How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk Land at Universal’s Epic Universe: Ride Details & Art
Universal Orlando Resort has shared a deep look into ‘How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk’ the new land at Epic Universe, their third theme park in Florida that opens in 2025. This sneak peek shares concept art and info about the rides, shows, interactive experiences, restaurants, and everything else in the upcoming area of the park.
An expansion of 750 acres, Epic Universe is Universal Orlando Resort’s third theme park, just down the road from Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure, as well as Volcano Bay Water Park. Once fully built out, the new theme park campus would essentially double Universal Orlando Resort’s existing footprint.
Epic Universe will transport guests to expansive worlds featuring more than 50 awe-inspiring attractions, entertainment, dining and shopping experiences that come together to create an unforgettable adventure located at Universal Orlando Resort. For a big picture overview of the entire park, see our Universal’s Epic Universe Preview, which unveiled all of the lands and much more.
Guests of all ages will soar with dragons in a colorful, fully-alive world filled with Viking adventures in How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk – one of the five worlds featured at the all-new Universal Epic Universe theme park opening in 2025.
Here, guests will see what it’s like to live amongst dragons as they explore a larger-than-life world that includes exciting attractions, beloved character meet-and-greets, dining, shopping – and even flying dragons – based on DreamWorks Animation’s multi-award winning and Academy Award-nominated trilogy, “How to Train Your Dragon.”
Developed in partnership between Universal Creative and the filmmakers from DreamWorks Animation and Universal Pictures, How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk captures the heart, humor and scale of the films within an authentic re-creation of the rugged, rocky world where raucous Vikings and rambunctious dragons live together in hilarious harmony.
Guests visiting Berk will encounter one of the most breathtaking environments Universal has ever created – complete with immense architecture featuring hand-carved details, lush landscaping, and extraordinary heights of rolling hills surrounding vibrant dragon houses and local establishments.
Everywhere guests look in the bustling village of Berk, they’ll find endless activity – from active dragons in their natural habitats and sheep attempting to disguise themselves as Terrible Terror dragons to sporadic bouts of fire – making Isle of Berk an attraction unto itself.
Guests’ first sight of Berk will be reminiscent of the iconic sweeping vista straight from the films: featuring a vast sparkling lagoon that boasts two 40-foot-tall Viking statues set against an energetic village perched above churning seas.
Within How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk, guests will find 4 attractions, one live show, and several character and dragon meet-and-greet experiences that offer something for every member of the family. Here’s a rundown of what you’ll discover in Berk:
Hiccup’s Wing Gliders – On this family thrill coaster, Hiccup invites brave new Vikings to take a ride in his latest glider contraption – a winged flying machine that launches aspiring Dragon Riders into the sky for a dragon’s eye view of Berk.
Guests will fly alongside Hiccup and Toothless and reach speeds up to 45 mph as they soar around the perimeter of Berk – and even through the lagoon – while experiencing firsthand what it’s like to fly on a dragon in Hiccup’s Wing Gliders.
The Untrainable Dragon – Inspired by Universal Beijing Resort’s wildly successful “Untrainable” show, this dragon-filled live spectacular takes guests on an unforgettable journey with beloved characters Hiccup, Toothless, Gobber, and Astrid as they work together to solve the mystery of The Untrainable Dragon.
This heartwarming story comes to life with captivating musical numbers, breathtaking sets and life-sized dragons soaring overhead in The Untrainable Dragon.
Fyre Drill – Mischievous Viking twins Ruffnut and Tuffnut invite teams of Vikings to compete to outscore and out-soak each other on this wet-and-wild boat battle.
On Fyre Drill, guests will board a colorful dragon-headed boat and blast water cannons at flame-like targets to practice putting out fires – a crucial skill to master when living with dragons.
Dragon Racer’s Rally – Berk’s new Vikings racers can practice aerobatic maneuvers and high-speed barrel rolls on two Viking-made dragon-riding trainers that reach heights of up to 67 feet in the air.
Guests can control how “wild” or “mild” their experience will be as they perform high-flying, gravity-defying, swooping and soaring skills that are necessary to earn the accolades worthy of a true champion dragon racer.
Viking Training Camp – Junior Vikings will learn everything they need to know about dragons as they climb, slide and explore their way through this sprawling interactive adventure play camp.
