‘A Day in the Park with Barney ’ Permanently Closed

Universal have confirmed, via Twitter, that ‘A Day in the Park with Barney’ is now permanently closed at Universal Studios Florida. This closure doesn’t come as much of a surprise, with rumours having circulated for many years about the end of this attraction. We’re sure for most, this doesn’t feel like much of a loss. In all honesty, the show mostly only plays a part in our current Universal trips when it provides a weirdly eerie atmosphere when functioning as a Halloween Horror Nights house queue. However, although admittedly the show hasn’t been a staple part of our more recent Universal trips, it’s one of our favourite memories from when we visited as children. Therefore, we certainly feel rather nostalgic about this show and will be sad to see it go.

‘A Day in the Park with Barney’ opened in 1995, replacing the Bates Motel set. It is currently located in Woody Woodpecker’s Kid Zone. Other attractions in this area include the E.T. Adventure, Woody Woodpecker’s Nuthouse Coaster, Curious George Goes to Town and Fievel’s Playland. The show is based on the popular television show ‘Barney & Friends’. The attraction debuted at the height of the programme’s popularity. ‘Barney & Friends’ remained a popular television show for many years. However since production ended in 2010, the show is no longer as popular. Thus, it’s closure has felt like an inevitability for quite a while.

The attraction began with a pre-show in front of a colourful house facade. It featured the forgetful Mr Peekaboo and his parrot, Bartholomew. Mr Peekaboo would sing and dance, before inviting guests to use their imagination to visit Barney’s park. Once guests had closed their eyes and used their imagination, the rain waterfall blocking the entrance door would stop and the audience were then invited inside.

Inside, the theatre was designed to look like a park. On an elevated stage in the centre, the iconic characters Barney, Baby Bop and B.J. would perform a selection of songs for the audience. These songs included ‘If all the Raindrops’, ‘If you’re Happy and You Know It’, ‘Mr Knickerbocker’, ‘Down on Grandpa’s Farm’ and ‘I Love You’. The show utilised effects to create a thunderstorm, make it snow and rain. Confetti and leaves would also fall from the ceiling at certain times. Once the show was finished, guests would exit into Barney’s Backyard. This area featured an indoor activity centre and a character meet and greet. 

The show has remained at Universal since 1995, making it one of the park’s longest running attractions. After the closure of the park in 2020 due to the pandemic, the show reopened with the rest of the park on 5th June. However, on 9th August, the show closed along with a few other less popular attractions due to the park’s low attendance. The meet and greet remained outside until just a few weeks ago when that too disappeared. On February 3rd 2021, a tweet from Universal’s official account confirmed that the show was in fact closed for good. The official Barney Twitter account has also since confirmed the closure. Thus, Barney joins the resort’s Blue Man Group, who also announced the end of their show at Universal Orlando.

There is currently no information about what will replace this attraction. It is likely that previous rumours about Super Nintendo World will resurface. However, the rest of this area seem set to stay (for now). Furthermore, Super Nintendo World is still slated for Universal’s new park, Epic Universe, despite this being indefinitely delayed due to the pandemic. 

No matter what happens, it’s clear to see the effects of the pandemic on the theme park industry. Whilst this loss may not be too bad for theme park fans, it is yet another collection of jobs that have been lost due to the pandemic. We wish the best for the cast and crew of ‘A Day in the Park with Barney’ and thank everyone for the wonderful memories we’ve had throughout the show’s many years.

Thanks for reading!

Let us know if you’ll miss the show and if so, what’s your favourite memory you have of the show? Personally, I’d have to say either meeting Barney (obviously), or rushing to collect the leaves off the ground at the end of the show. 

Please click here to check out our article on Universal’s 5 Best Themed Lands.