Genie+ vs. Universal Express: Which Theme Park Upcharge Is Worth Its Price to “Plus” Your Trip?

If we told you two years ago that FastPass would be a thing of the past, you probably wouldn’t have believed us. But here we stand, at the precipice of the Year of the Genie. Disney’s new paid-for priority boarding system is the talk of the town, both for ways its serves as a return to the tried-and-true rules of the past and how it requires a PhD level dissertation to understand. It’s probably a good time to examine how Disney’s line-skipping system works today… and to compare it to its nearest neighbor, Universal’s Express Pass.

Today, we’re diving deep to dissect both Genie+ and Universal Express to see how these two systems approach priority boarding very, very differently. We’ll dig into the pros and cons of each, examine how each one works, and ask you for your input – do you prefer Genie+’s low-cost system dictated by rules, reservations, technology, and microtransactions, or Universal’s high-cost, all-in, VIP solution for guests willing to spend big to get stuff done?

Stories in the Extra Features and Special Features collections of Park Lore are all about connections – they’re the threads that interlace between the Lost Legends, Declassified Disasters, Modern Marvels, and Possibilitylands you’ll find in our Main Collections. In other words, these features are for people who really want to dig deep.



This article and hundreds more are available for Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Members who help support this ad-free, clickbait-free, quality-over-quantity collection with a monthly membership. Park Lore Members can access more than a hundred Member-exclusive articles, unlock rare concept art and construction photos in every story, stream audio across the site, tune into podcast exclusives, and receive an annual member card and merch in the mail!

If you choose to join Park Lore’s community of Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Members, you’ll instantly unlock this story (and of course, a lot more). You can learn more about joining and supporting Park Lore (and browse all the available Extras and Special Features) in the “Memberships & Perks” menu above. If you can’t afford a Pass, please contact us; we’ll make some magic happen.


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WHAT IF… Disney’s Legendary, Terrifying Alien Encounter Was Reborn in Universal Orlando’s Jurassic Park?

Every day, themed entertainment designers ask themselves and each other the same question: “What if?” In the so-called “Blue Sky” phase of design, there’s no limit; no capacity; no technology; no budget. The idea is to dream big and let reality hem in the project’s scope later. In this new Theme Park Tourist mini-series, we invite you to “Blue Sky” with us, and to reimagine a ride that could use a refresh. 

As part of Park Lore’s Member-exclusive Extra Features collection, we launched into a new “WHAT IF…” miniseries when we pitched a retheme of Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, turning this Sunset Blvd. E-Ticket into a 1930s head trip into The Twilight Zone. Today, we’re wondering what it would be like if Disney’s ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter was reborn at Universal Orlando, and merged into the Jurassic World mythos… 

Think this hybridized concept is crazy enough to work? Here’s our pitch…

Continue reading “WHAT IF… Disney’s Legendary, Terrifying Alien Encounter Was Reborn in Universal Orlando’s Jurassic Park?”

AVENGERS: Custody War – Disney & Universal’s Co-Parenting Plans for MARVEL Super Heroes

“Avengers… Assemble!” Well… if only it were that easy.

Forget Thor and Loki; Wanda and Agatha; Iron Man and Thanos. When it comes to Marvel superheroes, one of the most cosmic clashes of all time isn’t been heroes and villains at all. Instead, it’s between two entertainment titans engaged in a decades-long war over control of Central Florida, now embroiled in an unlikely custody battle over a teenager from Brooklyn… with web-slinging powers.

For those outside theme park fandom, it’s one of the oddest bits of “fine print” in modern pop culture: that somehow, despite Disney’s $4 billion purchase of Marvel outright in 2009, the company is forbidden from using its own heroes at its flagship resort. To make matters worse, not only is Disney practically powerless in leveraging its pop-culture-dominating IP in its own theme parks, but those heroes have somehow been ceded to their comic-book-esque archnemesis just a few miles north.

