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 as the second of two theme parks to open, 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.[2]
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. The seventh island, 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.[3] The eighth island, Skull Island, opened on July 13, 2016, and is themed to the King Kong franchise.
Like Universal Studios Florida next door, Islands of Adventure has not limited itself to Universal's own library, because it licensed other characters from rival studios, many of whom did not own theme parks of their own, as attractions and lands. Some of these include:
Before Islands of Adventure was built, the site was originally planned as a shopping mall called Galleria Orlando.[4] Plans were first drawn up for the mall in 1985, but it was ultimately canceled in 1990,[5] the same year Universal Studios Florida opened next door.
Preview Center
During the construction of IOA, Universal opened the Islands of Adventure Preview Center at adjacent Universal Studios Florida. Opening two years before the new theme park, the Preview Center was designed to give guests a sneak peek at some of the themes and attractions for Islands of Adventure. The attraction was located in the Paradise Theater building located in the New York section of Universal Studios Florida, next to the Kongfrontation attraction. In the attraction, guests would walk through various rooms themed to the various "Islands" in the new park. The final room stated when the Islands of Adventure park would open, and showed guests Universal's future plans for the Universal Orlando Resort. The Preview Center was closed shortly after the opening of Islands of Adventure. The space that was used for the preview center is now a locker room and a year round "Tribute Store".
Opening
Islands of Adventure had a soft opening beginning March 27, 1999,[6] during which visitors could preview the park at a discounted price while the staff conducted a technical rehearsal and worked on the "finishing touches." During this soft opening, guests were informed that attractions might open and close throughout the day without notice and that some attractions might not be open at all. Initial plans were to open the park in mid-May, but this was ultimately delayed until May 28, 1999.[7][8]
After the enormous capital expenditure required to build Islands of Adventure, CityWalk, and the resort hotels, Universal sought to overtake nearby Walt Disney World in attendance. However, with the addition of the second park, new resorts, and entertainment district, the resort was named Universal Studios Escape. Essentially, it seemed that visitors were confused by the name, assuming that Islands of Adventure was a new area added to the already-existing Universal Studios Florida theme park. For the first two years, attendance did not rise as expected.[9] By 2001, the marketing was revamped, clarifying that Islands of Adventure was indeed a second, completely separate park with new rides and attractions. Universal Studios Escape was renamed Universal Orlando Resort, and ended up being the only resort in the Orlando area to actually have an increase in attendance after the September 11 attacks on the United States.
Universal released the blockbuster film Jurassic Park in June. Its success resulted in a Jurassic Park attraction opening in Hollywood followed by the second version at Islands of Adventure when that park opened. On September 16, Universal announced plans to add a second theme park and several resorts at its Florida complex.[11]
1995
Construction was expected to begin on Islands of Adventure.[11]
1997
Construction finally began on Islands of Adventure.[12] Shortly after, the Islands of Adventure Preview Center opened at the adjacent Universal Studios Florida, replacing The Screen Test Home Video Adventure. It allowed guests to preview all six original islands at Islands of Adventure and their rides and attractions within. The Preview Center also included Universal's plans for an expansion into Universal Orlando Resort.
1999
Islands of Adventure began soft openings on March 27. Islands of Adventure was officially opened on May 28 with a grand opening ceremony, with the islands Port of Entry, Seuss Landing, The Lost Continent, Jurassic Park, Toon Lagoon, and Marvel Super Hero Island. The Islands of Adventure Preview Center at Universal Studios Florida was closed shortly afterwards.[13]
2000
Pandemonium Cartoon Circus closed on February 29. Flying Unicorn and Storm Force Accelatron debuted in the park's The Lost Continent and Marvel Super Hero Island areas, on May and June 29, respectively. The annual GrinchMas event began in the park's Seuss Landing area and in Universal Studios Florida in December.
2002
Universal's Halloween Horror Nights event was held for the first time ever at Islands of Adventure on October. Each "island" was transformed into a different twisted world: Port of Entry into Port of Evil, Seuss Landing into Boo-Ville, The Lost Continent into Island of Evil Souls, Jurassic Park into JP Extinction, Toon Lagoon into Treaks and Foons, and Marvel Super Hero Island into Island Under Siege.
2004
Halloween Horror Nights was held in both Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida in October.
One of the roofs on Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls caught fire on January 1, causing immediate evacuation of the ride. The ride resumed normal operations on March 3, 2011. Universal announced a major refurbishment of The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man ride on May 19, with plans to re-master the ride film in high-definition as well as to update the ride's technical system and to replace all of the projectors with new 3-D digital projectors.[14][15]
A Celebration of Harry Potter, an annual three-day weekend event celebrated on the last weekend of January, debuted at both Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure on January 24. The Hogwarts Express Hogsmeade station opened on July 1 as well as the King's Cross station at Universal Studios Florida, connecting park visitors to both Harry Potter-themed lands via a full-scale replica of the train that appears in the Harry Potter film series. Dr. Seuss's ABC opened on August 24 with 26 big blocks with the letters of the English alphabets in the outdoor playground.
