Universal Great Britain

[Scott W.]

And where exactly does that say that such land is located in the United Kingdom?
Last time I checked they were pretty fond of £, not $. Perhaps the new park could be in Australia instead?

Edit: I'm sorry to be the one to break the news, but the L in NVUL Corp stands for Limited. It's the corporation that manages both NVU Las Vegas and Frisco. The 'Limited" just means, and I'm paraphrasing Investopedia here, " a general form of incorporation that limits the amount of liability undertaken by the company's shareholders."

Furthermore, every Universal Venture company I could find in the UK database has nothing to do with theme parks or even entertainment. Even if the L in NVUL meant London, the company couldn't have purchased any land in the UK as it has only been registered in Delaware, USA.

I'm sure they will be using shell companies to buy the land like Disney did with Walt Disney World.

 

[Dan Cooper]

I'm sure they will be using shell companies to buy the land like Disney did with Walt Disney World.

Hadn't they already purchased 200 acres? Anyways, please do update when the names of those companies are made public. They may even be the same ones they've been using down in Spain. Who knows?

 

[Tomfoolery]

Yes the L stands for London. That’s what I was getting at ha. Although it is not located in the London city proper, it’s referred to that colloquially,
I can tell you for sure this is happening

 

[Dan Cooper]

Yes the L stands for London. That’s what I was getting at ha. Although it is not located in the London city proper, it’s referred to that colloquially,
I can tell you for sure this is happening

Then, why was it registered in the USA instead of the UK?
I dont remember Disney doing that for EuroDisney SCA, or Universal with either Universal Beijing or Universal Mediterranea.

Seems like an odd choice for them to do it that way now, especially if this is indeed a fully fledged theme park instead of an smaller experience. This is what led me to believe that the L stood for Limited, as it would've required (the investors are actually quite wary of this new investment, and wouldn't like being held liable if anything were to go wrong).

However, if you can prove that the L stands for London, please share. Be wary however that it might come as a shock for investors.

 

[Spyke]

Dan, can you chill out a little?

 

[Tbad556]

However, if you can prove that the L stands for London, please shis. Be wary however that it might come as a shock for investors.

Do you just hate peaceful discussions where two sides can rationally discuss things or is it simply a coincidence that you talk down to every single person you interact with on here?

 

[Dan Cooper]

Dan, can you chill out a little?

Thanks for worrying man, I'm just here clarifying some misconceptions. As I said, totally fine, don't read too much into it.

 

[Dan Cooper]

Do you hate peaceful discussions where two sides can rationally discuss things or is it just a coincidence that you talk down to every single person you interact with on here?

I am talking peacefully. I am actually trying to start a conversation, just like BWSS did. Sorry if it seemed off, but I'm just trying to be extra cautious with this one.

 

[Brian G.]

I am talking peacefully. I am actually trying to start a conversation, just like BWSS did. Sorry if it seemed off, but I'm just trying to be extra cautious with this one.

It’s coming across very antagonistic.

 

[Michael S]

I am talking peacefully. I am actually trying to start a conversation, just like BWSS did. Sorry if it seemed off, but I'm just trying to be extra cautious with this one.

Stop double posting and calm down. You’re being so antagonistic it’s downright ridiculous. We are discussing theme park rumors, not how to solve world issues. If you can’t handle discourse, please don’t reply. If you can’t take what people say on the internet, grow up and power down…

 

[Mad Dog]

If something is indeed happening (@Tomfoolery has a good track record), I would guess Rowling would be all in for Potter in her homeland. Maybe a Potter and Nintendo theme. Two heavyweights.

 

[Dan Cooper]

Stop double posting and calm down. You’re being so antagonistic it’s downright ridiculous. We are discussing theme park rumors, not how to solve world issues. If you can’t handle discourse, please don’t reply. If you can’t take what people say on the internet, grow up and power down…

Sorry, didn't mean to sound antagonistic. Correct me if I'm wrong, I dont think we've actually discussed world issues, but facts relating to this discussion. Also, I'm sorry but I've been let down before, so please understand me needing more proof.

 

[Chorizo]

If something is indeed happening (@Tomfoolery has a good track record), I would guess Rowling would be all in for Potter in her homeland. Maybe a Potter and Nintendo theme. Two heavyweights.

Jurassic also feels like a lock to me, most likely Jurassic World, so I think that's three heavyweights. May be wishful thinking, but I think Jurassic World Adventure would be a good fit for this park as its SCOOP attraction, considering Transformers seems to be a dying IP and Spidey is off limits there. Plus they'd probably wanna steer away from major water rides, which are a staple of all the other Jurassic lands.

 

[UniloveEU]

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!

 

[Michael S]

Sorry, didn't mean to sound antagonistic. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I dont think we've actually discussed world issues, but facts relating to this discussion. Also, I'm sorry but I've been let down before, so I'm showing the research I've done on this topic. I would be happy to discuss that information though.

I didn’t mean you were off topic discussing any issues outside the park. I’m just trying to remind everyone here that all of this discussion is not that serious in the grand scheme of things. We shouldn’t be upset or let it affect us too much when there are far more important things in life that may call for that kind of energy.

I understand being let down and how that could influence your reactions and that’s valid, I won’t argue against that.

But we all want this to be a place for discussion, not arguments, not name calling (which I’m not accusing anybody of, just a general point we’ve seen here before.) Just discussion and we do our best to keep it that way.

We all feel you are welcome to share your opinions, your doubts or criticisms, facts you’ve come across and anything else you’d like to share.