So how can Universal hold Spider-Man hostage? What’s the legal asterisk that explains the slow drip of Marvel heroes into Disney Parks across the globe… including Florida? What does the future hold for Disney and Universal’s uneasy co-parenting of Marvel heroes in theme parks? Like all custody battles, it’s… complicated. So we may as well start at the beginning…

Stories in the Extra Features and Special Features collections of Park Lore are all about connections – they’re the threads that interlace between the Lost Legends, Declassified Disasters, Modern Marvels, and Possibilitylands you’ll find in our Main Collections. In other words, these features are for people who really want to dig deep.



This article and hundreds more are available for Gold and Platinum Members who help support this ad-free, clickbait-free, quality-over-quantity collection with a monthly membership. Park Lore Members can access more than a hundred Member-exclusive articles, unlock rare concept art and construction photos in every story, stream audio across the site, tune into podcast exclusives, and receive an annual member card and merch in the mail!

If you choose to join Park Lore’s community of Gold and Platinum Members, you’ll instantly unlock this story (and of course, a lot more). You can learn more about joining and supporting Park Lore (and browse all the available Extras and Special Features) in the “Memberships & Perks” menu above. If you can’t afford a Pass, please contact us; we’ll make some magic happen.


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Wonders of the Wand: 8 Incredible Incantations (and 2 Secret Spells) Within the Wizarding World

For fans of themed entertainment design, time might as well be measured in years A.P. – After Potter. After all, the 2010 opening of the Wizarding World’s first half (Hogsmeade at Universal’s Islands of Adventure) reset the rules of theme park expansions, officially replacing the era of the E-Ticket with the age of the “Living Land.” Thanks to the Wizarding World, guests didn’t just want to “ride the movies;” they wanted to shop where their favorite characters shop; to eat where they eat; to step where they step!

Image: Universal via WizardingWorldPark.com

So when the Wizarding World’s second half (Diagon Alley at Universal Studios Florida) debuted in 2014, it brought with it the next leap for designers seeking “in-universe” souvenirs: the interactive Wand. Guests (literally) lined up to fork over Muggle dollars for wands capable of bringing Diagon Alley’s windows to life, quickly leading to the ret-conning of simpler effects back in the original Hogsmeade. Today, more than two dozen spells dot the two lands of the Wizarding World, but we’ve collected eight of our favorites… and two totally-unmarked secret spells you may not even have known exist… 

Stories in the Extra Features and Special Features collections of Park Lore are all about connections – they’re the threads that interlace between the Lost Legends, Declassified Disasters, Modern Marvels, and Possibilitylands you’ll find in our Main Collections. In other words, these features are for people who really want to dig deep.



This article and hundreds more are available for Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Members who help support this ad-free, clickbait-free, quality-over-quantity collection with a monthly membership. Park Lore Members can access more than a hundred Member-exclusive articles, unlock rare concept art and construction photos in every story, stream audio across the site, tune into podcast exclusives, and receive an annual member card and merch in the mail!

If you choose to join Park Lore’s community of Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Members, you’ll instantly unlock this story (and of course, a lot more). You can learn more about joining and supporting Park Lore (and browse all the available Extras and Special Features) in the “Memberships & Perks” menu above. If you can’t afford a Pass, please contact us; we’ll make some magic happen.


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Potter… Nintendo… Star Wars… WHAT’S LEFT?! 12 Untapped IPs Perfect for Theme Park Lands

For at least the last few decades, multimedia companies like Disney, NBCUniversal, ViacomCBS, and WarnerMedia have been engaged in an all-out war. The goal? Purchasing, licensing, conglomerating, trading, and protecting the most precious resource of the 21st century: intellectual property. In fact, one of Park Lore’s recent Extra Features took a look at 9 surprising IPs that are now officially Disney’s thanks to its acquisition of 20th Century Fox!

But away from the studio, one battlefront in the ongoing IP War has been Disney and Universal’s respective theme parks, where a new era of “Living Lands” has plucked places right from the highest-earning franchises in history like Harry Potter, Star Wars, Marvel, and Disney Princesses to go head-to-head in billion-dollar theme park projects.

