Epic Universe Previews Open to General Public
Universal Orlando has expanded paid previews of Epic Universe to the general public, meaning you no longer have to be an AP, on-site guest, etc–anyone can buy pre-opening tickets! This covers pricing, dates & details along with our commentary about attending soft openings ahead of the new theme park’s official opening over Memorial Day weekend.
This is the second wave of Epic Universe previews, with the first starting last week and continuing through May 8, 2025. This extension runs right up to grand opening week, with tickets now available for everyone through May 19, 2025. As a reminder, Epic Universe will have its grand opening on May 22, 2025 and it’s likely that there’s a multi-day media event May 20-21, so this is probably it on previews.
Some dates of the Epic Universe previews have started to sell out for Annual Passholders (at present, there’s still full availability for everyone else), but they’re typically Fridays through Sundays–and less expensive dates. We wouldn’t worry too much about sold out dates out if you’re contemplating one of the mid-May weekday preview dates.
Here are remaining April 2025 ticket prices for the general public previews of Universal Epic Universe:
- April 29, 2025: $144
- April 30, 2025: $144
May 2025 Epic Universe preview ticket prices:
- May 1, 2025: $144
- May 2, 2025: $149
- May 3, 2025: $154
- May 4, 2025: $149
- May 5, 2025: $144
- May 6, 2025: $144
- May 7, 2025: $144
- May 8, 2025: $144
- May 9, 2025: $149
- May 10, 2025: $154
- May 11, 2025: $149
- May 12, 2025: $144
- May 13, 2025: $144
- May 14, 2025: $144
- May 15, 2025: $144
- May 16, 2025: $149
- May 17, 2025: $154
- May 18, 2025: $149
- May 19, 2025: $149
You might notice that these tickets are all more expensive than Annual Passholder tickets by about $20 per ticket. All of these prices are pre-tax. In an interesting twist, these tickets are actually less expensive than preview tickets for hotel guests–at least for the dates I purchased, which were $180 after tax. I would hazard a guess that hotel prices now match off-site guests.
Here’s the announcement from Universal Orlando: “Don’t miss this unique opportunity to take part in a special preview before the May 22, 2025 Grand Opening of Universal Orlando Resort’s newest theme park.
“During this Preview period, we’re putting the final touches in place and rehearsing, so some attractions and experiences may not be available.”
Limited availability, tickets available on a first-come, first-served basis. Restrictions apply. Prices vary by day, plus tax. Epic Universe Grand Opening is May 22, 2025.
Members of the general public can buy tickets online here.
Annual Passholders, on-site resort guests, and members of other select group who already purchased tickets are likely to now be worried about crowds with Universal expanding Epic Universe previews to the public. That’s a fair concern, and we would expect attendance to increase as a result of this move.
We’ve been warning that this was likely to happen, as Universal needs to stress-test Epic Universe with crowd levels more closely approximating those it’ll experience opening day. However, the caps are still pretty low, so we wouldn’t worry too much. Moreover, the demographics most likely to purchase tickets already have done so. The biggest outstanding “bucket” is Florida residents who don’t have Annual Passes.
Even tourists visiting Walt Disney World are unlikely to take advantage of this expanded eligibility. There will absolutely be some who do, and they’re probably disproportionately readers of a blog like this one. But the average guest makes their vacation plans months in advance, is on a budget, and has already bought park tickets to Walt Disney World. They aren’t going to drop everything to visit Epic Universe in large numbers.
As you might’ve noticed from our increased Epic Universe coverage, I’ve attended multiple paid previews thus far, and had mostly positive experiences. That’s just me, though. Sarah and Megatron have not yet attended.
For Walt Disney World visitors contemplating a day at Epic Universe, I’d highly recommend it, albeit with some caveats. This is not a normal Universal park, meaning that guests who have issues with motion sickness won’t have as many problems here. With that said, those who aren’t good with thrill rides will still have issues at Epic Universe.
The least intense “family” roller coaster is more intense than Seven Dwarfs Mine Train–more on par with Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, but smoother. It would be the best Universal park for Sarah (not a high bar), but she still couldn’t do several rides, and a handful others would be one-and-done. Setting aside the rides, it’s a fantastic theme park, and you could have a lot of fun and satisfying day only doing a few attractions.
