Three days, one Epic trip! May 18- May 22, 2025 (Updated 5/31 x2)

[SaraSpringsIsHome]

Hi friends!!!

I always enjoy reading everyone else TRs, and I think I have successfully completed one, maybe two throughout my time on the DIS

I figured out most recent trip, a very quick 4 night stay, would be a great way to ease back in, and perhaps actually complete, since we only spent 3 days in the parks.

So, off we go!

Three days, one Epic trip! May 18- May 22.

WHO: Myself, Ali and my DH, Donnie
WHAT: A quick little getaway, with changing plans and a few surprises along the way!
WHEN: The hottest days in May in nearly a century. Woof. Like, I anticipate this for August, but it was brutal in May.
WHERE: 1 night at Stella Nova at Universal, 3 nights at Animal Kingdom Lodge, Jambo House
WHY: We initially were just going to do a longer trip in August this year, but then the Disney bug started itching! Since we both have been very busy at work, a little getaway was just what we needed. Trip was booked March 17, so barely a 2 month countdown

The Plan:
May 19: Drive from Virginia to Orlando
May 20: Epic Universe
May 21: Hollywood Studios, Epcot
May 22: Animal Kingdom, Magic Kingdom
May 23: Drive home

First, we intro!

I'm Ali, a *coughfortycough* year old performing arts professional living in SW Virginia. I love maximizing $LL, planning, and being a kid in the parks. I'm also a Libra so picking faves is basically impossible for me, haha.

FAVES:
Park: Magic Kingdom
Ride: Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind
Disney Movie: Mary Poppins
Pixar Movie: Toy Story
Character to meet: Goofy
Hotel: The Boardwalk (DVC)

I travel with my DH Donnie, who is a not quite as old as me performing arts professional as well. He lets me do the planning and basically just goes along for the ride. Which works out great! HUGE movie fan and lover of Star Wars.


FAVES:
Park: Hollywood Studios
Ride: Tower of Terror
Disney Movie: Aladdin
Pixar Movie: Toy Story
Character to meet: Donald, because same name!
Hotel: The Boardwalk (DVC)

So this initially started as a 4 night stay at AKL-Jambo in a studio. We would drive down Sunday, and return Thursday. We are DVC members and had used our Member Magic Beyond to purchase APs for a trip we are planning in August, so all in all a relatively inexpensive trip! At first... THEN Universal opened up Epic Universe previews from just AP holders to anyone, so I decided WHY NOT!? I purchased us Epic tickets for Monday May 19, the final days of previews. We would drive over in the morning, and then drive back to AKL at the end of the day. If you've been reading carefully, you'll see this is in fact, not what ended up happening. I love to throw a few surprises into the mix.

From our intro pics, you'll see we are big Harry Potter fans! Despite that, we haven't been to Universal since 2016. We always think about going, and the budgets and logistics get in the way, and we end up just staying at a DVC resort and just doing Disney. This quick jaunt to Universal was awesome, and we will definitely plan on going back to all the Uni parks in the future. Since this is a mostly Disney trip though, I figured the TR could just live here

With that, off we go!

 

[dizneedoll]

Is this our first TR w/ Epic Universe!? Either way Im excited to read! I have Helios booked at the end of our WDW trip in Oct. but Im considering moving Stella Nova. I'll be interested to read how your stay went!

 

[GGOOFY1]

Can't wait to follow along with your adventure. We are heading down in Sept and was thinking about extending to include Epic

 

[SaraSpringsIsHome]

Day 1

Sunday May 18

Travel Day! We are crazy and prefer driving down, even for a short trip. We have an EV, and this was our first time driving it to Florida. It made the trip longer, but also more enjoyable because it is a more comfortable ride and the extra stops were actually kind of nice to get out and stretch our legs. I had dropped the pups off at the dog sitter Saturday, so all we had to do was get up and go!


See you in about a week, babies!

The alarm was set for 4:30 a.m., and we were on the road a little after 5:00. Donnie asked for the address and I told him 4500 Epic Blvd. I guess it was so early that he didn’t question it? We drove for about an hour (it was killing me not to say anything) before I finally asked him, were you curious at all about the address I gave you? He said, I thought it was weird since we’re staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge, aren’t we?

Surprise! We are staying one night at Stella Nova before our Epic day! He was like, oh cool. And then I told home about Early Entry (mainly into Super Nintendo World) and that we could walk to the park and he got very excited.