A few years ago – after so many major acquisitions – we might’ve wondered aloud, “What’s left?!” Then came Nintendo. How had we missed it?! Nintendo was the kind of integenerational, widely-recognized, timeless brand and character catalogue few movies can match. It’s perfect for creating an immersive world. And of course, it doesn’t hurt that between Mario and Donkey Kong alone, Nintendo’s top two franchises have amassed $40 billion in revenue (more than the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe)…

The surprising coup of Nintendo has left lots of theme park fans wondering aloud, “What else have we missed?” and more importantly…

Stories in the Extra Features and Special Features collections of Park Lore are all about connections – they’re the threads that interlace between the Lost Legends, Declassified Disasters, Modern Marvels, and Possibilitylands you’ll find in our Main Collections. In other words, these features are for people who really want to dig deep.



This article and hundreds more are available for Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Members who help support this ad-free, clickbait-free, quality-over-quantity collection with a monthly membership. Park Lore Members can access more than a hundred Member-exclusive articles, unlock rare concept art and construction photos in every story, stream audio across the site, tune into podcast exclusives, and receive an annual member card and merch in the mail!

If you choose to join Park Lore’s community of Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Members, you’ll instantly unlock this story (and of course, a lot more). You can learn more about joining and supporting Park Lore (and browse all the available Extras and Special Features) in the “Memberships & Perks” menu above. If you can’t afford a Pass, please contact us; we’ll make some magic happen.


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Inverted. Stand-Up. Flying. Diving. Wing. Here’s What Legendary Coaster Manufacturer B&M is Doing Next…

Founded in 1987 by Walter Bolliger and Claude Mabillard, B&M today is one of the world’s most respected roller coaster design & manufacturing films, supplying headlining attractions to amusement parks across the globe. In fact, you’d be hard off to find a major, thrill-focused coaster park in the United States (or elsewhere, for that matter) that doesn’t have at least one B&M creation among its lineup…! No, really… Try to think of one… 

If you’re not sure, just venture into the rabbit hole of your friendly, neighborhood park’s unofficial fansite discussion board; scour RCDB; or more to the point, visit a park with a seasoned coaster enthusiast. Without fail, a coaster geek can spot a B&M a mile away thanks to unmistakable signs: rounded support columns; four-abreast trains; signature “pre-drops” before the biggie meant to relieve stress on chain lifts; buttery track transitions; signature maneuvers like wing-overs, dive loops, Immelmans, and cobra rolls… once you know how to spot them, B&Ms are everywhere.

Image: B&M

In part, the proliferation of B&M rides around the world is thanks to the firm’s apparent three-word mantra: reliability, reliability, reliability. A designer who knows how far to push the limits (and what lines not to cross compared to, say, their nearest competitors, Intamin), B&M rides are trustworthy crowd-pleasers and people-eaters. But the spread of B&M coasters is also due to their part in the epic “Coaster Wars” of the ‘90s and early 2000s, when parks were willing to spend big to prototype B&M’s cutting-edge, record-breaking ride systems that would earn parks attendance, awards, and acclaim.

The breakneck pace of innovation and the thirst for record-breaking has (mostly) quelled. The primary competitors in the “Coaster Wars” – Six Flags and Cedar Fair – have since noticed that in their two decades of bigger-taller-faster obsession, they might’ve accidentally forgotten to invest in anything but thrill rides, leading to a significant slowdown in coaster construction throughout the 2010s and a needed shift toward flat rides, dark rides, and entertainment. But now, a new patent suggests that B&M may be ready for a comeback… 

Today, we’ll tour through the major reinventions of the roller coaster pioneered by B&M over its thirty year history, watching as they reposition, reorient, and remake riders’ roles in thrill rides. Think you know what B&M might have planned next? We bet you’ll be surprised…

Stories in the Extra Features and Special Features collections of Park Lore are all about connections – they’re the threads that interlace between the Lost Legends, Declassified Disasters, Modern Marvels, and Possibilitylands you’ll find in our Main Collections. In other words, these features are for people who really want to dig deep.



