Universal Orlando has extended the refurbishment of Stardust Racers, which has been closed on and off for a few different reasons over the last several months. Along with this, the previously-calendared closure of Yoshi’s Adventure in Super Nintendo World has been removed. Here are the latest dates & details, along with our commentary.
It’s been a rough first year for Stardust Racers, the dueling coaster that’s Epic Universe’s marquee thrill ride. The ride is currently closed for a scheduled refurbishment of an unknown nature, but one that’s believed to be routine. This was scheduled to end this weekend, but has been extended for nearly another week.
This is Stardust Racers’ third significant closure since Epic Universe opened less than a year ago. This ongoing refurbishment follows a January incident where both coaster trains simultaneously valleyed during high winds and cold temperatures, which reduced the trains’ momentum, preventing them from clearing a peak.
That rare double valley required Universal to bring a crane into the park to physically lift the trains off the track. The coaster was closed for 3 days following the incident. That actually wasn’t the first time that Stardust Racers had valleyed; the coaster did at least once during pre-opening testing.
There’s also been plenty of downtime and instances of Stardust Racers running with only one track; while frustrating to miss out on the dueling element, having two tracks has arguably improved uptime of the attraction.
Stardust Racers’ most serious issue occurred in September 2025, when 32-year-old Kevin Rodriguez Zavala died after losing consciousness during the ride. The medical examiner ruled the death accidental and attributed it to multiple blunt impact injuries. The lawsuit was eventually dismissed following a private settlement.
Following that tragedy, Universal closed Stardust Racers for investigation and made changes to transfer requirements and accessibility procedures across multiple attractions. The ride reopened in early October, but that along with other litigation over the attraction understandably cast a long shadow.
It’s unclear what the ongoing refurbishment of Stardust Racers entails or why the extension was necessary, but it’s worth reiterating that this is planned downtime that was scheduled in advance.
Typically, we wouldn’t bat an eye at this type of thing, assuming it to be routine maintenance due to ordinary wear and tear. However, Stardust Racers’ aforementioned track record coupled with how new it is (less than a year old) does pique our curiosity.
As of now, Stardust Racers is scheduled to be closed through February 28, 2026. The ride is expected to reopen on March 1, 2026, though reopening dates are tentative and subject to change (as evidenced by one extension already).
With Stardust Racers being extended, Yoshi’s Adventure in Super Nintendo World has been dropped from the refurbishment calendar. The family-friendly Peoplemover style dark ride was scheduled to close for refurbishment February 24-26, 2026 prior to the extension of the Stardust Racers closure.
It’s unclear what caused the change, but our guess is that it’s a matter of capacity. Epic Universe can’t really afford to have multiple attractions down for refurbishment at the same time, even if they’re fundamentally different in nature.
Assuming this to be accurate, we’d assume Yoshi’s Adventure will reappear on the refurbishment calendar once Stardust Racers reopens. It’s possible whatever maintenance Yoshi’s Adventure needed was accomplished during overnights, but our guess is that this closure has been delayed as opposed to cancelled.
We also wouldn’t be surprised if Fyre Drill closes for another “refurbishment” over the next few days. Unseasonably cold weather is once again in the forecast for next week, and Fyre Drill is a “you will get wet/you may get soaked” type of attraction. Nobody wants to ride that when it’s 40 degrees out.
Stardust Racers being down is definitely the bigger blow. It’s a headliner attraction that’s significantly better, and has much higher hourly throughput. I’d absolutely visit Epic Universe when Yoshi’s Adventure is closed; I would not without Stardust Racers.
It’s right up there with Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry and Monsters Unchained as one of my three favorite attractions in the park; it’s also my favorite roller coaster anywhere. I could take or leave Yoshi’s Adventure.
Of course, the calculus might differ for families with smaller children, but I’d argue the whole park isn’t really right for them (us) in the first place. (It’s a totally pointless park for our toddler.)
Here’s a current look at the full refurbishment calendar for 2026 at Universal Orlando:
Universal Epic Universe
- Fyre Drill: February 1, 2026 – February 19, 2026 (Fyre Drill has reopened and is currently posting a 60 minute wait; not sure why it’s still on the calendar…unless it’s expected to go down again next week due to weather.)
- Stardust Racers: February 19, 2026 – February 28, 2026
Universal Islands of Adventure
- Jurassic Park River Adventure: January 5, 2026 – November 19, 2026
- Hogwarts Express: February 9 – 23, 2026
- Ollivanders Wand Shop in Hogsmeade™: February 26, 2026
- Me Ship, The Olive: April 19, 2026 – April 25, 2026
Universal Studios Florida
- Finnegan’s Bar & Grill: January 12, 2026 – Winter 2026
- Hogwarts Express: February 9 – 23, 2026
Universal Volcano Bay
- Maku of Maku Puihi Round Raft Rides: January 5, 2026 – February 26, 2026
- Puihi of Maku Puihi Round Raft Rides: January 5, 2026 – February 26, 2026
Universal Volcano Bay is seasonally closed on select dates between October 2025 and February 2026. Additionally, Universal Volcano Bay will be closed for maintenance beginning October 26, 2026, with a current planned reopening on or before March 24, 2027.
Turning back to capacity, it’s also worth sharing that Epic Universe still isn’t firing on all cylinders.
During the company’s most recent earnings call, Comcast CFO Jason S. Armstrong shared that Epic Universe is “not yet operating at full run rate capacity, but we’ve made meaningful progress expanding ride throughput and remain focused on scaling further over the next several quarters with higher attendance, stronger per-caps, and additional operating leverage over time.”
Here’s what he previously said last August: “We expect Epic to continue to scale over the course of the year, with higher attendance and per caps as well as significantly improved operating leverage.” On a subsequent earnings call, one of the executives suggested it’d be a few more months before the park fully hit its stride.
Now, Armstrong has said that he expects Epic Universe to be at full capacity by the end of 2026. It’s unclear why leadership believes it’s going to take another full year to ramp up Epic Universe, but it isn’t uncommon for a brand-new theme park–especially one with several envelope-pushing attractions–to have growing pains.
While the longer time horizon for the ramp-up is disappointing, it’s not surprising. In January, Epic Universe had its busiest day ever.
Not just the highest wait times ever for Epic Universe, but for any park at Universal Orlando or Walt Disney World since at least 2019–and by a very wide margin. The average wait on that date was 107 minutes, with peak waits of over 300 minutes and multiple headliners hitting 200+ minutes throughout the day.
Since then, Epic Universe has had some quieter days, but not weeks. The average wait time for every single week this year has been 60 minutes or higher. To put that into perspective, the busiest week of the last year at Walt Disney World was that of New Year’s Eve, which only hit 49 minutes. And the astronomical crowd levels at Epic Universe are a byproduct of capacity constraints, not overwhelming demand.
Fortunately, there are sweet spots to visit amidst the madness. See our Epic Universe Crowd Calendar: Best Dates to Visit in 2026 for advice. The worst and least busy dates are actually pretty predictable, albeit slightly counter-intuitive and unlike the other Universal Orlando theme parks.
Need trip planning tips and comprehensive advice for your visit to Central Florida? Make sure to read our Universal Orlando Planning Guide for everything about Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida. Also check out our Walt Disney World Vacation Planning Guide for everything about those parks, resorts, restaurants, and so much more.
Your Thoughts
Surprised to see Epic Universe attractions already closing for refurbishments less than a year after the park opening? Thoughts on Stardust Racers’ rocky opening months? Optimistic that the park will find its footing and operate at full capacity well before the end of 2026? Agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
