Common Orlando has prolonged the refurbishment of Stardust Racers, which has been closed on and off for a couple of completely different causes during the last a number of months. Together with this, the previously-calendared closure of Yoshi’s Journey in Tremendous Nintendo World has been eliminated. Listed below are the newest dates & particulars, together with our commentary.
It’s been a tough first yr for Stardust Racers, the dueling coaster that’s Epic Universe’s marquee thrill experience. The experience is presently closed for a scheduled refurbishment of an unknown nature, however one which’s believed to be routine. This was scheduled to finish this weekend, however has been prolonged for almost one other week.
That is Stardust Racers’ third vital closure since Epic Universe opened lower than a yr in the past. This ongoing refurbishment follows a January incident the place each coaster trains concurrently valleyed throughout excessive winds and chilly temperatures, which decreased the trains’ momentum, stopping them from clearing a peak.
That uncommon double valley required Common to carry a crane into the park to bodily raise the trains off the observe. The coaster was closed for 3 days following the incident. That really wasn’t the primary time that Stardust Racers had valleyed; the coaster did at the very least as soon as throughout pre-opening testing.
There’s additionally been loads of downtime and cases of Stardust Racers working with just one observe; whereas irritating to overlook out on the dueling factor, having two tracks has arguably improved uptime of the attraction.
Stardust Racers’ most critical problem occurred in September 2025, when 32-year-old Kevin Rodriguez Zavala died after shedding consciousness in the course of the experience. The health worker dominated the demise unintentional and attributed it to a number of blunt influence accidents. The lawsuit was finally dismissed following a personal settlement.
Following that tragedy, Common closed Stardust Racers for investigation and made modifications to switch necessities and accessibility procedures throughout a number of points of interest. The experience reopened in early October, however that together with different litigation over the attraction understandably forged a protracted shadow.
It’s unclear what the continuing refurbishment of Stardust Racers entails or why the extension was crucial, nevertheless it’s value reiterating that that is deliberate downtime that was scheduled prematurely.
Usually, we wouldn’t bat an eye fixed at this kind of factor, assuming it to be routine upkeep attributable to abnormal put on and tear. Nevertheless, Stardust Racers’ aforementioned observe document coupled with how new it’s (lower than a yr previous) does pique our curiosity.
As of now, Stardust Racers is scheduled to be closed by way of February 28, 2026. The experience is predicted to reopen on March 1, 2026, although reopening dates are tentative and topic to vary (as evidenced by one extension already).
With Stardust Racers being prolonged, Yoshi’s Journey in Tremendous Nintendo World has been dropped from the refurbishment calendar. The family-friendly Peoplemover model darkish experience was scheduled to shut for refurbishment February 24-26, 2026 previous to the extension of the Stardust Racers closure.
It’s unclear what precipitated the change, however our guess is that it’s a matter of capability. Epic Universe can’t actually afford to have a number of points of interest down for refurbishment on the identical time, even when they’re basically completely different in nature.
Assuming this to be correct, we’d assume Yoshi’s Journey will reappear on the refurbishment calendar as soon as Stardust Racers reopens. It’s attainable no matter upkeep Yoshi’s Journey wanted was completed throughout overnights, however our guess is that this closure has been delayed versus cancelled.
We additionally wouldn’t be stunned if Fyre Drill closes for an additional “refurbishment” over the subsequent few days. Unseasonably chilly climate is as soon as once more within the forecast for subsequent week, and Fyre Drill is a “you’re going to get moist/chances are you’ll get soaked” kind of attraction. No one desires to experience that when it’s 40 levels out.
Stardust Racers being down is certainly the larger blow. It’s a headliner attraction that’s considerably higher, and has a lot larger hourly throughput. I’d completely go to Epic Universe when Yoshi’s Journey is closed; I might not with out Stardust Racers.
It’s proper up there with Harry Potter and the Battle on the Ministry and Monsters Unchained as certainly one of my three favourite points of interest within the park; it’s additionally my favourite curler coaster anyplace. I may take or go away Yoshi’s Journey.
After all, the calculus would possibly differ for households with smaller youngsters, however I’d argue the entire park isn’t actually proper for them (us) within the first place. (It’s a completely pointless park for our toddler.)