Viking Training Camp features an agility course, a Toothless-themed teeter-totter, baby Gronckle dragon climbers and so much more.
Meet Hiccup and Toothless – Guests can visit the Haddock Paddock for an incredible meet-and-greet experience with heroic Dragon Rider, Hiccup, and pose for a photo with his friendly Night Fury, Toothless.
Throughout the day, guests may also encounter other familiar Vikings and dragons while exploring How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk.
Guests can also dine and shop like Vikings in the world’s variety of themed eateries and retail locations, including:
- Mead Hall – The beating heart of Berk and the village’s main gathering hall, Mead Hall is where guests can feast like a Viking and enjoy a savory menu featuring a variety of meats, fish, sandwiches and more along with a collection of meads and ciders.
- Spit Fyre Grill – Overlooking the action of the Fyre Drill water attraction, Spit Fyre Grill is a quick-service dining location featuring delicious, hearty meals flame-seared by a helpful (unseen) dragon fry cook.
- Hooligan’s Grog & Gruel – Guests can grab quick bites at this festive racing-themed food stand located in the Viking Camp.
- And after a day of dragon training, guests can commemorate their lessons with an array of merchandise available at highly-themed shops like Viking Traders, How to Treat Your Dragon, Hiccup’s Work Shop, and Toothless’ Treasures.
Here’s a video from Universal Orlando introducing How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk:
To celebrate the dragon-sized adventures that await in How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk, guests can now purchase a variety of items themed to the vibrant world coming to Epic Universe – including apparel, mugs and pennants. The collection is available for a limited-time and can be purchased at shop.universalorlando.com.
And in the ultimate synergy play, Universal is producing the first-ever live-action remake of a DreamWorks animated movie in How to Train Your Dragon. Dean DeBlois, who directed the original 2010 animated movie, will also helm the new live-action How to Train Your Dragon, currently set to release on June 13, 2025. Epic Universe also is currently scheduled to open in Summer 2025.
Turning to commentary, I’ll start by (shamefully) admitting that I still haven’t seen any of the How to Train Your Dragon movies. I know, I know. They’re supposed to be fantastic, and I really should correct that. I was just turned off by other DreamWorks Animation of that era that, in my view, is cheesy and juvenile and has not aged well. But by all accounts, How to Train Your Dragon is different.
Ironically enough, How To Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk is right up my alley. I love dragons and vikings and Norse culture. The concept art for the land looks fantastic. The level of world-building in Berk looks impressive, with lots of detail and–perhaps most importantly–engaging interactive ‘things’ scattered throughout the environment. Isle of Berk looks like it’ll ooze kinetic energy, which is perfect for a land where dragons take flight.
For the most part, the ride roster in Isle of Berk looks strong. I know everyone will be focused on the roller coaster and stage show, as those are the big things–and both look fantastic. But Fyre Drill is what has my attention; an interactive shooter sprayer ride that’s outdoors looks like a fun evolution of that concept.
Although not as “sexy” for adult theme park fans, a play area for kids is also an excellent and underrated component of the land. The only thing about which I’m not sure is Dragon Racer’s Rally; but even that looks like it’ll be fun, at least.
I suspect some Walt Disney World fans looking to nitpick might take issue with the lack of truly immersive attractions. And perhaps it is a missed opportunity to have nothing indoors that attempts to put guests on the back of “real” (air quotes, obviously) dragons.
There’s definitely something to be said for an experience that suspends disbelief and convinces riders their flying with dragons. The only problem is that’s basically Avatar Flight of Passage, and I can understand Universal not wanting to create that. At least, not with phase one of Epic Universe.
Honestly, what I appreciate about How To Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk is the opposite of that–a willingness to have a variety of outdoor rides of different caliber. These are all appropriately themed, but they don’t overdo it. And yes, it is possible to overdo it, especially in a world where budgets are finite–I would rather have a land with 4 attractions than just 1.
While I would love for Universal Creative to take as many big swings as possible, I also wouldn’t want to visit Epic Universe on opening day to find a park with 5 rides all of which command 3-hour waits as a result. There is a balance, and there are countless examples of new parks and lands being underbuilt because they blew their budgets on a couple blockbuster rides.
Perhaps it’s a weird thing to focus on, but what sticks out to me with How To Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk is that it effectively “splits the difference” between Universal and Disney themed design. (I swear this is not meant as a backhanded compliment.) Or perhaps stated better, it’s more middle of the road–not approaching Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge or Diagon Alley, but still excellent immersive environments.
