Epic Universe Review: Top Rides and Insider Tips
- Practically Perfect Pixie Dust
- May 21
- 11 min read
Updated: May 27
A Magical Preview of Epic Universe
Officially Opened: May 22, 2025
On May 17, 2025 we were fortunate enough to attended one of the last preview days for Epic Universe before the gates officially swung open. (Make sure to take a peek at our check out our complete Epic Universe Park Guide for everything from lands to must-ride attractions ) After a whirl-wind Walt Disney World trip for Kim's birthday, we checked into Helios Grand Hotel, complete with a dedicated entrance straight into Epic Universe’s Celestial Park. We first snagged a new interactive wand and a PowerUp Band at the hotel store, then we settled into our room, had dinner at the rooftop bar, and headed off to bed, excited for our adventure!
🧚 Pixie Dust Pro Tips: For all deets on how Universal's new second generation wands and the new spell locations, be sure to revisit our deep dive on New Interactive Harry Potter wands now at Epic Universe—your one-stop guide to the original Next-Gen lineup, plus all the tips and tricks for maximizing your fun with your new wand. Need a little help with keeping up with those spell locations or your swish and flick? We've got your back there to, just head over to our Spell Location Cheat Sheets and Tips. 🧙♀️ Want to master every spell? Check out our Ultimate Guide to Interactive Harry Potter Wands at Universal Orlando for tips, spell locations, and everything you need to know to make your day extra magical!
Must-Do Attractions
We always go into a park day with a list of Must-Do Attractions. We usually try to keep it short and realistic, but this was our only day at Epic Universe on this trip, and since it was a new park we wanted to experience a lot of different things so we could write and post about them.
Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry
Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge
Mine Cart Madness
Stardust Racers
Hiccup’s Wing Gliders
Hiccup and Friends Meet and Greet
Monsters Unchained
Untrainable Dragon stage show
Plus, testing out PowerUp Bands and new next-generation Interactive Wands!
Heat Advisory
The weather was predicting temps soaring to 96°F, and we knew shade was scarce in the park. We knew to dress light, hydrate often, and sneak in those A/C breaks. (👉 Read our tips to Beat the Heat!)
Early Entry Mis-Adventures
We headed downstairs around 7:45 AM for early entry at 8 AM. A friend, who had attened one of the first preview days, had told us there would be a line right as the park opened, but it cleared fairly quickly. However, we discovered that this morning the line for security and park entry was snaking back and forth through the lobby and then out to the pool area. It took over an hour to make our way through the entry queue and into Epic Universe.
🧚 Pixie Dust Pro Tip: If you’re aiming for dawn-break thrills, plan to line up super early!
When we got into the park, right at 9 AM, we learned Mine Cart Madness and Curse of the Werewolf were closed for the day. We also learned that Harry Potter Battle at the Ministry and been switched from the dreaded virtual queue to a standby one (2–5 hr waits!).
We are off - sort of.
9:00 AM - Mishap 2. Our first stop was a nearby Guest Services kiosk to pick up Kim’s pre-approved Accessibility Pass, only to discover that we needed to go to the main Guest Services building at the park entrance. Thankfully, they added us to a virtual queue and we headed up toward the front of the park, taking pictures and browsing though shops.
(Learn more in our guide to Universal’s Accessibility Pass.)
We lost a lot of time navigating this process, but were finally successful nearly and hour later. We then rented a Electronic Conveyance Vehicle (EVC), Bren was rehabbing a knee injury on this trip. You can read more about managing Universal Orlando with limited mobility here. Afterwards, we swung by Starbucks for a quick pick me up. (Snafu number 3) However, it was not quick, not even a little bit. We expected Disney Strarbuck busy with long lines that moved quickly, and orders that came out after a small wait. The line moved quickly, but then it took nearly 40 minutes to get our order. They did not seem prepared to handle the volume of guests they had that morning - we will not be doing this again.
Let the fun finally begin!
Celestial Park
Finally, we were able to get our first attraction return time - Stardust Racers, which had a stand-by line of 50 minutes.
While wating for our come-back time we enjoyed the less crowded Celestial Park and made videos for the 'Gram and TikTok. At 11:45 AM we headed back to Stardust Racers!
11:50 AM - Stardust Racers is Epic Universe’s signature dueling roller coaster that rockets you up to 62 mph and climbs to heights of 133 feet. There are two different tracks, green and yellow, with slightly different experiences. We opted for the green side, and zoomed along nearly a mile of dynamic, curving track screaming and giggling. Thrill-seekers who love high-G coasters will adore this one (it’s just a titch milder than VelociCoaster.) Kim scored it a perfect 10/10, Bren gave it a 6/10, and Lyn gave it a hard pass.
