In a new statement from Universal, the designated smoking locations inside most of the Universal Orlando Resort parks will be removed, only leaving locations outside the park exits.
Universal Removing Designated Smoking Areas
After previously running the story as a rumor, a new statement sent out to Universal Team Members has confirmed that the designated smoking areas inside most of the Universal Orlando parks will be removed, leaving only the areas outside the park exits.
The updated locations include:
- Universal Studios Florida: Outside the park exit, to the left near the Studio Archway
- Universal Islands of Adventure: Outside the park exit, opposite the Islands of Adventure lighthouse
- Universal Epic Universe: Near the park exit by the restrooms
- Universal Volcano Bay: At the Wave Village (East)
- Universal CityWalk: To the left of Red Coconut Club
Based on this list, the cut locations that will no longer be designated smoking areas include Gramercy Park in Universal Studios Florida, the lagoon in the Port of Entry at Islands of Adventure, and the side of Stardust Racers in Epic Universe.
All of these locations already existed outside the parks, but they will now become the sole smoking spots. As one example, Epic Universe has been operating at previews with two designated smoking locations. One is near the side of Stardust Racers, while the second location is near the bathrooms outside the security perimeter. This second location will now be the only designated smoking area in Epic Universe, and the interior location will simply be removed.
As of this new announcement, Universal Volcano Bay will be the only park to keep its existing designated smoking area in the same location. However, the statement did include a paragraph that once Volcano Bay stops using TapuTapu wearable devices and virtual lines, the smoking policy will be aligned with the other parks. In other words, the designated smoking area at Volcano Bay will also be moved to outside the park exit, likely in October 2025.
The other major change hidden in this announcement is that the number of designated smoking areas in CityWalk will be reduced as well. The email only lists the area to the left of Red Coconut Club, but does not mention the current smoking area by the lower lagoon landing in front of Hard Rock Cafe Orlando. It is likely this spot is being cut too.
The announcement says the smoking-free policy will be enacted at all of the locations apart from Volcano Bay starting on Thursday, May 15, 2025. As of the time of writing, the Universal Orlando Resort website has not been updated with this new policy yet. The policy page does note that e-cigarettes and vaporizers are treated the same as tobacco and only permitted in these areas.
This policy change will align Universal Orlando Resort with the policies previously enacted by Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort, which both went smoking-free inside the theme parks in 2019. Universal previously reduced the number of designated smoking areas inside each park down to only one location per park in 2022.
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