As Universal has overhauled parts of its existing parks over the past decade-plus, the results have been very scattershot outside of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. This is a major step up from the non-Potter stuff at Universal, which undoubtedly is a result of having both the budget and blank slate of a brand-new theme park being built from the ground up.
Meanwhile, Disney has dumped tons of money into indoor Guardians of the Galaxy and TRON roller coasters to make them more immersive and, I guess, conceal coaster supports and track from guest view? (Nevermind the big gravity buildings.) A lot of money has been spent on other lands that only net 2 new rides.
Don’t get me wrong–I absolutely love highly-detailed lands and next-level attractions, but if the budget is X and the park needs a half-dozen additional rides to meet demand, that money is probably better spread over 4 rides, rather than 2. Especially in the case of something like Toy Story Land, which isn’t the pinnacle of themed design in the first place. (Isle of Berk certainly looks better than that.)
Point being, I really like the needle Universal Creative appears to be threading at Epic Universe by balancing themed design with budget constraints and a need for fully-fledged lands. I also really like the idea of a ‘Dragons & Vikings’ land in the first place, and think the end result should be some beautiful and highly-engaging themed design.
Like their cousins the dinosaurs and the pirates, dragons and vikings are two of those evergreen concepts that kids of all ages absolutely adore. Putting them together is brilliant, and really, the only way Disney can top this is to create its own ‘Pirates of the Dinosaurland’ expansion in Magic Kingdom. (I would also accept Whalers, Ninjas, Samurai, Knights, or Cowboys of the Dinosaurland.) Now if that happens, getting rid of Dinoland in Animal Kingdom suddenly makes perfect sense!
Need trip planning tips and comprehensive advice? Make sure to read Disney Parks Vacation Planning Guides, where you can find comprehensive guides to Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and beyond! For updates, discount information, a free download of our Money-Saving Tips for Walt Disney World eBook, and much more, sign up for our free monthly newsletter!
YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think of How To Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk? Impressed by the rides, shows, restaurants, etc. in this Epic Universe land reveal? Or are you underwhelmed and wishing there were a blockbuster ride? Thoughts on the look and atmosphere on the Isle of Berk? 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? Expect Disney to “respond” with a big announcement of its own at the 2024 D23 Expo? Any questions? We love hearing from readers, so please share any other thoughts or questions you have in the comments below!
Outdoor boat rides, especially attractions that aren’t just transportation (though I like those, too) are great! I think it’s been a while since I’ve seen a new one that isn’t a raft ride like Kali River Rapids or Popeye & Bluto. I haven’t seen all three movies, let alone all 200+ TV episodes, but I’m sure I recall seeing the dragon trainer and thinking that would make a swell ride.
Even if Tom’s right about Dragon’s Racer Rally being “iffy.” I’m familiar with two carnival rides that it looks like it’s based on, so it may be a lower cost risk. At any rate, more smaller attractions is what I would have preferred for Toy Story Land, especially since no matter what tech drives it Alien Swirling Saucers comes off as a mild scrambler or tilt-a-whirl ride, anyway.
I mean, I’m a big fan of both Disney and Universal, but how do you look at what both are doing right now and not see Universal completely OWNING the Orlando theme park scene for at least the next five years? Epic Universe looks incredible…
Because outside of diehard theme park fans, people don’t visit for only the things that are brand-new. In addition to that, the new park will draw new guests to Orlando, some of whom will also visit Walt Disney World. And on those same lines, the demos for lands like this and Super Nintendo World will otherwise skew more towards WDW than Universal’s other parks.
Also, we’ve seen this movie before with Wizarding World of Harry Potter. This time, the big difference (IMO) is that Universal has a lot more hotel capacity–so Disney has reason to be worried there. They’ll need to find a way to pull people to stay on-site, and a “free” afternoon at the water parks isn’t going to cut it.
@Sean, we like both also but two things are still severely inferior at Universal, the food and the breadth of leisure you can experience amongst all the resorts. The best example is our stays at AKL. A Savanna view room with restaurants like Boma, Jiko and Saana available has no counterpart at Universal…If Universal ever delved into a DVC type enterprise then elevated the food game, it’d be ON!
