Universal Orlando Resort is a theme park, entertainment district and vacation resort located in south Orlando, Fla., featuring two theme parks, stores, restaurants, nightclubs, entertainment venues and three resort hotels.The resort is owned through a complex corporate partnership that includes Blackstone Capital Partners and NBC Universal Inc. In 2006, Universal Orlando Resort two theme parks had a combined attendance of 11.2 million visitors, and the full resort offered employment to approximately 13,000 people. Universal Orlando Resort first component, Universal Studios Florida, opened in 1990, featuring rides and shows mostly based on classic movies. In late 1998 and 1999, the resort was more than doubled with the openings of the CityWalk shopping, dining and nightlife district and the second theme park, Islands of Adventure, which added more rides and shows based on movies, comics, Dr. Seuss children¿s books and fantasy.
History and Location
Universal Orlando Resort originally opened as Universal Studios Florida in 1990, thus making it simply a theme park. It was originally opened as a joint venture between NBCUniversal and The Blackstone Group which sold its half in early 2011. Universal Studios Florida opened in direct competition with Disney’s Hollywood Studios (originally Disney-MGM Studios). Over the years, the park saw various changes, however its largest change was the opening of its sister theme park Universal’s Islands of Adventure. In 1994, executives met to discuss a possible expansion of the resort Hill station in USA. It was decided that the current theme park would undergo a series of construction projects transforming it into a multi-day vacation destination. In late 1995, Universal’s Islands of Adventure broke ground and construction immediately began. The Islands of Adventure Preview Center opened in May 1997 replacing the Screen Test Home Video Adventure. It was meant to give visitors a preview of the upcoming Islands of Adventure park, along with the rest of the resort. As the new theme park was under construction several new attractions were being built and opened at Universal Studios Florida. Among those new attractions was Woody Woodpecker’s KidZone which opened in the Summer of 1998. Attractions such as Men in Black: Alien Attack and Animal Actors (formerly Animal Planet Live) also opened during the expansion phase.
The resort is within the city limits of Orlando in Orange County, Florida. It is located north of the International Drive resort area, where many of the resort’s ‘Partner Hotels’ are. It will not be an exaggeration to say that Universal Orlando Resort is a Beautiful Place For Vacations.The resort is located on a piece of land framed by Interstate 4 to the south, Kirkman Road to the east, Vineland Road to the north, and Turkey Lake Road to the west. The resort is directly accessible from I-4 via Exit 74B, which empties eastbound onto Universal Boulevard and westbound onto Hollywood Way.
Loews Royal Pacific Resort at Universal Orlando features:
- 1,000 guest rooms, including 51 suites
- Lagoon-style swimming pool and sandy beach with Royal Bali interactive children’s water play area
- 6 restaurants and lounges including Emeril’s Tchoup Chop, which takes Asian cuisine and “kicks it up a notch”,
- The Mariner’s Club supervised children’s activity center
- The Gymnasium – a 5,000-square-foot fitness center featuring cardio theatre
- Croquet lawn and sand volleyball court
- Spectacular luaus featuring authentic food and entertainment in the Wantilan Luau Pavilion
- 85,000 square feet of meeting & function space
- Business Center
- Game room, croquet lawn and sand volleyball court
- Access to the area’s finest golf courses, including special benefits through the Golf Universal Orlando program
- 24 Hour in-room dining
Additional exclusive benefits include:
- Complimentary on-site transportation via water taxis or shuttle bus service
- Priority seating at select Universal Orlando® theme park restaurants
- Complimentary delivery of purchases to your room
- On-site charging privileges with your room key card