My two boys and I were recently in Los Angeles for the weekend, and I wanted to do something theme-parky with them. They’ve been to Disneyland before, but weren’t interested in going again now that they’re almost 12 and 14-years-old. “Too babyish,” they said. And that was A-OK with me because Lord knows that I certainly get my fill of all things Disney with the endless Instagram pictures in my feed. (Although, that’s probably my fault for following people named @HotDisneyLuvver20149.)
The boys and I decided to instead spend a day at Universal Studios Hollywood. I’d visited there once before, in 1990, so I was excited to see the car from The Blues Brothers and ride the janky tour tram to the Psycho house. I was also excited to buy tickets for $15.99, but then I realized a few things have changed at Universal since I was last there. Namely, ticket prices are no longer $15.99. Which brings me to my first MISS.
TICKET PRICES (MISS)
A One-Day ticket to Universal is a high $87 for ages 3-9, and $95 for ages 10+. True, the prices are about the same as Disneyland, but Disneyland has a lot more rides and attractions, and it’s also open five hours later than Universal. There also seems to be many more opportunities to get ticket deals with Disneyland, and virtually none with Universal. Trust me, I tried.
The best deal at Universal is to buy Season Pass ticket for $95. Unfortunately, that didn’t work for us being out-of-towners, and also, if we bought that now, in September, it’d expire at the end of the year. You can also buy a GO CARD to save 15-20%, but only if you add on another attraction like Knott’s Berry Farm.
Universal Hollywood also has a $149 Front of the Line ticket that guarantees you get to skip the line once per ride or attraction. (Fine, but how is that good for kids? Character is built by waiting in line for hours with sweaty strangers.) Also, we arrived at the park when it opened at 8 a.m. on a Saturday in September, and there were no lines for the first five rides we went on. Even later in the day, around 3 p.m., the wait times that were listed throughout the park were no longer than 25 minutes. Meaning, if I’d shelled out $450 for the three of us to be front of the line, I wouldn’t have been very happy.
Was the park worth the money we spent? Keep reading, friends.
THE RIDES
Unlike Disneyland or Magic Mountain, most of the rides at Universal are virtual, not the traditional rollercoaster-type ride, and they’re all movie-themed. They also seem to last a little longer than most theme-park rides, which is great. Oh, and the employees applaud when the ride’s over. I don’t know if that’s because it’s Hollywood, or because they’re relieved the ride worked. Here’s the rundown:
JURASSIC PARK – THE RIDE (HIT)
Image from UniversalStudiosHollywood.com
Per Universal’s website, on this flume-type ride you, “Come face-to-face with ‘living’ dinosaurs, a 50-foot T-Rex, and a treacherous drop straight down an 84-foot death-defying raft plunge.” Per my kids, on this flume-type ride you, “Almost die, like, ten times, and get soaked, and it is AWESOME.” It was really pretty fun, especially since they boys are very familiar with this movie franchise.
TRANSFORMERS: THE RIDE-3D (HIT)
Via UniversalStudiosHollywood.com
The boys and I haven’t ever seen a Transformers movie, but we still had a lot of fun on this ride that fuses HD 3D media and flight simulation technology. Basically, you put on 3D glasses, and sit in a cart that whips back and forth while things and robots appear to come right at you. I admit that it’s actually kind of thrilling, like when you see big balls of fire, and hot air is blown on you. As far as the robot fight stuff, I have no clue what was going on. Ultron beat Megatron or something.
DESPICABLE ME MINION MAYHEM (MISS-ISH)
Image via Wendi Aarons
Based on the Minions movie, this is the newest and therefore most popular ride at the park. It’s another wear 3D glasses, watch a little movie while the cart moves up and down and side to side type ride. The kids and I thought it was amusing, but not very exciting. (The wait was full of videos, etc. to entertain you, which we liked.) This is probably better for younger kids. It’s also an “Exit Through the Giftshop ride”, so be prepared to walk into a store filled with 40,000 pieces of Minion merch.
REVENGE OF THE MUMMY: THE RIDE (HIT)
Image via UniversalStudiosHollywood.com
I went on the Revenge of the Mummy ride with my oldest son, my youngest (12 years old) begging off after suspecting it was too scary. He was right—it is scary. This is a super fast rollercoaster, in the dark, with mummy-type creatures jumping out at you. Personally, I wouldn’t go on it again, but my son loved it. As he should because he’s almost 14-years-old and his frontal lobe is still developing.
STUDIO TOUR/KING KONG 360 3-D/FAST AND THE FURIOUS SUPERCHARGED (HIT and MISS)
The janky tram tour I remember from 1990 has now turned into a very slick, 60-minute ride complete with Jimmy Fallon videos and holograms. Per the website, you and 500 of your closet friends “Go behind-the-scenes on the legendary Studio Tour to explore Hollywood’s most famous backlot in the world’s largest working movie studio. Visit 13 city blocks on four acres of historic studio lot in the largest set construction project in studio history, built with creative consultation from Steven Spielberg himself.” That’s overselling it a bit, but maybe I’m not the target audience.
