The Theme Park Trader Podcast

Join us for episode 508 of the Theme Park Trader Podcast! t's officially the festive season at theme parks, so we're kicking off Christmas early with a game show. 🎄 First, Universal has confirmed a brand new indoor roller coaster for Dark Universe at Epic Universe. We guess which monster it's about and argue about the next land: Pokémon, Zelda, Wicked or One Piece? Then it's the Festive Park Showdown. In Name That Christmas, Donna has to guess the event from its worst reviews, from Winter Wonderland and Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party to Lapland UK, Jollywood Nights and the Alton Towers fireworks. Next is Higher or Lower with festive snacks from EPCOT, Disneyland Paris and Universal, where one macaron costs more than a turkey dinner. In The Price Is Festive, we guess Christmas ticket prices. The bonus round is about Lapland New Forest, the worst Christmas attraction Britain ever had. Play along at home and tell us your score! If you enjoyed the episode, please leave us a review. It really helps!  

Join us for episode 507 of the Theme Park Trader Podcast!   Halloween Horror Nights 35 is over, Universal's theme park profits have dropped 17%, and Disney has cut 159 Imagineering jobs. It's been a horror week for the theme park industry, and we break down all of it. 🎃 HHN 35 WRAP-UP: Halloween Horror Nights 35 closed on 1 November. We go through all 10 houses at Universal Orlando: H.R. Bloodengutz, Jack & Oddfellow: Chaos & Control, Ozzy Osbourne: Prince of Darkness, the first-ever Hellraiser house, Stranger Things 5, Sinners, Evil Dead Burn and more. Which houses were the best? Did the original houses beat the IP houses again? And did the 35th anniversary deliver? 📊 TEA 2025 ATTENDANCE REPORT The latest TEA Global Experience Index is out. Magic Kingdom is still the world's most visited theme park, Epic Universe drew 4 million guests in its first partial year, and both Disneyland Paris parks grew 5.7%. But Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Hollywood all lost visitors. We look at the full worldwide, North American and European rankings, plus how the UK parks did. 📉 UNIVERSAL'S BAD QUARTER In Q3, Universal's theme park revenue fell 4.4% and profit fell 17%. Comcast blamed softer demand, Disney's marketing and capacity problems at Epic Universe. Is Epic Universe already in trouble? And could a three-park annual pass that includes Epic be on the way? ✂️ DISNEY LAYOFFS AND AI Disney is cutting 159 jobs at Walt Disney Imagineering, reportedly with a second Shanghai park put on hold. At the same time, Disney says more than 2,000 Imagineers are now using its AI tool. Is AI changing how Disney designs its parks?

Join us for episode 506 of the Theme Park Trader Podcast! After nearly a year behind construction walls, Jurassic Park River Adventure is finally due back at Universal’s Islands of Adventure on 17 December 2026, a month later than first promised. So before it reopens, we’re reading out some of the harshest reviews this 1999 classic has ever received. Broken dinosaurs, soaking-wet riders and a T. rex that’s seen better days: we go through the one-star complaints and decide whether they’re fair, or whether people just didn’t read the “you will get wet” signs. We also look at how the ride came to be. It started as a $110 million Hollywood original that cost more than the film itself, and Steven Spielberg skipped the final drop at the 1996 preview. Plus, what’s been happening during this year’s refurb, from a new neck for the Ultrasaurus to a whole new track, and why Orlando’s version is the last original of its kind in the US. Will the refurb fix the complaints, or are we in for more of the same? Have a listen, then let us know your own Jurassic Park River Adventure verdict.

Join us for episode 505 of the Theme Park Trader Podcast! Universal is coming to the UK, and the rumour mill hasn’t stopped turning since. In this episode, we go land by land through everything that’s been whispered, leaked and speculated about for the Universal United Kingdom Resort in Bedfordshire. We dig into which franchises are most likely to make the cut, which ones feel like wishful thinking, and how the park might be laid out based on what we’ve seen from Universal’s other resorts. Along the way, we weigh up the credible rumours against the fan fantasies, and share our own picks for the lands we’d love to see when the gates open. Got a rumour we missed or a land you’re desperate for? Let us know.