This article and hundreds more are available for Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Members who help support this ad-free, clickbait-free, quality-over-quantity collection with a monthly membership. Park Lore Members can access more than a hundred Member-exclusive articles, unlock rare concept art and construction photos in every story, stream audio across the site, tune into podcast exclusives, and receive an annual member card and merch in the mail!

If you choose to join Park Lore’s community of Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Members, you’ll instantly unlock this story (and of course, a lot more). You can learn more about joining and supporting Park Lore (and browse all the available Extras and Special Features) in the “Memberships & Perks” menu above. If you can’t afford a Pass, please contact us; we’ll make some magic happen.


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POSEIDON’S FURY: The Legend of Universal Orlando’s One-of-a-Kind Mythological Marvel

Image: OrlandoInformer.com

Long ago, in the distant corners of the ancient globe, civilizations were ruled not by order, but by seething dragons, forbidden magic, and jealous gods… It’s the perfect prologue for another timeless entry into our in-depth collection of must-read stories chronicling the best (and worst) attractions to ever exist – from the Skyway to JawsRadiator Springs Racers to DisneyQuest.

And yet, today’s entry is perhaps the strangest story we’ve told. An anchor of Universal’s Islands of Adventure, the mythological Lost Continent set out to prove that Universal could dispense with its “studio” styling and create immersive fantasy worlds matching Disney’s dominance. But forget dueling dragons or living dinosaurs… One of the most talked-about and mysterious elements the new park promised was Poseidon’s Fury

Continue reading “POSEIDON’S FURY: The Legend of Universal Orlando’s One-of-a-Kind Mythological Marvel”

Revenge of the Mummy: Unearthing the Story Behind Universal’s Mummified Marvel

Dateline: 1926. Deep within the timeless sands of ancient Egypt, a most peculiar discovery has been unearthed… long believed to be only a legend, the burial place of the high priest Imhotep is indeed real… and its sole inhabitant isn’t content staying dead for another three thousand years…

Here at Park Lore, we’ve taken our globetrotting to the extreme with our new series, Modern Marvels, where we uncover the details behind some of the world’s must-see masterpieces of themed entertainment, thrills, and technology.

And today, we’ll unearth the in-depth experience of another spectacular hit ride: Revenge of the Mummy at Universal Studios Florida. We’ll dust away the sands of time and reveal the story behind this “psychological thrill ride,” get a first-person idea of what awaits inside the mummy’s tomb, and even see where this unexpected E-Ticket has been adapted around the globe. Ready to dive in?

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The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man: The Inside Scoop on Universal’s Web-Slinging Marvel

“Listen, SCOOP – crime reports are coming in from all over the city and I’m starting to get worried…”

It’s not every year that a new attraction debuts, stealing headlines, entirely rewriting the course of the theme park industry and redefining what a ride can do… And on the rare occasions that has happened, it’s typically not outside of Disney Parks. And yet, even for fans of Disney Imagineering, there’s at least one Universal attraction that’s simply astounding; inspiring; electrifying; amazing.

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Coffeeland: 8 Ways Disney and Universal Parks Disguise Starbucks in Plain Sight

If you were to ask his friends and family what Walt Disney was, you might get any number of answers: an animator; an artist; a dreamer; an optimist; a futurist… But that’s not all…

According to the fantastic Eat Like Walt by Marcy Carriker Smothers, Walt was also a restauranteur – a man experimenting right at the height of mid-century middle class American dining, introducing the idea that food and fun could go together; that food was full of color and fantasy; that food could be an integral part of the story of each of Disneyland’s themed areas.

Image: Disney

However, there was one area where even Walt wasn’t willing to mess around: coffee. As the story goes, Walt decreed back in 1955 that Disneyland would always offer a cup of coffee for ten-cents and not a penny more. And in fact, coffee in the park did cost only a dime until Walt’s death in 1966. Those days, of course, are long gone…

Continue reading “Coffeeland: 8 Ways Disney and Universal Parks Disguise Starbucks in Plain Sight”