Families with young children should probably steer clear of Epic Universe entirely. There are some things that our daughter could do, but that list is limited. We’ll be testing that in-person soon, but my biggest negative realization with Epic Universe is that it is, once again, more a park for me as someone with zero ride limitations, than it is for our family.
The biggest upside to visiting Epic Universe during a preview is crowds, or the lack thereof. Attendance has very clearly been capped well below Epic Universe’s estimated full capacity of around 40,000. Based on leaked data that paints an incomplete picture, we’d estimate that Universal Orlando is currently releasing 15,000 tickets available for sale each day.
Note that this is how many tickets are available and not how many are selling. Aside from weekends, Annual Passholder preview tickets have not been selling out, nor have hotel guest tickets. This means that the 15,000 ticket cap (or thereabouts) is irrelevant, because they’re actually selling under 10,000 tickets. On some weekdays, that number is probably much lower than 10,000–so we’re talking less than one-quarter of the park’s total capacity.
I haven’t seen any data yet for general public ticket availability, but I’d expect those numbers to both increase. My assumption is that the cap immediately jumps to 20,000 tickets and they start selling over 10,000 tickets per day. Perhaps over 15,000 on weekends.
This is why the increased ticket caps aren’t that big of an issue. We would hazard a guess that most Annual Passholders already purchased their tickets during the first wave of sales. Aside from the diehards who just can’t get enough (and have plenty of disposable income), this next wave is going to sell worse, not better, with APs. I’d be shocked if any weekdays sell out–and unsurprised if weekends don’t.
Hotel guests are a different story, as they’re primarily tourists who are constantly refreshed. Someone doing a trip in mid-May didn’t have the (realistic) option of buying Epic Universe preview tickets in April. If anything, their uptake could be higher as awareness and positive word-of-mouth about low crowds spreads. Same goes with the general public.
Still, locals are likely the primary audience for Epic Universe previews, so all of this is a recipe for low crowds. You’re probably not going to have another chance to experience Epic Universe at one-quarter of total capacity. (And if what I experienced is any indication, you’re definitely not going to want to be there when attendance is 25,000 or higher!)
Ultimately, I highly recommend attending a paid preview of Epic Universe (ideally two) if at all possible. There’s a lot more we could say about the pros & cons of attending Epic Universe previews, but I’m guessing there’s not much of an audience for it. These previews last another ~6 weeks before the park opens, and I’d imagine that not many planners are reading this in the first place.
Those who are reading have probably already made their decision whether to attend Epic Universe previews or not. Perhaps I’m underestimating interest (in which case, let me know!), but we have a lot of Epic Universe coverage to come, and focusing on previews seems low-priority. The biggest piece of advice I can offer for now is to study up on the virtual queue so you don’t miss the park’s best ride: How to Join the Virtual Line for Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry.
Need trip planning tips and comprehensive advice for your visit to Central Florida? Make sure to read our Universal Orlando Planning Guide for everything about Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida. Also check out our Walt Disney World Vacation Planning Guide for everything about those parks, resorts, restaurants, and so much more.
YOUR THOUGHTS
Will you be attending Epic Universe previews? Excited for Super Nintendo World, Harry Potter’s Ministry of Magic, Dark Universe/Classic Monsters, or the How to Train Your Dragon lands and/or attractions? Think Epic Universe will be a third gate that’s a worthy addition to Universal Orlando Resort…and potentially on par with Disney’s best lands? Any questions? We love hearing from readers, so please share any other thoughts or questions you have in the comments below!
We just went to Epic yesterday (April 30) and was fantastic! It wasn’t really crowded at all, even though it’s now open for everyone to purchase preview tix. I’m guessing that partly due to it being a weekday, like Tom mentioned and visitors not having enough extra time or money to adjust plans.
It’s a BIG park, which is wonderful—but definitely be prepared for a lot more walking than the other Universal parks in Orlando. Despite it not being crowded right now, the headliner ride wait times (Monsters, Mine Cart, Werewolf) were consistently long most of the day (often 60+). That’s pretty much a given, though evening was better for Monsters, which went down to under 30. Also, with it being previews, be prepared for them to be “delayed” or completely down at various times during the day (which no doubt contributed to the longer wait times). It’s a beautiful park, the attention to detail is impressive. Tom’s right about there being a lot of thrill rides, as usual for Universal, but there are some fun (slower) rides and live performance shows that I think everyone can enjoy. The lsle of Berk (dragons area) was awesome. Despite us not being super fans (only having seen the first movie) we still really enjoyed the area, it was delightful. The animatronic Toothless is amazing! There’s also an adorable “baby dragon hatchery” (indoor in AC) show with a surprise that’s definitely worth seeing—no spoilers. The water cannon ride Fyre Drill was a riot, you’re gonna get wet, but it was wonderful on a hot Orlando afternoon—we went on it twice with a 5 min wait!
