All I can say (well not really as you will see) is WOW. Epic has such an unique feel, vibe and energy that I haven't felt in a park in awhile.
1. The amount of landscaping surprised me. The flowers were beautiful. Especially those (not sure what they are called) that are like a tower/string of flowers stacked on top of each other. And there was one palm tree outside the entrance that had a whole other tree growing around it. Not sure how they did that.
2. The traffic might be a problem. Even for a sneak preview the traffic on Destination Pkwy was backed up all the way to JYP. And was moving very slowly. Except after a while it did pick up speed. So I am not sure if more gates opened up or the street lights became more favorable.
3. Initially my company was told NO PHOTOS. When I got there Saturday the TMs were practically begging people to take pictures.
4. SNW was the most crowded of the four lands and noisiest for some reason. If you have stress from crowds and noise like I do you might want to take this land slowly. It probably didn't help that I had just gotten off Bowser's Challenge. The audio and video overload was a lot especially towards the end of the ride when things are just going bonkers.
5. Ministry was completely closed to guests except for media. So I didn't even get a chance to see the queue.
6. I did ride Frankenstein twice though. Once going through normal queue and once as single rider. Single rider was basically a five minute walk on. You skip everything and get right up to the load area. I think one of the ride animatronics was broken on my second ride.
The Phantom of the Opera didn't turn around towards the vehicle like he did the first time
7. Berk was the most well themed of the four lands. Got to see the show which was entertaining. But I also think where you sit in the theater will have a major impact on your experience. I suggest the middle towards the back if you can.
8. There were a few street performers in the park. A couple of different troupes in Potter. One with a fantastic beast being used as an instrument being accompanied by other instruments. And some singers at another point. There was a violin player in Monsters and I did see the Invisible Man an Igor walking around. Didn't wait to see the windmill catch fire. Berk also had wandering characters.
9. My only regret was not wearing sun screen. I would have stayed longer except my shoulders were starting to burn. There isn't a lot of shade in some areas.