Universal Studios Florida is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida that opened on June 7, 1990. Owned and operated by NBCUniversal, it features numerous rides, attractions, and live shows that are primarily themed to movies, television, and other aspects of the entertainment industry. Universal Studios Florida was the first of three theme parks to open at Universal Orlando Resort, joined later by Universal’s Islands of Adventure in 1999 and Volcano Bay in 2017. In 2019, it ranked eleventh in the world – sixth in North America – for overall attendance among amusement parks with approximately 10.9 million visitors.

The success of its sister location, Universal Studios Hollywood, in the 1980s fueled the desire to build a similar park in the Orlando area to compete with Walt Disney World. Two of its early projects were partially developed by famed Hollywood director Steven Spielberg, and many themed attractions over the years were developed in close collaboration with the directors, producers, and actors of the films they are based on. An early layout and design of the park also incorporated active production studios, similar to the Hollywood location, which provided guests with a behind-the-scenes look at film and television. As the interest to produce films in the Orlando area quickly faded, the design of the park transitioned to a more immersive, first-person perspective.

Universal Studios Florida operates a well-known annual event during the fall season called Halloween Horror Nights, where the park transitions to a Halloween theme featuring haunted houses and scare zones on select nights. One of the park’s biggest draws is Diagon Alley, a Harry Potter-themed portion of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter that opened in 2014. Other notable attractions include E.T. Adventure, which debuted with the park’s grand opening in 1990, Men in Black: Alien Attack, as well as roller coasters Revenge of the Mummy and Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit.

To make it easy for our readers, I will split the day according to how I spent it at the parks. So our review will begin at Islands of Adventure, then have a lunch review from the Toothsome Chocolate Factory, and end the day at Universal Orlando. Here are a few things to keep in mind: During my time visiting, Universal Orlando was celebrating Madi Gras. It was also President’s Day weekend so the crowd level was moderately higher than I liked. So without further ado, let our Journey begin!

Islands of Adventure

Universal Islands of Adventure (also known as Islands of Adventure or IOA), originally called Universal Studios Islands of Adventure and later Universal’s Islands of Adventure, is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida. It opened on May 28, 1999, along with CityWalk, as part of an expansion that converted Universal Studios Florida into the Universal Orlando Resort. The resort’s slogan “Vacation Like You Mean It” was introduced in 2013.

Islands of Adventure is modeled after a journey of exploration, where guests embark on an adventure to visit a variety of themed islands. Initially, the park featured six islands. A seventh, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, was added in 2010, themed to the highly successful Harry Potter franchise. It was Universal’s largest investment since the resort’s founding in 1990. The expansion led to a significant increase in attendance, and in 2013, Islands of Adventure ranked seventh domestically and eleventh internationally after hosting approximately 8.1 million guests. The eighth island, Skull Island, opened on July 13, 2016, and is themed to the King Kong franchise.

Islands of Adventure is split into eight themed islands: (going clockwise around the park)

Port of Entry

Port of Entry is the park’s main entrance and is home to many shops and services including Guest Services aptly named The Open Arms Hotel. The park’s centerpiece, Pharos Lighthouse, is also located within the Port of Entry. Each night, this functioning lighthouse sends out a bright beam to lead visitors to and from the park’s gates. Like many theme parks using the “hub and spokes” format, this entry Island contains no rides.

Marvel Super Hero Island

Marvel Super Hero Island is based on the superhero characters featured in Marvel Comics. The area features comic book-styled architecture, with many building interiors created from a comic book perspective, characterized by exaggerated lines and angles. The exteriors of the buildings are painted with a special paint that appears to change color depending on the viewing angle; sometimes purple, sometimes orange. This island consists of four attractions: one tea-cup-themed ride featuring Storm from X-Men, one freefall tower themed to Doctor Doom from Fantastic 4, one 3-D dark ride themed to Spider-Man from Spider-Man, and one launch coaster themed to Hulk from The Hulk.

Toon Lagoon

Toon Lagoon is based on cartoon and comic strip characters from King Features Syndicate and Jay Ward. The area’s main focus is water-based rides. This island holds three attractions: one log flume ride themed to Dudley Do-Right, one river rapids ride themed to Popeye the Sailor Man, and one interactive kids’ playground themed to Popeye the Sailor Man.

Skull Island

Skull Island is the newest island at the park, having been opened in the summer of 2016. The area’s sole attraction, Skull Island: Reign of Kong, opened on July 13, 2016. The attraction and island mark the return of the King Kong character to the Universal Orlando Resort after the Kongfrontation attraction closed at Universal Studios Florida in 2002 to make way for the Revenge of the Mummy: The Ride. The only attraction on this island is the dark trackless ride based on the Kong films.

