Universal Is Building a Massive Theme Park in the UK and It Opens in 2031

Right, so this is genuinely big news. Universal United Kingdom Resort is actually happening. Construction has started in Bedfordshire and, if everything goes to plan, it opens in 2031. That feels forever away, but also not that far off when you think about how huge this project is.

The park is being built on 476 acres of land in Kempston Hardwick in Bedfordshire. To give you an idea of scale, Alton Towers is about 550 acres total, so Universal UK is starting slightly smaller but has planning permission to expand up to 700 acres. It is expected to have themed lands, rides, restaurants and a 500-room hotel.

The ride heights are where it gets properly exciting. Universal's planning permission allows rides up to 115 metres tall. Hyperia at Thorpe Park is 72 metres and the tallest rollercoaster in Europe is 112 metres, so Universal could build something taller than anything currently in Europe. Let that sink in.

When it opens, the resort is expected to attract around 8.5 million visitors a year, eventually growing to 12 million. For comparison, Alton Towers gets about 2.5 million visitors a year and the Natural History Museum gets around 7 million. Universal UK would be enormous.

Getting there should be fairly straightforward too. A shuttle bus from Milton Keynes Central is expected to run every seven minutes, and once East West Rail opens in the early 2030s there should be four trains an hour to a station next to the resort. Around 28,000 jobs are expected in total, including 20,000 during construction and 8,000 once it opens.

No confirmed ride list yet. No confirmed lands. But it is Universal, so you can probably start guessing.