Full disclosure, I used to work in the movie business, so I’m not thrilled by backlots, but my kids also seemed a little non-plussed. Probably because the sets we saw were from older projects like Desperate Housewives, War of the Worlds, and Jaws. I will say that I liked that the Psycho house now includes a real human Norman Bates. Hey, he’s a working actor, so who are we to judge?
The Studio Tour includes King Kong 360 3-D, which is basically watching a 3-D movie while the tram shakes and sweaty strangers crash into you (and my younger son hit his head on the metal side). It’s pretty violent, and more jarring and annoying than exciting.
Finally, while the website touts the big Fast & Furious Supercharged ride at Universal, it’s a little misleading because it’s basically just part of the Studio Tour. The tram stops, then you watch “3D-HD imagery projected onto the world’s most expansive 360-degree screens!” Basically, you see Vin Diesel in a scene with a group of very scantily clad hologram ladies. Kind of disturbing on a ride with a lot of kids. But then the car images squeal around while you ride in the tram and wish you could just take a nap. Honestly, none of us really cared for it much. Unlike the gentleman behind us who kept yelling, “YO, VIN! CAN I GET AN OTTO-GRAPH? VINNNNNYYYY.”
THE SIMPSONS RIDE (HIT)
Image via Wired.com
My oldest son and I are huge fans of The Simpsons, so we were in heaven when we entered Krustyland on The Simpsons ride. Everything you’d expect to see from Springfield–The Kwik-E-Mart, Moe’s, Disco Stu’s Disco, the Springfield DMV–is there, and it’s all very clever.
The Simpsons Ride is similar to Star Tours at Disneyland where you go into a cart that only moves up and down while you watch a 3-D movie, but it’s on an 80 ft. diameter dome. Really funny animation, with Sideshow Bob as a homicidal maniac. My son Sam loves Sideshow Bob.
Image via Wendi Aarons
ATTRACTIONS
UNIVERSAL’S ANIMAL ACTORS (HIT)
The Universal’s Animal Actors attraction is an overly-scripted live stage show that shows animal “actors” doing tricks with their trainers. It’s always fun to see cats and rats and dogs running around on stage, so we liked it. (Although my friend whispered that all of the animals were “basic C-listers” based on their movies.) The most exciting thing was when my oldest son was chosen to go on stage and interact with the Chihuahua from Beverly Hills Chihuahua, then he was fake peed on by a Golden Retriever. Ah, show business!
WATERWORLD (HIT)
Image via UniversalStudiosHollywoo.com
Once you get over the shock that there’s an attraction built around one of the biggest theatrical flops ever, WaterWorld is really fun. It’s basically a stunt show on water with jumping jet-skiers, firefights, massive explosions, and an in-your-face plane crash. The boys totally loved it, as you would expect from most teenage boys watching things blow up. (And I was happy to see that the urine drinking scenes from the movie weren’t reenacted.)
A FEW OTHER THINGS
The Food: There are a ton of theme restaurants, as you’d expect, and they’re all very expensive for sub-par food, as you’d expect. Although, our choice to eat Chicken Thumbs at Cletus’ Chicken Shack in Krustyland was probably not wise. (And also cost us $60.00)
The App: Universal Studios Hollywood has an app available that will tell you updated wait times for rides, and start times for attractions. Very handy.
Parking: We paid $35 for up-close preferred parking, and still had to walk quite a way. However, the general parking was even farther.
CityWalk: Right outside Universal Hollywood is Universal CityWalk, which is a “nightlife” type area with restaurants and shops. However, we were sadly disappointed with the choices. Mostly athletic-wear stores and restaurants like Bubba Gump Shrimp. They call it “L.A.’s Favorite Place to Party,” but I think that’s greatly overstating things.
FINALLY, HARRY POTTER IS COMING!
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter will open at Universal Studios Hollywood in 2016. This is huge news, as the one in Orlando is beyond popular. We got a little glimpse of what’s to come (please excuse the poor photo), and even that was exciting.
Image via Wendi Aarons
Final Verdict
So was Universal Studios Hollywood worth the money? Would we go again? Well, I’m not quite sure. Yes, it was a big expense for a few hours of fun, and yes, it’s a hassle like most theme park experiences are, but I have to say that we did have fun. All of us had fun.
Plus, there’s just something awesome about seeing 12 and 14-year-old boys–boys who are quickly becoming too cool for school—light up with huge grins when they see Minions waddling down the street. I mean, who can resist a Minion?
