Epic Universe officially opened its portals Thursday, and early visitors said the experience lived up to its name.

Many of us have treasured childhood memories of our first trip to a theme park. Our parents also probably remember battling the extreme heat and surprise rainstorms. So with the opening of a brand-new theme park in Florida,

Theme park takes advantage of leaps in high-tech advances and presents 21st century interactive experiences to guests.

Epic Universe, Universal Orlando Resort’s much-anticipated theme park, officially opens Thursday. It’s the first major, traditional theme park to open in Florida since 1999, when Universal Islands of Adventure debuted,