The Legend of Dueling Dragons at Islands of Adventure

Unicorns Fly into The Lost Continent

Dueling Dragons was a novelty but stood out as a highlight at Islands of Adventure. The attraction received high praise, consistently earning a top 25 spot in the Golden Ticket Awards’ best steel coasters category. Dewayne Bevil of The Orlando Sentinel commented on the coasters’ creative dual design, writing, “‘Intertwined’ is an understatement.” The twin coasters were among the park’s more popular attractions upon opening.

Because Universal expected large crowds and high wait times, the line for Dueling Dragons was well over half a mile long long—which was the world’s longest queue, according to the park.

Operationally, Dueling Dragons had an extraordinarily high theoretical capacity of just under 3,000 riders per hour—but usually could accommodate up to about 2,000 riders in an hour. Still, the attraction essentially had one queue for two separate coasters—double the capacity, but not necessarily double the demand.

On top of this, attendance at Islands of Adventure fell short in its opening year due to poor marketing. Combining that with the efficient throughput of Dueling Dragons, its wait times were lower than anticipated, making the lengthy queue excessive despite the ride’s popularity.

Meanwhile, early guest feedback about Islands of Adventure suggested the park could benefit from more family-friendly attractions. As such, Universal Orlando invested in two small family attractions to add to its new park—one for Marvel Superhero Island and the other in The Lost Continent.

“Now each island has a very distinct attraction for young children.”
Jim Canfield, Universal Orlando spokesperson, The Orlando Sentinel, 2000

A portion of the outdoor extended queue for Dueling Dragons was repurposed to give The Lost Continent a family-friendly ride: a new junior roller coaster called Flying Unicorn. This coaster opened in 2000, one year after the park opened, and had a storyline based around Merlin and a magical unicorn horn.

HHN Takes Over Merlinwood

The lore around Merlinwood and Dueling Dragons had potential, making it a strong concept for Universal Orlando’s annual haunt event, Halloween Horror Nights.

During the event in 2003, a loose extension of Dueling Dragons took over the pathways of Merlinwood. The scarezone, called Immortal Island, featured the Ice Queen, Fire King, as well as their armies of ice and fire demons.

Changes on the Horizon

During the early era of Islands of Adventure, Dueling Dragons soared as a flagship thrill ride. The coasters were a hit with guests and had occasional light pop culture cameos—such as being in the smash hit, blockbuster, modern-day classic, everyone’s favorite: Bring It On: In It to Win It.

However, Universal Orlando had an opportunity to transform its parks forever by trading one wizard, Merlin, for another: Harry Potter.