All in all, it was a fairly unexciting drive. We did make sure to stop to at Buc-ee’s (around 2:15 p.m.) for a charge and food. It can be so overwhelming and overstimulating, but I just love that mascot! We each had a brisket sandwich for lunch, and shared some grapes and candied pecans.


Hi Buc-ee!!!

We pulled into the hotel right around 5:00 and got all our junk into the room. We quickly realized that Stella Nova was where alllll the media folks (creators) were also staying for Epic’s opening celebrations. There were Media signs all over and I saw a bunch faces I recognized-Ordinary Adventures, RealMouseVibes, ThemeParkFrog, etc. They basically overtook the hotel bar, which is fine since we wouldn’t have gone there anyway, lol. We also were only staying one night to gain Early Entry the next day!

Our room:

Our room! It was an accessible room on the 6th floor.

We had a great view of Epic!!! It also shows how close the hotel is to Epic.


Eeeeep! See you in the morning, Epic!

We decided to head on over to City Walk to check out the Universal Studios Store, grab a bite to eat, and maybe see a movie.

The bus came pretty quickly, and we soon arrived. We saw tons of stuff we wanted in the store, but managed to just get a couple items. Donnie picked up a great Jaws 50th hat and ET t-shirt, and I got a new Super Nintendo World Loungefly. It’s so cute!


I mean, I couldn't possibly carry my Toy Story bag into Epic tomorrow...

We wandered around and checked out the Epic preview center for a bit. It was very cool to see the giant model, and it definitely got us pumped up for the next day. We saw some cute merch, but didn’t pick up anything else.


This thing was MASSIVE and so cool!



V excited for Super Nintendo World



She models well at all angles, haha

We realized we better eat something quick if we wanted to catch the movie. We got Panda Express orange chicken

Hey CityWalk!

And then of course we had to get popcorn at the movies. We saw Thunderbolts*. It was more enjoyable than a lot of recent MCU movies, so that was a win!

We made our way back to the hotel and flopped into bed around 10:30. We were exhausted, but super stoked for our Epic Preview day!! Set the alarm for 6:15 and then we both crashed hard.

 

[SaraSpringsIsHome]

Is this our first TR w/ Epic Universe!? Either way Im excited to read! I have Helios booked at the end of our WDW trip in Oct. but Im considering moving Stella Nova. I'll be interested to read how your stay went!

Hi, and thanks for reading!!

Stella Nova was great for what we needed! One night before our Epic day, easy access to the park and Early Entry. I'm sure literally walking into the park would be a dream, but for our budget this trip, Stella Nova was great. We didn't use any amenities, so I'm no help on dining/pool/etc.

Can't wait to follow along with your adventure. We are heading down in Sept and was thinking about extending to include Epic

Thanks for following along!

We are heading back to the 'world in August for an 8 night stay at Disney. It's really hard to not buy Epic tickets for one day!! I would absolutely go back in heartbeat

 

[iona]

We have an EV, and this was our first time driving it to Florida. It made the trip longer, but also more enjoyable because it is a more comfortable ride and the extra stops were actually kind of nice to get out and stretch our legs. I had dropped the pups off at the dog sitter Saturday, so all we had to do was get up and go!

What do you drive? We find the same - I normally need coffee/food about as often as the car needs feeding so it works well.

We made our way back to the hotel and flopped into bed around 10:30. We were exhausted, but super stoked for our Epic Preview day!! Set the alarm for 6:15 and then we both crashed hard.

That was a long day! Looking forward to reading about what you thought of Epic Universe.

 

[footballmouse]

 

[SaraSpringsIsHome]

What do you drive?

We have had a Tesla for awhile, but have never taken it on a long trip. Definitely had positive and negatives to taking it. In the past, we have taken our hybrid Honda. The EV is a more comfortable ride but absolutely added hours to the trip.

Looking forward to reading about what you thought of Epic Universe.

Spoiler: we had a fantastic time! Can’t wait to share our day!

hi! Thanks for reading!!

 

[DLo]

Following along. Looking forward to reading more . I am hoping to go to epic next year

 

[SnowChaser]

Excited to follow along here!

 

[creamhearts]

We have driven once from NOVA to Orlando, kudos to you! (we now only fly ) Did you find the Stella Nova rooms dark? Only asking since all the photos I have seen look quiet dark and muted due to the wall color and carpet combo. Can't wait tor read the Epic review!

