless photo encounter.

How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk

We then headed to How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk to do the photo op, but first we wanted to explore the area.

We saw that the Fyre Drill boat ride was closed due to weather but got to take a picture with a couple Vikings.  My friend then went on Hiccup ‘s Wing Gliders ride while I waited on the side.

The Untrainable Dragon

The Untrainable Dragon is a 20 minute live musical show about a mysterious dragon that seemed impossible to train by Hiccup, Astrid and Gobber.  Accessible seating was at the front row and I thought it provided a great view of the stage.

Throughout the show, we see high tech dragon puppets, flashy but catchy musical numbers and even a giant Toothless dragon flying above the audience.  It is a high energy, family friendly show that is heart warming and definitely worth watching.  Being inside the theater gave us a break from the cold outside.

Hiccup and Toothless

We saw the long line to meet Hiccup and Toothless which looked to be around 90 minutes or so.  We were instructed to enter the exit line and to give the employee a code word so we could skip the entire line.  Toothless almost looked real as he blinks, moves and make sounds like you would think a dragon would make.  This is by far the most popular character meet, so we were lucky we got this due to 3 out of 4 accessible rides weren’t available today.

Toadstool Cafe

(Super Nintendo World)

We went back to Super Nintendo World so I could buy something from the gift shop there.  We saw that the line to Toadstool Cafe didn’t look too long so we lined up.  The line actually was looping inside but was moving at a good pace.  I have tried to eat at Toadstool Cafe at the Hollywood location during all 5 visits but reservations were always booked solid.

Once we actually got a table, we were told to scan our phones to mobile order.  The restaurant was so packed and quite busy.  The decor of the restaurant was quite bright and colorful.  There are green warp pipes and window scenes of some of the characters.

All the food items were themed to Mario world.  I ordered the Super Mushroom soup $7.99 and the Fire Flower spaghetti and meatballs $17.99.  Both tasted good but the prices were quite high compared to portion sizes.  It was great to be able to finally eat at this restaurant.

After we ate, we went to Donkey Kong Country for Mine Cart Madness since it was our next ride on the AAP.  I didn’t think this ride would be suitable for me so my friend went alone.

Dark Universe

I do really like the classic horror Universal series so I was excited to check out this area.  I loved all the gothic castles and the dark energy that this land provides.  We got photo ops with the Bride of Frankenstein and Frankenstein’s monster in a dark alley.

My friend went on Curse of the Werewolf while I just waited somewhere away from the wind and slight rain.  He also went on Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment.  This ride looked very high tech and I would have wanted to go on but it didn’t work for me.  We then checked out the gift shop before leaving this area.

We went back to Celestial Park to check out the area with all the lights on in the dark.  Helios Grand Hotel, Blue Dragon restaurant, and the lake really lit up with colorful lights.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic

We then went to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic area.  It was not as big as the areas in the Hollywood or the other Orlando locations but was still worth visiting.  The buildings and all the little shops look really cool and we saw people who bought a wizard’s wand use them to interact with certain points throughout the area to see some tricks.

Le Cirque Arcanus

The next thing we did was to go see the 20 minute Le Cirque Arcanus show.  Once we enter a small circus tent area, we get to see the pre show.  It uses practical and screen effects, live actors, and even a fantastic beast.  After the preview, we enter a hall and into the theater.  Accessible seating is at the front.

The performance uses dances, magic effects, strange and bizarre costumes and design.  Has everything you’d expect from a wizard circus.  The story is based on the second Fantastic Beasts film and starts off as a wizard circus, but a squib who works for the circus set free a magical creature from Newt’s suitcase, which had been stolen by Ringmaster Skender.  This show was very entertaining and worth watching.

Café L’air De La Sirène

We had time until our next AAP ride so we went to Café L’air De La Sirène to warm up inside.  It was so cold outside by this time, we each needed a hot butter beer.  I tried it regular and frozen before but never the hot version.  It was quite delicious and really hit the spot but not sure if worth $9.49 USD plus tax.

Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry

Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry has a transfer ride vehicle but was also broken that day and employee Hannah felt bad and told managers about our day and how I was only able to ride 1 of 4 accessible rides and couldn’t do this transfer ride.

When managers came they gave me a case number to get my $189 plus tax ticket refunded later at Guest services. Hannah also gave me $50 credit to the gift shop so I chose a $30 hat so Shane could get a key chain.

Final Thoughts

Despite the cold weather and the fact I was only able to go on 1 out of 4 wheelchair accessible rides, I still enjoyed my first ever visit to the brand new Epic Universe theme park.  We spent 13 hours at the park and was able to see the entire park and both live action shows.

I am very thankful to Hannah and the Universal management team for making it a great visit.  I will definitely return on a warmer day in the future to go on the other 3 accessible rides.  Did you visit this new theme park? Comment below.