Super Nintendo World
We visited Universal Orlando on the second week of the official opening of Epic Universe, just as the capacity for park attendance was increased after the preview and grand opening. We were excited to be part of the early visitors to Epic Universe, and unsure what to expect as they started a more routine operating schedule.
Park Visit Tip: Guests staying at a Universal Property have early entry to Super Mario World. We stayed at both Stella Nova (a 10-minute walk from the park’s main entrance) and at Helios (located adjacent to the park with a devoted entrance) and both were great for early access.
Park Visit Tip: Plan to come Super Mario World during cooler parts of the day or after dark. This area was the most congested of the lands during our two days in the park.
Portal Layout
Super Mario World is divided into two sections. The largest area is devoted to the Super Mario Brothers franchise, with the rides Yoshi’s Adventure and Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge. Through a tunnel at the back of the land we entered the tropical-themed Donkey Kong Kingdom with the Mine-Cart Madness family roller coaster.
Attractions & Entertainment
Mine-Cart Madness
One of the biggest early criticisms of Epic Universe has been the tendency for rides to go offline unexpectedly. Some of it can be attributed to weather; many of the big draw attractions are outdoor coasters. We did find that Mine-Cart Madness was the least consistent ride for being available. During our extra morning hour as an onsite hotel guest we went straight to the queue to find a 120+ minute wait by 9am. By 9:15am the carts were running but still not loading guests, so we left. The line remained at 2 hours+, though I’m not sure when it started running. Later in the day it shut down for an hour due to a thunderstorm. We returned to the area as the rain stopped, and they reopened the queue with the caveat that the ride was not yet operational. It was unclear if it was broken down or they were waiting for weather to clear. After 30 minutes they reopened and in total our wait was 60 minutes. It was worth the wait and was our favorite attraction in Super Nintendo World (and third favorite in the park after Hiccups Wing Gliders and Monsters Unchained).
RIDE TIP: There is a single rider queue for Mine-Cart Madness that may cut down the wait time if your party doesn’t mind separating.
Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge
The wait for Mario Kart was consistently 60-120 minutes during our two days in the park. For our family, as fans of the Super Mario games, the queue was just as much fun as the ride, and a great way to escape the summer heat. The lines were longest midday and during rainstorms.
YOSHI’S ADVENTURE
Midday the line for Yoshi’s Adventure was consistently 45-60 minutes, not because it’s a huge draw but because its one of the few attractions in the park that accommodated very young children. We waited to ride until dinner time when the ride was essentially walk on.
Ride Tip: Make sure to wear a hat and sun protection on the ride. It does on occasion break down or pause for loading and much of the track is in the direct sunlight.
Character Meet & Greets
Princess Peach, Toad, and Mario & Luigi had set meet and greet times throughout the day. While other characters in the park (Toothless, Frankenstein’s Monster) spent a fair amount of time interacting with guests, seeing Mario & Luigi was more limited to quick high fives and a photo op.
Dining
TOADSTOOL CAFE
Toadstool Café was one of the most popular lunch locations in the park during our visit, with lines queued outside the building for a table. We returned for a later light dinner at 7pm and were able to sit and order right away. Like most dining locations at Epic Universe we were seated and ordered from a QR Code at the table, then waited for staff to deliver our meal. The menu at Toadstool Café is very on-brand, with mushrooms in many of the dishes. Those that weren’t mushroom-flavored were shaped like mushrooms. Because two members of our party have a silly hatred for eating fungus, we supplemented the dinner with a stop at Yoshi’s Snack Island for calzones- the “Green Shell” vegan version was the favorite Epic Universe snack for a picky 12-year old vegetarian.
We finished our visit to Epic Universe with an evening visit to Super Nintendo World to see it at night and to purchase one of the most popular snacks in the park. The DK Crush Float was a kitchen-sink type dessert, with banana and pineapple flavors combined with a waffle cone and toppings. We were limited in luggage space, otherwise we would have purchased the version that included a souvenir DK barrel mug.
Power-Up Band
We purchased a Power-Up Band to get the full experience in Super Nintendo Land. The sales associate was helpful in explaining how to connect it to the App, but the types of activities were a bit confusing. We regretted not reading more in advance about how to get the full benefit of the activities associated with them. Some activities were scattered throughout the outdoor sections of the land; we could use the band to collect coins by “punching blocks” and activate sounds by tapping the band on icons. The more interactive stations were on the upper section of Super Nintendo World, near the entrance from the escalator portal. There we found challenges that allowed us to collect “keys” and there were staff members available at the small queues to help explain them. We had to collect three keys to activate the Bowser Jr. Shadow Showdown, an interactive game room.
ACTIVITY TIP: Bands were required to complete some of the quest activities, and some parents were disappointed that their kids couldn’t participate without the additional purchase. If you are attending for just a day and don’t want to add the additional cost you may want to avoid the section of Super Nintendo World, near the entrance to Bowser’s Challenge, unless your family is okay with just watching other guests play. We found that purchasing just one band for the three of us to share was a good compromise.
ACTIVITY TIP: Power Up Bands can be purchased in stores and at kiosks inside and outside Super Nintendo World. If you want more time with an associate to explain the functions of the band, consider finding a spot with less of a line to buy it.
Read more blog posts about Universal Studios Florida
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