2015
Skull Island: Reign of Kong was announced on May 6 as a new land/attraction based on the 2005 film King Kong, opening in the summer of 2016.[16] On May 7, Universal announced a partnership with Nintendo to bring their characters to either Universal Studios Florida or Islands of Adventure park. Raptor Encounter meet & greet attraction officially debuted on May 22.[17]The Incredible Hulk roller coaster closed on September 8 to undergo refurbishment.
2016
The Incredible Hulk's refurbishment was completed early April with the placement of the final track piece, and on May 9, Universal revealed new changes to the coaster, which included a new track, story line, ride vehicle and entrance. Without any press release, Skull Island: Reign of Kong officially opened as the eighth island of Islands of Adventure on July 13. The Incredible Hulk reopened on August 4.
2017
Dragon Challenge closed on September 5, with a new Harry Potter roller coaster experience to take its place in 2019. Permits were filed on December 28 for the new Harry Potter roller coaster under the name "Project 942" relating to "foundation designs for a future pre-engineered metal building and construction of three motor control centers."[18]
2018
Construction continued on the new Harry Potter-themed coaster, described as "a new generation of thrill ride.".[19] The majority of track work was completed as of August 2018. The Eighth Voyage of Sinbad closed on September 15, 2018.
2019
Construction began for a Jurassic Park-themed roller coaster; many areas of the themed land was walled off, moved to a temporary location or removed completely. A Celebration of Harry Potter was not celebrated as Universal focused on the construction of the Harry Potter-themed roller coaster. Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure was announced as the name of the roller coaster that will replace Dragon Challenge. The grand opening ceremony of the attraction took place on June 11 with Evanna Lynch, Warwick Davis, Tom Felton, Rupert Grint and James and Oliver Phelps in attendance. Robbie Coltrane, who portrayed Rubeus Hagrid, was not in attendance, however, he recorded video messages for the occasion. Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure opened on June 13.
2020
Universal Parks & Resorts announced the closure of the resort effective March 15 due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus in Florida, initially until the end of the month, later expended to April 19, then May 31. On May 22, Universal announced the official reopening of the resort for June 5. Universal Orlando Resort reopens after almost three months since closing, due to the coronavirus, with safety guidelines implemented in order to prevent contagion. On September 28, after over a year of an extended construction phase going unacknowledged by the theme park, Universal Orlando officially announced the newest addition to Jurassic Park, the VelociCoaster, for a Summer 2021 opening.
2021
On April 6, VelociCoaster was officially given a June 10 opening date.
2023
On April 11, Universal's Islands of Adventure announced that Poseidon's Fury will be permanently closed in The Lost Continent, on May 9, to make way for "exciting new experiences".
2024
Islands of Adventure celebrated its 25th anniversary.
As with almost any amusement park, older attractions are sometimes removed to make way for newer ones. At Islands of Adventure, some have simply been closed with no replacement like Island Skipper Tours while others like The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride! were altered from their initial concept to the attraction that operates today.
Islands of Adventure consists of eight themed "islands", the majority of which are based on licensedintellectual properties, with only two lands based on original Universal Pictures works. They are, in clockwise order from entry: Port of Entry, Marvel Super Hero Island, Toon Lagoon, Skull Island, Jurassic Park, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, The Lost Continent, and Seuss Landing.
Port of Entry
The Pharos Lighthouse marks the park's entrance
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 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. It has dining options including Croissant Moon Bakery, Backwater Bar, The Grinch & Friends Character Breakfast, Confisco Grille, Starbucks, & Cinnabon. It has shopping options such as Port Provisions, Island Market and Export Candy Shoppe, DeFoto's Expedition Photography, Port of Entry Christmas Shoppe, Ocean Trader Market, and Islands of Adventure Trading Company.[20]
Marvel Super Hero Island is based on the superhero characters featured in Marvel Comics. The area features comic-book styled architecture; many of the building interiors are created in comic book perspective, with exaggerated lines and angles. Many exteriors are painted in a special paint which appears to change color based on the angle from which it is viewed – sometimes purple, sometimes orange. The buildings are all labelled generically: "Store", "Shop", "Food", and "Comics", etc.
A teacups ride based on the X-Men. Where guests use their ride vehicles to help Storm harness enough forces of thunder and lightning to defeat Magneto.[21]
Supervision is required for riders under 48 in (121 cm)
A launched roller coaster based on the Hulk comics. The island's signature coaster with a top speed of 67 miles per hour (108 km/h).
54 in (137 cm)
The area is also home to a variety of dining outlets and merchandise shops. Food and beverage items can be purchased from Cafe 4 and Captain America Diner. Merchandise items can be bought from a variety of themed stores including Spider-Man Shop (The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man), Marvel Alterniverse Store, Comic Book Shop, and Oakley.
