WDWMagic first reported that the 2025 TEA Global Experience Index is telling a familiar story at Disney and a newer one at Universal. Disney is holding steady, while Universal’s Orlando numbers are now being read through the lens of Epic Universe. For readers tracking Universal United Kingdom Resort near Bedford, the relevance is indirect but clear: this is part of the company’s wider capacity-and-growth picture.
Disney holds its ground
The TEA index is the key yardstick here. It tracks calendar-year attendance across major theme parks, and the 2025 figures point to a market where Disney remained broadly flat rather than swinging sharply one way or the other. That steadiness matters because the story is not about a dramatic Disney drop; it is about Universal’s latest Orlando gate becoming part of the comparison.
Epic Universe changes the Universal story
Universal’s move is the more significant shift. Epic Universe has changed the way the resort is discussed, with the new park now sitting inside the broader attendance story rather than alongside it as a separate opening headline. That is why the Universal takeaway is not simply about one new park; it is about how that park is already altering the shape of Universal Orlando’s wider performance.
Why that matters beyond Florida
For Bedford readers, the point is strategic rather than operational. This report does not add any fresh detail about Bedford, and it does not change the timetable for Universal United Kingdom Resort. It does, however, show that Universal continues to treat new, destination-scale capacity as the lever that can shift attendance across an entire resort. That is a useful clue to how the company is likely to think about its next big projects.
What remains unconfirmed is the longer-term balance. TEA’s 2025 figures establish the direction of travel — Disney steady, Universal gaining ground with Epic Universe — but they do not yet settle how much of Universal’s momentum will hold once the park is no longer in its first partial year. That is the next question to watch.
Update: 28 October 2026
Blog Mickey first reported that Disney World attendance is down slightly in 2025, while Universal is seeing an uptick. Epic Universe is being linked to that stronger performance for Universal.
The broader picture remains mixed, but the latest attendance trend suggests Universal is benefiting from its new park as Disney’s numbers soften a little this year.