 

[Nicnicnic.nic]

Following we drive from VA too

 

[SaraSpringsIsHome]

Following along. Looking forward to reading more . I am hoping to go to epic next year

Thanks for following along and reading! Epic was really a blast

Excited to follow along here!

Thanks for following along!!

We have driven once from NOVA to Orlando, kudos to you! (we now only fly ) Did you find the Stella Nova rooms dark? Only asking since all the photos I have seen look quiet dark and muted due to the wall color and carpet combo. Can't wait tor read the Epic review!

We hate flying out of the Charlotte airport (our closest major airport), and the prices are crazy high, so we end up saving so much money by driving, despite the "time" cost.

I didn't find the rooms overly dark. Again, we were there to sleep and access Early Entry, so I probably wasn't the most observant, haha. Not nearly as dark as say... AKL (where we stayed the remaining nights).

Following we drive from VA too

Thanks for following! It's a trek, but definitely doable in a day! We also have found we enjoy having a car to bop around in (even though we almost never drive to the parks).

 

[SaraSpringsIsHome]

Day 2 (part 1)

May 19

Today is the day, final Epic Universe preview day and we are going! My alarm went off at 6:15, but we snoozed til 6:30. We were super excited, but probably shouldn’t have left home at 5:00 a.m. yesterday. We were a little slow and sleepy this morning.

After showers and making in room coffee (it was fine, lol), we packed up all our stuff, headed down to the lobby around 7:10, and had them hold our bags at bell services.

I wish we had more time to have enjoyed and explored Stella Nova. The staff was friendly, the bed was comfy, and we had no problem finding parking. We would absolutely stay here again if our main objective was going to Epic. The busses were very frequent to both City Walk and Epic. If we weren’t DVC members, I think I would have booked two nights here so that we could have taken a mid-day break. Y’all, it was SO hot this day, and I really missed going back to the resort for A/C and a nap!

Anyway, we had chosen Stella Nova due to the walking path to Epic, and it was very nice that morning to just be able to go! No busses, no driving and parking, just off we went. The path is wide and easy to find, and the walk took about 13 minutes at an easy stroll. There is a massive crosswalk, but they give you plenty of time to get across!

We were in line around 7:30 and fairly near the front. When we first walked up, my heart sank- there was a sign out front saying Mine Cart Madness was closed today. DH REALLY was looking forward to this, so I was a bit bummed but knew it was a possibility during previews. A few minutes after we had been waiting, a team member made a big announcement (that we kind of heard?) and they took away the sandwich board saying it was closed! Hooray!!

At 8 on the dot they began letting people through security. Our plan was to head directly to SNW and, knowing it’s been having issues, ride Mine Cart Madness first.

I will say, as someone who frequents WDW I much prefer their security process and proximity of security to the park entrance. It was basically security and then directly to ticket machines; it just felt a bit claustrophobic to me.

By 8:05 we were seeing this for the first time!


Hello Chronos!

We veered left towards SNW, but we greeted with a closed portal. Again, we had a moment of- what to do? They did let us know Dark Universe was open, as well as the attractions in Celestial Park. We lingered around for a moment and saw this cute fountain!


So Cute!! A the little coins spin

We also saw what looked like technicians taking away basically large black roadcases- we decided they had probably been rehearsing for the special park opening happening throughout the next few days and decided not to leave the area.


Obligatory pre-portal selfie!

It was an excellent idea because barely a minute later, they opened the portal!!


Here we go!!

We got a great first view of SNW! Practically empty pictures, very cool, indeed. Down the stairs we went!


SO much to look at


The view from below

We made a beeline for Donkey Kong Country. It is so cute!! Loud, both in color and music/sounds, but so fun.


The team members were super excited to let the guests in to Donkey Kong Country!

The team members were letting people in line, despite the ride being on a delay. They informed us they were doing their morning tests but had no timeline on when guests would be able to ride. Since it was early and a priority, we got in line. We were in the shade and cool, so we didn’t mind waiting. We saw the cars running with no people, so we knew that was a good sign!

Our first ride in Epic!

We waited about 20 minutes before they began letting guests on, and we were on within 5.


Hi there, Cranky Kong

It’s a very cute ride, not super intense… and unfortunately also not super long. I wanted more!!! We didn’t think it was as jerky as some have said (and this is coming from DH who had spine surgery a few years ago). Jumping the tracks is a cool illusion, and there are some great animatronics to see. Overall, a fantastic start to our Epic day!

