Universal Kids Resort isn’t focused on impressive rides — it’s for young families

After spending a day at Universal Kids Resort with my 8-year-old son, I left exhausted and thankful for the variety of experiences at the new theme park in Frisco, Texas. Rides are not this park’s specialty. And at $55 for a one-day ticket, it’s a good thing there are plenty of other things to do at Universal Kids Resort. Here’s my review, including some of the tricks to enjoying this park built for kids.

My corner of theme park social media is going off the rails as Attractions Magazine and other media outlets attend a preview of Universal Kids Resort. It’s a scaled-down park with (in some cases) bare-bones theming.

My son is neurodivergent, and like many neurodivergent children, he experiences theme parks differently. Loud sounds, spinning motions and sensory overload can quickly turn an exciting attraction into something he wants to avoid.

That perspective shaped how we experienced Universal Kids Resort.

Shrek and Fiona’s Ogre Ever After

Child’s rating: 10 out of 10

This was his clear favorite attraction in the park. The attraction tells a simple story, moves at a comfortable pace and never feels overwhelming.

While I’ve seen adults online dismiss it, it was exactly the kind of experience that worked for him. With a basic “dummy” steering wheel, he was able to “drive” the wooden four-seater ride vehicle along the curving track, passing “wooden” scenes from the original Shrek movie.

See this ride in action by watching our YouTube video below.

He asked repeatedly to go back on it, but I had other plans. Our first two rides of the day were Mr. DNA’s Double Helix Spin (more on that later) and Hair in the Clouds. I did my utmost to convince him to go on other rides. I was not very successful.

After taking an afternoon break in our comfortable hotel room overlooking the park itself, we ventured back inside. This time I had a new attitude: forget the spinning, overwhelming rides and go for the shows instead. It proved a winning strategy.

King Trollex Techno Dance Party

Child’s rating: 10 out of 10

His second favorite experience was also a 10 out of 10. King Trollex Techno Dance Party performed every thirty minutes inside a small Trollsfest area theater. Upon entering the theater, every parent noticed something at the same time: the air conditioning wasn’t working. Not cool.

And yet, every child that participated in this dance party didn’t care about the lack of A/C and had a blast. The show invited kids to move, dance and participate.

In between filming clips for our Attractions Magazine YouTube channel, I joined the party too. And the message of the experience danced its way into my heart: whatever your beat, whatever your music of choice, dance to it. The timing of the message couldn’t have been better.

Here I was, stressing over coercing my son into going on rides that, although built for kids his age, did not feel okay to him. I took a deep breath and continued to let go of my expectations.

The playgrounds and splash zones

Child’s rating of multiple playgrounds averaged 8 out of 10

The dry playgrounds were consistently among his favorite places in the park. It seems silly to spend $55 a person to enter a kid-sized theme park just to spend much of the day on a playground. That is, until you’re a parent of a young child. Humans need to move, especially young ones.

Universal designed this part of the park brilliantly! Five out of the seven lands have multiple play structures, and they are woven in between the rides and shows. They are the perfect solution to giving kids a movement break in between the action.

He enjoyed the playgrounds more than the splash zones, and from a design perspective, I found the playgrounds to be more impressive.

Live shows and characters

Child’s rating of multiple shows averaged 8.5 out of 10

The Puss in Boots puppet show held his attention from start to finish. At moments, the message of the show conflicted with me as a mom. But I let it go and enjoyed the puppetry and performance.

Besides the indoor techno dance party in Trollsfest, there is a live show with multiple characters from the movie “Trolls: World Tour.” Performing inside the Trollsfest AMPhitheater, the stage is filled with singing, dancing, and some of the silliest characters I have ever seen inside a theme park, including Delta Dawn, a horse-troll hybrid that only makes sense in a place like Texas.

“Trollstastic: Concert Countdown” is a great way to rest your feet, plus food and drinks are allowed, so use it to rehydrate and fuel up.

Other rides

Before I cover some of the challenges the park presents, let’s cover the other rides that my son and I experienced.

Mr. DNA’s Double Helix Spin

Child’s rating: 9 out of 10

One of the biggest surprises of the day came in Jurassic World Adventure Camp. After opting out of several attractions earlier in the day, my son finally decided to try Mr. DNA’s Double Helix as his first ride of the day.

The ride lasts close to 10 minutes! It is perhaps the longest attraction experience in the park. By the time we reached the end, he was grinning at least.

He declined to go on it again, which was fine by me. It is yet another dizzying, spinning ride. I enjoyed it, but once was enough.

Hair in the Clouds

Child’s rating: 2.5 out of 10

On the opposite side of the park is another up-in-the-air spinning ride. Hair in the Clouds is a circular spinner ride where hot air balloon-style vehicles are elevated into the air and spin at increasing speeds. It spins much faster than we expected, too fast if you ask my son and me, and it is over way too quickly, too.

The challenges

Every kid is different, and for my kid, the park was fun, but not a hit. Six of the park’s twelve rides involve some form of spinning motion. For some children, that’s not an issue. For others, it can be a major obstacle.

My son chose not to ride several attractions because they felt overwhelming before he even boarded. The Minions area was one example. The Bello Bay Cruise platform featured continuous sound effects and energetic audio right on the ride’s loading platform that felt loud and intense. It’s one of the reasons my son became overwhelmed and refused to board.

I was able to ride by myself thanks to some help from team members and fellow media members. I am not certain how my son would have reacted to this rollicking ride. But personally, I ended up queasy and dizzy for quite a while, a first for me on this type of raft ride. That said, it is a great ride for adventurous kids.

WATCH: In the video below, I’ve pulled together some of the highlights of our day inside Universal Kids Resort.

Not enough shade

Besides the amount of spinning rides, the lack of shade is an issue. Universal built shade structures over all the playgrounds and queue, but the landscaping is minimal. The lack of lush landscaping and mature trees is a major letdown. We know Universal is capable of building areas in a new theme park with great landscaping and grown trees. Universal Kids Resort is majorly lacking in this regard.