THE DAY IS HERE!
Epic Universe
Epic Universe, Universal Orlando’s newest park, is officially open to the public, and to celebrate, they had a grand opening ceremony. We’re not trying to be dramatic when we say this ceremony was EPIC (now that the park is open, get ready for ALL the epic puns).
Welcome to Epic Universe! This is the “blue” carpet where different guests arrived.
Welcome!
Everyone is here to celebrate this brand-new theme park. It’s packed!
Crowds!
Each of the lands had its own special ceremony. For How to Train Your Dragon — Isle of Berk, an actual Viking ship came in with an ice sculpture!
A Viking Ship!
The boat was filled with real fish and lobster. Epic Universe is not messing around.
This is crazy!
Over in Dark Universe, Ygor met the voice of Ygor and had a great time hanging out together.
Even famous Harry Potter stars came to Epic Universe to celebrate the opening.
After a fun day of exploring the parks, the sky got dark, and you know what that means at a theme park — FIREWORKS!
They were stunning!
With the fountains and lights moving in Celestial Park, the whole scene was beautiful. The fireworks were going on above with an incredible music score.
Beautiful!
Then the drones came in!
DRONES!
All five lands were represented in the show, including Super Nintendo World…
So many bright colors!
…How to Train Your Dragon — Isle of Berk…
We, my friends, have fireworks
…and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter — Ministry of Magic.
Truly magical!
The whole celebration felt as exciting as when we first ran through the portals and experienced the new park for ourselves. We don’t get brand new theme parks too often, and as theme park nerds, we’re having the time of our lives.
This grand opening felt like a long time coming, and we can officially welcome Epic Universe to the theme park family. We’re so ready to explore, eat all the food, ride the rides, and share all the details so you can have the best trip ever. Make sure you’re following DFB so you get all the information and plan for your first visit.
COMPLETE GUIDE TO BUYING EPIC UNIVERSE TICKETS
Are you excited that Epic Universe is officially open? Tell us what you’re looking forward to in the comments!
Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. Today, we were invited by Universal Orlando to attend their media preview of Epic Universe Grand Opening. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ
Our handy (and portable!) ebook guides make sure you get the best deals and can plan a vacation of a lifetime.
TRENDING NOW
Disney made some BIG Halloween announcements recently.
We've found the best Disney gifts for your mom!
Disney has filed two new permits for the Indiana Jones attraction coming to Animal Kingdom.
Stop buying this at the park when it's so much cheaper on Amazon!
Disney just dropped NEW details about Lakeshore Lodge!
If you're driving to Disney World, make sure to keep these laws in mind.
Cast Member previews have been announced for two Disney World attractions.
Lots of construction remains in Disney World, but one big project just finished up!
What's happening with the Haunted Mansion?
This restaurant SURPRISED us.
Check out Columbia's new Disney collection!
If you’re dreaming of shorter lines, easier dining reservations, and a more relaxed vibe, timing...
The Jamba smoothie bar at Downtown Disney is closing after 23 years.
Disney Imagineering filed four permits for Monstropolis!
We love Minnie's classic red dress just as much as we love red lipstick! Now,...
Disney just shared a shriek peek at Halloween merchandise coming this year -- including exclusive...
Who's ready to earn SO many hotel points?
Some unwritten/unofficial rules are made to be broken.
Disneyland is bringing back four snacks for Halloween!
Disneyland's rules are looking a little different in 2026.