Universal Studios Hollywood
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The Southern California CityPass® offers one-stop access to 5 famous attractions. In addition to Universal Studios HollywoodSM, you also receive access to Disneyland Resort Theme parks, SeaWorld San Diego, and the San Diego Zoo® or San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park®, all in one Pass.
Universal Studios VIP Experience Tour
For the ultimate insider’s perspective on the world’s largest movie and television studio as well as genuine hospitality and personal special treatment,
treat yourself and your family to the “VIP Experience” tour. You will have your own private tour escort (with encyclopedic knowledge) for the entire day (only fifteen people per group) and enjoy front-of-the line admission and the best views and seating at all attractions and rides.
Plus your tour escort will take you deep into the “Back Lot,” where you’ll have special access to soundstages—many in use by your favorite stars.
Best of all, instead of the huge tram you’ll have a private trolley bus that can stop and let you out to take pictures (how about the steps of the Psycho house or Back to the Future’s courthouse). Feel like a movie star yourself. It’s expensive but worth the truly VIP experience! For more information call (800) UNIVERSAL.
30 Reviews for Universal Studios Hollywood
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'10, '11
0 families found this helpful
"Perfect for teens and preteens"
Every year, my niece and nephew come out from Texas to escape the heat and enjoy some California fun. It gives us the chance to be tourists in our own neck of the woods and see travel from a teenage perspective.
This summer we headed to Universal Studios for a day of Hollywood fun. It had been a couple decades since I had last visited Universal. Just to put it in perspective, Jaws was the newest attraction... Yeah.... I'm old.
I had been told to take the studio tour first so we walked down to the trams and grabbed a complimentary pair of 3D glasses. Yes, things had definitely changed since the early 80s. The tram tour went beyond all my expectations. It was so fun to visit real sets and learn about all the movies which had been shot in that very location. While my husband and I appreciated learning about classic films and television, my niece and nephew were happy to know they were in the very spot Lady Gaga shot a video. Driving down Wisteria Lane (home of Desperate Housewives) was especially cool even though I haven't seen an episode in at least 5 years.
The special effects that we experienced on the tour were the ultimate highlight. The King Kong experience of the studio tour was incredible- true Hollywood magic. It was intense and realistic and probably not suitable for children under age 7 or 8 who scare easily.
Since Universal Studios is located on the backlot of an actual studio, the ride have to be inside to keep noise (aka: screams) down. Many of the rides are 3D or 4D simulators, not exactly ideal for those of us that are prone to motion sickness. I opted to go on the Simpson's Ride because I figured I wouldn't be able to handle very much motion and it sounded like the most fun. The ride itself was great and everyone in our party loved it. I did close my eyes a few times just to avoid too much nausea. I didn't ride The Mummy (my stomach was still sour) but my niece and nephew loved it and rode it more than once. One shouldn't ride that shouldn't be missed is Jurassic Park,The Ride. The ride does a great job of bringing the movie to life. My niece and nephew didn't know what Jurassic Park (which made me feel old) but the ride made them want to watch the movies. Be prepared to get soaked on this ride, especially in the summer when they turn the water up!
There are several shows at Universal and out of the shows we saw, we thought Water World was the best.The stunts are incredible and the actors do a great job at keep the audience involved. If you don't want to get drenched, be sure not to sit in the benches in the first several rows. We saw people get entire buckets of water thrown at them. I passed on Terminator 2:3D but the rest of our group saw it and deemed it to be just "okay". The Shrek 4D show was cute and tame as far as 3D goes.
One experience that both myself and 12 year old niece found to be too scary was the House of Horrors. Truth be told, it scared me so much that we had to duck out early! It was essentially a haunted house on steroids. Not for those of us who don't like horror or heart attacks! My husband and nephew braved the entire haunted house and admitted to jumping out of their skin a few times as well. If you love to be scared, don't miss it!
Since I was visiting Universal Studios on behalf of Trekaroo, I was given media entry which included front of the line passes. These passes are available to the general public for an additional $75 fee per person. It was incredibly nice to skip lines and get preferred seating at shows because allowed us to see and do everything that we wanted at a leisurely pace. Buying these passes would be ideal for families with the budget who might be pressed for time and hoping to pair up time at Universal with another local experience. As much as I really enjoyed the experience, I couldn't help but find it to be a bit elitist. Normally, my family wouldn't have had the budget to splurge on these passes and would have been in line with the majority of the park-goers.
Bottomline: I am glad we left our preschool aged children with grandma because while there were a couple attractions geared towards young kids, most of the park was not suitable for them. I don't plan on bringing my kids to the park until they are at least 7. However, I highly recommend the park for preteens, teens, and adults. The combination of Hollywood history, rides, and shows was nothing less than top notch!
Disclosure: My family received complimentary entry and front of the line passes so that I could complete this review and a subsequent story on the blog featuring the park. Universal did not ask that I express any particular opinion and all of those stated above are entirely my own honest thoughts.
