This is the time of year when spring break families head to Central Florida’s tourist hotspots, and they’ll likely be accompanied by some local residents as well.
The past 12 months have brought significant changes to the theme park landscape. If you’re going to beat the crowds, it’s best to prioritize with appropriate expectations. This list is divided into what’s new, what’s not yet developed, and what’s not promising for 2026. In some cases, you’ll be lucky next year (or maybe next year).
new things
For those who missed the Super Bowl spot, the ad campaign that followed, or the slew of media coverage, Universal Orlando added Epic Universe, the area’s first new theme park in a generation, last spring. This immediately introduced four new roller coasters, a dark ride with animated monsters, a one-of-a-kind Harry Potter Wizarding World, and the accompanying restaurants and themed entertainment options that people have come to expect.
Epic is busy, but with daily capacity limits, it’s probably not as crowded as you might think. Universal currently offers multi-day tickets starting at the 3-day tier that allow for “free travel” between Epic Universe and other parks. This could be a workaround for rides with a history of long lines.
As always, read the fine print for limitations. Ticket prices vary by date, but generally the longer you stay, the cheaper the price per day. Yes, you should do math during spring break.
• Walt Disney World has introduced two lounges, one for adults and one for families. Epcot’s GEO 82 is adults-only, with a chilly but sometimes sweaty atmosphere and views of the World Showcase Lagoon from a perch inside the Spaceship Earth attraction. Magic Kingdom’s Beak and Barrel explores the pirate theme with a story, an animatronic bird named Ramy, a limited menu (but with octopus tentacles), both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, and a 45-minute time limit.
Advance reservations are required for both spots. If you fail in this regard, it doesn’t hurt to check again later, even if it’s your desired date.
• The Magic Kingdom is lit up again, but it has nothing to do with Beak and Barrel. For the first time in several years, the park will hold a nightly night parade called “Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away.” The floats are fanciful and full of character, resembling movies like “Moana,” “Encanto,” “Frozen” and “Pinocchio.” The nightly clock-out time is 8:30 PM, but during busy periods we also have a 10:30 PM clock-out time on certain nights. (My Disney Experience app tells me everything.)
• Two stage shows debut at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. “Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After,” held at a theater near the Tower of Terror, features a variety of villains competing and making creative use of the screen. “The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure” sticks to Ariel’s familiar script and, unlike previous “Mermaid” films, also incorporates “Kiss the Girl.”
2026 Foodie Award Winners List Revealed — See Who Wins
• Disney’s Animal Kingdom is currently hosting Zootopia: Better Zoogather, a 3D show within a show inside the park’s Tree of Life. It redid the theater in place of “It’s Tough to Be a Bug” and removed that nasty backpoke effect.
• SeaWorld Orlando has opened a flying theater attraction called Expedition Odyssey. Simulate travel over the North Pole. After landing, visitors can explore live animal exhibits including beluga whales and walruses.
• If you want to smell a new coaster, look no further than Legoland Florida’s Galactic Coaster, a space-themed family thrill ride that opened last month. It’s not very intense, but there is a punchy launch early on in the attraction. Winter Haven Resort is also home to the new SEA LIFE Florida Aquarium, a separately ticketed attraction.
• Orlando’s theme parks host three major festivals and plenty of grazing options, so you won’t go hungry. Universal’s Mardi Gras Celebration at Universal Studios, Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival, and the Seven Seas Food Festival at SeaWorld Orlando on select days are underway.
• Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition, an attraction on International Drive, added a black glass necklace found in the famous ship’s debris field to its exhibit and then began offering a virtual reality add-on experience where visitors can sit and tour part of the ocean liner.
• The LC-39 gantry has been added to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex bus tour as a stop. It includes an interactive rocket design experience, the highlight of which is a test launch simulation.
• Madame Tussauds in Orlando displayed wax figures of some of the freshest stars, including Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez and Jeff Goldblum.
still
• Several projects are underway at Icon Park. Blue Man Group will begin presenting new shows at a new theater near the base of the Orlando Eye starting May 1st. Construction is well underway on the indoor Ripley Crazy Golf course and the multi-story Building-A-Bear store near the corner of I-Drive and Via Mercado.
• A submersible-themed suspended ride called SEAQuest: Legends of the Deep is under construction at SeaWorld Orlando. The park is scheduled to open in 2026.
• Orlando Science Center’s renovated Dome Theater is scheduled to open this summer.
• Magic Kingdom has two rides undergoing renovations and are scheduled to return this spring. Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin returns on April 8 with enhanced vehicles, targets, sound effects and blasters, and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad returns after more than a year of closure. (The exact return date of the coaster has not been announced.)
• Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster starring the Muppets is scheduled to open in the summer at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. The Aerosmith version ended its run this month after nearly 27 years.
No, not this year.
• Multiple future planned Disney World projects have resulted in the closure of several theme park staples.
Gone are Tom Sawyer Island, Rivers of America, and Magic Kingdom’s Liberty Bell Boat. A huge construction wall separates visitors from the future site of two “Cars”-based attractions and the villain-centric land.
Hollywood Studios has closed MuppetVision 3-D as part of preparation for “Monsters, Inc.” Star Wars Launch Bay didn’t survive after the area was transformed into a homage to animation (short films, playgrounds, painting experiences, and meet-and-greets are in the works).
The dinosaur ride was the last thing missing from Dinosaur Land at Animal Kingdom. It will be transformed into an “Indiana Jones” attraction forming a tropical American land, along with “Encanto” elements.
• Hollywood Rip Ride The Rockit roller coaster has been dismantled at Universal Studios, and construction work is currently underway nearby for a thrill ride called Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift. The new coaster is scheduled to open next year. While we can’t exactly say this is the last time the current attraction, Fast & Furious Supercharged, is the last, Universal Orlando has confirmed that it will eventually be phased out.
Email us at dbevil@orlandosentinel.com. Blue Sky: @Theme Park Database. Thread account: @dbevil. X account: @themeparks. Subscribe to Theme Park Ranger Newsletter at orlandosentinel.com/newsletters.
