After receiving some blowback feedback, Universal Orlando Resort has extended the operating hours for its new Epic Universe theme park. A little less than two weeks ago Universal published the park hours for Epic Universe’s opening weeks of operation. The park was scheduled to be open from 9am to 9pm. That meant that Universal’s groundbreaking new theme park would have the same operating hours as Universal Studios Florida, and one less hour than Islands of Adventure on Epic’s opening day. Obviously, that’s not great for a brand new theme park, and it was made even worse by the fact that Epic Universe looks great at night.
Presumably hearing the feedback, Universal has extended park hours. Here’s the latest.
Universal Extends Epic Universe Hours
Instead of a 9am to 9pm operating schedule for the opening weeks, Epic Universe will now have a 9am to 10pm schedule. It still falls short of an 11pm close that the park deserves, but there’s probably some balance here at play between guest expectations and operational reality. The operational reality is that many of Epic Universe’s attractions are continuing to experience lengthy delays. If I were Universal right now, a little over two weeks away from a grand opening, I’d be sweating a bit. Hopefully, they’re able to work the issues out and have a smooth opening.
That said, the reality is that these rides will need downtime, and plenty of it. That’s where the balance comes into play. Universal presumably heard fans cry for park hours into the evening, and the compromise here was an extra hour. It’s not nothing, and it’s good to see Universal giving a bit here because the park really does look great after dark.
Moving forward, here’s the current park schedule for May and June:
- May 22 to June 1: 9am to 10pm
- June 2 to June 15: 10am to 9pm
- June 16: 10am to 10pm
- June 17 to June 22: 10am to 9pm
- June 23, 24: 10am to 10pm
- June 25 to June 29: 10am to 9pm
- June 30: 10am to 10pm
Obviously, those 10am to 9pm days are not great. Hopefully Universal will continue to extend hours as demand necessitates. Ideally, we’d see the park operate 9am to 11pm, but those are Magic Kingdom numbers and Epic Universe will not find itself as highly attended as the number one theme park in the world. I’d even be happy with a 10pm to 11pm schedule. Anything to extend the park hours as far past sunset as possible will allow the park to shine (and crowds to dissipate, but that’s a bit selfish).
For our comprehensive review of Universal Epic Universe, check out our article below!
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