How Were Epic’s Crowds in July?
Universal Epic Universe is about to finish its second summer.
Yes, that’s hard for all of us to believe, but it’s true.
Photo: Universal
In fact, in some corners of the United States, school has already returned to session.
Since Universal Orlando Resort is more of an adult playground, that’s less of a factor as a rule.
Still, we all know that several parts of Epic Universe target the under-18 crowd.
So, the end of summer isn’t great news in terms of attendance, and that makes me wonder.
How were the July crowds at Epic Universe?
The Wait Times at Berk
Image: Universal Studios
Epic Universe has undoubtedly experienced an eventful 15 months.
The park hosted sneak previews several weeks before it officially opened.
Attractins Magazine
Then, when it officially debuted in May 2025, the crowds were noticeably absent.
The low turnout happened by design, as Universal charged extra for those first few weeks.
In exchange, guests enjoyed an amazing visit to a near-empty theme park.
Understandably, the early reviews of Epic Universe were glowing.
Attractins magazine
Objectively, this park is the best one Universal has ever built.
That’s not to say everything has gone perfectly. We all know about the tragedy here.
Universal
Additionally, uptime has been an issue on several of the attractions.
When you push the upper limits of theme park technology, things break.
Universal
Still, many elements of Epic Universe have proven instantly, permanently popular.
Chief among them is the Toothless character greeting at How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk.
Attractins Magazine
This experience has consistently claimed some of the longest lines at the park.
As you’re about to see, that trend continued in July.
Photo: Universal
Here are the average wait times at Berk over the past 31 days:
- Meet Toothless and Friends – 55 minutes, down 11
- Hiccup’s Wing Gliders – 40 minutes, down 2
- Dragon Racer’s Rally – 30 minutes, down 10
- Fyre Drill – 35 minutes, up 1
Image: Universal Pictures
Toothless’s popularity will never be in question, but the waits are becoming reasonable.
As proof, fans waited in line 83 minutes for the same experience a year ago!
The Wait Times at Dark Universe
Universal
My campaign to turn Dark Universe into the most popular themed land continues unabated.
Also, let’s be honest that it’s not working. For whatever reason, people don’t visit this place much.
Universal
Admittedly, I’m comparing it to the other wildly popular themed lands at the park.
Still, neither Dark Universe attraction increased its average wait time this past month.
Universal
Here’s the data in case you don’t believe me:
- Curse of the Werewolf – 43 minutes, down 7
- Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment – 19 minutes, no change
Universal
That drop for Curse of the Werewolf may be due to the heat, as it’s an outdoor roller coaster.
As for Monsters Unchained, it’s definitely a high-throughput ride.
Image: Universal
Even so, I’m fairly confident Universal expected longer waits at this point in its life cycle.
A year from now, fans may be waiting as little as 15 minutes for one of the park’s best rides.
The Wait Times at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter
Universal
As previously discussed, the third Wizarding World of Harry Potter only hosts two attractions.
One of them is a show, which means that we don’t track its wait time.
Universal
The other is what has been the most in-demand ride at the park thus far.
Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry cannot claim that title this month, though.
Photo: Universal
Guests waited in line for an average of 86 minutes this time.
The good news is that it’s a drop of 21 minutes, bringing it to an almost reasonable wait.
Universal
The bad news is that its popularity may be slipping a bit.
The Wait Times at Super Nintendo World
I don’t think the same statement applies to Super Nintendo World.
My expectation was that it couldn’t maintain that runaway freight train of momentum forever.
Photo: Universal
Still, I do think these average wait times tell an interesting story:
- Mine-Cart Madness – 110 minutes, no change
- Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge – 74 minutes, down 19
- Yoshi’s Adventure – 34 minutes, down 14
Universal
Mine-Cart Madness continues to have throughput issues due to its constant demand.
As for the other two rides, I’m a bit surprised that they dropped this much in July.
Universal
I’d expected a larger falloff in the fall of the park’s second year.
Apparently, I’d overestimated how long the early demand would maintain the crowd sizes.
I’m not reading too much into it yet, as Florida was absolutely scorching this past month.
Also, those waits are objectively still VERY wrong thus far. So, this may be a sign of normalcy arriving soon.
The Other Wait Times
Attraction Insight
Finally, we have the park’s other two attractions, both of which remain under 30 minutes:
- Stardust Racers – 29 minutes, up 6
- Constellation Carousel – 20 minutes, down 1
I don’t think I’m going out on a limb to say that the negative buzz around Stardust Racers has hurt it.
Still, Universal must be upbeat about the fact there was more demand for it this past month.
Overall, guests waited for an average of 48 minutes per attraction at Epic Universe.
That’s six minutes less than last time and 26 (!) minutes less than last year.
Photo: Fox 35
So, if you were waiting to visit Epic Universe until the crowds died down, now is the time.
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Feature Photo: Universal