12:15 PM - Next, we strolled into The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic to lock in a return time for Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry. At that moment, the standby queue hovered just above two hours—and it bounced between two and five hours all day! We grabed a couple of videos and photos in the sweltering heat of the Wizarding World (seriously, bring extra water and sunscreen!), before heading out, knowing we'd be back in a couple of hours.
How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk
We wandered into How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk planning meet Hiccup and Toothless - and grab those famous Mac & Cheese cones from Hooligan’s Grog & Gruel for lunch. The Island was phenomenally themed - complete with a viking village, roaming, characters, and dragons tucked away in hidden nooks, and appeard to be the biggest of the lands in Epic Universe. But with the midday heat cranking up to volcanic levels, we scrapped our plans and instead headed for Mead Hall for lunch and spent sometime hydrating in the blissful A/C. We shared:
Berserker’s Meatballs ($17.99) Swedish meatballs in onion gravy with lingonberry jam and smashed root veggies
Barf & Belch’s Duo Plate ($9.49) Mac & cheese bites, grilled sausage, carrots, Nordic fries, and grapes on the vine
Nordic Harvest Salad (Vegan, $12.99) Kale, arugula, red cabbage, ancient grains, blueberries, radishes, apples, trail mix & raspberry-walnut vinaigrette
Everything was delicious - and just what we needed to cool off. After lunch, we browsed the Isle of Berk shops, hunted for hidden dragon, and grabbed some videos and photos before heading back to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic for our most anticipated ride of the day.
Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic
As Potter-heads we were a little concerned about how successful Epic Universe would be a blending two entirely different time-frames and locations (the 1920's magical Paris of Newt Scamander, and the Ministry of Magic just after Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows). But the experience here was immersive and top-notch. The streets of Paris felt very realistic for the time, and costumed Aurors and students of the top wizarding schools roamed the area alongside park guests. The transition to the indoor Battle at the Ministry queue was accessed through a magical portal that zipped your though time and space, opening into an amazing view which created the same awe as the first time we stepping into the Storm Trooper room in Rise of the Resistance in Disney's Hollywood Studios.
2:00 PM - We finally boarded Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry—and wow, what an experience! The queue itself is a mini-attraction, with stunning sets and incredible theming, and the ride delivers next-gen animatronics and a crystal-clear storyline that kept us all on the edge of our seats. Despite the thrills, Lyn experienced zero motion-sickness, and we unanimously rated it a perfect 10/10.
2:30 PM - We checked the park map, planning to snag a return time for Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge or Hiccup’s Wing Gliders, only to find both rides temporarily offline. Since we were in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter we decided to hit the 3:00 PM showing of Le Cirque Arcana. This show was amazing, the performers, puppetry, and special effects were all truely magical. We all agreed it’s well worth it—our score: 8/10.
🧚 Pixie Dust Pro Tip for ECV users: you can’t roll right into the queue, so when they offer you a wheelchair to access the queue take it - there’s a lot of standing involved while waiting, including the seven minute pre-show.
Next, we ducked into Café L’air De La Sirène for a cool snack break, sharing a Bièraubeurre Crêpe ($19.99) - shortbread-cookie butter Bavarian cream, fresh strawberries, and golden drizzle - alongside a Lavender Lemonade ($5.49) and a Frozen Butterbeer ($8.99), that sweet, butterscotch-y delight. The Crêpe was chilled and just the right amount of sweet for a hot afternoon. We enjoyed all if it very much.
We took one more quick moment for wand-waving and character spotting before we discovered most of the attractions were back online. We bopped over to SUPER NINTENDO WORLD and grabbed a return time for Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge and headed off toward Dark Universe.
Dark Universe
4:30 PM – We were excited to explore this land, and had orginally planned to visit at night, for maximum spook-factor. However, since we had lost so much time in the morning to our many snafus, we wanted to make sure to take a peek, so as not to miss it. Dark Universe appears smaller than the other portal areas, but the theming was super immersive with twisting pathways and looming eerie buildings. The roaming characters did not feel like meet and greets, but rather as if you were interacting with the actual residents of this spooky land. However, while many areas of the park had begun to cool down, this portal was still exceedingly hot, with scarcely and shade, making it a little hard to fully enjoy the expereince.
Monsters Unchained had just a 10-minute wait, so we headed straight there. The next-gen animatronics were phenomenal with a blend of dark-ride storytelling thrills, using the same ride vehicles as Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey in Island of Adventure. Bren scored it an 8/10, Kim a 7/10, and Lyn a 4/10 (she loved the animatronics but the ride gave her a motion sickness headache).
As a sweet bonus, we spotted the infamous roaming character Igor, who delighted Kim with a raspy “Happy Birthday!”
SUPER NINTENDO WORLD™
5:30 PM – We zipped into SUPER NINTENDO WORLD™, eager to put our freshly minted PowerUp Bands - scope out our Ultimate Epic Universe PowerUp Band Guide for the how-tos and hidden perks! - through their paces before hopping in line for Super Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge.
