Universal Orlando Resort this month announced that its new theme park Universal Epic Universe will open on May 22. Travel advisors last week had their first crack at selling multiday tickets to the park, which joins Universal Studios Florida, Universal Islands of Adventure and water park Volcano Bay at Universal’s Orlando campus. Senior editor Jamie Biesiada spoke with Adam Duckworth, president and founder of Travelmation in Fort Lauderdale (No. 59 on Travel Weekly’s Power List), the day before ticket sales began on Oct. 22.
Adam Duckworth
Q: We finally have a date. What are you hearing from clients? Are they excited?
A: We have had lists a mile long for what seems like months of folks ready to book this product. Clients are excited; they’ve been waiting for this day.
Q: Why is the excitement level for Epic so high?
A: I think when you’re a theme park fan, or you love to vacation at theme parks, you’re just always going to geek out about new stuff. And outside of waterparks, I don’t believe we’ve had a new theme park, especially in Orlando, since Islands of Adventure [in 1999].
Q: Right, and that was right after Disney’s Animal Kingdom opened in 1998.
A: And then Disney California Adventure [at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif.] opened in 2001.
I think the theme park guru or fan, yes, we get excited about attractions. Yes, we get excited about dining offerings in the park. But there is nothing that riles us up like a new park. When a new park opens and you smell the new theme park, and you taste the new theme park and you’ve got new hotels, people are jazzed up. There’s so many nooks and crannies they’ve never seen before, and so many snack options and not to mention the all-new attractions — that is what charges you up.
Q: Speaking of new hotels, we’re getting three: Universal Helios Grand Hotel, Universal Stella Nova Resort and Universal Terra Luna Resort. I’m hearing Helios is the most popular, with its dedicated entrance to Epic.
A: We’re hearing the same. We’re hearing that Helios is this experience inside of a theme park. There’s always the momentum surrounding the closer you can get to the park; it makes your experience so much easier. However, the two other properties that they’re creating, there’s some buzz around them. I understand that Universal is opening them before Epic so that folks could try them out and they can get to see the new shiny toy before Epic opens. I think that’s a smart move.
Q: Looking at the park itself, one of the things that intrigues me is that the five themed worlds of Epic Universe can seemingly only be entered and exited via a single portal — one way in, one way out. What do you think?
A: It’s definitely going to be interesting. I bet you there are not very many people who know that the portals are the only way in and out of a particular area. I bet you that they’re going to be looking for exits. When that doesn’t exist, I think you’ll see people probably pick it up pretty quickly.
The question will be about guest flow. Not being in an experience like this before, my question is: How’s the guest flow going to be? Is it going to work? [Is Universal] going to have to drill holes a year into this thing, or drill walls and put some doors in other places?
I think they’re pretty committed to the design of it because it’s so pure in nature. As a theme park fan, I love it. There’s one way in, and there’s one way out. I think the jury is out in terms of the guest satisfaction on that particular strategy, but I’m excited to see.
