Author: Brian Glenn

The Today Cafe held its grand opening ceremony at Universal Studios Florida, as the new restaurant is officially open. To celebrate the grand opening, NBC’s Al Roker and the Today Show broadcast live from the Today Cafe. The celebratory moment included a TODAY “orange carpet” lined with Universal Orlando’s most popular characters and culminated with a pop of orange and white confetti. The cafe serves specialty food and beverage options, including fresh in-house baked pastries, salads, sandwiches, and locally-roasted coffee. The restaurant, which replaced the Beverly Hills Boulangerie, is located at the front of the park – directly catacorner from…

Universal Studios Hollywood has set the next Running Universal event for this Fall. The Jurassic World 5K and kids’ 1K Raptor Run will be held on Saturday, November 16, 2019. Guests will run through the Theme Park and part of the Universal Backlot, passing iconic film sets, and finally crossing the finish line at 5 Towers on Universal CityWalk. The inaugural Minion Run, featuring Illumination’s mischievous Minions, took place this past weekend. As of now, signups are only restricted for those who participated in the inaugural Minion Run this weekend and will receive a special early signup pricing of $65…

UPDATED July 18, 2019   After a few months of Hollywood’s version running without the 3D, Universal Orlando has finally followed suit and removed the 3D their version located in Universal Studios Florida. In regards to the change, Universal has stated that they “consistently evaluate and refine our Guest experiences,” and “are excited for [guests] to experience Despicable Me Minion Mayhem this way.” Original story below Universal Parks has removed 3D from their Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem attraction in Universal Studios Hollywood, removing the need for 3D glasses and converting the ride film to 2D. The preshow has also been modified,…

Universal Orlando has given us the first-look at the Hagrid audio-animatronic figure that will be featured in Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQF6P9hO2Xs Guests will join Hagrid on a thrilling journey into the Forbidden Forest as he introduces you to some of the wizarding world’s rarest magical creatures. Universal states the Hagrid AA will be the most advanced and life-like animated figure that they have ever created. Universal Creative worked directly with Robbie Coltrane – who portrays Hagrid in the Harry Potter films – to study his body movements and facial expressions to develop 24 different body actions for this animated…

Knott’s Berry Farm will open Calico River Rapids on Friday, May 17th. The new white water raft ride takes explorers on a search for new land where indigenous wildlife, treacherous roaring rapids, dynamic water effects plus a variety of wild surprises will be encountered along the way. Calico River Rapids takes over the former Bigfoot Rapids white water raft ride, after undergoing a major renovation; featuring new animatronics, themed show scenes, a new story overlay – which tells the backstory about the origins of the “Ghost Town” community of Calico. The attraction will come to life with new animatronics and…

The Universal Monsters will be featured as a maze at this year’s Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando and Universal Studios Hollywood, with each coast getting their own version based on the popular Monster franchise. At Universal Orlando Resort, guests will be hunted by every single grisly monster from the anthology, including Dracula, The Wolf Man and Frankenstein, in the all-new experience, “Universal Monsters.” Each sinister environment will bleed from one to the next as guests press through the darkened realms of horrifying creatures. Guests will face bloody terrors in Dracula’s castle and flee from what is behind the cryptic…

The Today Cafe opened its doors for the first time yesterday at Universal Studios Florida, allowing passholders the first chance to enjoy the new quick-service restaurant. Inspired by the studio where the show is filmed, fans will be able to enjoy the experience of enjoying a bite while inside a recreation of Studio 1A in the Rockefeller Center. The Today Cafe will offer specialty breakfast options like bagel toast and breakfast bowls; to New York-inspired sandwiches and salads. Guests can grab items on-the-go, or enjoy their meal any time of the day at seating both inside and outside in an…

The Hollywood team assemble to discuss a busy couple months at Universal Studios Hollywood. In this episode, we chat about Dark Arts of Hogwarts Castle Premiere, Jurassic World: The Ride news, the announcement of Secret Life of Pets: Off the Leash, and a few Halloween Horror Nights announcements. As always, we cap off the episode by answering your questions. Direct Download and iTunes You may download this episode directly here. You may also subscribe to the Inside Universal Podcast on iTunes. In addition, you can also follow us on Spotify to listen to podcast episodes on their app.

Merchandise for the much-anticipated Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure coaster is now for sale at both Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida. The merchandise features different magical creatures that guests will encounter on the ride, including Fluffy, the three-headed dow, centaurs, pixies, and more. Items such as t-shirts, plushes, mugs, and jewelry are available for purchase. The attraction, which is set to open on June 13, will combine a new level of storytelling and innovative coaster technology with rich environments and sets – including an actual forest with more than 1,200 live trees. It will also give guests the unique opportunity…

Universal Orlando Resort has announced the dates for this year’s Holidays celebration, beginning November 16, 2019 and running through January 5, 2020. All the Holiday’s favorites are returning this year for Universal Orlando’s Holidays celebration; including Christmas in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Florida and Universal’s Islands of Adventure, which also features the  “The Magic of Christmas at Hogwarts Castle” nighttime show. Over at Universal Studios Florida, the Universal’s Holiday Parade featuring Macy’s will run nightly, and Mannheim Steamroller will be performing on select nights. Over at Islands of Adventure, the classic Grinchmas returns. Of course,…