I Asked A VIP Guide What Rides At Universal Orlando People Throw Up On A Lot, And Yeah, I'm Not Surprised

I was able to try out a VIP Tour courtesy of Universal Orlando recently ahead of the opening of Epic Universe, and during this tour, I unfortunately witnessed someone not making it to a bathroom after a particularly squeamish ride. We all know vomiting happens at theme parks sometimes, otherwise the noughties game Rollercoaster Tycoon would never have made vomit a frequent and unfortunate obstacle, but how often do people actually throw up on rides?

As it turns out, quite often. There’s even a code term the staff uses when talking about bodily fluids making it all over the sidewalk. Plus, the ride that most often sees people throwing up is exactly the one I would have guessed. Let’s explore the wild and not-so-wonderful world of puking in the Florida heat --and I'm not talking about for funzies at Halloween Horror Nights.

What’s A Code 5?

There were two big things I learned after witnessing an 11-year-old boy bravely take on a rollercoaster only to spew up his dinner up afterward. The first is that Universal has a code word they call in whenever someone throws up: Code 5. This can seemingly also be called in for other sorts of bodily fluid accidents, but doubtless most often happens for vomit.

The second thing I learned was that Universal is super reactive. I witnessed a kid puke everywhere for 5 minutes and within another five minute window he’d been cleaned up, landed a new shirt and the ride exit sidewalk he’d puked all over looked pristine. I kind of wish I had asked if there is an expectation for cleanup time or if someone had just been nearby to make all this happen so quickly, but I can confirm this was one of the most efficient cleanup enterprises I’ve ever seen.

Thumbs up to the Universal staff for how they handled this. In fact, I once attended a Cubs game during which a woman projectile vomited everywhere all over two rows of people and it took multiple innings for cleanup to happen. It was gross, and I was so pleased this was the opposite experience.

If word gets around about the Code 5 thing, I wouldn’t be totally shocked if they were to change the code at some point, but I think the intricacies of how theme parks maintain the aura of order amidst chaos by using key words that won’t cause panic or disgust is notable, and noble. Thanks for trying to keep the upchuck talk at the minimum, Universal.

16 People Had Thrown Up On Harry Potter And The Forbidden Journey On That Monday Alone

One question I did have for my VIP guide was about which rides have people throwing up most often. My guide told me there are a handful of rides that people periodically throw up after, but she said there was one that is known for being vomit-prone: Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey.

The Hogwarts-set ride is one of several Harry Potter-themed rides at Universal, and this one has a four-seat ride vehicle that uses robotic arms to propel people in multiple directions on the ride. The technology comes from Kuka Robocoaster, and is also utilized in the Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment ride at Epic Universe. Monsters Unchained does not make me nauseous. Forbidden Journey 100% does.

In and of itself, the ride vehicle is not the problem, but Harry Potter and the Forbidden journey also utilizes far more screens than Monsters: Unchained and the motion I think combined with the dark lighting and major use of screens really leads me to feel funny. I have never once thrown up after a ride, but I can confirm this one does not make me feel so hot.

So, it was not really a surprise when my VIP tour guide divulged that 16 people had thrown up that Monday, the day before my tour commenced.

Now, on the one hand, there are thousands upon thousands of people in the parks every single day, and sixteen people in the scheme of things is really not that many. On the other hand, 16 people had thrown up on one ride on a Monday that fell before summer tourists came in droves, so there were also likely way fewer people in the parks than there might have been. Who knows how many people throw up on the ride on peak days?

I still think Harry Potter and The Forbidden Journey is a good ride at Universal, though getting stuck on it has led to lawsuits before. However, now that I’ve been to Epic Universe, Monsters Unchained has a pretty similar vibe, but is much smoother, uses impressive practical effects, and is far less reliant on screens. So, if you want to give that ride a whirl, I’d highly recommend it. The animatronic technology alone is worth it, but as an added bonus, it may not make your stomach churn quite so much.