Hey Thrill Seekers,
The Golden Ticket Awards have once again crowned the best of the best in the theme park and attractions industry.
Presented by Amusement Today, the awards are voted on by people with extensive knowledge of the attractions industry, with more than 500 ballots distributed internationally.
And while parks from around the world picked up awards in 2026, we’re concentrating on the winners that matter most to us….
The Florida winners.
And there were some particularly interesting results for Orlando.
Universal Epic Universe picked up another major accolade for one of its headline attractions, while LEGOLAND Florida was recognised alongside its California sister park.
And there was also a winner hiding in plain sight at Disney Springs.
So, let’s take a look at the Florida theme park and attraction winners from the 2026 Golden Ticket Awards.
🏆 Universal Epic Universe Wins Best Dark Ride
Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment
Perhaps the biggest Florida win of the night came from Universal Epic Universe.
Its Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment was named:
Best Dark Ride.
And if you’ve experienced the attraction, it’s not particularly difficult to understand why.
Located inside Dark Universe, Monsters Unchained takes guests into the world of Universal’s classic monsters, with Frankenstein’s Monster at the centre of the story.
But this isn’t your traditional slow-moving dark ride.
The attraction combines a huge physical ride system with impressive sets, animatronics, special effects and some seriously impressive moments.
And the Golden Ticket judges clearly agreed.
Universal Epic Universe now has one of the world’s most highly regarded dark rides.
The award is particularly notable because Epic Universe only opened in 2025, meaning Monsters Unchained has wasted very little time establishing itself as one of the standout attractions in Orlando.
The Golden Ticket Awards specifically highlighted Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment as the 2026 winner for Best Dark Ride.
And there’s an interesting little bit of history here.
The attraction was also the 2025 Best Dark Ride winner, meaning it has now taken the award in consecutive years.
Two years.
Two Golden Tickets.
That’s quite an opening statement for Epic Universe.
🎮 Level99 Wins Standout Family Entertainment Center
Not a theme park — but definitely worth mentioning
There’s another Florida winner that could easily be missed if you’re only looking at the major theme parks.
Level99, located at Disney Springs, was named:
Standout Family Entertainment Center of 2026.
And it’s a fascinating choice.
Level99 isn’t a traditional theme park attraction.
Instead, it’s an interactive entertainment experience built around physical and mental challenges, allowing groups to compete against each other across a series of different games.
The Golden Ticket Awards described it as a new concept that has become popular at Disney Springs, with its initial popularity even leading to extended operating hours.
For Orlando, that’s particularly interesting.
The destination increasingly isn’t just about theme parks.
Guests are looking for things to do outside the parks, particularly during longer holidays.
And Level99 is a great example of the type of interactive entertainment that can fill that gap.
What About Disney, SeaWorld and Busch Gardens?
Interestingly, the 2026 Golden Ticket Awards didn’t produce a major overall category win for Walt Disney World, SeaWorld Orlando or Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.
That doesn’t mean they didn’t feature in the wider results or finalist lists.
The awards are highly competitive, and Florida’s parks are going up against attractions from around the world.
In fact, Florida has historically performed extremely well.
SeaWorld Orlando, for example, has an extraordinary history with the awards.
The Golden Ticket Awards’ own Hall of Fame material notes that when the Best Marine Life Park category was introduced, SeaWorld Orlando won it and continued winning every year that the category existed.
Universal and Disney have also picked up major awards in previous years.
In 2021, Universal Orlando was recognised as Park of the Year, while Jurassic World VelociCoaster won Best New Roller Coaster and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance won multiple categories.
And 2022 was another particularly strong year for Florida, with Iron Gwazi winning Best New Roller Coaster and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind winning Best New Attraction Installation.
So the absence of a Disney or SeaWorld headline winner in 2026 shouldn’t be taken as a sign that Florida’s traditional theme park giants are suddenly struggling.
The Florida Winners at a Glance
Without turning this into another awards table, the Florida winners we’re highlighting are:
🧟 Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment
Universal Epic Universe
Winner – Best Dark Ride
🚀 GalactiCoaster
LEGOLAND Florida Resort & LEGOLAND California
Winner – Best New Theme of 2026
🎮 Level99
Disney Springs, Orlando
Winner – Standout Family Entertainment Center of 2026
These are the Florida victories that really caught our attention from the 2026 awards.
So Who Could Win in 2027?
Now for the fun bit.
Obviously, nobody knows who will win the 2027 Golden Ticket Awards yet.
But Orlando is about to enter another fascinating period of development, so we’ve decided to make a few predictions.
And we’re going to put our necks on the line.
🔮 Our 2027 Prediction: Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift
Universal Studios Florida
This one feels like the obvious candidate.
Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift is scheduled to open at Universal Studios Florida in 2027, replacing the former Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit site.
