Universal Destinations & Experiences today announced the name and released new concept art for its upcoming theme park in Texas.
Universal Kids Resort will be the name for the park that Universal is now building on a 97-acre site in Frisco, just north of Dallas.
"Universal Kids Resort will inspire the unbridled creativity of kids through imagination, discovery and most importantly – play" Universal Creative President Molly Murphy said. "We're designing the resort so kids and families can feel the thrill of being physically immersed in their most beloved stories and characters."
The company did not reveal any details today about specific attractions at the new park, which will be aimed at families with young children. But it did release an update concept image for the park.
Compare that to Universal's original concept image for the park.
The biggest changes are the removal of some IP clues, such as what suggested a DreamWorks animation logo in the middle the site's 300-room themed hotel at the park's entrance. Construction of the park is now underway, with a deadline of June 2026 to have the park complete. See our previous post, New Universal theme park gets approval for construction, for more details on what's happening next in the process.
Universal Kids Resort gives Universal a new attraction concept that it could use to appeal to families with young children - a demographic typically associated with the Disney and Legoland theme parks. The smaller concept also could allow Universal to build in regional markets that don't have the tourist base to support large outdoor attractions like Florida and California can.
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The biggest difference I see between the 2 concept images is the increased amount of water and what appear to be water-based attractions in the newer image. I'm wondering if this is just a coincidence or something more telling. Increased reliance on water attractions could be a result of 2 different reasons..
1. Costs - Water parks are generally generally cheaper to build and maintain compared to similarly sized theme parks, so swapping out traditional themed attractions for water-based ones (splash pads, water slides, and flumes) could represent an attempt to reign in costs for this development that might have been costs under old models that don't represent current themed attraction costs (something Universal is probably discovering as they are in the home stretch for Epic Universe).
2. Climate considerations/change - Save for building a fully indoor park or having most attractions indoor/air conditioned, a theme park in Texas is going to have to deal with guest comfort during the hot summer months. Having a larger number of water-based attractions reduces the need to build more expensive indoor attractions. Also, cities and towns have had increasingly positive response to open fountains and splash pads in public spaces, particularly from families with younger children.
If nothing else, this will be an interesting development to watch and whether it can hit its June 2026 debut.
Looking at the lands from center to left to right it looks like we have Minions, Trolls, Shrek, Puss in Boots, Jurassic World, and Spongebob. If so, that's an incredibly strong lineup on day one. That's also a pretty big building behind Spongebob's pineapple...
I spy the Krusty Krab. This will be interesting.
It’s been completely re-designed
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Is "kids" an adjective or maybe a plural noun?
Should it be presented as a possessive? If so, maybe Comcast can utilize the apostrophe they dropped from 'Universal's Epic Universe'. That'd be a good use of resources.
Regardless, this will be a huge hit. Well done, UC.