Universal's Islands of Adventure (formally called Universal Studios Islands of Adventure and often shortened to 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 popular 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.
Licensed properties[]
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:
- Dr. Seuss properties (Dr. Seuss Enterprises)
- Harry Potter book and film franchises (J. K. Rowling and Warner Bros. Entertainment)
- Popeye (King Features Syndicate and E.C. Segar)
- Pre-2009 Marvel Comics (Marvel Entertainment)
History[]
Before Islands of Adventure was built, the site was originally planned as a shopping mall calle Galleria Orlando. Plans were first drawn up for the mall in 1985, but it was ultimately canceled in 1990.
Preview Center[]
During the construction of the park, Universal opened a Preview Center (known as 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 Universal Orlando. The Preview Center was closed shortly after the opening of Islands of Adventure.
Opening[]
Islands of Adventure had a soft opening beginning March 27, 1999, 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.
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. 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.
Timeline[]
| Year | Events |
|---|---|
| 1990s | The first concepts for the Islands of Adventure park are conceived by MCA Recreation Services. Known as "Cartoon World" designed by Universal Parks & Resorts co-founder Robert Ward, the park would feature rides and attractions based on DC Comics, Dr. Seuss, and Warner Bros. |
| 1993 | Universal releases the blockbuster film Jurassic Park on 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 announces plans to add a second theme park and several resorts at its Florida complex. |
| 1995 | Construction is expected to begin on Islands of Adventure. |
| 1997 | Construction finally begins on Islands of Adventure. 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 begins soft openings on March 27. Islands of Adventure is 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 is closed shortly afterwards. |
| 2000 | Flying Unicorn and Storm Force Accelatron debut in the park's The Lost Continent and Marvel Super Hero Island areas, on May and June 29, respectively. The annual GrinchMas event begins in the park's Seuss Landing area and in Universal Studios Florida in December. |
| 2002 | Universal's Halloween Horror Nights event is held for the first time ever at Islands of Adventure on October. Each "island" is 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 is held in both Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida in October. |
| 2006 | Sylvester McMonkey McBean's Very Unusual Driving Machines is rebuilt into a new concept and officially opened as The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride in June. |
| 2007 | Universal Studios and Warner Bros. officially announce on May 31, the seventh island at Islands of Adventure, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, at a joint press conference with an expected opening of late 2009 or early 2010. |
| 2008 | Flying Unicorn and the Enchanted Oak Tavern closed on July 7 to be replaced by The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. |
| 2009 | Universal officially reveals The Wizarding World of Harry Potter's attractions on September 16, including Zonko's, Honeydukes, Owl Post, Dervish and Banges, Ollivander's Wand Shop Experience, Frog Choir, Triwizard Spirit Rally, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, Filch's Emporium of Confiscated Goods, and Dragon Challenge and Flight of the Hippogriff, which will replace the Dueling Dragons and Flying Unicorn rides. Oh, The Stories You'll Hear! opens on October in the park's Seuss Landing area. |
| 2010 | Mat Hoffman's Aggro Circus debuts on March in the park's Toon Lagoon amphitheatre, the theater's first show since Mat Hoffman's Freakin Crazy Stunt Show in 2002. Dueling Dragons is closed for its final transformation into the Dragon Challenge on May 5; Ice is renamed Hungarian Horntail and Fire is renamed Chinese Fireball. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter begins soft openings for the general public on June 1. The grand opening ceremony took place on June 16 with book series author J. K. Rowling and film series actors Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Michael Gambon, Warwick Davis, Tom Felton, Matthew Lewis, James and Oliver Phelps and Bonnie Wright attending. John Williams conducted the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra into many songs of the first film's score, including the film series' prologue, which he composed. The seventh island, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, officially opened on June 18. The area is Islands of Adventure's biggest investment since the park's opening. After five years, Triceratops Discovery Trail is finally reopened to the public for a limited time on December 13, speculated to further remain seasonal during peak season. |
| 2011 | One of the roofs on Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls catches fire on January 1, causing immediate evacuation of the ride. The ride resumed normal operations on March 3, 2011. Universal announces 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. |
| 2012 | The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man re-opens after refurbishment. |
| 2014 | A Celebration of Harry Potter, an annual three-day weekend event celebrated on the last weekend of January, debuts at both Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure on January 24. The Hogwarts Express Hogsmeade station opens on July 1 as well as the King's Cross station at Universal Studios Florida, connecting park visitors to both Harry Potter theme parks via a full-scale replica of the train that appears in the Harry Potter film series. Dr. Seuss's ABC opens on August 24 with 26 big blocks with the letters of the English alphabets in the outdoor playground. |
| 2015 | Skull Island: Reign of Kong is announced on May 6 as a new land/attraction based on the 2005 film King Kong, opening in the summer of 2016. The Incredible Hulk roller coaster closes on September 8 to undergo refurbishment. |
| 2016 | The Incredible Hulk!s refurbishment is completed early April with the placement of the final track piece, and on May 9, Universal revealed new changes to the coaster, which includes a new track, story line, ride vehicle and entrance. Without any press release, Skull Island: Reign of Kongofficially opens 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 are 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." |
| 2018 | Construction continues on the new Harry Potter-themed coaster, described as “a new generation of thrill ride.” The majority of track work has been completed as of August 2018. |
| 2019 | 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 to replace Dragon Challenge, set to open June 13. |
Islands[]
Islands of Adventure consists of eight themed "islands", the majority of which are based on licensed intellectual properties, with only two lands based on original Universal Studios 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.
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