For those who still haven't joined I'm going to share something that I wrote in the members only section here a couple of days ago. This is the kind of stuff you will find here. So join its free for crying out loud!
It's time to go around the Universal Orlando Resort with me as I update you all on a couple of things that I'm sure many of you are dying to know. First though, I would like to thank all you readers out there who support this website and continue to come here to see the latest and greatest news on all things Orlando. We continue to grow daily and its all thanks to our members who make our forums not just the most up to date forum but also the most friendly. So to all of you, thank you!
Alright, now that we got that mushy stuff out of the way, lets talk about some Universal news that was delivered via alien spaceship. First off, the Simpsons. Yeah, yeah, I know. WHERE IS THE ANNOUNCEMENT HTF?? Okay, well believe me, I'm shocked there hasn't been one yet either. However, I've been told the reason for the delay wasn't just changes they made to the IFFF, but there was also an issue regarding Fox and Hasbro with the marketing. We will be getting an announcement very soon, however, and I can confirm the target opening for Springfield is in fact June 20th. I know many of you may think I'm crazy since most of the waterfront is still rubble, but as I've said since late last year, June is the target and no, there will not be a Ferris Wheel
Lets move on to Transformers, shall we. Okay, I've got good news and bad news. What do you want first? Well the good news is that we will be riding within a week. The bad news is that there isn't an AA from what I've been told. Alright, let's elaborate. Training for Team Members finished this afternoon and as of today they can let non opening team members on the ride. Speaking of that, it sounds like employee previews will be Tuesday and Wednesday before and after park hours. If you're a team member though be warned as E-stops are planned throughout the previews. Once those are complete, we will see softs for the general public beginning Thursday or Friday. The first several softs we begin in the afternoon and continue to park closing unless there is a problem. So if you hear about a soft starting and you live close you should be able to ride all the way up until park closing. Now as for the Optimus figure, he is scheduled for installation after park hours May 27-30th. From what I've been told he is a static figure and will have glowing eyes and an independent light package separate from the warehouse system.
Just across from the ride building they're currently hard at work building a permanent meet and greet for the very awesome walk around characters. For those who are looking directly at the new structures and have their back to the ride, the M&G Garage will be on your right and the photo connect station will be on the left. Energon though is very very quiet almost scary quiet. So quiet that there may in fact be an issue bringing it the park by Grand Opening. While I'm confident we will get the drink, I'm not so sure as to when we will. Look for it to be the last thing to arrive on site. Finally the Grand Opening celebration for the ride will rival that of Potters in terms of scale. It will make the Hollywood one look like a joke as the Studios comes under attack! I will be there, I recommend you do as well.
Moving on down the strip we come across something I've been hinting at for many moons. Disaster will be getting some major love in the form of a big refurb. I can't confirm what will be included but its getting a pretty decent budget and will indeed be getting major station work as well as a new RV. While we're on the subject of RV's, I should mention that the new ones for HRRR have been delayed due to a design issue that Maurer ran into as well. No timeline at the moment but rest assured the rocky russian roulette of train 5 will come to an end before the boy who lived kicks the doors in. Also, in terms of upgrades throughout the resort expect to see much more photo connect options added over the next month and beyond. Transformers as I mentioned will have one as well as several located in Springfield/Krustyland.
Before we get to "you know who" lets take a brief second to talk about Islands and more specifically Jurassic Park. Many have questioned me as to why nothing is happening. Well as I said months ago, don't expect to see anything start until the end of Summer, and considering Summer hasn't started yet, I think that pretty much sums it up. Now while I can't talk about what will be in the expansion as I've been asked not to, I will say its still a go and the entire Island will be getting some love. The JP games are already underway, just not in a way we the public can see. Work is being done behind the scenes I'm told in order to get equipment on site. The refurb of JPRA is going well and will include no new dino's just new parts for Dino's (cough Tiffany cough) and LOTS OF PAINT! Its going to look good once reopened.
Finally, there is the "boy wonder" who is making all of this possible, well sort of. Over the past few days, scaffolding as well as temporary hand rails have gone up along the front of the London Waterfront facades. One thing that is going to suck about Diagon Alley, well actually the only thing that is going to suck about Diagon Alley is by fall the only way to get updates will be via helicopter. Once the London facade begins to go in were gonna be in the dark for months. The good way to look at it though is once it opens everyone will be in for a real treat as they won't really know what to expect. Over at Gringotts the next couple of days will bring the last pieces of track installed. The ones over at the 609 staging area are scheduled to be driven over after hours over the next few days so they can continue the theming of the rides interior. Speaking of that, most would be shocked to know just how far along theming of the interior of the ride is and trust me when I say the ride sets are MASSIVE in scale. They want to begin full testing of Gringotts by September or early October to work out all the kinks with the ride system. And yes, I'm still hearing Intamin is involved with the track system and premier is doing the RV's. I've also heard Premier is partnering with someone else on the RV's. The new 3D stuff I've been hinting at is already being tested on site and as a matter of fact, will force Art and Design out of a soundstage used many times before for HHN's. Not to worry HHN fans, this has no impact on house count.
Until next time my friends...