Jurassic Park

Jurassic Park is themed around the film series of the same name. Set after the events of the first film, the area takes on the guise of John Hammond’s dinosaur theme park featured in the series. As such, the area is filled with attractions and exhibits one would find in the “real” Jurassic Park, including thrill rides and discovery-based exhibits. There are five attractions located on this island: A children’s play area named Camp Jurassic, A river ride named Jurassic Park River Adventure based on the film and book of the same name, A suspended steel flying coaster named Pteranodon Flyers themed to the dinosaurs of the same name, A launch coaster named VelociCoaster themed to velociraptors and the Jurassic World franchise, and the interactive play area of the Jurassic Park Discovery Center based on the film and book of the same name.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade is themed around the Harry Potter universe, authored by J.K. Rowling. It officially opened to the public on June 18, 2010. On May 31, 2007, Universal announced that it had secured the licensing rights from Warner Bros. and Rowling to incorporate the Harry Potter franchise into Islands of Adventure. The 20-acre (81,000 m2) island features attractions, shops, and restaurants set inside locations such as the Forbidden Forest, Hogsmeade Village, and the iconic Hogwarts Castle. Groundbreaking began in 2007, with the official opening scheduled for June 18, 2010, as announced on March 25, 2010. As part of the promotion for the upcoming area, a behind-the-scenes documentary on the production of the park section is included on the Blu-ray and DVD release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

The Lost Continent

The Lost Continent is themed to ancient myths and legends, and is divided into two sub-sections: an ancient Arabian marketplace called Sinbad’s Bazaar, and a Grecian-Atlantis-esque Lost City. Formerly, the Lost Continent included a medieval section called Merlinwood, but the majority of that area was re-themed for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. This land is also home to Mythos, which is one of two full-service restaurants in the park and was voted the winner of the best theme park restaurant by Theme Park Insider for six successive years between 2003 and 2008. As of June 1st, 2023, there is only one remaining attraction on this island: The interactive Mystic Fountain.

Seuss Landing

Seuss Landing is based on the works of author Dr. Seuss. The island features several Seuss-themed attractions, especially geared towards small children, as well as a Green Eggs and Ham Cafe and Circus McGurkus restaurant. As in the books, one of the unique characteristics of this area is that there are almost no straight lines anywhere. Palm trees bent by the winds of Hurricane Andrew were even planted in the area to continue this theme.

My Rating: 8/10

I am a bit biased when it comes to the Islands of Adventure rating. This theme park is one of the most brilliantly themed parks in the Orlando area, behind the Disney Parks. Every island has its own character and charm that you can see in the buildings and the views. You feel like you are stepping into your favorite comic strip, whether it be Spider-Man or Popeye. Or you can feel like you are stepping into your favorite book, whether it be Cat in the Hat or Jurassic Park. There are a few reasons why my rating is a bit lower, mostly due to the crowd level. I also am rating this experience on this trip instead of my previous trips before. Another reason why it is not perfect is just the fact that I was rather time-restricted due to the fact that I only had one day in both parks. I also am very lucky to get a chance to experience Poseidon’s Fury before its closure, but my main gripe about the Lost Continent is the lack of attractions since the Wizarding World takeover. This island is one of the remaining islands that have not received anything new since opening day nearly 30 years ago.

Tips & Tricks

As mentioned in the Dockside review, you can catch a shuttle bus from the hotel to the Resort for free. That eases the burden of having to worry about paying for parking at the resort or trying to find a spot in the parking lot if it’s a busy day. One tip was my use of a fanny pack that I carried with me. I kept my wallet, my phone (while on rides), and my glasses (while on rides) inside of the fanny pack and felt it was just easy to keep track of my personal items. 

Keep in mind that almost all rides do require you to place items into a locker before boarding the ride, though there are a few that don’t have that rule in place. The major thrill rides, the coasters, will all have a locker system that is provided to you for free or for a paid fee for use of the day. The water rides do offer lockers for guests to use, however, they are paid lockers and there are no free lockers to rent.  There are air dryers, which once again are paid, that you can use located near any water ride. 

My second tip, download the Universal Orlando app. This app allows you to keep track of wait times for rides, and times for experiences like characters or shows, and allow you to mobile order for food at many of the restaurants.

Stay tuned for part two of my Universal Studios Orlando & Islands of Adventure experience where I’ll review more of the park and review the Toothsome Chocolate Factory restaurant!