However...this area was crowded. Certainly the most crowded area in Epic Universe that we expereinced. All of the fun mini-games you can play with your Power-Up bands had fairly long lines, as did the entry to the Bowser Jr. Shadow Showdown boss battle. Also, as all the released photos of the land hand shown, it is full of stairs. While there were elevators, it was nearly impossible to navigate at all with an ECV. After a few attempts at some of the fun, we decided to revisit this in October when we would have more time, and jaunted over to Super Mario Kart™:Bowser's Challenge.
Super Mario Kart™: Bowser's Challenge. The queue itself was packed with interactive fun—right up until the ride went off line. After waiting for another half an hour, it was back up and we continued on to the ride itself. We boarded a four person kart fitted with a personal Nintendo-styled steering wheel and buttons for each rider. The ride itself is a video game that can link to your PowerUp band, with each player earning coins along the track.The AR gameplay was a breeze to use and ride was fun! 7/10.
After the delay on Bowser’s Challenge, we decided to skip Yoshi’s Adventure and instead snag a return time for Hiccup’s Wing Gliders.
How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk - Take 2
6:45 PM - We grabbed our return time for Hiccup's Wing Gliders and had 45 minutes to kill. At that point we decided to divide and conquer the Isle of Berk.
Kim zoomed over to Dragon Racer’s Rally (zero wait!), but found the dragon controls physically harder to manipulated than expected - she scored it a 4/10.
Bren & Lyn caught the final Untrainable Dragon show of the day. The singing was on point and Toothless’s aerial entrance stole the show - but then a technical hiccup caused the show to stall, and the guests were evacuated. Universal gave everyone a paper Express Pass that was redeemable on any experience (excluding Ministry of Magic and Mine Cart Madness, which wasn’t running anyway).
7:30 PM – We regrouped with Kim for Hiccup’s Wing Gliders, an exhilarating coaster that hits the sweet spot between speed and thrills. This ride is similar to, but not quite as delightful as Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure at Island of Adventure. Kim scored it an 8/10, and Bren and Lyn both gave it a 9/10!
7:55 PM - The park was about to close, but Kim and Bren dashed back to Stardust Racers to use the Express Passes for one last spin. With the pass, they breezed into the queue and tackled the Yellow Track—Kim scored it a 10/10, while Bren found it a bit rougher at a 5/10. Meanwhile, Lyn lingered to snap photos of the roaming Viking characters right as the park was closing.
With the park closed we had to abandon our dinner plans at Das Stakehouse in Dark Universe, so we returned the ECV, to the front of the park, grabbed a few fabulous nighttime shots of the near-empty park, then wandered back to Helios Grand Hotel. There, we ordered room service, kicked off our shoes, enjoyed the views of Epic Universe outside of our window, and let the day’s magic fade into sweet dreams.
Wrap-Up & Pixie Pro Tips
Epic Universe is still learning its magic, and so are we! Despite morning curveballs, we conquered nearly every must-do (except Mine Cart Madness and the Hiccup/Toothless meet-and-greet).
Most queues are indoors - huge win for heat relief - though the attractions at Isle of Berk, Stardust Racers, and the queue for Le Cirque Arcana were all out of doors and kept you in the heat. However all of the queues areas were covered and had fans.
Pixie Dust 🧚 Accessibility note: ECV users, be ready to transfer into wheelchairs for queues and ask cast members where elevators live, they are not always apparent.
One other hiccup - even with Helios Grand Hotel at the doorstep of Epic Universe, we found some unexpected issues. You first have to brave the hefty line through security when leaving the hotel, and then you still have to hoof it to the main gate to snag a scooter or stroller. For a hotel that touts instant park access (at a premium price), that morning “gauntlet” feels a bit off-kilter. Here’s hoping Universal irons out these kinks - otherwise, that Helios splurge might not sparkle as brightly next time.
All in all, Epic Universe delivered unforgettable thrills. We’ll be back in October for two whole Epic Universe days, a park-hopping plan for the other Universal parks, plus a couple of Disney days to round it out. So, keep your wand at the ready and your park shoes laced, the next wave of Pixie-Dust-powered tips is just around the corner. Bookmark this guide, follow along on our socials, and get ready to join us for even more spell-binding strategies when we portal back in October. 🪄✨🧚✨
Pixie Dust Hugs,
Brenda, Lyn, and Kim
Planning a Universal Orlando Vacation? Click here for our planning guide with all the must-knows. Want all the latest deets on Epic Universe? Need tips for accessibility travel for Universal Orlando? Planning a Walt Disney World Vaca? Click here for our tailored Disney planning guide. Looking for an expert to help plan your Practically Perfect Vacation? Need help navigating all the details? Click here to Book with Bren.
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