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Confident in your Mario Kart skills? You’ll soon be able to test them out in real life. A fourth park at Universal Orlando is being created based on iconic characters from Nintendo, the resort’s owners announced last Thursday.
After months of rumors that Universal Studios Japan’s soon-to-open Super Nintendo World will make its way to the US, executives of Comcast, which owns NBCUniversal, made the announcement during its most recent earnings call.
Get away for a weekend and spend my time inside a life-size, living video game, punching Question Blocks for coins and competing for a high score? Yes, please!
Super Nintendo World: Coming to Florida in 2023
Super Nintendo World, slated for a 2023 opening, will be part of a larger expansion at Universal Orlando that will nearly double the size of the resort, according to a photo released by Universal Orlando. Comcast CEO Brian Roberts announced plans for Universal’s new south campus, Epic Universe, back in August of 2019 but remained tight-lipped on the details of what they had in mind for the park.
Source: Universal Studios
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Super Nintendo World is set to open at Universal Studios Japan, Osaka, this summer, which gives us an idea of what’s likely to come when the Mushroom Kingdom characters and other notable Nintendo characters arrive in the US.
“Super Nintendo World will be an expansive, highly themed and immersive land featuring Nintendo’s legendary worlds, characters and adventures,” Comcast said in a recent press release. “Guests will feel as if they are playing inside their favorite Nintendo video games – in real life.”
In addition to rides, the park will also feature shops, restaurants, and interactive gameplay.
Using a combination of state-of-the-art technology in the form of a wearable wristband called a “Power Up Band” and a specially designed app, guests will have interactive experiences, “making use of their arms, hands and entire bodies as they explore the new area – making them feel like they are truly part of the video game world.”
The band will also allow guests to collect digital coins just like Mario does in the games, competing with other guests throughout the park.
One of the rides that will be a part of Super Nintendo World will be an all-new Mario Kart attraction, according to a 2017 press release back by Universal Studios Japan. The Mario Kart ride “will bring the hugely popular Nintendo game to life in a way that takes theme park entertainment to an entirely new level and goes beyond what Nintendo fans and theme park fans have ever seen.”
The new attractions are expected to draw in millions of additional visitors, just as the Harry Potter attractions did in some Universal parks, executives said. Super Nintendo World will also make its way to Universal Studios Hollywood in California; however, no specific opening date was given.
Collect points and miles now to collect digital coins later
There’s no doubt that collecting digital coins will keep you immersed in Super Nintendo World while you’re there, but you can start collecting points and miles now with one of the best travel credit cards to help cover the cost of visiting the theme park when the time comes.
Aside from using points and miles to pay for airfare and your hotel stay, using the right credit card for the purchase of your theme park tickets will allow you to earn bonus points and miles or cash back that you can put toward your next family vacation. The tricky part comes with how this purchase will be coded by your credit card issuer and which bonus category it would fall under — if any.
A travel rewards card like the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is always a safe bet because you can earn 2 miles per dollar on every purchase, every day, 5 miles per dollar on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and 5 miles per dollar on Capital One Entertainment purchases through 12/31/25. As a new cardmember, you can also earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, which you can then use to fund your next Nintendo-themed vacation.
Bottom line
Universal Studios Orlando’s Super Nintendo World is still a few years away, but if you’re too eager to wait, Super Nintendo World debuts in Osaka, Japan this summer ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
As always, using travel rewards credit cards is the best way to travel more for less. If you’re going to wait until 2023 to step into Super Nintendo World, you’ve got three years to amass enough points to put towards free travel.
Benefits
Card Details
- $0 annual fee
- Simple, flat-rate rewards
- Flexible redemption options
- Up to 75% preferred Rewards bonus potential
- Apply Now
- Earn unlimited 1.5 points per $1 spent on all purchases, with no annual fee and no foreign transaction fees and your points don't expire as long as your account remains open.
- 25,000 online bonus points after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening - that can be a $250 statement credit toward travel purchases.
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- 0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases, and for any balance transfers made in the first 60 days. After the Intro APR offer ends, a Variable APR that’s currently 18.49% - 28.49% will apply. A 3% Intro balance transfer fee will apply for the first 60 days your account is open. After the Intro balance transfer fee offer ends, the fee for future balance transfers is 4%.
- If you're a Bank of America Preferred Rewards® member, you can earn 25%-75% more points on every purchase. That means instead of earning an unlimited 1.5 points for every $1, you could earn 1.87-2.62 points for every $1 you spend on purchases.
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- This online only offer may not be available if you leave this page or if you visit a Bank of America financial center. You can take advantage of this offer when you apply now.
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Intro Offer
Earn 25,000 online bonus points after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening - that can be a $250 statement credit toward travel purchases
Annual Fee
$0
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