When Does the New Universal Park in Texas Open?

LAST UPDATED: December 22nd, 2025

You may have heard that Universal has a LOT of construction happening, including a new venture in Texas!

Epic Universe just opened in Universal Orlando this past summer, and a year-round horror experience opened in Las Vegas. Plus, Universal is also working on a theme park in the United Kingdom. All of that in addition to the new Universal Kids Resort coming to Frisco, Texas. Let’s take a look at Universal Kids Resort and when Universal plans to open the park in Texas!

When Does the New Universal Park in Texas Open

Universal Kids Resort is under construction on 97 acres of land off Dallas North Tollway and Panther Creek Parkway in Frisco, Texas. As it stands, it’s expected to be about 1/4 the size of the Orlando parks and will cover about 32 acres. Construction began in 2023, and the park is currently expected to open in May 2026. 

Universal Kids Resort is geared toward 1-2-day vacations, with family-friendly attractions and a convenient hotel for resort guests. It’s primarily geared towards kiddos and younger guests, which is perfect, since some people feel Universal’s current parks are lacking in that department. It’ll feature seven themed lands brimming with attractions, dining, character meet-and-greets, and more. The lands are:

• DreamWorks’ Shrek’s Swamp
• DreamWorks’ Puss in Boots Del Mar
• Illumination’s Minions vs. Minions: Bello Bay Club
• Jurassic World Adventure Camp
• DreamWorks’ TrollsFest
• Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants Bikini Bottom
• Isle of Curiosity

You will enter through the Isle of Curiosity, which is a whimsical gateway with plenty of space to explore. Gabby from Gabby’s Dollhouse will have a special meet and greet, followed by a dance party. From there, you can venture into the six other lands.

At Shrek’s Swamp, you can meet Shrek and Fiona and take photos in the onion carriage. There will also be two interactive play areas, including Shrek’s Swamp Rompin’ Stomp and Shrek’s Swamp Plash & Smash. Puss in Boots Del Mar has a meet-and-greet with Puss, along with carnival games.

Minions vs. Minions: Bello Bay Club will have “water-soaked fun.” There are special meet-and-greet areas and interactive play areas with plenty of surprises. Families can take part in action-packed competitions or sit and watch the chaos unfold.

At Jurassic World Adventure Camp, you can meet a newly hatched baby dinosaur or climb in the Lookout Towers play area to get an incredible view of the park.

For TrollsFest, there will be music playing as you can meet Poppy and Branch, along with two interactive play areas called Poppy’s Playland and Trolls Critter Crawl. Based on concept art, it looks like there will be a roller coaster and another ride here.

Finally, you can also head over to SpongeBob SquarePants Bikini Bottom, where you can meet SpongeBob, Patrick, and Sandy, and explore Mussel Beach and Pineapple Paradise.

The resort will also feature a 300-room hotel designed with families in mind. The rooms will sleep 5-6 guests, and you’ll find a twin-over-full bunk bed and a queen bed in Standard Queen, Deluxe Queen, and Signature Queen rooms. There will also be family suites available!

Hotel amenities include a quick-service restaurant, a full-service bar, an outdoor pool, a fitness room, and a game room. Just looking at the lobby concept art, we have a feeling kids will be big fans of this new hotel!

Back in June 2025, we got a great look at how construction at the park was progressing, and it seemed to be moving quickly. While we can’t totally confirm what’s what, we think we got a really great glimpse of the new hotel, which will be decked out in a multi-color design.

We could already see construction underway on some of the new attractions coming to the park. Recently, it was revealed that a new Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous family coaster would be coming to the park, and that may be what we’re seeing in the photo below.

So, will this park open in May 2026? That’s the current plan, but we will keep you updated as more information is released. We can’t wait for the grand opening of Universal Kids Resort.

In the past, Universal has demonstrated its efficiency when building new attractions (and parks like Epic Universe). Since Universal Kids Resort is much smaller than other Universal theme parks, we think this opening timeline is possible!

Be sure to stay tuned to AllEars for the latest Universal news!

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What are your thoughts on this new Universal theme park? Tell us in the comments!

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