Join us for episode 504 of the Theme Park Trader Podcast! No complaints this time — just credit. We ran through everything Walt Disney World actually got right in 2026, and the dining lineup did a lot of the heavy lifting. We work through the table-service wins — Yak & Yeti, Via Napoli, 50's Prime Time Café, Skipper Canteen, Sanaa, Space 220, and 'Ohana — plus a full Disney Springs day that took in BOATHOUSE, TREX, Planet Hollywood, Summer House on the Lake, and The Polite Pig (whose ordering system gets a proper airing). Chef Mickey's comes up for the experience rather than just the food, Boma lands somewhere around average, and the newer spots earn their place: GEO-82, Beak & Barrel, and BaseLine Tap House. Fantasmic is back in the good books too.

Join us for episode 503 of the Theme Park Trader Podcast! We take the kids to Universal Orlando for the very first time, hitting Islands of Adventure and the main park through fresh, young eyes. Then Donna shares her first impressions of Epic Universe — was it worth the hype? First-time thrills, must-do rides, and honest reactions from the whole family.

We just got back from Walt Disney World, and this one's a reckoning. After years of magic, our 2026 trip left us with a lot to unpack — so we're pulling no punches. Join us for episode 502 of the Theme Park Trader Podcast! In this episode we dig into everything that's slipping at the parks and resorts: a worrying lack of care around guest injuries, park operations that keep falling short, and Cast Members who turn condescending the moment you raise a complaint. We get into the sharp end of food quality, restaurant bills that keep climbing, and the small indignities that add up — from surprise pool closures at French Quarter to the great ice water saga (yes, that guy). We also cover the encroachment of AI, chronic understaffing on tills (Food & Wine was rough, but even the luxury resorts weren't spared), the state of the animals at the Lodge, our take on Bluey, MNSSHP, and whether Jock Lindsey's still earns its spot. Is Disney coasting on nostalgia while the experience quietly erodes? We think there's a case to answer. Grab a drink and join us.

Join us for episode 501 of the Theme Park Trader Podcast! Grace is back behind the mic! A returning favourite, she joins us to spill all the details on her upcoming Orlando adventure, the parks, the plans, and everything she's counting down to. Turns out we won't be strangers in Florida either: our trips are set to overlap, so expect plenty of "we have to do that" moments as we compare itineraries and swap must-dos. From ride priorities to dining hopes, Grace walks us through what's shaping up to be a cracking trip. Grab a drink and join us for the excitement.

Join us for episode 500 of the Theme Park Trader Podcast! Stop the press — Dan's not dead! Our original co-host rises from the podcasting grave to join us for the big 5-0-0, and he's brought Orlando stories with him. Dan and his fiancée jetted off to Florida, setting up camp at Disney's Port Orleans French Quarter before crossing the road to see what Universal's been up to. We get the full lowdown: what they loved, what they'd skip, and whether the beignets lived up to the hype. Five hundred episodes, one returning legend, and absolutely no zombies. Grab a drink and settle in.

Join us for episode 499 of the Theme Park Trader Podcast! We've done something a little different this week, we've put every ride, show, restaurant and bar at EPCOT under the microscope and ranked the lot from best to worst. But we didn't just take Google's star ratings at face value. A place with a handful of reviews can look like it's beating somewhere with thousands, so we ran every score through the same kind of formula IMDb uses for its Top 250 — pulling the small-sample scores back until they've earned their place. What's left is a ranking of what's actually rated highly, not just what got lucky. Along the way, we: Crown the highest-rated attraction in the park (and debate whether it deserves it) Work out which iconic sit-down restaurant is coasting on atmosphere rather than food Expose the quiet underdogs that score far better than their reputation suggests Argue about the ride we reckon is genuinely the weak link — and whether nostalgia is clouding the judgement Sort out what's worth your time and money on your next trip, and what to skip Plus, we get into our D23 predictions — what we think Disney has up its sleeve, the announcements we're hoping for, the ones we're dreading, and the wilder rumours we reckon might just come true. Expect some bold calls we'll almost certainly be held to later. If you've ever wondered what's genuinely worth doing at EPCOT — and what's coasting on hype — this is the episode for you.