The rides and attractions of Universal Epic Universe are nearly ready for guests, as the park’s May 22nd opening date, (and possible previews even sooner,) is quickly approaching. Around the park, test seats have been installed in front of ride entrances, more animatronic dragons have arrived at How to Train Your Dragon, and turnstiles have shown up at the park entrance.

Let’s check in on progress for all areas of Epic Universe, including the recently opened hotel, in today’s news update. See the video version of this story below for additional visuals.

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The image below is an official piece of concept art, with labels added for all of the main attractions for Universal Epic Universe.

Thanks to recent aerial photography from @bioreconstruct on social media, we’re able to compare the latest construction progress to permit details and official concept art for this new theme park.

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Celestial Park

Starting our update at the park entrance and Celestial Park, the name for the central areas of Epic Universe, we can spot the podiums that have recently arrived.

These appear to be the same type of facial recognition scanners currently in use at the existing Universal Orlando theme parks, which use photo matching of your face to confirm your ticket.

A silver sphere has been added to the back of the portal that leads into the park.

The Luna figure just inside of the park’s gate has been uncovered, as scaffolding around this large statue has been completely removed.

This statue sits at the Luna Overlook, where guests can view the entire middle of the park out over cascading waterfalls, leading towards the central lagoons of Celestial Park.

New ornate railings have been installed along the edge of Luna Overlook.

While the building in the next photo is listed as phase 2 dining, as is not expected to be ready by opening day, it is starting to appear as though at very least the exterior will be completed by May 22nd.

The sign has been installed atop Meteor Astropub, featuring burger ingredients as the meteor.

An outdoor bar can be found in front of the Meteor Astropub dining location.

A large silver orb is staged on the ground, to be installed atop this round bar structure’s roof.

Looking closely, we can see that the word “Zenith” is written on the ring below the orb, which may be name for this bar.

Theming is being added to chimneys atop the Oak & Star Tavern restaurant, like this star emblem seen on the left.

According to permit documents, these are real chimneys that will have actual fireplaces burning at their bases inside the restaurant.

Here is a good look at the Pizza Moon sign.

As pointed out by Scott Walker, it does appear that the Pizza Moon sign’s tongue is in different spots in different photos, which may mean the tongue moves? As seen in this mock-up animation he created.

That's right! The tongue moves. https://t.co/5ctpkIK6qL pic.twitter.com/sO8r6bZq4y

— Scott Walker (@scottwalker88) January 18, 2025

Most of the canopy for the queue area for Constellation Carousel has been installed.

This smaller domed roof section is for queue areas, while the larger domed roof houses the carousel attraction itself.

Peeking inside, we can catch a glimpse of some of the animal-shaped seating, inspired by constellations.

The spire and small spherical dome to top off the queue’s roof can be seen staged on the ground near the ride’s future entrance.

Stair access leading down to a lagoon pump room below this area can be spotted to the left of the carousel’s entrance courtyard.

The area where the former foam berm was originally being built now appears to instead contain more traditional landscaping, with new trees planted.

The other main ride for Celestial Park, a dual-track roller coaster named Stardust Racers, has seen several silver spheres added below its comet-shaped icon.

The two tracks share a near-miss moment on this part of the attraction, but upon closer inspection it appears that some of the yellow paint has already rubbed off from continuous coaster testing in recent months.

The third attraction for Celestial Park is a splash pad named Astronomica, which is located between the carousel and the large fountain display.

All but one of the viewing areas for the large fountain have received their green turf material. The section of tiered viewing seen on the top-right of the next photo is still not complete.

Work continues on the large Helios statue at the very back of the park. Unlike the Luna statue, Helios is still covered in scaffolding.

The worker seen here offers a sense of scale… showing that this particular statue may be larger than you may have thought.

A starburst courtyard design can be seen on the overlook behind this statue, which is located behind the hotel’s lobby.

We first saw this courtyard design as a test sample in the staging lot across the street all the way back in 2023.

The railings in this area, located at the very back of the park, match the same railings at Luna Overlook, which are located in the front of the park.

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Super Nintendo World

Turning next to Super Nintendo World, more work is happening above the portal, as colorful decorative elements are being added to the pipes.

Power-Ups are being installed above each of the pipes, like the Super Star at the top.

In these photos the 8-bit version of Mario is visible on the medallion above the portal entry, but this coin flips at a regular interval, revealing a more modern Mario image on the other side, as seen in the older photo below.

The Nintendo Super Star Store, located to the right of Super Nintendo World has seen extensive exterior theming elements added in the past three weeks.

Statues of multiple Nintendo characters are being added along the exterior walls.

Stained glass window designs are being installed as well, featuring characters like Princess Peach, Mario, Donkey and Diddy Kong, and Link from The Legend of Zelda.

