Universal Has More in Store for Harry Potter as Theme Park Battles Rage
Photo Credit: Universal Orlando Resort announced this week that a new Harry Potter thrill ride is replacing Dragon Challenge, pictured here, at Islands of Adventure. Flickr / Jeremy Thompson
Skift Take
Disney still wins this round with the sheer volume of announcements it made earlier this month, but Universal definitely steals some theme park thunder with news of a new thrill ride at the original Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
A week and a half after Disney Parks and Resorts announced a slate of new attractions at its Orlando theme parks, rival Universal Studios is making its own expansion news.
Universal Orlando Resort announced in a blog post Monday that a new roller coaster is coming to the Harry Potter-themed land that has been giving Disney a run for its not-insubstantial money for years now.
Since 2009, the year before the first Wizarding World of Harry Potter opened at Islands of Adventure, attendance at that Universal park has increased 102 percent. According to the most recent estimate available, more than 9.3 million people visited Islands of Adventure in 2016.
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