Universal's Epic Universe General News & Discussion

[Disneyhead]

This is a great comparison because Disney also sells a QUARTER MILLION DOLLAR castle made of crystals. But they sell the plastic one too.

I wonder what Universal would charge for a 3 foot tall hand painted resin Hogwart's Castle? $2,500?

 

[Parkscope Joe]

I wonder what Universal would charge for a 3 foot tall hand painted resin Hogwart's Castle? $2,500?

I'll go check when I ride FJ.

 

[Alicia]

The store next to Burger Digs used to sell fossil replicas for hundreds of dollars, but then they switched to Jurassic Park collectible figures, which also cost hundreds of dollars.

Things like this have always been a thing.

The difference with the Chronos tower is we all saw media get ones sent to them and wished we could get our own. Now we can. Buttttttt

I ended up buying a Dark Universe coin through the website. That’s good enough. And affordable.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

The difference with the Chronos tower is we all saw media get ones sent to them and wished we could get our own. Now we can. Buttttttt

Yeah, how much are we angry that folks got them for free?

 

[Mike S]

Yeah, how much are we angry that folks got them for free?

 

[Alicia]

Yeah, how much are we angry that folks got them for free?

Envy not angry

 

[maxairmike]

Yeah, how much are we angry that folks got them for free?

Not at all, just incredulous about the apparent lack of detail/finish I would expect on a $600 model/sculpture, given what I see in the display cases around IOA/USF in that ballpark. I’m betting a fair amount of the potential “market” for this item (myself included) is going to see it in a picture first, not in person, and I would be shocked if I’m the only one who had the first impression of seeing the price and pictures and thinking “this looks like cheap plastic toy level.”

The kind of detail/finish I would expect at this price is equivalent to this JP piece (or this Star Wars piece). That’s the entirety of my issue with it at the price; how basic and relatively lacking in finer details it seems leaving it looking a lot cheaper than any equivalently priced new collectible I typically see.

 

[Brian G.]

Not at all, just incredulous about the apparent lack of detail/finish I would expect on a $600 model/sculpture, given what I see in the display cases around IOA/USF in that ballpark. I’m betting a fair amount of the potential “market” for this item (myself included) is going to see it in a picture first, not in person, and I would be shocked if I’m the only one who had the first impression of seeing the price and pictures and thinking “this looks like cheap plastic toy level.”

The kind of detail/finish I would expect at this price is equivalent to this JP piece (or this Star Wars piece). That’s the entirety of my issue with it at the price; how basic and relatively lacking in finer details it seems leaving it looking a lot cheaper than any equivalently priced new collectible I typically see.

Collectible value has never been determined only by detail. Otherwise, things like trading cards, posters, or even literal pieces of paper wouldn’t sell for thousands.

And yes, I do think there’s a good chunk of pushback tied to this originally being a media gift, and then seeing some people immediately flip and resell what was supposed to be a really special item.

This whole situation has been kinda weird. Last year, Universal absolutely mishandled the Opening Day coin situation, but some of the loudest complaints were from people who weren’t even there to begin with. (which, they ended up making right at the end). At a certain point, it starts feeling less about the item itself and more about fandom validation or straight-up FOMO.

Not every limited item is meant to be instantly and endlessly available to everyone at all times. Part of the appeal of in-park releases and exclusives is their exclusivity.

At the end of the day, nobody has to think it’s worth $600, but obviously Universal does.

 

[maxairmike]

Collectible value has never been determined only by detail. Otherwise, things like trading cards, posters, or even literal pieces of paper wouldn’t sell for thousands.

There’s the traditional, resale/nostalgia based collectibles, and the commercial, non-toy display collectibles sold new. This is entirely about the second type as a new product offered to guests, and level of detail is absolutely a thing for those kinds of items. My examples wouldn’t be anywhere near those listed prices with a few flat colors and no texture, missing details, etc.

And yes, I do think there’s a good chunk of pushback tied to this originally being a media gift, and then seeing some people immediately flip and resell what was supposed to be a really special item.

I could see that being the case, but I think I’ve been pretty clear my objection has nothing to do with that, and some others I’ve personally seen that didn’t seem to factor in.

Not every limited item is meant to be instantly and endlessly available to everyone at all times. Part of the appeal of in-park releases and exclusives is their exclusivity.

At the end of the day, nobody has to think it’s worth $600, but obviously Universal does.

I’m not asking for open edition items that will be endlessly produced (and my examples definitely aren’t unlimited given how many others are sold out, but also similarly to the Chronos from any picture I’ve seen not explicitly labeled as limited edition, either), and park exclusives are fine. I made the original post because I just couldn’t believe what I was seeing and was surprised it hadn’t been mentioned, but it seems most aren’t as bothered by the lack of detail at that price. Part of it is probably that I was hopeful we would get a good Chronos model with a high level of detail, and instead we got this. Lord knows I’m fine paying a lot for plastic if it is done well (hello LEGO).

