Universal Studios, Los Angeles

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This is a great day with children or not. In May 2008, the Simpsons ride was only just opened -it is a re-branding of the old Back to the Future idea, meaning the car wobbles dips rears up etc. but the real sense of motion is mainly from the surround screen.

Revenge of the Mummy is also relatively new, it is a reversing rollercoaster ride through animation base on the modern franchise.

Others are Jurassic Park - a sail through the automated dinosaurs to a T Rex encounter, and the Universal Horror show based on classic 1930s and even 1920s (Chaney Phantom) characters and sets which you walk through while being menaced.

There are shows explaining sound effects and such like in an entertaining way and the 3D cinema live action melange Terminator-2.

We only snacked here and ate at the Hard Rock Cafe on Universal Walk adjacent the park.

There is a great Kwik E Mart gift shop by the Simpsons Ride; you can buy a can of Duff - it's a glucose or energy drink and not the beer inside so all can join in!

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It's been a while since I last went to Universal Studios. I think is was 1994. So, going back was like everything was new again because the themes, rides and shows have changed. This is a special event at this time of the year, Halloween Horror Haunt. Special rules apply such as not being able to dress up in costume and the hours are from 7pm to 2am. What's great about Universal Studios compared to Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm and Magic Mountain is that it's not so much about the rides but the shows. And I know that doesn't sound like much but that is actually quite entertaining. Currently, the main rides at Universal Studios are the Mummy ride, Simpson's Ride and Jurrassic Park Ride.

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Going to Universal Studios has always been fun for me when I was younger, so I decided to bring the twins when they were just less than a year old – LOL! I’m not sure if they appreciated it, but my wife and I sure did! Hehehe…

Of course I love the classics like the set of Jaws, and going on that train ride…and seeing the set of Back to the Future and the TV show Desperate Housewives.....But now, the place always thrills by adding new technology to its rides and shows. Now, they have the Revenge of the Mummy thrill coaster and the Jurassic Park 80-foot raft plunge! And then a Shrek and Donkey on an ogre-the-top adventure in Shrek-4-D.

And don’t forget the Universal City Walk – LA’s best shops, all-new cinemas and restaurants…

The tickets may be restrictive to some – so look around for magazine clippings or even deals on their internet site. But, if you do want the thrill of Hollywood when in L.A., you really just have to visit this place! It’s Awesome! I have to bring the twins back there again – soon!

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The Universal Studios in Universal City is one of the many attractions in the Greater Los Angeles Area. The primary attraction here is a "sneak peak" into the production backlot of famous old and new movies and tv series like Psycho, Moonlighting, War of the Worlds, Terminator, A Team, etc with corresponding special effects. Universal has hosted spectators at its studios since the 1920s, and began tram tours in the 1960s. In the late '80s, it opened its lower lot, expanding Universal Studios Hollywood to a full-fledged theme park with many branches like in Florida, Tokyo, South Korea and dubai. Other than the popular backlot tours, it also have fun rides like the Jurassic park, terminator, The Mummy, Van Helsing and Waterworld included in the ticket.

General Admission for Universal Studios Hollywood is $64.00. However those under 48 inches tall are admitted for $54.00, and children 2 years and under are admitted for free.

Opens: 10:00 am to 6:00 pm everyday.

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If you are holidaying in LA, then a trip to Universal Studios for the day is a must.

We took the advice of doing the lower lot first. Most people start at the upper lot and work their way down in the afternoon. The lower lot opens an hour after the upper, so use this time to visit the most popular of the upper attractions. We used that time to go on the studio tour so we didn’t miss out on it later on. The narrated tram tour takes you through the studio's active back-lot, and demonstrations of special effects such as an earthquake, Jaws, King Kong, a flash flood, car crashes, and takes you through famous movie sets and TV shows from Universal movies. Sit on the left hand side of the tram for the best views.

As for the rides, The Revenge of the Mummy was the best by far. It’s a slow ghost train that turns into a flat-out roller coaster ride in the dark. The Jurassic Park ride was okay too. It’s your typical flume type ride with one big drop at the end. All the other rides were pretty lame. I suppose this theme park is not about the rides, it’s more about the shows. The Waterworld show was really good, it used explosions, jet skis, boats, a plane crash, and stunt people galore to keep you more than entertained. Make sure you get in early to get a good seat because there are wet and dry zones. You might end up soaking wet if you’re late, unless that’s what you want. The T2 show was cool too.

If you also intend on visiting SeaWorld or the SD Zoo in San Diego as we did, you should definitely buy the Southern California City Pass. It entitles you to a 3-Day Disneyland ticket, and 1-day tickets to Universal Studios, SeaWorld and a choice of SD Zoo or SD Zoo's Wild Animal Park. You can purchase this ticket from any of the parks. It's a great saving!

For someone who is not really keen on thrill rides, Universal Studios was perfect for me. It had many shows and attractions that was fun, but easy on the heart. Go for the normal day pass, you don't really need the VIP pass. I went there in the Summer, and the lines weren't that bad.

I loved this place too, it would have been alot better without any of the queues, but hey, whats a theme park without lining up for an hour to get on the coolest ride in the park! Definately worth a look! I especially loved all the shops and lights they have in the Universal walk, best thing is, its free to go and have a look, unlike the park itself...

We spent a day at Universal which was just 15 minutes drive away from our hotel. It's not about scary rides which suited me to the ground, it's more about movies and how they're made and the special effects with a few rides thrown in. We bought a pass which gets you to the front of the queue which only really came in handy for the Mummy ride as it had a 45 minute wait time for a 1 minute ride. You could buy a special access all areas type pass that I wish we had got cos they were shooting CSI at the time and you were able to go into the film studio....if only I'd known!!! It's my favourite show!

At selected times in the day there were stage shows with some reasonably well known actors starring in them. WELL WORTH going to them! THe waterworld show was so good we went twice...the film may be complete pants but the show was amazing...just be prepared to get wet!

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Even though Universal Studios is known by everyone and in a way a tourist trap; it is a very special experience at least for those (like me in 1992) who have not seen how movies are made.

For me the best place was the Special Effects House. It was great to see and hear how in different times the effects have been and are made. It was just unbeliavable how simple means were used; it needed just a little bit of imagination. They showed a lot of samples.
The top of all was when we made our own short movie - volunteers were taken to the stage and everyone had only one task. Someone said something, the rest were silent and did something like rolling stones inside a box (=thunder) etc. Then they showed us the result - what a big laugh!!!

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We first wandered through Universal Studios CityWalk before getting to the park itself and stopped to look up at the Shaq :-)

Then Woody Woodpecker greeted us and we discovered the giant globe announcing Universal Studios...Believe me, it is already thrilling at this point !

We started with the "studio tour", seated in a sort of little train that drove us around, showing us the other side of the picture. Some of the classics line the road : Jaws, Jurassic Park, King Kong, Bates Motel... We saw stage 25, where they shoot CSI and even got a glimpse at Wisteria Lane !!! Can't believe that ! :-)

It's really fun and instructive to anyone who likes the movies ! We loved it.
A few rides and bottles of water later, we were ready for Hollywood Boulevard !