The wizarding section is beautifully designed, but it’s very different from Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade. It’s a “time travelling” portal to 1920s France and (except for the Ministry time jump) not in the contemporary timeline of the others—but still cool and immersive.
The whole park is gorgeous at night, but especially dark universe. Which is nothing like HHN (which is not my thing) it’s spooky and eiree, not gory or lurid. We even “saw” The Invisible Man and there were roaming musicians and mist, which really enhanced to the ambience.
Epic is well worth it, even more so during the previews if you want more time and space to dawdle and take pictures.
Also, the cast members were wonderful, helpful and excited about their areas—many were even “in character” with fun stories to tell.
Hi Tom I will be in Disney world next week for 2 weeks 🙂 I have a 2 years old and a 4 years old with me would you suggest me going 1 day ? No budget issue but “ kids issue “ as to small for do most thing. As well came in Florida once a year from the Uk I am torn If wait next year or so the crazy thing and just go 🙂
Do you have multiple adults and are you willing to do rider swap? Do you have any interest in the franchises represented at Epic Universe?
Both of your kids are probably too young to appreciate most of what Epic Universe has to offer–unless they’re into Nintendo or these movies. So it would primarily be to walk around the park or for the adults in your party. Tough call, but without knowing more, I’d probably suggest waiting.
Unless you’re really excited about the prospect of visiting a new park before it officially opens and will cherish that memory for years to come. Pretty cool to tell your kids two decades from now, “we visited this park before it even opened!” 🙂
We are out of state Disney World APs and are heading down in a couple days, May 3rd-May 10th. We don’t have Universal APs, so we never thought we would even get a chance for a preview! But when we saw they were available yesterday, we jumped on it! Our Disney plans are much more laid back and flexible as APs now, so we would have been happy to change plans if need be. But we already had a planned “break day” that will now be our Epic Universe day! We weren’t sure if we were going to be able to squeeze in a trip to Epic this year, but we couldn’t resist this probably once in a lifetime experience to see a brand new park before it’s officially opened.
Only downside is my husband recently had heart surgery and will not be able to ride the major rides. If the wait times are low, I may attempt them on my own. But even if we just do a few smaller things, try some food, and just enjoy seeing everything for the first time, that’s enough for us! 🙂
Hi Tom,
As soon as I saw your post, I jumped on line and bought two tickets for May 13. Waited four minutes in the queue at 11 pm EDT. So thank you for that. We’re also among “the few.” We have a week booked at Disney from May 10-16 and left ourselves a “resort day” in case Epic Universe tickets went on sale to the general public. Looks like the gamble paid off. Again, thanks.
You can’t leave us hanging, Tom…
“The least intense ‘family’ roller coaster is more intense than Seven Dwarfs Mine Train–more on par with Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, but smoother.”
So which ride at Universal Epic are you talking about?
Sorry–Hiccup’s Wing Gliders. Excellent roller coaster, just pushes the limits on the definition of “family-friendly” IMO.
Thanks, Tom. I can’t wait to see your more in-depth reviews of the rides and the park as a whole! I am not a big thrill-seeker, so I am very curious what will be doable. I’m also very curious if Early Entry is really “needed.”
Are you going to provide an initial review of epic universe? A comparison with wdw for those who havent ventured much to Universal. That would be an interesting post to read.
Ride rankings/reviews, park review, and WDW comparison are all coming within the next few weeks!
Hi, Tom! Thanks so much for all of the wonderful coverage of all things Universal and Disney. We are considering a long weekend visit to experience Epic Universe before opening day. Would you recommend Express Pass for a family with kids ages 13,10, and 8? Can you pre-purchase with tickets, or do you have to buy once onsite?
Thanks so much for all you and your family do!
As of right now, Express Pass is not necessary–especially if you stay until park closing. That could change, but I personally wouldn’t purchase it as of right now.