Just reading thru this thread, it’s just not what IU is all about. Let’s all calm down, be friends, and discuss with some mutual respect for anybody willing to share their opinions.

If you feel anyway that you are being called out, just take a step back, feel free to message myself or another mod and we can have a chat there about your concerns.

There’ve been countless times where I’ve had to edit or even stop myself from making a post because I felt like my response was antagonistic, rude or disrespectful. All of us can be like that. We’re human, and that’s ok.

With that said let’s get back to discussing this rumor, in a meaningful way and keep IU the friendly and welcoming forum we all love!

Edit: Dan if you’d like to speak more about this, shoot me a personal message and we can discuss further.

 

[Mad Dog]

A lot depends on the size 'if' this is a happening. With EU travel restrictions to the UK since Brexit, it's not as easy as before. UK population, along with the Brexit borders, is probably too small to support a 100 acre theme park , not an amusement coaster park, but maybe a full park like Hollywoods' size., around 50 to 60 acres. I wouldn't worry about the climate. Beijing isn't that much different than the England climate, and Universal just built around those issues. I could envision a 4 to 6 million a year attendance if this is a fairly full fledged park and resort. At least this would be in a country with a fairly high standard of living and decent disposable income, unlike the proposed Moscow park in a country with third world income standards..

 

[UniloveEU]

Yeah, but is a Hollywood sized park enough to establish their brand on the European theme park market again? Not sure, to be honest. People in Europe are used to many other theme parks - and they will compare to Europa-Park, Disneyland Paris when they visit Universal. I know many people from Germany, France etc. who went to USH and got disappointed because of the size, the lack of attractions and the comparison to other European parks where they can get more variety (and which they still strongly preferred after their visits). If Universal enters the European theme park market again, they need to have a solid product from the start which they can market to different markets (as Disneyland Paris does) - not just to UK target groups. And this is where those points from my message above will come into consideration.

 

[Michael S]

Yeah, but is a Hollywood sized park enough to establish their brand on the European theme park market again? Not sure, to be honest. People in Europe are used to many other theme parks - and they will compare to Europa-Park, Disneyland Paris when they visit Universal. I know many people from Germany, France etc. who went to USH and got disappointed because of the size, the lack of attractions and the comparison to other European parks where they can get more variety (and which they still strongly preferred after their visits). If Universal enters the European theme park market again, they need to have a solid product from the start which they can market to different markets (such as Disneyland Paris) - not just to UK target groups.

You’re right about a Hollywood sized park not being the best option if they want to expand the brand into Europe, but I haven’t seen anything to suggest it would be the same size in theory.

USH is a working studio so that takes up most of the lot’s available land. If they did purchase property in the UK, I’d imagine they would want enough to develop it into a full fledged resort, since they’d be starting with a blank canvas, unlike Hollywood which is a park that grew organically from a basic Studio Tour to the park we know today.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

I can also confirm that from what I've heard, this project is very very early on. Outside of maybe the land purchases that I'm seeing on this thread here, nothing has been finalized, which has me thinking this maybe shouldn't have been broken so soon. They are not nearly close to making an announcement, and I have heard that even within in-house Universal IP, nothing has been finalized. I will admit though, it's all incredibly exciting and very fun to speculate about, especially with the non-Universal IP that may or may not come to the park .

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.

So far, all of the evidence from PortAventura tells me they are trying to make themselves look really good for a sale to Universal or someone else. I'd imagine Universal's not the only one interested in PortAventura (Merlin, SeaWorld, etc.)

Yeah, but is a Hollywood sized park enough to establish their brand on the European theme park market again? Not sure, to be honest. People in Europe are used to many other theme parks - and they will compare to Europa-Park, Disneyland Paris when they visit Universal. I know many people from Germany, France etc. who went to USH and got disappointed because of the size, the lack of attractions and the comparison to other European parks where they can get more variety (and which they still strongly preferred after their visits). If Universal enters the European theme park market again, they need to have a solid product from the start which they can market to different markets (such as Disneyland Paris) - not just UK.

It's a delicate game Universal has to play. They know from history that building out a massive resort from the start, aka Euro Disney, is not the right approach. Build too big (especially Potter) and you now lose some of the vital big money spenders from the UK visiting Orlando.

 

[UniloveEU]

You’re right about a Hollywood sized park not being the best option if they want to expand the brand into Europe, but I haven’t seen anything to suggest it would be the same size in theory.

USH is a working studio so that takes up most of the lot’s available land. If they did purchase property in the UK, I’d imagine they would want enough to develop it into a full fledged resort, since they’d be starting with a blank canvas, unlike Hollywood which is a park that grew organically from a basic Studio Tour to the park we know today.

I get your point - and yes, they might have bought development space for a long-term development as every professional theme park does. And still: I don’t see a USH-size from the start (as considered in this thread before), especially when they want to draw guests with their popular franchises.

It's a delicate game Universal has to play. They know from history that building out a massive resort from the start, aka Euro Disney, is not the right approach. Build too big (especially Potter) and you now lose some of the vital big money spenders from the UK visiting Orlando.

Yup - but don’t forget the other European target groups as well which might add up to 50%. I‘m sure they also target guests who have never been to Orlando before and experience Universal for the first time because of Mario, Harry Potter and the Minions. It’s a way easier access than buying expensive plane tickets and travel 10 hours to the US. Not too small, not too big to leave room for development. Still preferring existing structures in Spain tbh. Golden beaches around the corner, many hotels in the surrounding areas, a new cruise port in the making in La Pineda / Tarragona - just a few minutes away, existing resort hotels on property with capacities(!)…