Universal Orlando Resort
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Universal Orlando Resort is a theme park resort in Orlando, Florida. It is a joint partnership between NBC Universal and The Blackstone Group. The resort consists of two theme parks (Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure), CityWalk (a nighttime entertainment destination), and three Loews hotels. Recent ad campaigns have portrayed the park as a "grown-up" or more mature version of its cross-town rival, Walt Disney World Resort.
Universal Orlando is located at 28.475° -81.470, north of the International Drive resort Area, on a parcel of land framed by Interstate 4 to the south, State Road 435 (Florida) (Kirkman Road) to the east, Vineland Road to the north, and Turkey Lake Rd. to the west. The resort is directly accessible from Interstate 4 via Exit 74B, which empties eastbound onto Universal Blvd. and westbound onto Hollywood Way.
CityWalk
CityWalk includes the 20 screen Loews Universal Cineplex, numerous restaurants, shops, and clubs.
Dining
- Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville
- Hard Rock Cafe(this is the second Hard Rock Cafe built on Universal property. The first cafe was built near the Psycho house, E.T. Adventure, and Fievel's Playground. Although the first cafe was considered to be one of the largest in the chain Hard Rock Cafe closed down the restaurant to reopen in an even bigger facility and alongside Hard Rock Live in the Citywalk section)
- NASCAR Cafe
- Emeril's Restaurant Orlando
- NBA City
- Latin Quarter
- Pastamoré Ristoranté & Market
- Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. (opens July 1)
Entertainment
- Bob Marley - A Tribute to Freedom
- Pat O'Brien's
- CityJazz
- The Groove
- Hard Rock Live
- Red Coconut (formerly Decades Cafe)
Shopping
- Tommy Bahama
- Cartooniversal
- Cigarz at CityWalk
- Dapy
- The Endangered Species Store
- Fossil
- Fresh Produce
- Glow!
- Quiet Flight Surf Shop
- Universal Studios Store
- TCBY
- Barney Shop
Universal Studios Florida
Universal Studios Florida, opened in 1990, is a theme park that lets visitors "Ride the Movies." The park (or theme park) offers many shows and rides, along with countless other things for guests to see and do. Universal Studios combined with its sister park, Islands of Adventure, CityWalk, and several on-site hotels, combine to make a complete vacation destination.Attractions
- Fear Factor Live!
- E.T. Adventure
- Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast
- Shrek 4-D
- A Day in the Park with Barney
- Fievel's Playground
- Revenge of the Mummy
- [[Back to the Future: The Ride]]
- Earthquake: The Big One
- Men in Black: Alien Attack
- [[T2_3-D:_Battle_Across_Time|Terminator 2 3-D: Battle Across Time]]:
- Twister...Ride it Out
- Animal Actors On Location!
- BeetleJuice's Rock 'n' Roll Graveyard Revue
- The Blues Brothers
- Curious George Goes to Town
- Jaws
- Universal's Horror Make-Up Show
- Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster
Soundstages
The main buildings of Universal Studios Florida are Soundstages. In addition to the attractions, there are several soundstages that host various shows. Originally Soundstages 18 and 19 were exclusive to Nickelodeon Studios until Nickelodeon left in 2005, and most of Nickelodeon's game shows from 1989 on were produced there, including Get the Picture, Legends of the Hidden Temple, Family Double Dare, and so on. Among the productions hosted at USF in the past are World Championship Wrestling, major scenes of the movie Parenthood, the TV series version of Superboy, roller derby show RollerJam!, numerous commercials, and the Florida Lottery's Flamingo Fortune game show. It also hosted Wheel of Fortune when it visited Orlando while on national tours. Since June 2004, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling has produced its weekly television program, TNA iMPACT! from Soundstage 21, and has aired its pay-per-view events from the same place since November 2004; it is referred to as the "iMPACT! Zone" for this reason. Soundstage 33 can be rented out for private functions. Upcoming productions include future episodes of Fear Factor and Ellen Degeneres's self-titled talkshow.Former Attractions
- Kongfrontation-based on the film King Kong, opened in 1990 and closed in 2002, replaced by the Revenge of the Mummy attraction. The ride featured a queue which represented a New York City subway station. The ride itself took place in a Roosevelt Island cable car, where riders attempt to escape the wrath of Kong. Guests traveled through the streets of New York, had two encounters with the beast, and arrived safely at their destination. It was one of the more well-liked attractions in the park.