Also very interested to hear more about previews. We are currently debating whether or not to purchase tickets for an Epic Universe preview for our mid-May Disney trip. As AP WDW and DVC members, we could allocate a day over to Epic Universe. Would love to see a preview day strategy from you for experiencing the most possible out of Epic Universe!
Will you be doing any itineraries or touring strategies for Epic besides the one for early entry? Or reviews? We haven’t seen any reviews and only one touring strategy article so far.
Yes, more strategy posts are coming soon!
New development.
When asked about using one of her four days at WDW to visit Universal there was a definite NO!
No pause to think about it even.
This news is only days after I convinced myself to pull together an Oceans 11 style plan for my family to get down there next week with the hotel reservation preview, haha. Fingers crossed the crowds stay somewhat low! 🙁
I’m tempted.
the 10th we have Mama’s farewell.
Mother’s Day Keys to the Kingdom.
the 12th is Epcot with Chip and Dale’s Harvest Feast (which believe it or not we’ve never done) and of course the Garden stuff.
Tuesday we have Wild Africa Trek with Narcoossee’s for dinner.
Carolyn flies home the next day and I’ll be spending two days there doing stuff my wife isn’t crazy about.
Get your mind out of the gutter, we’re talking the water parks and miniature golf.
So we could go together on the 12th or I could go it alone on Thursday or Friday. The whole place looks great but I’m most interested in DarkUniverse/Classic monsters.
Neither one of us are big roller coaster riders anymore.
Suggestions?
“Neither one of us are big roller coaster riders anymore.”
That’s a tough one given this. I’m going to go out on a limb and assume you have no affinity for Harry Potter, Nintendo, or How to Train Your Dragon?
It’s a very good atmospheric park, but you might enjoy that more during a trip in the winter.
Even with those limitations, I’d certainly take Epic Universe over mini-golf–but there’s also the cost component of it.
I read all 9 of the Harry Potter Books and loved the movies. I really enjoyed How to Train Your Dragon but alas after Pong I was big into the Genesis sports games and never got into Nintendo, though I’m quite aware of all that through 4 children.
I did enjoy Pac Man and Ms Pac Man. But I am ambivalent towards Nintendo.
I still have free tickets for miniature golf.
And believe it or not I have unused free tickets for Universal given to me by Universal from when they first opened.
some people named Tom have not read the Harry Potter books because he was too ‘busy’ getting a ‘law degree’ and other ‘stuff’,.. but glad to hear you don’t overlook the most important phenomenon in juvenile literature,. now if you want to fulfill further classic Renaissance Man requirement, it’s time to play Zelda with the grandkids! I know i can’t wait! Though my kids are shielding their kids from screens as long as possible,. where did i go right? (to paraphrase what movie?)
I’m one of those few!! Have tix to WDW the second week of May. But after learning this new information, we just booked one night on a Tuesday at Endless Summer and hope to score tickets! If there’s none available we’ll just head back to our Disney resort.
Thanks for the info!!!
Just to be clear, you do NOT need a hotel reservation anymore. You can buy your tickets right now online, and probably for cheaper than at the hotel: https://www.universalorlando.com/web-store/en/us/park-tickets?days=1&flr=0
Wild! You’re a lifesaver.
Just purchased tix for the same date, and cancelled the hotel reservation. Disclaimer: Had to wait 23 minutes in queue before I could purchase the tix since apparently there’s a high volume of orders at the moment. But the tix are now in my account.
Thank you!!
Any thoughts on which weekday would be the best bet?
Really not enough data to draw any definitive conclusions, but my guess would be that it tracks with regular trends–meaning Wednesday or Thursday would be your best bets.
I cannot stress enough that that’s just a guess–I would not upend my vacation plans to do a Weds/Thurs.
I wanted to note that the hotel prices are probably NOT synced with other price offerings. The hotels and customer support use different systems. As an example, hotel ticket windows cannot sell annual pass holders discounted preview tickets. These must be purchased online or over the phone. The only ones who can see everthing are the customer support people at the parks (but those lines are awful). We did save $26 by switching our tickets from hotel tickets to annual passholder tickets, but that required a trip to the customer support ticket window at Universal Studios because neither the phone or hotel people could fix. If you are at a hotel, just call the customer support to purchase your tickets.