My son has read the entire 12 book set of How to Train Your Dragon multiple times. Cannot wait for this land. Between this, Nintendo and Harry Potter we will be skipping Disney and doing Universal in 2025.
I couldn’t be more excited about this land. We’re skipping WDW this year to save up for an ‘epic’ trip to both properties in 2025.
The “Foribben Friendship” and “Test Drive” sequences in the first HTTTYD are animation hall-of-fame material. I was a major DreamWorks cynic back then as well but after those two scenes I knew that the filmmakers (formerly from Disney!) had made movie for the ages. This is a perfect series for a theme park land.
I meant “Forbidden Friendship”…apologies for the typo!
I’ve only been to Universal Hollywood in CA. Love that because of the studio tour. I haven’t bee to Universal Florida because I didn’t want to interrupt my Disney World vacation by cutting it short. Plus, looking at the rides Universal had didn’t seem like something I could ride. Now, this new land looks very “Disneyish”. I can probably ride 3 out of 4 rides and they look like a lot of fun. I may have to put Universal on the calendar.
Looks cool- they are really going all out it seems. I hope the coasters throughout aren’t too crazy- from what I could tell on video so far they look potentially family friendly so far.
The three HTTYD films are some of my all time favorites. From the first moment the rumors started swirling about a Dragons land in Epic Universe, I hoped they would rip off Flight of Passage and let us fly on Toothless. Flight of Passage is basically the *perfect* HTTYD ride.
Putting that aside, this land seems to be checking all the right boxes for a big fan like me. Lots to do, the rides thematically make sense with the source material, and the theming of the land looks like it will be detailed and authentic. Positioning the land as taking place between the second and third films was smart, since Berk is basically a big colorful Dragon utopia during that point in the story. I can wait to see it in person!
Epic Universe is pretty much hitting all the fandoms for my young adult kids — Harry Potter, Nintendo, How to Train Your Dragon. I have a feeling we will be there within a year after it opens.
(And echoing the chorus — you’ll like the movies — great animation, amazing music, and sarcastically fun.)
Don’t need to see the movies to know this looks great. Hopefully Disney will look at that video and Sleeping Beaity will wake up.
“Don’t need to see the movies to know this looks great.”
Agreed.
Heck, I still haven’t seen all of the Harry Potter movies and I love those lands. I didn’t remember the first Avatar when I visited Pandora, and still loved that.
Great theme park design can stand on its own without knowledge of the source material–that just helps enhance it for the fans.
I have to admit I was turned off and bewildered by the idea of a “live action remake” of how to train your dragon, Because I’ve really hated this concept with Disney films. However I imagine universal is willing to take the risk that they can do it better. Their timing with the new park may actually create the synergy that I don’t think Disney ever got with this concept. Curious to see how well it works.
If Universal captured some live dragons, then they should by all means remake the movie. You don’t let dragons go to waste.
Joking aside, I actually have much less of an issue with remaking animated movies that are not classics. I know HTTYD has great reviews, but it’s not old enough to be a classic (IMO). Same deal with Moana.
And honestly, I’m probably more ‘forgiving’ with Universal doing this because I don’t necessarily expect the same family-friendly filmmaking as with Disney. A live-action remake of something with dragons and vikings could be grittier and more adult. Not necessarily Game of Thrones level, but also not PG–somewhere in between.
We aren’t even halfway through the promo trail on this (2 out of 5 lands previewed) and I’m already excited to give Universal my money. Epic Universe looks truly epic!
Can you please tell me what Disney travel agent I should reach to help with a Disney vacation
We recommend Be Our Guest Vacations: https://beourguestvacations.com/quotes/&?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=dtb#walt-disney-world
They can assist with WDW, Universal, and beyond.
It looks fantastic. It’s kind of sad that Disney thinks 2 attractions is acceptable.
This is not just a Disney thing.
If anything, Disney has been pulling from the playbook that Universal created with the first Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
Have not watched the films yet, but I am more likely to now after seeing all of this. Looks great!
Good point about more than two rides per land, which is the Disney trend with Toy Story Land, Star Wars and Pandora. Three seems like a minimum requirement. And I am happy to not have screens. Being USH passholders and being the beneficiary of motion sickness coming with older age, I feel like I have to space out rides at USH to handle it all. Sounds like the Universal Orlando parks are not as bad. Nevertheless, it looks like we will be staying at WDW with DVC with likely a two park trip to Universal Orlando resort and maybe one park at WDW and will let the kid decide which park to choose at WDW (which will be no doubt Epcot, and no complaints from Mom and Dad there!)