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0 families found this helpful
"Very exciting stuff"
The only reason I say "Good, but not great" is because small kids may be easily spooked and may not be into the hype of all that goes on. Every ride and show is loud and more elementary and older age. And, if your kids don't like rides, well this is obviously not the place for you anyway. The Jurassic Park ride is a must. If you and your kids are up for it then I say go!
1 family found this helpful
"universal studios"
This place was a tough decision. I wasn't sure if my kids would get enough out of it or if they would be afraid but we went for it anyway! My son was only 4 and my daughter much younger but they enjoyed it! My daughter was way too young but my son and husband got such a kick out of it! My son was a little dare devil and i was so happy we went through with it!! The lines were a little long and the price a bit high but I would definitely take my kids back when they are older. They had a great "kid zone" where I felt comfortable letting my son play with other children his age, my husband was very close by :) This is definitely an attraction that has older children, at least age 7. It also is not so much of a theme park as an amusement park with more roller coasters and big attractions.
0 families found this helpful
"Halloween"
Love Universal studios its sooooo much different from the average amusement park, although theres not as many rides as in other place but the rides they do have are all based upon a movie filmed in California. I usually go during Halloween and it's so much fun, and way less crowded compared to Knotts scary farm.
0 families found this helpful
"Awesome!"
While there aren't as many rides as the Universal studios in Florida, this Universal Studios has the behind the scenes tour of the studio lot. Completely Amazing! See the sets to some of your favorite movies, plus meet King Kong, Jaws, and an enactment of the film Earthquake. Plus, you never know when you might catch a glimpse of a celebrity!
0 families found this helpful
"Low Adventure Theme Park"
For being a big sprawling theme park you do more walking or taking the escalator than you do on the attraction. My family was kind of disappointed that there was not much to do at this theme park. There didn't seem to be many characters and most of the rides were for kids middle school age and up.
We did enjoy the shows. Gave you a behind the scene look at how you make Hollywood movies. The behind the scene tram tour was also a fun for all age excursion. These were the two highlights of the trip.
The food was minimal for being such a big park. We settled for the hot dog since that and pizza seemed to be the only option.
Good place to visit once.
0 families found this helpful
"It's a cool place but of course pricey."
This place is awesome. It's super cool to see Wisteria Lane and all the studious where they film all the movies and shows. HOWEVER, as you can expect, this place is pricey. There is a TON of places to eat outside of the park and the Universal CityWalk is an attraction itself. The crepe place is amazing. The yogurt place is very tasty but be aware that you won't be able to fit a stroller through there so you are going to have to wait outside if you have a big stroller.
Season passes are the way to go and last time I heard they did not have military discount. I usually don't sponsor attractions that don't offer military discounts but being a California Resident, I visit this every year.
0 families found this helpful
"A great trip!"
We had a good trip to universal studios, but may be kids dint really enjoy much in there as much as they enjoyed the disneyland park. There were lots of rides were they couldn't go and also less of their favorite characters waiting to meet them in person heheh like my younger one did in disneyland..she would want a pic with every character she saw pooh, mickey etc. Also they had enjoyed more in disneyland because of all disney accesories , mickey shaped icecreams and all. Me and my hubby offcourse did enjoy universal studios but kids dragged us out of this place soon.
0 families found this helpful
"Just ok."
This is a great place to spend the day with adults and teenagers but not so much for young children. We bought the VIP pass so we didn't have to wait in line because we wanted to catch a baseball game in the evening and it worked out perfectly! We were able to see everything and ride all the rides and make it to the baseball game on time!
Make sure to look at the show schedule and plan what shows you want to see because some are only offered a couple of times a day. My favorite show (can't remember the name of it) was the animal show, it was very funny! This show children and adult both would enjoy!
0 families found this helpful
"Just ok."
This is a great place to spend the day with adults and teenagers but not so much for young children. We bought the VIP pass so we didn't have to wait in line because we wanted to catch a baseball game in the evening and it worked out perfectly! We were able to see everything and ride all the rides and make it to the baseball game on time!
Make sure to look at the show schedule and plan what shows you want to see because some are only offered a couple of times a day. My favorite show (can't remember the name of it) was the animal show, it was very funny! This show children and adult both would enjoy!
Most rides were very short and I'm glad I didn't have to wait in line because it wouldn't be worth it. We had a good time but it wasn't anything really special.
0 families found this helpful
"Fun"
Universal Studios is so much fun but I wont take my kids. Its not great for families with little kids, since they dont have many rides for the younger kids. Maybe during December when they have the Christmas events and bring snow out but I would feel it is a waste of money to take them when they cant really ride anything. But families with older children this is a great place to go. Also walk the city walk for great food, a water play area and street performers
0 families found this helpful
"Fun for some kids!"
We took our 4 and 2 year old here and they had an OK time. We saw a few shows and went on a few rides. They don't really "get it" at that age what Hollywood is all about. King Kong was fun but some children got scared of the 4D. In the summer be prepared to wait in long lines unless you pay the extra money for the front of the line pass. It does get very hot there. The good thing is, there's a play area for smaller kids and a water area for them to play in the water. Shrek is really cool if your kids like Shrek.
