Overview

• Amusement Today’s Golden Ticket Awards gave Universal Orlando five wins, including Best Water Park for Volcano Bay, the first new winner in that category in 26 years.
• Epic Universe earned four awards: Best New Coaster (Stardust Racers), Best Dark Ride (Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment), Best New Theme Concept (Darkmoor/Dark Universe), and Best New Attraction Installation (Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry).
• Monsters Unchained topped the dark ride category, displacing Disney’s Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance for the 2025 award according to multiple industry reports.
• Universal refreshed CityWalk banners on Sept. 9 to include Epic Universe’s Chronos portal silhouette with new taglines such as “Four parks, more screams.”
• CEO Mark Woodbury highlighted planned expansion capacity at Epic Universe and a decade-long global pipeline, with UK park construction slated to begin in 2026 and a Kids Resort opening planned in Texas in 2026, while separate reporting notes a Volcano Bay refurbishment targeted for late 2026.