It was about 8:40 at this point, so we still had some Early Entry time left. We made a quick pit stop at the adorable bathrooms that are set in underwater Mario and play the Underwater Theme, and then made our way to Mario Kart!


Bowser's MASSIVE statue greeting you as you enter his Castle!

Would this attraction live up to the hype? Would we like it? To be continued...

 

[SaraSpringsIsHome]

Day 2 part 2

The theming is this queue is awesome and makes the first part of the wait go by very quickly! We kept pointing things out to each other.


So many cute details, I hardly took any photos but we just kept saying "look at that!"

We were soon donning our awesome Mario Caps that the A/R Headsets attach to, and then we made our way down the stairs and onto our ride vehicles.


Thanks for the double chin photo, honey... Such a silly!

We LOVED this ride and both wanted to ride again today. I scored 125 coins, DH had 137. We felt pretty good about that on our first go! Even though they tell you in the preshow, you have to look where you want to aim. Very important!

We had done the two big attractions in this world, so we figured might as well do Yoshi's Adventure while we were here. Back down the stairs to the entrance! The line was about 15 minutes, and the ride was… fine? lol. It was cute to ride in a Yoshi vehicle, but definitely don’t spend your time waiting for this one. I wish it would have circled all of SNW! Again, I wanted it to be longer.

We really wanted to ride Mario Kart again, so we headed back up the stairs (are you seeing a theme here*?) and decided to try out single rider. You do miss all the cute queue this way, as well as the preshow, so I would recommend doing the full line at some point. The posted regular line was 80 minutes, and we ended up waiting about 40 in single rider, so definitely a good savings of time! As we were approaching the load area, there was no one ready from the preshows in the regular queue, so they started filling the cars with the single rider line- DH and I rode right next to each other! Winning!!

He came out on top again with 125 coins; I only had 107 this ride. I think I spent more time looking at the practical sets, so that's why I scored less


Bye Bye, Bowser's Castle. We love your ride!!

After taking in some more of the sights and watching folks use their Power-up Bands, we felt thoroughly satisfied with our time in SNW. (I had asked DH prior to the trip, as well as the morning of, if he wanted a Power-up Band but he declined. We wanted to make sure we experienced all the Portals, and said he just enjoyed watching other people use theirs.)


Another SNW selfie- a super fun world, and a highlight of Epic for us

It was about 11 a.m. at this point, so we exited the portal (down more stairs) and made our way to Dark Universe!

*I will take a moment to address the stairs. I thought people were being dramatic about the number of stairs in SNW. NOPE! I love that there are levels to the world, and the view when you walk in really is awesome, but yeah, BE PREPARED for all the stairs. Not just to get from the upper level to the lower level, but within the attraction queues and exits, as well. I was surprised at the number of stairs within all the worlds! SNW definitely is the worst, but nearly all the attractions we did included stairs at some point in the queue and exit.*


OOOH! It's Alive! It's Alive!


Very excited, but also hot and hungry, haha.

It was about a 5 minute walk from being inside SNW to the Dark Universe Portal. We quickly passed through the portal and were greeted by this sign as we entered in to Darkmoor.


Again, the theming and attention to detail in this park are incredible.

We almost immediately encountered The Invisible Man and enjoyed watching him interact with all the guests. He is a snarky one!


"Can I take a photo with you" the woman asked.
"If that's what it takes to shut you up" replied The Invisible Man.

We were ready for some food, so we decided to head into Das Stakehaus for lunch (and a/c!).

We mobile ordered, and our food was out super fast! DH got the Bird on a Stake, and I had the “Blood” Orange Chicken Sandwich. DH’s food was definitely the winner. The chicken was tender and well seasoned, and the veg and potatoes were a nice change from typical theme park food. Mine on the other hand, was okay. The (black) bun on the sandwich added nothing but novelty- it was kind of hard and cold; I felt should be served warmed or toasted. The chicken was fine, but a bit thin; I did enjoy the sauce! The fries were piping hot and delicious. I can also confirm three days of , so eat at your own risk, haha. I took exactly zero pictures of our lunch. Sorry.

We sat for a few minutes after we finished eating to let our food settle, enjoyed some ice water and thoroughly cooled down in the A/C. We refilled our bottles and then looked around the restaurant. The theming is amazing and super creepy.


Stake, anyone? Love the play on words here!

Bellies full, we were heading to our next most anticipated attraction- Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment.

Still can't get over the scale of the buildings in these worlds!

Monsters Unchained-- yay or nay? To be continued...