Islands of Adventure consists of eight themed "
islands", the majority of which are based on
licensed
intellectual properties, with only two lands based on original
Universal Pictures works. They are, in clockwise order from entry: Port of Entry, Marvel Super Hero Island, Toon Lagoon, Skull Island, Jurassic Park,
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, The Lost Continent, and Seuss Landing.
Port of Entry Port of Entry serves as the park's main entrance and includes various shops and services, including a Guest Services location named The Open Arms Hotel. The park's centerpiece, Pharos Lighthouse, is also located within the Port of Entry. Each night, this functioning
lighthouse sends out a bright beam to lead visitors to and from the park's gates. It has dining options including Croissant Moon Bakery, Backwater Bar, The Grinch & Friends Character Breakfast, Confisco Grille, Starbucks, and Cinnabon. It has shopping options such as Port Provisions, Island Market and Export Candy Shoppe, DeFoto's Expedition Photography, Port of Entry Christmas Shoppe, Ocean Trader Market, and Islands of Adventure Trading Company.
Marvel Super Hero Island Marvel Super Hero Island is based on the
superhero characters featured in
Marvel Comics. The area features
comic-book styled architecture; many of the building interiors are created in comic book perspective, with exaggerated lines and angles. Many exteriors are painted in a special paint which appears to change color based on the angle from which it is viewed – sometimes purple, sometimes orange. The buildings are all labelled generically: "Store", "Shop", "Food", and "Comics", etc. The area is also home to a variety of dining outlets and merchandise shops. Food and beverage items can be purchased from
Cafe 4 and
Captain America Diner. Merchandise items can be bought from a variety of themed stores, including
Spider-Man Shop (
The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man),
Marvel Alterniverse Store,
Comic Book Shop, and
Oakley. There is also "Meet Spider-Man and the Marvel Super Heroes", a meet-and-greet attraction, where guests can meet superheroes including
Wolverine,
Storm,
Cyclops,
Rogue,
Spider-Man, and
Captain America. In late 2009,
The Walt Disney Company (Universal's biggest competitor in the theme park market) announced that it had sought to acquire Marvel Entertainment. Universal announced that Marvel's new ownership would not affect Marvel Super Hero Island as a contract for exclusive rights to the characters had been signed in 1994, and Disney CEO
Bob Iger stated that Disney would continue to honor any contracts that Marvel currently has with Disney competitors. In March 2012, Bob Iger revealed that Disney had begun preliminary concepts of incorporating Marvel's properties into their parks, although no major negotiations with Universal were announced.
Hong Kong Disneyland has since announced an expansion to its park featuring characters from the
Marvel Universe.
Disney California Adventure Park at the
Disneyland Resort in California has also since incorporated meet-and-greet Marvel characters, as well as an
Avengers Super Hero Half
Marathon Weekend at the resort. Both Hong Kong Disneyland and Disney California Adventure have opened Marvel attractions since the acquisition, with
Iron Man Experience at the former and
Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: Breakout! at the latter. Both attractions officially opened in 2017. Only Walt Disney World Resort is barred from having Marvel characters in its parks, due to contractual obligations to Universal and Universal's exclusive rights to use any Marvel characters related to
Spider-Man,
The Avengers,
The Fantastic Four, and
The X-Men in the region east of the
Mississippi River. However, this only includes Spider-Man, The Avengers, The Fantastic Four, The X-Men, the villains associated with said characters, other characters in the "families" of said characters, and the Marvel name. This clause has allowed Walt Disney World to have meet and greets, merchandise, attractions, and more with other Marvel characters not associated with the characters at Islands of Adventure, such as
Star-Lord and
Gamora from
Guardians of the Galaxy as well as create
Avengers Campus in
Disney California Adventure in
California and
Walt Disney Studios Park in
Disneyland Paris. However, as a result of the contract, Disney is not allowed to use the "Marvel" name at any of their theme parks anywhere in the United States, regardless of what side of the Mississippi River the park is in. In April 2021, Disney announced that the area would open on June 4, 2021.
