Universal parks are among the the most visited amusement parks in the entire world, with 5 spots in 4 various countries. These parks maintain the rights to some of the most sought-after IP, from Nintendo to Jurassic Park to Harry Potter, and back again them up with theming just as spellbinding. Universal puts their all into their rides, walkways, and queue lines to craft a really immersive park expertise, by some means balancing regularity amongst parks whilst getting methods to established every place aside.
Impression: UniversalFor modern park duel, we’ll be placing the two stateside parks to the check, position Universal Orlando and Common Studios Hollywood in four categories—rides, non-experience points of interest, activities, and total experience—to discover which American Common park can take the cake.
Rides
The rides at Universal parks function intricate theming devoid of sacrificing thrills. The parks consider entire advantage of their somewhat more time hold out instances by making the queues part of the tale, not compared with Disney parks.
It truly is not a mystery that Common Hollywood is considerably lesser than its East coast counterpart. And though it helps make up for a deficiency of space with specifically one of a kind charms (we are going to get to that later), Universal Hollywood provides pretty couple of rides that are not also offered in Orlando. Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, Flight of the Hippogriff, Revenge of the Mummy, and The Simpsons Experience are amid the rides discovered at equally parks, some with only slight variances, other individuals actual clones. Think about Hollywood a sampling platter of the most traditional rides you can discover in Orlando. Common Studios Hollywood’s exclusive rides involve Magic formula Daily life of Pets and Jurassic Globe – The Journey, a new variation of Orlando’s River Experience Trip updated to the a lot more the latest trilogy of films.
Impression: UniversalUniversal Orlando Vacation resort, which involves two different parks in Common Studios and Universal’s Islands of Journey, has some environment-course rides you can only come across in Florida. The latest addition to the park, VelociCoaster, speedily climbed to a lot of coast enthusiasts’ variety 1 location, if not firmly in the top a few. This Intamin launch coaster capabilities speeds of 70mph, a near-vertical top rated hat factor, and a barrel roll in excess of the lake. Other notable attractions observed strictly in Florida include Escape from Gringotts, Rip Journey Rockit, Unbelievable Hulk Coaster, and Hagrid’s Magical Creature Motorbike Journey.
Image: UniversalDue to the sheer amount of rides, Universal Orlando Resort wins this round.
Non-Experience Attractions
Though I am the to start with to say that you go to an amusement park mainly for the rides, the effort and creativity set forth by Common imaginative teams makes the non-ride attractions just as iconic and interesting as the twists and turns of VelociCoaster.
Common Orlando delivers a range of demonstrates and activities. A single of my private favorites is the Horror Make-Up Show. This demonstrate can take you driving the scenes of classic film monsters with interactive demonstrations, jokes, and marketplace secrets. Also readily available are Poseidon’s Fury, Bourne Breathtaking, and outside interactions such as The Tales of Beedle the Bard.
Impression: UniversalShows located at both equally parks contain Animal Actors, Triwizard Spirit Rally, Raptor Experience, and the Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle.
Common Studios Hollywood, however, has a trick up its sleeve in its iconic studio tour. A functioning film studio, this large amount features 400 acres of equally legendary and model-new film sets. This tour is a hybrid encounter, mixing a conventional tour with trip elements—Jaws, Quickly and Furious Supercharged, and King Kong, to name a few. In 2022, park visitors could even working experience the serious motion picture established from Jordan Peele’s film NOPE. This wholly exceptional practical experience boosts Common Hollywood into the quantity one particular spot for non-ride attractions.
Occasions
Both of these parks, as opposed to lots of parks in the States, are open 12 months spherical, giving a assortment of holiday-themed situations.
Impression: UniversalThe most legendary Universal occasion, found at both parks in the Fall, is unarguably Halloween Horror Evenings. Florida had 10 residences in 2022 for Hollywood’s 8, but that is not accounting for Hollywood’s Terror Tram, which has no counterpart in Orlando.
Christmas events can be uncovered at each parks with slight variants. Whilst Hollywood has Hollywood at Common Studios and Eve, a New Year’s Eve occasion, Orlando has Grinchmas and Christmas in the Wizarding Environment. Common Orlando also on a yearly basis hosts Rock the Universe, a Christian audio pageant.
Graphic: UniversalBecause these parks have many of the identical choices and go all-out for functions, this category is a tie.
Overall Encounter
Over-all encounter is in which these two parks differ the most. As beforehand talked about, Universal Studios Hollywood is substantially more compact than Common Orlando Resort, and that’s mainly because Universal Orlando is just that—a resort. Common Orlando has onsite resorts like Cabana Bay, Aventura, and Loews Sapphire Falls that all offer shuttle/ferry services and early admission into the parks. At the park itself, Orlando has its two primary parks, Universal Studios and Islands of Journey, as well as a water park in Volcano Bay. This park, to be savored in its entirety, is a multi-day expertise, designed to transportation you out of Orlando, Florida, into a world of films and magic.
Hollywood, on the other hand, capitalizes off its locale in the centre of an presently packed town heart. This park is just not striving to transportation you in other places, but plays up the glow of L.A. The sights, appears, and points of interest are meant to remind you exactly where you are, appropriate in the middle of motion picture background. This park can be liked in a one day.
Image: UniversalUniversal Studios Hollywood truly presents an encounter exceptional from any other park in the earth, a fully-operating theme park sitting on top rated of a completely-working motion picture studio, appropriate in the center of a big town. It is really a must-do for any motion picture lover or concept park lover. Irrespective, when it arrives to all-all over park practical experience, it is challenging to defeat Common Orlando Vacation resort.
The Verdict
Following a tie in the 3rd spherical, the factors tally out to 3-2 in favor of Common Orlando Resort. This park is an all-rounder. It really is acquired the entire world-class rides, the displays, the wall-to-wall theming, and now, according to Theme Park Tourist, the title of most effective stateside Common park.
Universal Orlando Resort Vs. Common Studios Hollywood, which receives your vote? Permit us know in our poll or by leaving us a remark underneath or on our Fb web page.
