Universal Express Pass Prices Spike Up to $20 Across All Tiers

On September 15, 2026, Universal Orlando bumped prices across its entire portfolio of Express and Express Unlimited passes. Price jumps hit single-day options, multi-day tickets, and multi-park bundles alike, pushing top-tier options up by as much as $20 per ticket for select dates. This follows a trend of steady adjustments across the resort, which we reported on in our previous coverage of Express Pass increases.

Express Passes Get a Multi-Tier Price Hike

The pricing adjustments on September 15, 2026, moved rates upward across 12 specific visit dates in September, October, and November. The hikes are consistent across both single-day passes and multi-day packages.

• 5-Day Universal Express Pass (3 Parks): The old price range of $464.99 to $769.99 has shifted to a new range of $479.99 to $784.99. For example, a pass on October 15 moved from $769.99 to $784.99, while dates like September 19 rose from $544.99 to $564.99. The average price under this SKU rose from $534.57 to $564.16.
• 4-Day Universal Express Pass (3 Parks): Prices increased by up to $20 on select dates. September 19 shifted from $509.99 to $529.99, and October 15 climbed from $719.99 to $734.99.
• 3-Day Universal Express Pass (3 Parks): Rates rose across the board. September 19 moved from $439.99 to $454.99, and October 15 increased from $619.99 to $634.99.
• 2-Day Universal Express Pass (3 Parks): Price points ticked up. September 19 rose from $334.99 to $344.99, and October 15 moved from $469.99 to $479.99.
• 2-Day Universal Express Unlimited Pass (2 Parks): Rates rose from $349.99 to $369.99 for September 16 and September 18, and from $384.99 to $404.99 on September 19.
• 1-Day Universal Express Pass (1 Park): Single-park, single-day buyers will also pay more. For one version (SKU 110117001376), prices rose from $129.99 to $139.99 for September 16. Another tier (SKU 110117003343) rose from $134.99 to $144.99 for the same day.

While Express Passes scaled up, Florida resident tickets saw a slight relief. Both the 1 Day Base Florida Resident Adult and 1 Day Base Florida Resident Child tickets saw price decreases across six dates. For example, on September 18, adult tickets fell from $119.99 to $114.99 and child tickets dropped from $114.99 to $109.99. On November 16, adult tickets dropped from $124.99 to $114.99 and child tickets dropped from $119.99 to $109.99.

If you have a trip planned this autumn, we highly recommend booking your Express Passes as early as possible to lock in current rates before further adjustments.

Major Coaster Downtime at Epic Universe and Islands of Adventure

It was a bumpy couple of days for major coasters across the resort. At epic-universe, several headliners suffered substantial unplanned afternoon outages:

• Mine-Cart Madness™ (average 14-day standby wait: ~92-94 minutes) went down twice. On Monday afternoon, September 14, it suffered a 149-minute outage starting late in the evening. The next day, September 15, it went down for 110 minutes in the late afternoon, followed by a separate 55-minute outage later that night.
• Curse of the Werewolf faced a 135-minute closure starting late Monday afternoon, and a 96-minute outage the following afternoon on September 15.
• Mario Kart™: Bowser's Challenge experienced a 131-minute outage on Monday afternoon.
• Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry™ went down for 63 minutes on Monday afternoon.
• Hiccup's Wing Gliders and Dragon Racer's Rally also suffered simultaneous outages on Monday afternoon, lasting 146 minutes and 139 minutes, respectively.

Over at islands-of-adventure, Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure™ faced a rough Monday evening. The ride went down for 118 minutes starting late Monday afternoon and remained closed for the rest of the night. On Tuesday, it went down again for 115 minutes in the late afternoon. Additionally, Jurassic World VelociCoaster suffered a 144-minute evening outage on Monday.

If you are rope-dropping either park, keep a close eye on our live wait times board. When these headliners go down, crowds immediately spill over into nearby family attractions.

Menu Additions in Epic Universe and CityWalk

A handful of dining spots adjusted their offerings over the last few days:

• The Plastered Owl (Epic Universe) added 11 items and removed five on September 13. New additions include 3 Daughters Brewing® A Wake Coffee Blonde, Barrel of Monks Brewing® The Wizard Wit, Celestial Flame, Faded Fox, Florida Ave Brewing® Luminescence IPA, and Golden Road® Mango Cart.
• The Oak & Star Tavern (Epic Universe) added Kentucky® Bourbon Barrel Ale®, Michelob Ultra®, and Sun Cruiser Iced Tea + Vodka on September 14, while removing five options. We previously detailed the larger-scale drink cuts at this venue in our mid-September menu update.
• Meteor Astropub (Epic Universe) added three sweet treats on September 15: Astronomer's Strawberry Shortcake, Captain Cacao's Starlight Voyage, and Stargazer Cookie Butter.
• Antojitos Authentic Mexican Food™ (CityWalk) added the Churrasco Steak Platter* and the Sangria-rita, while removing one item on September 15.

New Construction and Upgrades in Public Filings

Recent public permits filed with the City of Orlando reveal ongoing infrastructure work across the resort:

• At islands-of-adventure, a building alteration permit under ID 4773 details work on "SPC: PEDESTRAIN BRIDGE #10." The contractor is listed as Diamond Industrial Services LLC and Diamond Painting, with an estimated cost of $700,000 for the 600-square-foot project.
• At volcano-bay, three separate low-voltage electrical permits were filed on September 9, 2026. These cover "SPC: TEAM PARK LOW VOLTAGE" (ID 5315), "SPC: PROMENADE SOUTH LOW VOLTAGE UPGRADES" (ID 5314), and "SPC: PROMENADE NORTH LOW VOLTAGE UPGRADES" (ID 5313).
• At universal-studios-florida, a building permit (ID 6764) was filed on September 11, 2026, for a 2,706-square-foot tent at "SPC: SOUND STAGE 19" with an estimated cost of $17,263.