Toon Lagoon Toon Lagoon is based on the cartoon and comic strip characters from
King Features Syndicate and
Jay Ward, with the area's main focus being water-based rides (hence the name). The area is also home to a variety of dining outlets and merchandise shops. Food and beverage items can be purchased from
Blondie's,
Cathy's Ice Cream, Comic Strip Cafe, and
Wimpy's. Merchandise items can be bought from a variety of themed stores including the
Gasoline Alley, Toon Extra and Wossamotta U.
Skull Island Skull Island is the newest island at the park, having been opened in the summer of 2016. The area's sole attraction,
Skull Island: Reign of Kong, opened on July 13, 2016. The attraction and island mark the return of the
King Kong character to the Universal Orlando Resort, after the
Kongfrontation attraction closed at
Universal Studios Florida in 2002 to make way for the
Revenge of the Mummy: The Ride.
Jurassic Park Jurassic Park is themed to the
film series of the same name. Set after the events of
the first film, the area undertakes the guise of
John Hammond's
dinosaur theme park featured in the series. As such, the area is filled with the attractions and exhibits one would find in the "real" Jurassic Park, including thrill rides and discovery-based exhibits.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade is themed around the
Harry Potter universe, authored by
J. K. Rowling. It officially opened to the public on June 18, 2010. On May 31, 2007, Universal announced that it had secured the licensing rights from
Warner Bros. and Rowling to incorporate the
Harry Potter franchise to Islands of Adventure. The island features attractions, shops, and restaurants set inside such locations as the
Forbidden Forest,
Hogsmeade Village, and the iconic
Hogwarts Castle. Ground breaking began in 2007, with the official opening scheduled for June 18, 2010, as announced on March 25, 2010. As part of the promotion for the then-upcoming area, a behind-the-scenes documentary on production of the park section is included on the
Blu-ray and DVD release of
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. There are five main attractions in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter: There is also a singing
Frog Choir and a
Triwizard Spirit Rally held in the town center. These events feature
Hogwarts,
Beauxbatons, and
Durmstrang students. An expansion of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, based on the
Diagon Alley and
London settings from the series, opened on July 8, 2014, at the adjacent Universal Studios Florida park in the former site of the park's
Jaws attraction. The
Hogwarts Express attraction connects the two areas of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in each park.
The Lost Continent The Lost Continent is themed to ancient
myths and
legends, and is divided into two sub-sections; an ancient Arabian marketplace called ''
Sindbad's Bazaar
, and a Grecian-Atlantis-esque Lost City
. Formerly, the Lost Continent included a medieval section Merlinwood
, but the majority of that area was re-themed for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter
. This land is also home to Mythos'', which is one of two full-service restaurants in the park and was voted winner of best theme park restaurant by Theme Park Insider for six successive years between 2003 and 2008.
Seuss Landing Seuss Landing is based on the works of author
Dr. Seuss. The island features several Seuss-themed attractions, especially geared towards small children, as well as a
Green Eggs and Ham Cafe and
Circus McGurkus restaurant. As in the books, one of the unique characteristics of this area is that there are almost no straight lines anywhere. Palm trees bent by the winds of
Hurricane Andrew were even planted in the area to continue this theme. The area is also home to a variety of dining outlets and merchandise shops. Food and beverage items can be purchased from
Circus McGurkus Cafe Stoo-pendous (The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride!),
Green Eggs and Ham Cafe (opened seasonally),
Hop on Pop Ice Cream Shop, and
Moose Juice, Goose Juice. Merchandise items can be bought from a variety of themed stores including
Cats, Hats & Things (The Cat in the Hat),
Snookers & Snookers Sweet Candy Cookers (The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride!),
All the Books You Can Read, and
Mulberry Street Stores Trading Co. A live action show entitled "
Grinchmas Wholiday Spectacular", which retells the story of
How the Grinch Stole Christmas is available seasonally. == Licensed properties ==