Universal Great Britain

[AlexanderMBush]

It's moving much faster than expected if this land acquisition is tied to a Europe property. You don't just buy nearly $300M worth of land in an early stage, we might be seeing government approvals soon if this were the case.

It's why I wonder if we might be dealing with a Beijing element--where the government of China played an element in aiding and being a key factor to that of a rail station connected and right next to that of Universal Beijing.

Assuming if similar factors are being applied; then having a property large enough to sustain a rail station connection could allow for easier means of tourism generation to get people to the property.

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As for land size, I think if we are considering the risks that are being potentially at place; then a 80-95 acre park does not seem inheritably far fetched. Not to use all of that at the start, but having it be more on par in land size to that of a USF; even if the format is more similar to Osaka or Singapore.

 

[Calmix]

Hi guys!

Look guys from my understanding of things in Europe, a big Universal park in Europe it won't work. In Europe if you want success you need germans on board, and they have two beautiful parks, EuropaPark that's big with many things to do and Phantasialand that's small but made with a lot of love. They won't move to a smaller more expensive and non-german speaker park on mass. If the park is made in UK it would be a disaster, it's going to make the same mistake as Eurodisney, if is done en Spain is going to do better but not profitable. What I see for Europe is a small park inside the EU with Nintendo, HP and two more things, with and attendance of 3-4 million visitors.
If they buy PorAventura they can break ground next day, if is a new plot of land is going to take at least decade to see the park, regard less my children would be too old for Nintendo or HP when is done, especially if is in a new plot.
But because I won't pay for the losses I'll be really happy with a big juicy Universal Park paid by Comcast holders in a 2h flight.

 

[BMC]

Hello all, long-time lurker on these forums. As a Brit myself I couldn't quite believe the rumours when I read them. I wanted to jump in and summarise what I think are the pros/cons of a UK park:

- Firstly, Brits - more than any other European nationality - are more likely to visit Disneyland Paris or the Orlando parks. Brits are far more receptive to American theme parks and culture than Europeans typically are.
- Secondly, London is one of the most visited cities on earth. A Universal park in/around London would almost certainly seek to capture this enormous tourist market.
- Thirdly, London is very well connected to the rest of Europe via cheap flights. Far more connected than Portaventura would be (I'm not discounting Portaventura as a potential park, I'm just putting things into perspective). London is also somewhat well connected to the rest of the UK via rail and road (better than any other city in the UK). Eurostar exists also, and there are hopes for additional rail operators to run the routes.
- Fourth, the impact of Brexit I feel is being overstated. The UK economy is not as bad as is being made out - there is a squeeze on the cost of living which is playing out in most developed economies. Also, there is no visa regime planned for visiting the UK from the EU. From 2025, EU visitors will need to pay a small fee (£10) and complete an online form - the exact same if EU visitors were planning on visiting the US.

The flip side to all of this is that the UK is not as attractive to international investment as it once was. This is a function of the perception of the UK (due to poor economic management and political instability) but also because the planning laws in the UK are probably some of the most restrictive in the world. It takes years - sometimes 10+ years - to even get things through the planning regime, and there are multiple opportunities for local action groups/ local councils/ charities/ etc to disrupt any progress or development.

Basically, if this is to work in the UK it needs: a) to be in/around London and b) to have the long-term backing of both the local council and national government, potentially with some waivers around planning.

For what it is worth, even though I'd love to see a UK Uni park, I think somewhere like the Netherlands/ North West Germany is more attractive/connected to the rest of Europe.

 

[Tyr12]

If I was the UK government, and all the polls were telling me that I was about to lose next year's election in a landslide... Offering Universal a sweetheart deal so they announce a billion-pound investment right in the lead-up to said election is exactly what I'd do.

I would probably try to push them closer to Manchester though, so I can pretend the Northern Powerhouse is still a thing.

 

[Henny]

Considering it's pinned for the UK, it should be clear as day that they're not aiming it for continental Europeans. The UK population in addition to London tourists can sustain a resort. As what's been said here, brits, more than any other nationality (par Americans), are obsessed with Universal and Disney, and tourists traveling to London would probably love to visit Hogwarts and the rest of the Wizarding World. I can also see where Universal fans from Europe and MENA would likely visit it instead of making the pilgrimage to Orlando. It's a solid proposition all around.