In late 2009, The Walt Disney Company (Universal's biggest competitor in the theme park market) announced that it had sought to acquire Marvel Entertainment. Universal announced that Marvel's new ownership would not affect Marvel Super Hero Island, and Disney CEO Bob Iger acknowledged that Disney would continue to honor any contracts that Marvel currently has with Disney competitors.[22] In March 2012, Bob Iger revealed that Disney had begun preliminary concepts of incorporating Marvel's properties into their parks, although no major negotiations with Universal were announced.[23][24]Hong Kong Disneyland has since announced an expansion to its park featuring characters from the Marvel Universe.[25]Disney California Adventure Park at the Disneyland Resort in California has also since incorporated meet-and-greet Marvel characters, as well as an Avengers Super Hero Half Marathon Weekend at the resort. Both Hong Kong Disneyland and Disney California Adventure have opened Marvel attractions since the acquisition, with Iron Man Experience at the former and Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: Breakout! at the latter. Both attractions officially opened in 2017. Only Walt Disney World Resort is barred from having Marvel characters in its parks, due to contractual obligations to Universal and Universal's use of Marvel characters in the region.[26] However, this only includes characters Universal is currently using, other characters in their "families" (Spider-Man, X-Men, Avengers, Fantastic Four, etc.), the villains associated with said characters, and the Marvel name.[27] This clause has allowed Walt Disney World to have meet and greets, merchandise, attractions, and more with other Marvel characters not associated with the characters at Islands of Adventure, such as Star-Lord and Gamora from Guardians of the Galaxy.[28][29]
Toon Lagoon
Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls
Toon Lagoon is based on the cartoon and comic strip characters from King Features Syndicate and Jay Ward, with the area's main focus being water-based rides (hence the name).
The area is also home to a variety of dining outlets and merchandise shops. Food and beverage items can be purchased from Blondie's, Cathy's Ice Cream, Comic Strip Cafe and Wimpy's. Merchandise items can be bought from a variety of themed stores including the Gasoline Alley, Toon Extra and Wossamotta U.
Skull Island
Construction of Skull Island: Reign of Kong (July 2015)
Jurassic Park is themed to the film series of the same name. Set after the events of the first film, the area undertakes the guise of John Hammond's dinosaur theme park featured in the series. As such, the area is filled with the attractions and exhibits one would find in the "real" Jurassic Park, including thrill rides and discovery-based exhibits.
Attraction
Year opened
Manufacturer
Description
Height requirements
Camp Jurassic
1999
A children's play area centered around an imported 50-foot (15 m) tall Banyan tree. The area features a variety of play elements including slides, nets, water cannons and fountains.[31]
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 to Islands of Adventure.[40] The 20-acre (81,000 m2) island features attractions, shops, and restaurants set inside such locations as the Forbidden Forest, Hogsmeade Village, and the iconic Hogwarts Castle. Ground breaking 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 then-upcoming area, a behind-the-scenes documentary on production of the park section is included on the Blu-ray and DVD release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.[41]
There are five main attractions in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter:
There is also a singing Frog Choir and a Triwizard Spirit Rally held in the town center. These events feature Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang students.
An expansion of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, based on the Diagon Alley and London settings from the series, opened on July 8, 2014, at the adjacent Universal Studios Florida park in the former site of the park's Jaws attraction. The Hogwarts Express attraction connects the two areas of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in each park.
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 Sindbad's Bazzaar, and a Grecian-Atlantis-esque Lost City. Formerly, the Lost Continent included a medieval section 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 winner of best theme park restaurant by Theme Park Insider for six successive years between 2003 and 2008.[44][45][46]
Attraction
Year opened
Manufacturer
Description
Height requirements
The Mystic Fountain
1999
An interactive fountain attraction that communicates with guests, plays music, and features water spouts.
Seuss Landing
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.[47] Palm trees bent by the winds of Hurricane Andrew were even planted in the area to continue this theme.
The area is also home to a variety of dining outlets and merchandise shops. Food and beverage items can be purchased from Circus McGurkus Cafe Stoo-pendous (The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride!), Green Eggs and Ham Cafe (opened seasonally), Hop on Pop Ice Cream Shop, and Moose Juice, Goose Juice. Merchandise items can be bought from a variety of themed stores including Cats, Hats & Things (The Cat in the Hat), Snookers & Snookers Sweet Candy Cookers (The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride!), All the Books You Can Read, and Mulberry Street Stores Trading Co.
A live action show entitled Grinchmas Wholiday Spectacular, which retells the story of How the Grinch Stole Christmas is available seasonally.
Character appearances
Like the neighboring Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure has a number of famous characters:[49]
Several attractions in Islands of Adventure allow guests to utilize Express Pass. This pass admits users to a separate line for the attraction, which is given priority status when boarding. Express Pass is not a virtual queuing service. Instead, passholders may enter the "Universal Express" line whenever they wish. The price of this pass is not included in the charge for park admission.