Universal says the new outdoor coaster will feature a 170-foot vertical spike and a 360-degree drifting experience.
That’s an impressive specification sheet.
And the Golden Ticket Awards have a long history of recognising major new roller coasters.
So if Hollywood Drift opens strongly and lives up to Universal’s promises…
We wouldn’t be surprised to see it on the 2027 shortlist.
Could it win Best New Roller Coaster?
We’re saying yes.
🔮 Our 2027 Dark Horse: SEAQuest
SeaWorld Orlando
Another attraction we’re watching closely is SEAQuest: Legends of the Deep at SeaWorld Orlando.
It’s being billed as a first-of-its-kind suspended dark ride, taking guests on an underwater journey through different marine environments.
And this is where things get interesting.
SeaWorld has an enormous amount of experience creating marine-themed attractions.
But combining that expertise with a suspended dark ride could produce something genuinely different.
Could SEAQuest become the next Florida Golden Ticket winner?
It’s certainly one to watch.
🔮 The Big One: Tropical Americas
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Disney also has a huge opportunity coming in 2027 with Tropical Americas at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
The new land will feature an Encanto-inspired attraction, an Indiana Jones adventure replacing DINOSAUR and the new El Carrusel de los Animalitos family attraction.
And this could be particularly interesting for the Golden Ticket Awards because Disney isn’t simply adding one new ride.
It’s creating an entirely new themed area.
If the land delivers the level of immersion Disney is promising, it could potentially contend for recognition in several areas.
Our prediction?
The Encanto attraction is the one we’d keep an eye on.
It will be the first ride-through attraction based on Encanto and could prove particularly popular with families.
🔮 And Don’t Forget Epic Universe
Here’s the slightly awkward prediction.
Universal Epic Universe has already won Best Dark Ride twice.
Could it do it again?
Possibly.
But we’d actually be more interested in seeing whether another Epic Universe attraction starts getting Golden Ticket attention.
Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry and Stardust Racers are both extremely ambitious attractions, while the park as a whole has been designed around immersive environments rather than simply individual rides.
The 2026 awards have already demonstrated that the industry is taking Epic Universe very seriously.
Don’t expect it to disappear from the Golden Ticket conversation any time soon.
🃏Our Wildcard Prediction for 2027
Disney’s Monstropolis
Disney is also developing Monstropolis at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
The new land will include the first suspended coaster at a Disney park, based on Monsters, Inc.. Disney has confirmed that parts of Monstropolis are scheduled to open in 2027, with the coaster project continuing as part of the development.
And that suspended coaster could be a very interesting Golden Ticket contender when it eventually opens.
If Disney gets the ride system and storytelling right…
It could be something special.
Although depending on its actual opening date, it may be more relevant to the 2028 Golden Ticket Awards than 2027.
Our Early 2027 Florida Predictions
If we had to put a few names on a piece of paper right now, we’d go with:
🏆 Best New Roller Coaster
Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift
🏆 Best New Dark Ride
SEAQuest: Legends of the Deep
🏆 Best New Family Attraction
Encanto attraction – Tropical Americas
🏆 Best New Theme
Tropical Americas – Disney’s Animal Kingdom
🃏 Wildcard
Universal Epic Universe
But there’s a lot that can happen between now and next year’s awards.
And that’s exactly why these awards are fun.
What Does 2026 Tell Us About Florida’s Theme Parks?
Perhaps the most interesting thing about this year’s results isn’t actually which parks won.
It’s what the winners represent.
Universal’s Monsters Unchained demonstrates the continuing importance of highly immersive dark rides.
GalactiCoaster shows that family attractions are becoming increasingly sophisticated.
And Level99 demonstrates the growing appetite for interactive entertainment outside traditional rides.
Meanwhile, Florida’s major operators are already preparing another wave of new experiences.
Universal has Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift.
Disney has Tropical Americas.
SeaWorld has SEAQuest.
And Epic Universe is still establishing itself as one of Orlando’s newest major players.
So while Florida may not have dominated the 2026 Golden Ticket Awards…
It certainly isn’t standing still.
🗣️Our Final Verdict
The Golden Ticket Awards are always worth watching if you’re interested in theme parks.
And for Orlando fans, the 2026 results give us plenty to talk about.
Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment once again proved itself as one of the world’s leading dark rides.
GalactiCoaster gave LEGOLAND Florida another reason to celebrate.
And Level99 showed that Orlando’s attraction scene is becoming much broader than traditional theme parks.
But perhaps the most exciting part is looking ahead.
Because 2027 could be a very different story.
With Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift, SEAQuest, Tropical Americas and more on the horizon…
Florida could be collecting a lot more Golden Tickets next year.
And if we had to put money on one?
We’re backing Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift.
Now let’s see if we’re right.
Smiles incuded…
Jamie
