Day Two At Universal – Epic Universe in Orlando, Florida

We had to take a couple of days to recover after we visited Universal on Wednesday. On Saturday, November 15, 2025, we returned, but this time went to Epic Universe. The only Harry Potter part is the Ministry of Magic. Yes, of course we rode that one., Again, it was one of the simulator roller coaster rides.

Let’s start at the beginning, shall we, Dear Readers? Here is the entrance to Epic Universe:

And when you have friends with you, you get to take a photo together. Honestly, I’m so exhausted in this photo that I was struggling to pull my back up straight. I have some serious back issues. But not so serious that I wasn’t going to hit those rides!! Good thing the fun far outweighed the exhaustion!:

This is as you enter the How to Train Your Dragon area:

A ship in How to Train Your Dragon:

The sheep, animatronic and making sounds, that the dragons liked to eat:

Here is a picture of Art and Cindy heading to the Ministry of Magic and a hotel in the background:

But first, the three daredevils rode another big roller coaster, Stardust Racers. I enjoyed people watching:

The entrance to Stardust Racers and as close as I was willing to go:

I saw this in the distance and knew we were close to the Ministry of Magic. Dumbledore’s Wand:

The entrance to the Ministry of Magic. The quote on top says, “For in Dreams We Enter a World That Is Entirely Our Own”:

And we are in Paris! Yes, in Paris, where Newt Scamander collects many magical beasts:

A story is told in the Circus “tent” we entered of a Ringmaster named Skender. He pays someone to steal Newt Scamander’s suitcase of fantastic beasts to use in his circus. And Gwenlyn must rescue the creatures. There is a mix of live performers, puppetry, and special effects. Photos were prohibited.

There were buildings to see, some with shops or dining in them:

A whole city of them. Yep, that’s Art and Cindy in front of me:

The buildings were lovely:

And then it was time to enter the next ride I could go on:

Yes! We did get to use Floo Powder to enter the Ministry through the big fireplaces!!! That’s Art and Cindy going through:

Today was the trial of Delores Umbridge. She’s been in Azkaban, so she’s losing it. It was a video of her, but I haven’t sorted out adding videos yet:

I watch a lot of British shows, and when I see her in one, I struggle to get past when she was this evil character – LOL. She looks sassy here, but:

She’s starting to crack:

The statue in the main part of the Ministry of Magic. A witch, a Centaur, and a goblin:

The office windows in the Ministry:

These looked like pipes to me. Pretty cool:

Another position for the main room statue:

The witch:

Finally, the goblin:

I tried to photograph the ceiling with a storm brewing. This doesn’t do it justice:

There was also this statue:

In the halls were many Wanted posters of Voldemort’s followers. Oops, I mean, “he who must not be named”:

Here is a second one:

These were some lockers as you made your way in line to the ride:

A moving painting of Longbottom’s parents:

There was one of Mad Eye Moody, too, but it must not have turned out. He was talking to another portrait. Next were items Delores stole from Muggle-borns, and the little elf was taking an accounting of them. Notice he has on one of her pink shoes. The other had fallen off and was on the chair. He was talking to us as we passed, telling us all about it:

There is no way to take photos on the rides, but I loved it!

And last but not least, as the sun began to set, we went to the Dark Universe. It’s based on all the Universal Monster movies. It was so much fun! Here is the entrance. The top says, “It’s Alive! It’s Alive!” LOL:

Here is an example of the decor inside:

And this creepy little guy on a lamp post:

We saw a few people who had been here:

We rode Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment. It features animatronic Frankenstein’s monster, Dr. Victoria Frankenstein, and some angry monsters revolting. Lots of things to see in line, of course. That’s part of the fun. Frank (I don’t know what his name was in the movies, aside from Frankenstein’s monster), being prepared:

The back muscles of a man:

Some cool statues as you make your way up some stairs. There were two, but I didn’t get a clear photo of the one furthest away:

The ride was fun and interesting. Now I want to catch that particular Frankenstein movie!

And that was a wrap for our time in Florida. We hugged Art and Cindy when we dropped them off at their RV and went down a few spaces to ours. We headed out around 8 a.m. the next morning. It was a tough drive because we were so exhausted from the days in Orlando. But we made great memories with great friends that we love!

Next Up: Savannah, Georgia, is an Interesting State…