Universal Studios Fan Fest Night Review 2026

Our Family Experience at Universal Fan Fest Nights

This past weekend, we had the opportunity to attend Universal Studios’ Second Annual Fan Fest Night! We weren’t able to attend their inaugural Fan Fest Night, and we stayed away from fan reviews to keep our expectations grounded for the best experience; We truly didn’t know what to expect for this one.

This year’s event focused on Dungeons and Dragons, Harry Potter, Jurassic Park, Super Mario and the anime highlights included Sailor Moon and One Piece, with One Piece being the main highlight with their new water stunt show.

The overall Universal Studios family experience was fun, and our 5-year-old boy enjoyed himself. Side tangent: it was a proud day for me and the wife, because the little guy proved to use that he no longer needs his stroller and went an entire day (9:00 a.m. to 12:30 a.m.) without it. This event being in its second year, it’s noticeable that there are some areas that need improvement, however, their efforts are respected.

This blog shares our overall experience attending Universal Studios Fan Fest Nights with our family, with overall highlights with centered highlights around two franchises that stood out the most for us, Sailor Moon and One Piece.

Travel Details

Because we were only here for one day, we wanted to make the most of it and created our own VIP experience that we could afford for the day. Here’s what we purchased:

• 3x All Day Fan Fest Night Tickets: This allowed us to enter the parks for its regular hours and also get into some of the Fan Fest Night exhibitions early.

• 3x Fan Fest Night Express Tickets: This allowed us to get ahead of the line for regular operating rides and Fan Fest experiences during the Fan Fest hours from 6:00 p.m. to closing.

• 1x Front of Gate Parking: We knew it was going to be a long day for our little guy, we chose to purchase front gate parking so he could take a nap in the car mid-day. This also allowed us to keep a change of clothes for Fan Fest Night. During the day we wore our regular clothes but went back to the car to change into our Fan apparel. This was the best choice we made for the day!

There is an option to purchase an actual VIP experience, however that was just beyond our budget.

Overall Event Atmosphere

One of the biggest strengths of Fan Fest Nights was simply the vibe.

Universal Studios managed to blend fandom culture, cosplay and theme park entertainment, into one large experience. Everywhere we walked, there was something happening. This included themed food booths, photo opportunities, unique merchandise, character interactions, and fans sharing similar passions. Just like any fan event, convention or festival, it’s the cosplayers that brought the additional energy to this event.

Family Highlights from the Night

As a family, some of our favorite moments came from various experiences that we didn’t think we would enjoy.

Although we are not D&D players, we would say that the Dungeon’s and Dragon’s experience was the best walk-through experience of the night. The actors had tremendous energy and they really made it feel like we were in a different world.

The second experience we enjoyed was meeting all the different colored Yoshi’s in Mario Land. Here’s a tip: They will have some trivia questions for you to answer. If you answer all of them correctly, you’ll receive a secret word. This secret word will give you the opportunity to meet Green Yoshi and Mario!

The third experience we enjoyed, was watching the Sailor Moon digital show. Although, the graphics seemed off and the storyline wasn’t that great, it was just nostalgic to see Sailor Moon. Also, keep in mind, this show was in Japanese. If you have a little one with you and they can’t read yet, they’re definitely going to have to rely on following the story by visuals only.

Finally, the main highlight for us and I’m sure for majority of the guests, was the One Piece stunt show! Originally known as the Water World show, Universal Studios used that water theater and immersed guests in the One Piece Universe. Personally as a martial artist, my favorite part of the show was seeing the actors executing martial art stunts. The show brought comedy, action, a few surprises and probably delivered the strongest overall crowd energy. If they bring this back next year, it is a must see whether you’re a One Piece fan or not.

Food and Merchandise

Like most themed events, food and merchandise played a huge role in the overall experience.

Some food items were more impressive than others and expectedly, the prices for some items were through the roof. However, overall themed offerings helped enhance the experience throughout the night. Even simple snacks and drinks with basic flavors felt more exciting when tied into the fandom franchises.

Although the merchandise areas were also packed with exclusive items and collectibles, I hoped there would have been more themed merchandise options for Sailor Moon and One Piece. However, If you’re someone who enjoys event-exclusive merch, this is definitely an event where it’s smart to budget ahead of time because there are a lot of tempting purchases that can put a dent in the wallet.

At the end of the day, we only purchased a One Piece plastic mug.

Things to Know: Pros, Cons and Tips

Pros

• Fandom vibes, especially if you are a fan of some of the themed highlights.

• Exclusive food, merchandise, photo ops, experiences and shows.

• The rides have shorter wait times due to crowds being dispersed amongst themed experiences.

Cons

• Crowds everywhere. Lines for exhibits, photo ops and food lines were about 20-45 minutes long at peak hours. Wear your patient pants.

• Themed characters were only allowed to be out for 45 minutes at a time and would not return until another 45-60 minutes later. We never had the opportunity to take pictures with Sailor Moon or One Piece Crew.

• Minion Ride and Secret Life of Pet area closed during Fan Fest Night.

• It’s only about a 5–6-hour event depending on the ticket your purchase.

• Some experiences were lackluster compared to others. Specifically for 2026, the Jurassic Park experience seemed underwhelming. Seemed like an experience you would see at a county fairground.

• Although subjective, after experiencing some of the themed walk-through experiences, some experiences just didn’t seem to be worth the 60-90 minute wait. Specifically, the Harry Potter walk-through experience had a standard wait time of 60 minutes, but luckily we had our express pass that got us through in less than 10 minutes.

Tips

• If time allows it, I would purchase the all day combination pass to enjoy the regular park entertainment and then enjoy the Fan Fest Night in the same day.

• If funds allow it, I would purchase the early access pass to beat the lines.

• I would NOT purchase the express pass again. If anything, If we only had one day to visit again, I would get the express pass for the regular hours and plan the night more carefully to have the opportunity to visit each prioritized attraction.

• With a child who still needs a nap and with an outfit change, having front gate parking was absolutely worth it.

• Get your themed food early on in the night to beat the crowds.

• If you couldn’t make it to an experience during the peak hours, lines are a lot shorter at the end.

Would we Attend Again?

Fan Fest Nights felt like a celebration of fandom, nostalgia, creativity, and community. The combination of anime culture and immersive entertainment created a memorable experience that appealed to both longtime fans and casual visitors alike.

Now, would we return next year? Maybe. Yes, that is a cop out answer, but we really visited this year because they brought back One Piece and included Sailor Moon. One Piece themed experiences and show were great but Sailor Moon was, “Meh”. We were hoping for something more. If Universal Studios brings back One Piece and Sailor Moon next year with upgraded experiences, we may consider it. But if Universal adds another anime universe such as Dragon Ball or even Pokemon, we’ll be there!