I’m super excited for this land. I agree with this being a really solid and accessible ride line up. Coaster looks Slinky Dog Dash level coaster, Dragon Racers is a unique ride system, and I like having an interactive water ride. Play areas are really nice when you have kids (Boneyard as the all time champion). Show looks comparable to Finding Nemo at Animal Kingdom. The meet and greet should be fun too – having seen how well Universal does their Raptor meet and greet.
Regarding “high tech” rides – Hiccup is a mechanical engineer (essentially) who always builds things in the movies so having mechanical ride systems is more thematically appropriate then some virtual reality sort of attraction.
As a fan of the movies, I would schedule a visit just for this land if it opened as a land in one of their existing parks. I’m mentally planning to be at Epic Universe within 12 months of opening.
Not telling you anything you have not been told before, but you really do need to check out the movies with Megatron. How to Train your Dragon was our family’s favorite movie franchise as the kids grew up. I was honestly pretty blown away by the promo video. My biggest takeaway/reaction was that the land just looks fun, which is kind of the whole point. I also am becoming increasingly impressed with the portal concept they came up with. Maybe it won’t work as well because of the inherent backtracking, but it seems pretty cool.
There are a lot of movies we’ve been “saving” to watch with Megatron once that time comes, but that time won’t be in the next ~16 months (and I want to go in with the requisite knowledge for this land), so I’m going to go ahead and watch at least the first two HTTYD movies soon.
I also agree that this land ‘just looks fun.’ That’s probably a better way of putting it–very fun and kinetic energy all around. It should be awesome.
I have also never seen How to Train Your Dragon, but I definitely plan to after watching the trailer for this new land. I literally teared up at how magical and amazing it all looks. I have only ever spent 1 day at universal parks at a time as an add on to a Disney trip and I am fully trying to convince my family to plan a trip for next summer that is half disney half universal because Epic Universe looks so amazing. I am also a major HP fan and LOVE those lands at Universal already. Plus I love Nintendo and can’t wait. This land is just icing on the cake for me. I love the idea of the rides and show. I think they are perfect for kids. I understand the riding a dragon pull like Avatar, but I get a little sick and so does my son and my other kids are too small. I love that this land has zero screens. With a lot of universal heavy into screens I think this is a great decision to have an entire land without them. I am here for any content you give us about epic universe as it is being built!
“I love that this land has zero screens.”
This is another (perhaps the) big reason why no Flight of Passage clone was the right move. Universal already gets excoriated about overuse of screens. This new park should put some of those complaints (which are a bit overblown IMO) to rest.
1) I really enjoyed HTTYD (movies and series), and I hope it doesn’t disappoint you. #2 was surprisingly good and way better than it had any right to be.
2) “The only problem is that’s basically Avatar Flight of Passage.” I hear ya about not wanting to draw comparisons or waits, but literally the moment we stepped off of FoP my then 7-year-old turned to me and said, “That was great! I pretended I was on Toothless flying over Berk.” She’s now 13, and she STILL talks about FoP as the “Dragon” ride. She’s never seen Avatar, has no desire to see Avatar, but she’s knows HTTYD and its own mythology really well. I was hoping for something more immersive to put her into the films she really loved. Perhaps the show will cover that.
The show does look amazing (if you didn’t watch the video, I’d recommend doing that–there’s actual footage since the show already exists in Beijing).
Interesting perspective on Flight of Passage: HTTYD Edition. I suspect something like it will come at some point, as riding on the back of a dragon is definitely a ‘wish fulfillment’ experience.
Okay, I went back and watched it, and the show does look impressive. We have the movie set on Blu-Ray, but out of curiosity, I looked up where to stream the movies. Looks like in order to see all the movies and most of the television series/specials, you have to subscribe to Prime, Netflix, Peacock, Fubo, and Hulu. I don’t really keep a finger on the streaming beat (I just fork over my money to too many services), but is there any plan to get the IP in one place?
Color me impressed. A new land with 4 attractions and plenty of food options? Nice. The rides all look really fun, too. the boat ride looks like an outdoor Buzz Lightyear with water cannons instead of lasers. That seems fun.