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Remember when I admitted that I was born and raised in So Cal and yet I had never been to Universal Studios? Yes, it’s shameful and I can not believe that I was missing. I am now recommending that everyone who visits San Diego, Orange County, LA or anywhere close by MUST spend a day at Universal Studios. It was that fun!
Ready to learn why? Here we go…
Let’s start at the Universal CityWalk Hollywood… wow! This is a like the ultimate restaurant row, shopping and fun thrown all together. There is a huge movie theater and more restaurants than I can name. We had a late lunch at The Hard Rock Cafe and the girls loved seeing all the memorabilia!
I was sad to have to rush through and not take in all that there is to see and do, but we were on a mission to… UNIVERSAL STUDIOS!
We made it! Seriously, none of us wanted to stop for a picture. We wanted to get going! Our first stop was to check the Studio Directory. Here you find show times for the day and there is a wonderful person always standing there to answer all of your questions.
You have to remember to look high and low as you are walking through the theme park. This is a totally interactive experience! These two make you feel like you are on the east coast among neighbors… Loved their accents and I loved their humor!
If you are into carnival games sneak over here and get your fix!
I know that a lot of my readers are foodie like me. I love gourmet food just as much as fair food. The food at Universal Studios was the perfect mix of both. You can get some really tasty BBQ or the classic comfort food, burgers and hot dogs! No day of fun is complete without popcorn though…
We really enjoyed all the themed restaurants… like this Flintstones one!
Our first show was at the Special Effects Stage!
It was so cool! I am only showing you the basics of the stage set up… there are some really amazing tricks that are done to create the special effect in the movies we enjoy, and I’m not letting them out here… you have to see the show to see them all. Totally awesome!
I had no idea that there were real rides to go on! Let’s stop for a second to appreciate how fun this looks. I guarantee it is even more fun than you are imagining. See the beauty of rides at Universal Studios is that they have a little extra insight that makes their rides even more special. Think of it this way… a ride can be super fun but add in the know how to create a spectacular setting and the ride is now even better. They use their skills creating movies to pump up their rides. It’s indescribable.
How do I put this without sounding like a 10 year old boy? Transformers The Ride 3D is freaking amazing! Then I saw this guy walk by and I swooned. I stood and watched him for 20 minutes. Transformer fan or not you must go on the ride and you must see them in person.. The way that they move is exactly what I imagined troops defending Earth would look like. I wish I had video taped it but I was too captivated to think clearly.
If you are there and it’s at all hot outside find a cool zone. Enough said.
I didn’t want to leave this out. Go on the Jurassic Park ride… if you dare. No really, go on it… go on all of them!
Do I have any Simpson Fans in the house? You will love his!
This was my favorite show… although it’s not really a show, more of a tour and multiple shows all in one! This is what I thought Universal Studios was, just a back lot tour. I had been on the back lot multiple times when I did some acting a LONG time ago. I though we would be getting in a little bus and looking at fake buildings…. I was SO WRONG! This was fascinating, exciting, insightful and more! We saw it rain on command, survived a serial killer, survived an earthquake and saw where some of our favorite shows are filmed! I can not recommend it enough. I know of 3 families that I have gushed to about our visit to Universal Studios who have since gone and loved it.
On this tour are also the actual cars used in 2 Fast 2 Furious!
I think I forgot to mention the flood…
We were sad when our day was over, but we will absolutely be back!
Tips: This is the biggest tip I have ever offered. Splurge for the Front Of The Line Pass. We practically walked on every ride we wanted to go on and the priority seating at the shows was wonderful. If you are like us and only have one day to see everything this is the only way to go. Some of the rides had longer waits with out the pass and that eats up a lot of the day. We packed in everything we wanted to see and do with the pass. It is a bit more money but it is a bargain when you see how much time it saves. Food wise you have quite a few options. If you are looking for a sit down restaurant your best bet is to leave the park and go out to the CityWalk. If you want traditional and really tasty theme park food there are tons of places to eat. The best deal I saw was for hot dogs… hunt them down if you are into that kinda food. Universal Studios is REALLY big. It fills two levels, it’s that large. There are viewing decks that have views to the Hollywood hills and they are the perfect backdrop for some impromptu family photos. There are plenty of attractions for smaller kids so don’t worry about that. On the day we were there we got to meet and talk to Dora! Keep your eyes open for photo opps and meet and greets with your favorite characters. There are multiple ones throughout the day.
I can not recommend this enough and I encourage everyone to visit and enjoy a day or two at Universal Studios!
Thank you so much to Universal Studios for providing this day of fun.
I visited Universal Studios on a trip to California about 10 years ago. I would love to go back!
Thanks Kecia… I already want to go back! There is so much to do… I need a few more days to explore!