What to do in Universal Orlando’s All New Dreamworks Land

After the closing of the beloved Kidzone, Barney show, and Woody Woodpecker roller coaster, fans and families alike have been waiting anxiously for its replacement. That replacement has finally come as Universal Orlando’s all new Dreamworks land. Grab your toddlers and young children as we learn the rides shows and what to do in Universal Orlando’s all new Dreamworks land!

Before we start, if you haven’t purchased your tickets to Universal Orlando yet, you can get them right here! This way you get the best deal and save on gate prices once you get there. 

Overview

Universal Orlando’s all-new Dreamworks Land is a fantastical portal into fun, adventure, and imagination. Located at the end of the Hollywood section of the park, behind E.T. and the Spongebob Squarepants store sits the new wonderland. This land is intended for younger theme park goers and families alike. Dreamworks Land takes properties and characters from the DreamWorks films and puts them all on stage for your children to play with. It takes them out of the real world and transports them into their favorite movies. Here kids and toddlers can find inspiration to rise to challenges with po from kung fu panda, live like Shrek in his swamp, and sing with the trolls. Since replacing Woody Woodpecker’s Kidzone, this land’s goal is to be the center of play and tailor to youngins and toddlers in a primarily adult-centered park. 

Rides

I’ll begin with rides. Universal is a park focused on innovation, technology, and thrills. With rides like Velocicoaster, Hagrid’s Motorbike Adventure, and the Mummy, there was no way they wouldn’t let the younger kids join in on the fun. Universal Orlando’s all new Dreamworks land begins with the fantastical Trollercoaster! This ride acts as an intro coaster for young kids and toddlers too small to ride the big rides at the park. For so many years, the main complaint with Universal was that there wasn’t enough attention and thrills for younger guests. The Trollercoaster is the solution.

Now, children 36 inches and up can hop into the caterpillar bus with their favorite characters from the Trolls franchise. Join your child and witness the way their eyes light up as they dodge spiders and shower in glitter with Poppy, Tiny, Satin, and Chenille. If your children spent the day waiting in the child swap line while the older kids got to ride their favorites over and over, the Trollercoaster at the all new DreamWorks land provides just enough excitement to satisfy their bursting energy. 

Interactive Play areas

Then at Universal Orlando’s all new Dreamworks Land, there are 4 magical play areas for your kids to run around in. To start, you can first learn kung fu with everyone’s favorite kung-fu-fighting-dragon-warrior-panda. Po, from kung fu panda, hosts Po’s Kung Fu training camp. Here kids can learn how to hone their chi with water play in the same training camp where Po learned his kung fu in. Kids can take a stake in the iconic village and aim water cannons, dunk buckets of water, splash through giants fans, and dance around ramen noodle bowls. This splash area is perfect for any hot Florida day. It will cool your kids down while simultaneously making them feel like the kung fu prodigy they are. 

Along with Po’s Kung Fu training camp, Dreamworks Land also features Shrek’s Swamp for Little Ogres. Join Shrek, Donkey, and his three little ogres as they play around a swamp of a playground. In this area, you will find Pinocchios telling incredible lies and jokes, splash and spray areas where kids can splash on goers, and a giant green slide through Shrek’s tree. This is one giant-themed playground full of fun, magical creatures, jokes, and overall excitement. Shrek is an iconic figure in the Universal Orlando theme park, even if your kids haven’t seen the movie, they will get the jokes immediately and have a great time trudging through the swamp. 

Last, you’ll find the whimsical Poppy’s playground. Here toddlers and young children can climb long beanstalks, jump onto bright flowers, and lounge around a giant 20-foot mushroom. Though everyone is welcome, this section is perfect for the smaller guest looking for a safe way to burn their energy in a magical way. Here children can excite their imagination and go wild with the whimsical Trolls scenery. 

Shows

Then the shows bring us back to our favorite kung-fu-fighting panda. Universal Orlando’s all-new DreamWorks land introduces brand-new technology in order to make an interactive show. Now, guests can stand face to face with Po, learn with him, talk to him, laugh with him, and even do a few magical moves. This show, titled Po Live, uses an animated screen to immerse your children into the world of kung fu panda. There will be tricks, jokes, flips, magical chi,  and so much more. What is best is it makes your kids the main character of the story, as the animated image will speak and get to know the kids in front of them. This is a great opportunity for both toddlers and older kids up to 12. 

After Po Live! Guests can gather in the Dreamworks theater for the Dreamworks Imagination Celebration. The show, indoors and in the A/C, is a great and exciting break for guests of all ages. During this dance party, you find the kung fu dragon warrior showing off his famous moves, Shrek, Donkey, and his flying dragon, and the Trolls cast dancing to their favorite tunes. This show amazes children young and old with its mixture of dazzling screens, lights, and dancing characters. Above all, it brings the magic of all the DreamWorks characters together and inspires children and families to continue the magic throughout the rest of their day. 

Character Meetups

Next and most exciting on what to do at Universal Orlando’s All-New Dreamworks land is meet the characters. Meeting characters at the theme park is one of the most exciting things to do for both adults and children. Adults get to relive their childhood and meet their favorite characters, while young children get to experience the unbelievable as they see their favorite on-screen characters in person. At DreamWorks Land, you can find the famous Puss in Boots, Shrek, Fiona, and Donkey from the Shrek Franchise. Here you can hear Donkey telling jokes and take pictures with your favorites.

Then fans of Netflix’s Gabby’s Dollhouse have the chance to meet her and her kitties in her wonderful dollhouse. You’ll also find many of the troll’s wandering around spilling glitter all over the grounds of Dreamworks land. There is nothing better than seeing your child’s eyes light up as they meet their favorite character, hug them, and have an adorable conversation. 

Food

Lastly, what to do in Universal Orlando’s All-new DreamWorks Land is eat all of the food! Like with the thrilling rides, Universal also takes the literal cake in theme park food in the entire state of Florida. During the special holidays and events, Universal introduces new and fun flavors. Then throughout the year, you can find those delicious and fun flavors throughout the park and quickly becoming fan favorites. Universal Orlando definitely did not spare any of that creativity when it comes to food at DreamWorks Land.

In this section of the park, you can find magical meals such as a Shrek pretzel with green swamp cheese, Pink lemonade, and huckleberry flavored ice cream, a fairytale-wrapped hot dog, Donkey’s waffles and so much more. One of the best things to do at a theme park is eat and this section has no shortage of imaginative treats for foodies and fans of all ages. 

Want to make the most of your vacation? Check out Tips to Maximize Your Time at Universal Orlando