Two roofs for the two towers in front for Peach’s Castle still haven’t finished getting their pink color.

Windows have been installed to the front of the castle since our last update.

More of the colorful hillside background has been receiving color around inside perimeter of world.

Lighting is being installed around the entrance to the casino Power-Up Band mini game, located to the right of Peach’s Castle.

A new Bowser-themed lamp post has been installed in front of Bowser’s Fortress, the entrance to the Mario Kart ride.

The minimum height requirement measuring stick has been added on the left of the ride’s entrance, seen here still wrapped up.

What may be the menu board for Toadstool Cafe can be spotted just outside of its entrance, wrapped in plastic.

The egg that represents the “O” in the Yoshi’s Adventure sign that was previously installed has been missing in recent weeks.

The height stick for this attraction is also installed, seen to the left of the entrance. A test seat for Yoshi’s Adventure is installed on the left as well. It is themed as a small block with the red seat inside.

The Yoshi ride looks to be largely complete, with a finished finale scene visible here.

Most of the moving figures have been spotted moving recently, including Yoshi himself on Mt. Beanpole.

The main entrance to 1-UP Factory is nearly complete. This is Super Nintendo World’s main retail location.

A smaller green pipe side entrance is still being installed for the 1-UP Factory as well, located beneath the Yoshi ride.

New golden palm tree theming has been installed on either side of the warp pipe at the back of the area that leads to Donkey Kong Country.

The Mine Cart Madness roller coaster can be seen testing with real people in this photo.

This photo shows a cart jumping over a simulated gap in the track near the ride’s main entrance.

The ride warnings sign has been installed, as well as its minimum height stick, both seen on the left in the photo below. The wait time sign can be spotted on the right of the entrance. To the right of that is the ride’s test seat, partially blocked by divider walls.

Donkey Kong’s tree house looks to be complete, including his big pile of bananas at the base.

This will act as a backdrop for character meet and greets, although Donkey Kong is still not listed on the official Epic Universe website.

A mist effect can be seen testing for the Mine Cart Madness ride.

This mist curtain is located along a part of the ride where it appears that the carts skate across the water.

The background mural continues to be painted near the entry to this mini-land area, now on the section of backdrop around a backstage gate.

The paint for the entry arch and portal entry into the area is looking more complete since our last update.

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The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic

The next area we’re looking closer at is The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic, which features Parisian streets paired with a massive indoor ride set within the British Ministry of Magic.

The first decorative ring panels are being installed on the portal face.

The white space above the entry will be where the land’s entry quote will be placed, as seen in the official concept art for the portal.

Weathering is still incomplete at the Parisian arch, located just after the world’s entry portal.

The weathering stops around the same level on the back of this arch as well.

Awnings have been installed for both of the sections of outdoor cafe seating within this area.

A Parisian Morris advertising column has installed on this street corner in the middle of the world.

A statue of a lady has been installed along the staircase at the back of the land.

This statue likely matches the moving statue seen in the second Fantastic Beasts film.

Lighting is visible installed atop of the highest structures at the back of the land to illuminate the forced perspective towers.

Here is how these forced perspective towers appear when lit, as seen from a mile away.

Behind this area, the recently seeded expansion pad appears to already be growing grass. This will prevent dirt from being picked up by the wind around the park, until this land is eventually utilized at a later date.

Trees have been planted along the street where the exterior extended queue for the theater show is located.

Awnings have been added in front of several of the false facades located along the Parisian-style streets.

At the end of this street on the left side of the area, a decorative gate has been installed to block guest access to a staircase leading to a false facade.

The ride warnings sign has been installed for Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry, the area’s main attraction. The wait time sign can be spotted as part of this sign as well. Inside of the ride entrance, we can see that queue stanchions and chains have already been installed.

On the right, test seats have been added for this elevator-themed dark ride attraction.

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Dark Universe

Moving now to Dark Universe, the original world inspired by the Universal Monsters like Frankenstein, WolfMan, and more.

The purple glowing orb is visible at the top of the world’s portal entry. The decorative ring panels are being installed on the portal face, leaving the white space on top for the portal’s quote, just like the Wizarding World’s portal we saw before. Inside of the portal, the walls appear to be glowing purple, just like the orb outside.

Inside of the world, along the streets of the village of Darkmoor, a sign has been installed above the restrooms. It appears to say “Toiletten”.

Two new weather vanes have been installed atop peaks within the village, including this ship-shaped weather vane above an open air dining area for Das Stakehaus.

Moving towards the manor at the back of the world, which acts as the main entrance for Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment, we can spot test seats installed for this ride.

Stanchions splitting the two main queues can be seen leading into manor’s front door.

Lighting tests are still happening continuously at the tower at the top of the manor.

