It’s time to finally start taking a look around the Universal Orlando Resort in the first official monthly photo update. In this update, we’ll be taking a look at projects happening all around the Resort; mostly Universal Studios Florida and Volcano Bay – including construction progress on Fast & Furious: Supercharged, Volcano Bay finishing touches and changes, and more!
Let’s take a look around our photo update during our rainy visit!
Park Update Index
» CityWalk
» New Craft Beers at Snack Cart
» Fast & Furious: Supercharged
» E.T. Adventure
» Halloween Horror Nights 27
» Potter Rides & Express
» Inside Krakatau
» Krakatau Stairs
» Cabana Shutters
» New Raft Tubes at Maku Puihi
» The Mystery of the Frog Lamps
» Aventura Hotel
» A Little Bit of This and a Little Bit of That
CityWalk
The new “Universal’s Fresh Eats” snack service spot located in the center hub of CityWalk’s entrance looks complete and should open any day now.
The newly-renovated Guest Services window also looks to be complete, and should open any day now as well. Sign near the window advises guests to visit the Concierge under the CityWalk escalator.
New Craft Beers at Snack Cart
Universal announced last week that they’ve updated the snack cart in New York and added new items to the menu, specifically local craft brews. Local breweries include Cigar City Brewery and M.I.A. Brewery. The snack cart used to sell turkey legs.
Fast & Furious: Supercharged
Construction continues on Universal’s next attraction, slated to open in 2018. The facade now has the ride’s name spray painted on, as if it were graffiti. The show building’s paint job continues, with scaffolding now erected near the Diagon Alley side of the building. The rest of the show building has seen the beginning of more aging effects. In addition, the former entrance of Disaster now has scaffolding up as Universal transforms the area for the new attraction.
E.T. Adventure
E.T. Adventure opened last month after a brief refurbishment, which saw the ride scenes cleaned up and refreshed. In addition, the soundstage received a fresh coat of paint – still keeping the original Studios color scheme from the 90’s. Also; a set of walls have gone up in the extended queue.
Halloween Horror Nights 27
News has been pretty mum about what guests can expect for this year’s Halloween Horror Nights. Construction on the streets should begin next month. In the mean time, walls have gone up by the Men in Black restrooms, which is usually used as an entrance to one of the Tent houses at Horror Nights. The walls could be related, or not – but here ya go. Also, here’s a couple shot of the M.I.B. tent house for good measure.
Potter Rides & Express
Earlier this month – Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts, and Hogwarts Express finally started accepting Universal Express. Here’s a look at the signage that has been installed at the attractions.
Inside Krakatau
Over at Volcano Bay, the inside of Krakatau recently opened up its passageways. Guests can now walk the many entrances of Krakatau, and even speak with Vol – the fiery spirit trapped inside the volcano. In addition, the TapuTapu interactive point featuring Kunuku got a bit more touched up, featuring a more colorful effect when activated. Also, a new TapuTapu interactive point that hangs over The Reef pool is almost completed.
Krakatau Stairs
The staircase in Krakatau that leads to Ko’okiri Body Plunge, Kala and Ta Nui Serpentine slides continues to be completed; painting the exposed metal to better blend in with the rockwork.
Cabana Shutters
In an effort to offer more privacy, and block certain views of the outside areas and roads surrounding Volcano Bay, certain cabanas have added wood shutters.
New Raft Tubes at Maku Puihi
Earlier this month, the raft tubes at Maku Puihi were changed out – apparently allowing the rafts to traverse down the slide a little slower than its predecessor. While the experience may be slower, we found the seat to be more uncomfortable.
The Mystery of the Frog Lamps
The popular frog lamps that adorned the bridges in Volcano Bay were replaced with these standard lamps due to guests breaking the frog lamps constantly. Recently, some of the standard lamps have been removed. Here’s hoping the frog lamps return.
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Aventura Hotel
The Aventura Hotel continues to rise vertically. We still have a few more floors to go before we really start seeing any real progress on the exterior.
A Little Bit of This and a Little Bit of That
The wait time board at the front of Universal Studios is being worked on – with the screen being boarded up. To make up for this, Universal is using the side video displays at Music Stage Plaze to display the waits. Also, a wall has gone up around the corner between Central Park and Hollywood, where the Horror Nights stage usually is set. We’re not sure if it’s Horror Nights related, but it is being worked on.
That’ll do it for this update! Be sure to follow Inside Universal for continuing coverage of Universal Parks and Resorts!