 

[tommyhawkins]

You Visit the actual King Cross Station, queue up to pose at Platform 9 3/4 then you jump on a train and 90-120 mins later youre walking into Hogwarts Castle

 

[Dalt Wisney]

I was thinking, maybe there's a way both the PortAventura rumour and this one come to life... What if, seeing the success the HP Studios have, Universal decides to build a smaller, real production studio theme park, like Hollywood. You can have a couple of rides, but the real attraction are the studios. Then, have the bigger Destination Resort in Barcelona. This would give Europe a very similar situation to that of the US and the UK, being more separated from Europe, would have its own Universal park.

I have nothing backing this up, just food for thought!

 

[havaska]

Hi guys - a newbie here! Loved to read all of those discussions in this board for years and finally registered myself as a user. Only for this discussion (and maybe more).

First of all, I‘m not a native speaker, so please apologize any grammar / sentence mistakes I might make. I‘m from Europe - I grew up with PortAventura and know this park by heart since 1998. I experienced pre-, Universal and post-Universal days. And: I love Uni. I follow the rumors around PortAventura very closely. There were so many indicators that might strongly hint to PortAventura since January 2023. And the last 6 weeks were totally tense for me - obviously.

There were a lot of rumors in the past about big theme park projects in the UK. So these following thoughts relate to any new international leisure investment in Great Britain in general: One of the major target groups of any new theme park built in UK might surely be the Brits. Sure, they live „just around the corner“. They have been hit by financial crisis due to Brexit and are still struggling. Companies flew to Continental Europe just because of that. Many Brits aren't as wealthy as they were pre-pandemic and Brexit anymore. You even notice this at Disneyland Paris - I don't know the exact numbers, but as a (frequent) visitor, you noticed a drop in British visitors compared to a status quo 10 years ago. More people from Germany, Netherlands etc. come to Paris though - they really have rediscovered Disneyland while the Brits try to focus on cheaper alternatives when do a trip abroad (e.g. Efteling). Have the British target groups enough „purchasing power“ to drive a new franchise theme park in UK? Does a new park in UK need to be cheaper as Disneyland Paris to draw them? Of course, you have many other target markets. But you will also have some hurdles and obstacles to overcome - such as visa / entry to the UK with a passport - which got and will get even more complicated with introducing an upcoming ESTA-like entry system with entry fees. I know a lot of people here in Europe who doesn't even own a travel passport because of the Schengen agreement. Europeans are used to cross borders - only with their ID card. So this might exclude some potential visitors.

These things might not be a big „game over factor“ but it surely might influence the situation in opening a new theme park in UK with an international target group (even though London is a cosmopolitan city). And weather is also an important topic - everyone who says that London has the same weather as Paris / Seine-et-Marne hasn't been to both cities and regions during all seasons Winter seasons might get cold in both cities but spring / fall and especially summer(!) are very different. You never get 34-38 degrees in London - in Paris, you regularly do. Pros and cons here.

Some more thoughts about land purchase: PortAventura eyed an expansion to the south-eastern part of their area with Hard Rock several years ago. The land was owned by La Caixa back then. The deal / project with Hard Rock fell through... might there be a chance that they have bought this land as well?

So UK AND Spain? Or is it just one project? How do all those hints from Spain (very specific(!) patents for Spain, several Universal manager sightings throughout the year, deleted tweet from Universal Creative director, restructuring / and rebuying of formerly outsourced companies in spring, employee poaching of lead managers from Disneyland Paris (Would people from France really change to PortAventura in Spain(!) without any bigger career incentive / prospect? If you know the differences in (working) cultures of both countries - I would doubt that a bit…) etc.) go together with that new spin?

A lot of questions are running through my head… I‘m sorry for that much input. But I feel like I found the right place to talk about these thoughts

Cheers and good night!

Brit here, also a first time poster. I need to address a few things here.

I’m not sure where you are getting information but the economic situation in the UK isn’t nearly as bad as you think. The UK hasn’t had a recession, and we’ve not overnight all suddenly gotten poor and stopped visiting Disneyland Paris. The visitor figures show otherwise. I think you’re massively overstating the impact of Brexit. Brexit is rubbish and I voted against it, but it’s not like the country has imploded since. And it was 7(!) years ago.

The economy isn’t great but it also isn’t on the floor. It’s doing just about as well or bad as the rest of Western European. The same story for inflation.