The other ride for Dark Universe is a spinning roller coaster named Curse of the Werewolf.

It does appear that the safety nets we has seen installed previously were only temporary, as new net supports are being installed all around the track.

These curved netting support structures are being installed in multiple spots around the circuit.

Additional pieces that have yet to be installed can be seen here staged in a truck.

A new large office trailer has been placed in the expansion pad at the back of Dark Universe, seen at the arrow on the right in the photo below.

Another new office trailer was placed in a section of the large expansion pad between Dark Universe and Super Nintendo World, as seen at the top of the photo above.

Trees were recently planted in the front of this expansion space, along the side of Pizza moon. These may be to help block the view of this new backstage portable office building as seen from Celestial Park.

The rest of this expansion space is still being used for the staging of crates and vehicles during park construction at this time.

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How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk

The final world to check on is How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk, where the story of the area is that dragons and Vikings are living here together in harmony.

A dragon emblem orb can be seen above the portal entry into this world. One of the interior portal doors can be seen extended here. These doors can retract into the walls of the portal, or be extended to close the area off from guests for various reasons.

Inside of the Isle of Berk, a new Toothless-themed obstacle figure has been added to the play area, named Viking Training Camp.

This Toothless is themed to appear as though it was built by the Vikings using found items.

New dragon character banners have been added along the supports for the grandstands located behind the spinning rides of Dragon Racers Rally.

At the top of these decorative stands we can find new flags and colorful bunting that was recently added as well.

Temporary netting has been placed over the queue areas for this attraction during construction.

A sheep figure with a target painted on it seen near the ride entrance.

The wait time sign can be seen installed at the entrance.

Looking at the entrance for the roller coaster ride, named Hiccup’s Wing Gliders, we can see some new color added. The entrance structure is on the left, with the exit gift shop for the coaster seen on the right.

The coaster’s second launch runs by the backside of a restroom building near the play area. This backside wall has been covered in fake moss to help it blend into the scenery as seen from the coaster.

Two sets of doors have been installed at the entrance to the Mead Hall, a dining location found in the center of Berk.

On the roof for the Mead Hall we can find lighting installed, all pointing towards the large mountain atop the restaurant.

New tile carving designs can be spotted on the ground around the fountain within the village square.

Multiple sheep figures can be seen around the hillside area along the edge of the village square, seen at the arrows in the photo below.

New dragon tails and a dragon head has been installed in the houses atop this hillside.

This tail seen on the left of the next photo is robotic, and is expected to have a swinging movement. It is currently missing its skin though, exposing its robotic elements within.

The roof over the load and unload station for the boat ride now has decorative stripes.

This boat ride, named Fyre Drill, features many targets that riders will be able to blast using on board water canons.

New wall art can be found painted at the back of this area within the boat ride.

A meet and greet area, themed as dragon stables, is located near the back of the land, connected to the large indoor stage show theater, seen at the top of the next photo.

In front of the meet and greet stables we can spot this large themed log, which features a detailed carving of the touching moment where Hiccup and Toothless first meet.

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Epic Universe Hotels & Roads

Before we wrap up, just outside of the park, the Universal Stella Nova Resort has officially opened to guests this week.

This is the first part of the Epic Universe area to open to guests.

Due to the unique shape and height of the lobby’s ceiling, the third floor of this hotel features a long hallway with no rooms.

Universal decorated this otherwise empty hallway with a starfield light show, and calls it the “Star Bridge.”

To prepare for this 750-room hotel opening, signs were installed along the roadways leading to and from Stella Nova.

These round signs match the ones we had seen in last year permits.

The new Universal Orlando Resort animated signs can be seen testing their screens now.

To bring guests staying at Stella Nova to and from the existing Universal Orlando theme parks and CityWalk, new electric busses have debuted for the resort.

Some of the new electric busses feature designs related to Epic Universe, like these with Dark Universe graphics, in a photo taken by Ethan Hershaft.

The flat parking lot for Epic Universe is almost ready, with the walkways leading from parking to the theme park entrance now taking shape.

With so much already ready, including many of the rides, and the turnstile podiums showing up, we could very well be just a few short weeks away from seeing Team Member previews at Epic Universe.

That’s all for this update, but be sure to check out the video version of this story for additional visuals. A huge thank you to Bioreconstruct for the amazing aerial and on the ground photographs. You can follow him on X (formerly Twitter), Bluesky, or Mastodon for more incredible theme park photos.

Subscribe to the news feed or enter your email address below to never miss an update. Official Art: Universal Destinations & Experiences | Aerial and On the Ground Photos: Bioreconstruct | Permit Documents: fasttrack.ocfl.net | Graphics and Overlays: Alicia Stella | Other Images as Captioned

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