Right here’s a present have a look at the complete refurbishment calendar for 2026 at Common Orlando:
Common Epic Universe
- Fyre Drill: February 1, 2026 – February 19, 2026 (Fyre Drill has reopened and is presently posting a 60 minute wait; unsure why it’s nonetheless on the calendar…except it’s anticipated to go down once more subsequent week attributable to climate.)
- Stardust Racers: February 19, 2026 – February 28, 2026
Common Islands of Journey
- Jurassic Park River Journey: January 5, 2026 – November 19, 2026
- Hogwarts Categorical: February 9 – 23, 2026
- Ollivanders Wand Store in Hogsmeade™: February 26, 2026
- Me Ship, The Olive: April 19, 2026 – April 25, 2026
Common Studios Florida
- Finnegan’s Bar & Grill: January 12, 2026 – Winter 2026
- Hogwarts Categorical: February 9 – 23, 2026
Common Volcano Bay
- Maku of Maku Puihi Spherical Raft Rides: January 5, 2026 – February 26, 2026
- Puihi of Maku Puihi Spherical Raft Rides: January 5, 2026 – February 26, 2026
Common Volcano Bay is seasonally closed on choose dates between October 2025 and February 2026. Moreover, Common Volcano Bay shall be closed for upkeep starting October 26, 2026, with a present deliberate reopening on or earlier than March 24, 2027.
Turning again to capability, it’s additionally value sharing that Epic Universe nonetheless isn’t firing on all cylinders.
Through the firm’s most up-to-date earnings name, Comcast CFO Jason S. Armstrong shared that Epic Universe is “not but working at full run fee capability, however we’ve made significant progress increasing experience throughput and stay centered on scaling additional over the subsequent a number of quarters with larger attendance, stronger per-caps, and extra working leverage over time.”
Right here’s what he beforehand stated final August: “We count on Epic to proceed to scale over the course of the yr, with larger attendance and per caps in addition to considerably improved working leverage.” On a subsequent earnings name, one of many executives urged it’d be a couple of extra months earlier than the park totally hit its stride.
Now, Armstrong has stated that he expects Epic Universe to be at full capability by the tip of 2026. It’s unclear why management believes it’s going to take one other full yr to ramp up Epic Universe, nevertheless it isn’t unusual for a brand-new theme park–particularly one with a number of envelope-pushing points of interest–to have rising pains.
Whereas the longer time horizon for the ramp-up is disappointing, it’s not shocking. In January, Epic Universe had its busiest day ever.
Not simply the very best wait instances ever for Epic Universe, however for any park at Common Orlando or Walt Disney World since at the very least 2019–and by a really huge margin. The typical wait on that date was 107 minutes, with peak waits of over 300 minutes and a number of headliners hitting 200+ minutes all through the day.
Since then, Epic Universe has had some quieter days, however not weeks. The typical wait time for each single week this yr has been 60 minutes or larger. To place that into perspective, the busiest week of the final yr at Walt Disney World was that of New 12 months’s Eve, which solely hit 49 minutes. And the astronomical crowd ranges at Epic Universe are a byproduct of capability constraints, not overwhelming demand.
Thankfully, there are candy spots to go to amidst the insanity. See our Epic Universe Crowd Calendar: Finest Dates to Go to in 2026 for recommendation. The worst and least busy dates are literally fairly predictable, albeit barely counter-intuitive and in contrast to the opposite Common Orlando theme parks.
Want journey planning ideas and complete recommendation in your go to to Central Florida? Be certain that to learn our Common Orlando Planning Information for all the pieces about Islands of Journey and Common Studios Florida. Additionally try our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Information for all the pieces about these parks, resorts, eating places, and a lot extra.
Your Ideas
Shocked to see Epic Universe points of interest already closing for refurbishments lower than a yr after the park opening? Ideas on Stardust Racers’ rocky opening months? Optimistic that the park will discover its footing and function at full capability effectively earlier than the tip of 2026? Agree or disagree with our evaluation? Any questions we may help you reply? Listening to your suggestions—even whenever you disagree with us—is each attention-grabbing to us and useful to different readers, so please share your ideas under within the feedback!
