Say WHAT?! Epic Universe Expected To Generate $2 BILLION in Its First Year

Epic Universe isn’t even open yet, and we are obsessed!

Universal’s newest theme park opens officially on May 22nd, 2025, but thanks to previews, we’ve already gotten to check out the new park! It seems like we aren’t the only ones infatuated with the new park, though! Economic experts are predicting that the new park will generate $2 billion for Florida in one year. Find out what we know here on AllEars!

Epic Universe is creating waves in more ways than one! We have been exploring the parks and have been blown away by the immersion, rides, food, shows, and more. It’s not a huge surprise that the theme park is already (seemingly) a huge hit before it even opens, as fans have been eagerly awaiting the park since its original announcement in 2019.

While we knew it would bring in the bucks for Universal, the impact on the state of Florida is even bigger than we could’ve anticipated. According to CNBC, the new theme park is expected to bring in $2 billion to the state of Florida during its first year alone. 

Florida tourism, specifically in Orlando, has a huge impact on the finances of the state. More than 74 million people vacationed in Orlando in 2023, which added to roughly half of the total sales tax in Orange County. When it comes to Epic’s impact, people are expecting big things! Casandra Matej, CEO of Visit Orlando, a tourism trade association, said, “When you see a major milestone project such as Epic Universe, you know it’s going to have definitely a domino effect of economic benefits for our community.”

The economic impact of the park has already been seen through new jobs to help build the park. The park cost a rumored $7 billion, although that has yet to be confirmed by Universal. Between 2019 and 2023, Universal made around $44 billion, according to a report created by the director of the University of Central Florida’s Institute for Economic Forecasting, Sean Snaith.

CNBC wrote, “Snaith determined that Universal’s direct investment in Epic Universe has resulted in $11 billion of economic impact nationwide in the form of construction and operational expenditures, as well as the hiring of new employees.” That impact involved 94,000 jobs across the country, including engineers, software specialists, artists, architects, and set designers for the park. Just to build Epic Universe, roughly 65,000 jobs were created.

All of this economic growth is what leads Snaith to project such large numbers of impacts over the first year of the park being open. Not only is it expected to generate around $2 billion, but it’s also expected to create more than 17,500 new jobs during its first year. 

We can’t wait to see how this park grows and changes once it officially opens its gates to the public. We’re also eager to see its impact on the surrounding area, Disney included! We’re expecting quite a bit of change down the road from Universal at Disney’s theme parks, much of which we would bet has been spurred on by Epic Universe.

Only time will tell how much of an impact Epic Universe has on the state of Florida and its tourism, but our expectations are high. As always, be sure to keep following AllEars for more Universal news and updates!

Why Is Nobody Talking About THIS At Epic Universe?!

Are you heading to Epic Universe this year? Tell us in the comments! 

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