New attractions ramp up Central Florida’s theme-park wars
Universal struck first this year in the theme-park arms race with the April grand opening of Fast & Furious — Supercharged ride. Disney’s counterpunch will come in June with Toy Story Land.
SeaWorld is seeking to get into the ring, too, as it opens several new water rides and a Sesame Street land in Orlando.
The new attractions war among Orlando’s major theme parks has been waging for years now.
Here’s a look back and what’s in store:
2010
By 5:30 a.m. — four hours before the grand opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter — the lines were already heavy. Some suffered eight-hour waits to enter the park. The $200 million Harry Potter land based on the popular books and movies became an instant game changer for Universal’s Islands of Adventure. In less than a month of its opening, more than a half-million rides were taken on Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, and for the first time in more than two
years, Universal Orlando posted an attendance gain. Just half a year of Harry Potter was enough to lift Universal Orlando’s full-year attendance by 20 percent.
2012
Disney’s fight to regain the spotlight from the boy wizard came two years later with the New Fantasyland at Magic Kingdom. Disney opened the $425 million expansion as it sought to restore its pre-recession profit margins. Children rejoiced with new rides such as Under the Sea — Journey of The Little Mermaid. Another anchor attraction, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train roller coaster, opened in 2014. And parents, broken down by long lines in the hot sun and their children’s tantrums, also rejoiced as Be Our Guest, a Beauty and the Beastthemed restaurant, sold alcohol for the first time in the Magic Kingdom.
2013
A chilly 30-degree habitat for penguins was part of SeaWorld’s most ambitious expansion in the Orlando park’s nearly 40-year history when it opened Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin. But it was not enough for the company to overcome attendance struggles as the company began dealing with a backlash from the anti-whale captivity documentary “Blackfish.”
“Can Transformers help Universal Studios Florida regain mojo with visitors?” was the Orlando Sentinel headline as Universal’s Harry Potter shine began to wear off. Universal executives hailed the groundbreaking Transformers ride as intense and packed with special effects. It paid off. Transformers helped Universal’s parent company post its strongest quarterly performance in its history, the company said in October 2013.
2014
Expectations were high, the ride wait time long (450 minutes) and then Comcast Corp.’s revenue soaring by the time the next chapter of Harry Potter opened up, allowing Muggles to ride Hogwarts Express and walk through Diagon Alley at Universal Studios. Theme park enthusiasts were wowed by the attention to detail.
2016
SeaWorld’s Mako was pegged with plenty of hype when it opened as Orlando’s tallest, longest, fastest coaster. “I can describe it in one word: Breathtaking,” wrote longtime Sentinel theme parks reporter Dewayne Bevil in a column after an estimated 73 mph ride that took him up a dizzying 200 feet in the air and along more than 4,700 feet of track. Mako debuted as the company focused more on rides and attractions and less on animal shows.
2017
For the typical fan, the movie “Avatar” lacks the memorable oneliners and characters of other Disney movies. But that hasn’t stopped Pandora: The World of Avatar from drawing record-breaking crowds and rave reviews for its Flight of Passage thrill ride since the 12-acre land opened at Animal Kingdom. Pandora helped bring record attendance at Animal Kingdom and Walt Disney World as a whole, executives said in February 2018 during the quarterly earnings call.
That same year, a volcano opened up for business off Interstate 4. Volcano Bay, Universal’s new water park was regularly touted by company executives for helping fuel financial growth during quarterly shareholder earnings calls.
2018
Fast cars. Vin Diesel driving fast cars. Universal’s newest ride based off the popular “Fast & Furious” franchise is officially open to the public at Universal Studios. Universal also showcased the ride to the media.
Disney wants to capitalize on the beloved “Toy Story” franchise when it opens an 11-acre land at Hollywood Studios. A Slinky Dog roller coaster — with a thrill level similar to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom — and an alien saucer attraction where guests spiral around on rockets are the two new rides when the latest expansion opens June 30.
SeaWorld is in spending mode as it builds new rides across its parks to attract more visitors through the turnstiles. In Orlando, the upcoming attractions announced to open sometime this year are Infinity Falls, a river raft ride with a 40-foot drop at SeaWorld Orlando, and Ray Rush, a raft ride at the Aquatica water park.
2019
Theme park experts have warned the lines could be recordbreaking long when Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opens in Orlando after a similar land debuts first at Disneyland. The anticipation is high. One marquee attraction will let visitors fly the Millennium Falcon while another ride sticks you in a Star Destroyer. That same year, Disney announced it will also open Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway where riders get state-of-the-art 3-D effects without wearing special glasses at Hollywood Studios where the Great Movie Ride was once located.
On Wednesday SeaWorld Orlando announced a spring 2019 opening day for the new Sesame Street land. The theme park is overhauling Shamu’s Happy Harbor play area and plan to add a daily parade for the first time, a wet and dry play area as well as iconic locations from the television show. “We’d like to build the actual Sesame Street that kids can be on and walk down,” then-SeaWorld Entertainment CEO Joel Manby said last year.
TBD
We know a Nintendo-themed expansion is coming to Orlando. But we don’t know when. What we do know is that construction began last year for Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan, and the company has acquired more land in Orlando for potential development.
Disney also is building a trio of new attractions. It announced in 2017 it will add a “Tron” ride at Magic Kingdom near Space Mountain; also in the works at Epcot are a “Guardians of the Galaxy” ride and a “Ratatouille”-themed ride in France.
May the theme-park wars continue.