The spooky season just got interesting! Yesterday, we previewed Universal Orlando’s new Haunted Houses for the 2020 season at Universal Studios Florida. If you recall, earlier this year, Universal canceled Halloween Horror Nights, but now they have decided to open some of the houses for daytime guests. Today was the first preview for these houses for Premier Annual Passholders and Team Members. Let’s take a look!
A quick note, for those of you reading from California, in Florida Universal uses the term “Haunted House” instead of “Haunted Maze” as they use in Hollywood. Same thing, different name.
The houses are located in Universal’s Front Lot Production Studio Complex in two soundstages. The entrances to the houses are in the Universal Music Plaza and near Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon. In a normal HHN year, houses are only open in the evenings, but now they are open all day. That creates a unique problem that was not foreseen today. No shade at all in the queues. It was absolutely brutal. Even with reservations, we waited more than 45 minutes for each house in direct sunlight with no shade. It was sweltering and VERY uncomfortable, especially considering current mask requirements.
Aside from the issues with the queues, the houses are wonderful. AND, there’s no additional fee to see them. They are included with your regular park admission.
Although Universal in Florida does not allow photography or video recording of any kind, we will try to describe the houses below. If you would prefer to not read these descriptions, please skip this portion of the article, as there are some minor spoilers below.
The Bride of Frankenstein
This haunted house is quite a throwback to the simpler houses of yesteryear and the classic Universal monsters. Upon entering we find ourselves in Frankenstein’s castle, wandering though the different rooms, and even outside at times. We have plenty of opportunities to see the Bride and Dr. Frankenstein’s monster. It’s quite detailed, especially with the brickwork, and a lot of fun. We didn’t find this house very scary, so if you have younger ones, this would be a nice starter house.
Revenge of the Toothfairy
This house is amazing. The story begins as you enter the storybook tale of the Tooth-fairy. But one child didn’t want to give up his teeth… and the Tooth-fairy came back for a complete set. This is an absolutely brilliant concept. If you’re afraid of demon-like Tooth-fairies and dentists, you might want to sit this house out. This is much scarier than the Bride of Frankenstein house, and it is definitely worth it.
Social Distanced Scares
So how is Universal doing scares with distancing? In short; Plexiglass. Anytime you’re in a house close (less than 6 feet) to a scare-actor, you are separated with a plexiglass barrier. It actually works pretty well. And to keep you separated from other guests, team members are spread throughout the houses with red wands. They act as a sort of traffic control system, to stop you from moving forward until the path is clear to do so. It was very effective in our experience. The queues are very much like other queues in the park, with decals at each point to show where to stand to keep distance between yourself and other parties. As a matter of fact, the only place we had issues with social distancing was when the lines stretched outside of the marked queues. Evidently, people immediately forget what 6 feet is once there are no decals on the ground.
Virtual Queues
We visited on Friday the 18th for a reservation-only special event just for Team Members and Premier Passholders. But on Saturday the 19th, Universal will open theses houses to all, using a virtual queuing system. This is the same one that is used on busy days for Hagrid’s Motorbike Adventure. You will need to be inside the park to join the queue and select a time to return. This is tracked using GPS location data on your mobile device, not by a park ticket scan. Even with the virtual queue system, we really need to make it clear that Universal needs to get some shade into their queues ASAP. It’s absolutely miserable in the direct sunlight. I recommend wearing a hat, grabbing a cool drink before getting into queue, and preparing yourself for a long slog to the houses of horror.
Food Truck
A new food truck was also set up near the restrooms between the Music Plaza and Jimmy Fallon. Although we didn’t eat here, the food smelled quite good.
Skeleton Bar
We also visited the Skeleton Bar, a new lounge experience setup in Cafe La Bamba. Simply put, it’s a cafeteria with a bar and some really nice Halloween decorations. We wouldn’t wait more than about 10 minutes to get inside here, but it’s a welcome festive addition to the park.
We tried the Tandori Chicken Skewers (8.99) and one of the specialty drinks called the Loup Garou ($12.50) which was delicious!
Horror Nights Tribute Store
Universal had planned an epic Halloween Horror Nights for 2020 in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the event. And while the big festivities will need to wait until next year, the Halloween team did create an amazingly themed store to help fill the void. Much of the merchandise originally planned for this year’s event are available here.
The store does give clues at the original plans . . . which we hope we’ll see next year.
Beetlejuice was featured at the very first event. We would have loved to have seen this maze. But one that did make it is the Bride of Frankenstein.
I particularly like the section of the store featuring the classic Horror Nights icons.
Jack the Clown, The Undertaker, The Director, The Usher, and The Storyteller.
In some ways, the store’s like a house of its own. Well worth a visit.
Save On Future Theme Park Travel
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Let’s Hear From You
Are you ready for some modified scares? The mazes are only official for this weekend, but if there’s a good response, we expect a quick extension through Halloween. Let us know your thoughts!
For more recent news from Universal Orlando, take a look at the article below.
Universal Orlando Update – Dinosaurs, Crêpes & Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice!
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