Universal Orlando Resort

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Universal Orlando Resort
Theme parks
Universal Studios Florida Islands of Adventure CityWalk Orlando Wet 'n Wild Orlando
Resort hotels
Hard Rock Hotel Loews Portofino Bay Hotel Loews Royal Pacific Resort
Universal Orlando Resort

Universal Orlando Resort is a theme park resort in Orlando, Florida. It is a joint partnership between NBC Universal and the Blackstone Group. The resort consists of two theme parks (Universal Studios Florida and Universal's Islands of Adventure), Universal CityWalk (a night-time entertainment destination), and three Loews Hotels. Universal Orlando Resort is the largest property owned by Universal Studios Theme Parks; it is also the second-largest resort in Greater Orlando, after the Walt Disney World Resort.

History

MCA, the parent company of Universal, had been wanting to make their own movie theme park in Central Florida ever since Walt Disney World opened. By 1980, MCA had a proposed $400 million Universal Studios tourist attraction in Orlando.^[1] MCA had officially announced the new movie theme park on July 24, 1981. It was originally titled "Universal City Florida" and was originally scheduled to open in late 1984. The reason for making this theme park was because of shortage of sound stage space in Hollywood.^[2] Sidney Sheinberg, the President of MCA at the time, wanted financial backing from Florida sources, but never got it. Because of this, the project was pulled. In 1984, Sheinberg tried to convince Florida Governor Bob Graham for a $150 million loan from the Florida Retirement Pension System Fund. This needed to be matched from MCA. The project was still pulled. Two years later, when Disney was going to build their own movie theme park (Disney's Hollywood Studios), MCA immediately began to focus back on the project. By 1987, construction for Universal Studios Florida had begun. Both companies were trying to see which theme park will be finished first, and of course, Disney's theme park was finished first.^[3] In November, 1988, Nickelodeon joined Universal to make their own studio where all their game and live-action shows would be filmed.^[4] In 1989, Super Sloppy Double Dare was Nickelodeon's first show filmed there, and the first show filmed at the theme park. Universal's first major production there was the Academy of Country Music Awards, which aired on April 25, 1990.

On June 7, 1990, Universal Studios Florida had officially opened with a big celebration. The ribbon to officially open the theme park was cut by big-time movie director, Steven Spielberg.^[5] Expansion occurred in 1999, adding Islands of Adventure, Universal CityWalk, on-site hotels, and two multi-level parking structures. In addition, a direct exit was constructed off of I-4, since previously the only access was via Kirkman Road.

What was previously a single theme park became a gargantuan resort destination much larger than Universal Studios Hollywood, and designed to be a head-to-head rival to Walt Disney World Resort. The resort was originally named Universal Studios Escape, but the name was quickly changed to Universal Orlando Resort.

Location

Universal Orlando is located north of the International Drive resort area, on a parcel of land framed by Interstate 4 to the south, Kirkman Road to the east, Vineland Road to the north, and Turkey Lake Road to the west. The resort is directly accessible from I-4 via Exit 74B, which empties eastbound onto Universal Boulevard and westbound onto Hollywood Way.

Universal Orlando is served by LYNX buses (links) 21, 37, and 40.(Schedules)

Universal Studios Florida

Panoramic view of Universal Studios Florida's lagoon

Universal Studios Florida, opened On June 7, 1990, is a theme park that lets visitors "Ride the Movies." The themes of Universal Studio's are targeted at making guests feel like they are in a movie set with rides that are inspired by popular films. The park consists of six themed areas - Hollywood, Production Central, New York, San Francisco / Amity, World Expo and KidZone.

Universal's Islands of Adventure

Lighthouse at the entrance to Islands of Adventure

Islands of Adventure opened in May 1999. The park is currently composed of six distinct "islands", each having its own theme. Visitors start off in the Port of Entry and make their way through the various islands - Marvel Super Hero Island, Toon Lagoon, Jurassic Park, The Lost Continent, and Seuss Landing. A new island themed to the popular Harry Potter film and book series was announced in May 2007, with a scheduled opening in 2010.

Universal CityWalk

Universal CityWalk includes the 20 screen AMC Universal Cineplex, numerous restaurants, shops, and clubs. It is also home to Margraritaville, NBA City Cafe, NASCAR Cafe, Hard Rock Cafe and Hard Rock Live, and Emeril's. The clubs at CityWalk include Latin Quarter, The Groove, Pat O'Brians, Rising Star, Bob Marley's, Red Coconut, and Cigarz.

Halloween Horror Nights

Promotional poster for the 2008 edition, featuring the Bloody Mary character.

Halloween Horror Nights is one of the largest Halloween events in the U.S., presented annually at Universal Orlando Resort. From 1991-2001, the event was held at Universal Studios Florida. The Halloween Horror Nights was expanded to Islands of Adventure in 2002, but the event was moved back to Universal Studios Florida in 2006.

Resorts

The resort features three official on-site hotels: Loews Royal Pacific Hotel, the Hard Rock Hotel, and Loews Portofino Bay Hotel. All three hotels have been given the AAA Four Diamond rating and are located in close proximity to the Universal Orlando theme parks. The hotels offer guests free water taxi or shuttle bus service to the Universal Orlando theme parks. Another benefit is that the guest room key works as an "Express Pass", allowing the guest to bypass the Stand-by line at any attraction with the "Express Pass" option. Theme park guests who are not staying at the Universal official hotels may be able to purchase "Express Passes" at an additional cost.

Water park

In 2007, Universal began considering the Wet 'n Wild park in Orlando, which it purchased in 1998, a part of Universal Orlando Resort. It is located adjacent to Universal Orlando property, across Interstate 4 at International Drive and Universal Boulevard.

References

Gallery

Shrek 4-D, an attraction at Universal Studios Florida

The original entrance to Universal Studios Florida.

Hard Rock Cafe at Universal CityWalk

Universal CityWalk

External links

• Official Resort Site
• Universal Orlando Resort on Google Maps

Coordinates: 28°28′28″N 81°27′46″W / 28.474316°N 81.462843°W / 28.474316; -81.462843