- Murder, She Wrote Mystery Theatre (Replaced by Hercules and Xena)
- Ghostbusters (Replaced by Twister)
- The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera (Replaced by Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast, the Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera ride was reborn in 2006 in The Park at MOA in the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota under the name "Yogi's Big Rescue")
- Nickelodeon Studios Tour (space currently derelict; queues used by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling for its events in Soundstage 21)
- Animal Planet Live (Replaced by Animal Actors On Location! )
- Alfred Hitchcock, The Art of Making Movies (Replaced by Shrek 4-D)
- The Wild, Wild, Wild West Stunt Show (Replaced by Fear Factor Live)
- Stage 54 (Replaced by an interactive experience with Donkey, connected to Shrek 4-D)
- [[Hercules: The Legendary Journeys|Hercules]] and [[Xena: Warrior Princess|Xena]] Television Experience (space currently derelict)
- Psycho home tour with video
Dining
- Universal Studios Classic Monster Cafe
- Finnegan's Bar & Grill
- Louie's Italian Restaurant
- Lombard's Seafood Grille
- Richter's Burger Co.
- Captain Quint's Seafood and Chowder House Restaurant
- International Food and Film Festival
- Cafe La Bamba
- Mel's Drive-In
Islands of Adventure
Islands of Adventure is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida. It opened in May 1999 as an expansion to the Universal Orlando Resort and CityWalk areas. The park is composed of six distinct "islands", each having its own theme. The six themed islands are:
Port of Entry
The Port of Entry is the area due north of the entrance, positioned at the southernmost point of the park. It is primarily a shopping center, and has the feel of an Arabian bazaar. Its main feature is the Confisco Grille restaurant.Marvel Super Hero Island
Located next to the Port of Entry, Marvel Super Hero Island has rides reminiscent of Marvel comic books. Its four rides are the Incredible Hulk Coaster, the only launched Bolliger and Mabillard roller coaster, The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man, a simulator ride set in New York, Doctor Doom's Fearfall, a vertically launched ride similar to Power Tower at Cedar Point in Ohio, and Storm Force Accelatron which is a faster version of the traditional Teacup ride.Toon Lagoon
Toon Lagoon is geared toward both kids and adults, and is based on the properties of both King Features Syndicate and Jay Ward comic strips. The area includes Dudley Do-right's Ripsaw Falls, a traditional flume ride advertised to have the steepest drop of any log flume in America (70° pitch), and Popeye and Bluto's Bilge-Rat Barges, a river rapids ride. It also has a kids' playground, Me Ship, the Olive.Jurassic Park
Set in the time of the Jurassic Park movie, the focal point of the area is the Jurassic Park River Adventure. While in line there is a CNN-like TV Network featuring Richard Attenborough as John Hammond welcoming you to Jurassic Park Parkgoers can view animatronic dinosaurs and experience an 85 foot drop while escaping the jaws of a menacing T-Rex. Also in Jurassic Park is Camp Jurassic, a children's play area, the Pteranodon Flyers (a suspended coaster type attraction), and the Jurassic Park Discovery Center, a replication (but not entirely duplicated) version of the Visitor Center from the film. Inside is a re-creation of the dinosaur skeletons seen in the movie center's lobby.
The Lost Continent
The land is themed to ancient myths and legends. The land features Dueling Dragons, a pair of dueling inverted roller coasters, Poseidon's Fury, and Flying Unicorn (a Vekoma junior roller coaster). This land is also home "Mythos", nominated the best theme park restaurant several times by Theme Park Insider, however the restaurant's menu has since been reduced.