Yes you need a passport to visit the UK but you don’t need a visa and any visitor for a western country can enter through the egates (something not reciprocated for us visiting the EU). But you also need to passport to visit Singapore, Japan, China and the USA, so I’m not sure this is relevant.

Also; location. London is one of the most visited cities in the world with one of the world’s busiest airports, another 4 smaller airports and high speed rail to the rest of the UK and France. There’s a very large market to tap into there.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

 

[Mad Dog]

If you would have posted this on the first page of the PortAventura thread, we could have avoided the other 26 thread pages. Of course though, the last few pages of PA have been very entertaining and a bit of speculative fun.

 

[Chorizo]

I currently still do not feel comfortable disclosing too much information given to me, especially the location, for the sake of this park actually happening, but I do have a few things to say on this. First, the land has already been purchased sometime before September 1st. I've also heard that 2030 is the year that they're aiming to get this open by (we'll see if it ends up making that target date). Lastly, there will be NO attractions cloned from Orlando. I repeat, none. From what I've seen, this park will be very interesting, and a truly world class theme park that the United Kingdom can finally call its own. Also, none of you have gotten the name right so far, lol.

 

[BernyMoon]

I cannot wait.

 

[AlexanderMBush]

I currently still do not feel comfortable disclosing too much information given to me, especially the location, for the sake of this park actually happening, but I do have a few things to say on this. First, the land has already been purchased sometime before September 1st. I've also heard that 2030 is the year that they're aiming to get this open by (we'll see if it ends up making that target date). Lastly, there will be NO attractions cloned from Orlando. I repeat, none. From what I've seen, this park will be very interesting, and a truly world class theme park that the United Kingdom can finally call its own. Also, none of you have gotten the name right so far, lol.

Me walking into the park in 2030 like

 

[grlhowl]

Wasn't really intrigued by this... but if we are looking at a park with no attractions from Orlando? That is truly wild. I'm super excited about this development!!

 

[havaska]

Wasn't really intrigued by this... but if we are looking at a park with no attractions from Orlando? That is truly wild. I'm super excited about this development!!

I think that would be a good development. The UK doesn’t need a Harry Potter themed world. It already has the studio tour and the real settings.

Second, it needs to be a different thing to Orlando as so many Brits go there for vacation. Just cloning the Orlando attractions and putting them in London is going to cannibalise those sales.

 

[tommyhawkins]

I currently still do not feel comfortable disclosing too much information given to me, especially the location, for the sake of this park actually happening, but I do have a few things to say on this. First, the land has already been purchased sometime before September 1st. I've also heard that 2030 is the year that they're aiming to get this open by (we'll see if it ends up making that target date). Lastly, there will be NO attraction
ed from Orlando. I repeat, none. From what I've seen, this park will be very interesting, and a truly world class theme park that the United Kingdom can finally call its own. Also, none of you have gotten the name right so far, lol.

I have already told them not to call The London Resort

No notes

 

[Nico]

I think that would be a good development. The UK doesn’t need a Harry Potter themed world. It already has the studio tour and the real settings.

Second, it needs to be a different thing to Orlando as so many Brits go there for vacation. Just cloning the Orlando attractions and putting them in London is going to cannibalise those sales.

Is it cannibalizing if Comcast still gets that money? While also, potentially lowering crowding in Orlando and improving customer satisfaction. And THEN adding access to local customers who don’t want to fly to the States.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Is it cannibalizing if Comcast still gets that money? While also, potentially lowering crowding in Orlando and improving customer satisfaction. And THEN adding access to local customers who don’t want to fly to the States.

It is if they're not staying at a Universal resort for a week or so. That's a "captured" market spending most of their time within Universal giving them food for dining, shopping, and all the other potential add ons.

It definitely will attract those who don't want to fly over to the states, but I'd imagine they'd use it more as a "tease" than a substitute of Orlando.

 

[Chorizo]

No repeat attractions between the two resorts doesn't necessarily mean no repeat properties
"Oh you like so and so IP? Well we have a different so and so IP attraction in Orlando if you want to spend more- I mean, check out more!"

 

[AlexanderMBush]

I think the fact they are also looking at completely differentiating the type of park in the terms of pre-existing attractions (not lands) is also a very bold note that could pay off in reducing that cannibalistic trend. Allows UOR and ULR to shine in differing lights.

Thinking about it, and I wonder if that means if SNW comes; if UK might opt in on doing a different kind of Mario attraction as an E-Ticket if that 'no clone' bit extends to Mario Kart.