0 families found this helpful
"not much for younger kids"
The only reason I gave this one 3 stars was because its close and rather inexpensive. It has a few really fun rides, the simpsons and mummy returns..however they are not suitable for young kids at all. I think the simpsons ride is 42". My youngest does like it there because she is a huge Dora fan and you can see and take pictures with Dora there however I feel like they could add some more for the younger guests than just the curious george water land and shrek ride. I feel like the park is sort of a let down overall.
0 families found this helpful
"fun for all ages"
Universal Studios is fun no matter how old you are. There are so many shows to watch, characters to meet up with, and rides to enjoy. Plan on eating at one of the many restaurants inside the park, because the food is great. Universal Studios has a lot to offer no matter what your age.
0 families found this helpful
"Great for 8 & up"
I haven't been back to Universal Studios since before my kids were born (they are 7 & 10). Since they just opened up the new King Kong 3-D attraction, I thought we'd all head out there.
Since I grew up going to Universal Studios, I knew what to expect, but I made sure to start the day out with a serious "talk" for my kiddos. I told them that there wouldn't be as many "rides", and some things may seem scary but the place is all about movie making and illusions. I told them they would have to go in with an open mind and try new things (which is NOT something they are fond of).
We started our morning in the lower lot, which I suggest you do if you don't enjoy waiting in hour long lines, but want to go on the rides. My boys are pretty much scaredy-cats, so I knew for sure the Mummy ride would not be something they would enjoy. But my husband and I went on it a couple times because it was SO fun!! (They have a cool child switch room, which makes it great for families when the kids don't want to ride.) Short roller coaster, but SO fun.
The Jurassic Park ride is too "scary" for my 7 year old so he didn't ride that either, but my husband and my 10 year old had fun on it. Be prepared to GET SOAKED. According to my 10 year old, there is only one "really scary" part where a T-Rex pops out and it looks like you're going to get eaten before you plunge to the bottom on the drop.
The Tram tour is what I remember from when I was a kid and really, not much has changed besides the Kong update and Wisteria Lane. My kids were really nervous as they didn't know what to expect, but they ended up LOVING it! The King Kong part isn't as scary as they make it seem. We entered the building with the boys having their glasses off (I told them it would be less scary that way) but right when we got in there and they heard us ooh-ing and ahh-ing, they quietly put theirs on. They thought it was AWESOME.
Simpsons ride is also a definite must. Very cool virtual ride a-la "Soaring over California". We got on that twice too.
Definitely catch the Water World show. VERY cool and the kids were riveted.
In all, I would say that I'm glad I waited til my kids were a bit older to take them to Universal. Even though we didn't get on many "rides", the shows kept us all entertained and we had a great day.
1 family found this helpful
"Good but..."
I thought that Universal Studios Hollywood was just good at best because I guess I'm spoiled because I always go to the Universal Orlando/Islands of Adventure theme parks. Honestly, I was seriously let down by the lack of rides they had there and the lack of "magic" that Disney had for my kids, or even the other Universal Studios as a matter of fact. I would definitely not recommend this park if it came between the California and Florida versions of the park.
1 family found this helpful
"Love the rides"
I totally love this place for the rides and the kids love it for the characters. If you are a socal resident they offer alot of great deals that include the year once you buy a ticket. This pass usually only gets used once or twice but I really enjoy having the option to come back and spread the park apart in a couple visits. I usually try to avoid eating any major meals here because it can get very expensive (just like any other park) but the city walk area the prices are not much better so be prepared with a good backpack!
0 families found this helpful
"Mr. binoy"
I love to watch Universal studios hollywood. my dreamland is this place. I walked along the streets with my kid and showed them how big is universal studio hollywood. How is the movie studios of hollywood movies shooting done. we should get the pass at the counter to get in.
2 families found this helpful
"Great for the older family, not for younger ones!"
We visited Universal Studios at Christmas time and were spoiled by front of the line passes, that unfortunately, we never were able to use and ended up giving away. There were only 4 fun things for our family to enjoy together, a water park, a regular park, an amazing ball shooting area, and the snow filled Who-Ville area. It was too cold to take full advantage of the water park area, and the snow area was so full, that my youngest son was barely able to reach down to touch the snow for his first time before being hit by a snow ball. We didn't even bother to visit the park (we have those at home) and spent the most time in the ball shooting area, which I must admit, was a lot of fun.
I would definitely love to come back someday to ride some of the rides and take the studio tours, but it was just not possible on this trip with younger kids. I would recommend visiting Universal Studios with your older kids, probably over 8 years, if they like tours and shows.
0 families found this helpful
"Best place to go!"
It's a great place for families to go and have fun. You actually learn something in example, about how movies are made and produced. The prices are not that expensive as Disneyland. I love it how films are actually produced on the lot and you get to see them in person!
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