 

[Mad Dog]

Looking at the Touring Plans attraction times for Memorial Day, it looks like that was 'the' day to visit Epic. Probably the best overall stand by times I've seen for like forever. Even Ministry and DK Mine had decent line times for the second half of the day.

Unless things change drastically for the rest of the week, it appears Memorial Day weekend/week was pretty quiet for both WDW and Universal Orlando with moderate to low crowds.

 

[JohnHammondsCane]

Looking at the Touring Plans attraction times for Memorial Day, it looks like that was 'the' day to visit Epic. Probably the best overall stand by times I've seen for like forever. Even Ministry and DK Mine had decent line times for the second half of the day.

Unless things change drastically for the rest of the week, it appears Memorial Day weekend/week was pretty quiet for both WDW and Universal Orlando with moderate to low crowds.

To this end, with the viral posts of insanely cheap hotel rates at USO/WDW - are we starting to see the fallout of Spirit Airline shuttering? I saw a stat somewhere that it accounted for 10% of flights to MCO? That's insane. Or, is it this combined with everything being more expensive (namely, fuel - for those within driving distance)

 

[Jake S]

Memorial Day is also one of those classic, “nobody goes there anymore, it’s too crowded” and we’re heading into a season people try to avoid traveling to Orlando anyway. I think it’ll be a good while before people adjust to new crowding patterns.

 

[Mad Dog]

Memorial Day is also one of those classic, “nobody goes there anymore, it’s too crowded” and we’re heading into a season people try to avoid traveling to Orlando anyway. I think it’ll be a good while before people adjust to new crowding patterns.

Yes. That's been a bit of a trend since 2017/2018 in Orlando. Even the 'used to be super crowded' July 4th week is almost dead the last few years at WDW. I recall looking at hotel room availability at Universal for summer months (before the Epic hotel build of course), and generally there would only be a couple of room types for the Universal hotels available at this point in time. Today, looking at room availability for June/July/August, almost every room type at nearly every hotel is available, even at this late date. Looks like there will be lots of room vacancies. But with that said, this year looks considerably worse, probably gas and plane fares to a far distant Orlando have added to the shortfall. As I've stated in some other threads, there's great (non Saturday included) AP rates for almost every week this summer. Lots of low $300 a day for the deluxes and some under $90/$100 for the value hotels. That was unheard of a couple of years ago, except for the end of August weeks. Summer 2026, if not for the heat and rain, is going to be a good time for decent lines and not very crowded amenities..

One other point. Neither WDW or Universal has had a good week since the week after Easter. Crowd levels appear significantly lower than was normal for end of April/May.

 

[OLSinFLA]

First rule of capitalism: Something is worth what someone will pay for it

 

[SeventyOne]

Looking at the Touring Plans attraction times for Memorial Day, it looks like that was 'the' day to visit Epic. Probably the best overall stand by times I've seen for like forever. Even Ministry and DK Mine had decent line times for the second half of the day.

Unless things change drastically for the rest of the week, it appears Memorial Day weekend/week was pretty quiet for both WDW and Universal Orlando with moderate to low crowds.

Memorial Day is also one of those classic, “nobody goes there anymore, it’s too crowded” and we’re heading into a season people try to avoid traveling to Orlando anyway. I think it’ll be a good while before people adjust to new crowding patterns.

Was discussing this over the weekend with a friend with access to a lot of numbers. Memorial Day and other Monday holiday attendance has been a year over year trend downward at least since COVID. Hard to justify an $800 room at WDW that will be $300 by the end of the week.

That said, I wonder if we're also seeing a "Magic Kingdom effect" at EU where tourists want to start their week at the park. Traditionally attendance spikes at MK at Monday, and then EPCOT on Tuesday, as a lot of week-long visitors have the same idea.

 

[Mad Dog]

Was discussing this over the weekend with a friend with access to a lot of numbers. Memorial Day and other Monday holiday attendance has been a year over year trend downward at least since COVID. Hard to justify an $800 room at WDW that will be $300 by the end of the week.

That said, I wonder if we're also seeing a "Magic Kingdom effect" at EU where tourists want to start their week at the park. Traditionally attendance spikes at MK at Monday, and then EPCOT on Tuesday, as a lot of week-long visitors have the same idea.

Interesting. I've also heard from someone that knows the numbers that's there's been a lot of cancellations at the Universal hotels. Probably explains how so much inventory popped up lately, at excellent rates, for AP holders. Anyway, it portends manageable crowds for our long vacation with the grandkids in a few weeks. I hate Florida in the summer but that's the only time we can do a 'long' vacation with the girls.

I'm curious how Epic will hold up in this summer. We won't really know the actual effect until the third quarter numbers that give a full comparison, but June should be an indicator. Just anecdotal, but the days we stood in the AP viewing area for Mardi Gras, everyone (AP's) we talked to that had been to Epic last summer swore they'll never go to Epic in the summer again, between the rain shutting down most of the park and the unshaded concrete heat. Tree shade will help in the future, but that's a year or three away. That bad winter freeze probably didn't help either. Bad luck.