Seuss Landing
Seuss Landing is only themed area at Islands of Adventure specially geared towards small children and is based on the works of the author Dr. Seuss. It has several Seuss-themed rides including the Caro-Seuss-el, The Cat in the Hat Ride, and If I Ran the Zoo, an interactive play zone for kids. It also features a One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish ride and the Green Eggs and Ham Cafe. One of the unique features of this area is, like in the books, there is not a single straight line anywhere.
Coming in June 2006, Seuss Landing will see the opening of a brand new attraction, The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride. The attraction was to open with the park as Sylvester McBean's Very Unusual Driving Machines, but was pushed back due to contractual disputes and safety issues. The bankruptcy of the ride's original manufacturer postponed its opening indefinitely. In March 2006, the track began being rebuilt for a summer 2006 opening. [link]
Former Attractions
While still entertaining park guests, Poseidon's Fury had a unique plot that was changed due to many factors, including guest confusion and budgetary concerns. It featured an old tour guide known as The Keeper who wove a tale about the great lost city of Atlantis. He led guests from a decorated temple into a lost chamber where the portal to Atlantis was opened, culminating in a breathtaking water vortex which is still in use by the current show. Guests were led through the portal into the Temple of Poseidon show arena. Poseidon appeared via large, 180 degree film screens and welcomed guests to their new permanent home. The Keeper revealed himself to be Zeus in disguise, and defeated Poseidon. The battle used water projection screens, fire and water effects, and ended with guests winding up back in the lost chamber. This effect was accomplished by the Temple of Poseidon's lights going out and walls identical to the previous lost chamber coming down around guests and lights being brought up again.Currently, the film screen is unused for most of the time, and Poseidon's role is played by a Zeus-dressed actor projected on water screens, who battles Darkenon, the show's new antagonist. Taylor, a nerdy archeologist is the new guide for the attraction. The first chamber has been redressed as a dark treasure room and guests are lead into the lost chamber after the portal, which opens up to be the Temple of Poseidon after a brief blackout.
When the park opened, a boat ride, Island Skipper Tours, took park guests around the central lagoon of Islands of Adventure. It had stops in Port of Entry across from the Confisco Grille restaurant, and in Jurassic Park adjacent to the Discovery Center. The ride was closed in 2002.
Originally, Toon Lagoon featured a live show with cartoon characters. It was replaced in 2002 by a Mat Hoffman-themed BMX stunt show. The space is currently used for Bill and Ted's Excellent Halloween Adventure (during Halloween Horror Nights) and the former BMX stunt show during peak seasonal weeks.
There used to be a Triceratops Encounter attraction in Jurassic Park that featured a lifelike animatronic dinosaur. It was converted into a more self-guided Discovery Trail, but was ultimately closed in 2005 and currently stands derelict.
Official Soundtrack Album
Islands of Adventure has an official soundtrack: [[Official Soundtrack Album: Universal Studios Islands Of Adventure]]Hotels
There are three themed hotels with transportation provided to CityWalk by boat. With the exception of a walkway from Hard Rock Hotel, the hotels are otherwise not directly connected to CityWalk and the theme parks, though they are on the same parcel of land. The hotels are operated by Loews Hotels. Guests of the hotels receive complimentary Universal Express access to bypass the regular queue at most attractions at the theme parks.Portofino Bay Hotel
A recreation of the Mediterranean seaside resort village of Portofino, Italy.Hard Rock Hotel
A musically-themed hotel. (It is totally separate from Hard Rock Cafe, which is located in CityWalk between the parks.)Royal Pacific Resort
A tropical, South Pacific themed hotel.External links
- [Official Resort Site]
- [Universal Orlando Resort on Google Maps]
- [Universal Excitement] - Fan site
- [islandsofadventure.com] - Fan site
- [Port of Adventure] - Fan site
- [Universal Ignited] - Fan site
- [IOA Central] - Fan site
| Roller coasters at Universal Orlando Resort |
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| Dueling Dragons - Flying Unicorn - Incredible Hulk - Pteranodon Flyers - Revenge of the Mummy - Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster |
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