Universal Studios Hollywood is a film studio and theme park in Los Angeles County. It is one of the oldest and most famous Hollywood film studios, where more and more blockbuster films are constantly being shot. At the same time, it is also a theme park that welcomes millions of visitors every year. What is it like in the film studios and what can you have fun with in the first of many Universal Studios theme parks located all over the world?
History of Universal Studios Hollywood
In 1914 German American immigrant Carl Laemmle bought the Taylor Ranch in the San Fernando Valley and founded Universal City here as a gigantic film studio with a zoo, its own police force, mayor, and Native Americans living on the premises.
March 14, 1915 then a two-day grand opening with 10,000 visitors took place. Later, he invited the general public to see the entire event for just 5 cents. This began first film tour, a showcase of film scenes, daring stunts and silent film idols.
This original tour was discontinued around 1930 due to the advent of sound films and the inadequate soundproofing of the tour stages at the time.
In 1964, the property began offering its modern studio tour again, which included a series of dressing room tours, glimpses into actual productions, and later staged events. As the film industry developed, various attractions and the film studios have grown into a full-fledged amusement park, in which a tour of the film studios is one of the main attractions.
Over the years, countless attractions have been opened, which have changed, been removed and replaced by newer and newer ones over time and thanks to new films. The park is now divided into two parts (upper and lower land), which are connected by a series of escalators. (source: Wikipedia)
Today's Universal Studios Hollywood
As of 2021, Universal Studios Hollywood offers a total of 19 attractions and countless souvenir and snack stalls. The park has several thematic sections, which will pull you right into the world of movies and your favorite franchises. One moment you feel like you're in the world of Harry Potter, and the next you're fighting Transformers.
Ticket and visiting time
You can conveniently buy a ticket directly on the website Universal Studios Hollywood. I bought it in Uber on the way from Warner Bros. Studios (the journey takes about 10 minutes). The ticket is not bought for a specific time, but only for the day. You have several options to choose from.
The entrance fee is changes depending on the season and day of visit. Weekends and summer holidays are more expensive than, say, February. In summer, prices are around the upper limit.
Standard one-day admission costs from $109 to $154, a one-day ticket with express lines costs from $209 to $309. Another option is the VIP Experience, which includes access to the express lines, a guide and light refreshments and ranges in price from $379 to $489. A two-day ticket is also available, which costs from $159 to $204 (2024 prices).
I bought a standard one-day ticket for Saturday 23rd December and it cost $140. It was open until 10pm. Opening hours vary throughout the week and are not open until 10pm every day. It is always a good idea to check the website directly Universal Studios.
How do you get to Universal Studios Hollywood?
If, like me, you combine a visit to Warner Bros. Studios and Universal Studios in one day, then it is best to visit Warner Bros. early in the morning (I describe my visit on the page https://florinacestach.cz/warner_bros_hollywood/) and Save Universal for the afternoon. Warner Bros. takes approximately 3 hours and entry is scheduled at a specific time, then you can stay at Universal for the rest of the day. Tickets here are not timed, so it doesn't matter how long you stay at Warner Bros. or what time you arrive at Universal.
For travel from Warner Bros. to Universal, Uber or another taxi service is the best option. The studios are less than 5 km apart and the journey takes approximately 10 minutes.
Another option is public transport. You can take metro B (red) to the stop Universal/Studio City Station. From there you can walk uphill and take about 10-15 minutes, or just cross the overpass and wait for the train to take you uphill.
You can also arrive by car and park in one of the parking garages. The price ranges from $32 to $70 (subject to change at any time).
Universal Studios Hollywood
Universal Studios Hollywood visits every year more than 10 million visitors. So expect that once you pass through security and the main gate, you will be in the park with thousands of people who came to have fun just like you.
As is usual in such parks, the attractions will be long queues and you'll spend a lot of time out of your day waiting. Unless you pay for express lines and speed up the wait.
The park is quite large. It has two parts. The upper and lower grounds. In both parts you will find some of the attractions from the entire park.
As you walk through the park, you gradually find yourself in various film worlds. One minute you're walking through Hollywood, the next you're drinking a butter lager at Hogwarts at Harry Potter, and the next you're having a burger at Voček's in Springfield.
Each thematic section is matched by the decorations of the attractions and their surroundings, as well as the range of souvenirs and refreshments.
The World-Famous Studio Tour
Studio tour for me it was the main attraction I wanted to see. So I headed straight through the entire park to this place. I joined the queue, waited about 20 minutes and then got on the prepared train. It goes by quite quickly, and even though the queue seems long, it moves quickly. As for the train, check out what they are best places for the best experience. I looked at the place on the left side, it seemed to me that the most action was happening on the left side.
We leave. The train, with the guide's commentary, descends to the lower part of the park, where it is located. film studios. First we drive through the huge halls, then we head to the exteriors.
They are built in the studio entire streets, a square, a town hall (like the one from Back to the Future), a western town and the streets of New York. All unrecognizable from real city streets. We stop at many places along the way and learn more and more interesting things from the guide. Unlike the tour at Warner Bros., we don't get off anywhere here and the entire tour takes place from a train.
On the way, we pass an exhibition of cars from various movies, we find ourselves among the dinosaurs in Jurassic World and in a street that is completely flooded with water in a few seconds. Which, by the way, is the oldest part of this tour, opened in 1968.
The tour will gradually move to two halls. The first one hides King Kong. Literally. This is one of the largest 3D screens in the world and thanks to all the technology, we suddenly find ourselves with the whole train in the middle of the jungle in the fight between King Kong and the dinosaurs. The experience is so realistic thanks to the wind, water droplets and all the movements of the train that when we fly headlong down in free fall, we feel like we are really going to crash.
In the second hall we find ourselves in the middle of a chase from Fast and furious (you can see behind the scenes and the creation at YouTube). Here too, we have the feeling that everything is happening right before our eyes. Everything is so realistic and truthful. Perfect performance.
But that's not all. The film tour will also take us to the scene of the disaster. To the place where a huge airliner and its wreckage is scattered all around us. The engines are still smoking. Another example of a realistic scene in which Steven Spielberg filmed the movie War of the Worlds. In this case, it is not just any set, but a real Boeing 747.
During the Studio Tour, we also see the legendary Bates Motel from Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho and Jaws Lake, home to the unstoppable great white shark from Jaws. There's also a shark attack and pyrotechnic effects at a nearby gas station.
I must say that the tour of the studios exceeded my expectations. Everything is perfectly prepared, our guide was simply great.
The hour went by so quickly and there was absolutely no time to get bored. It's probably just a shame that we didn't get to see any studios, like the interiors prepared for filming, or see any actual filming. But even without that, it was a really great experience and another dream come true.
Waterworld
The second attraction I visited in the park was a live performance based on the film Water world with Kevin Kostner in the lead role. The show lasts about 20 minutes and is performed several times during the day. You can find out the start times from the theme park app (look for Universal CA in the stores). Arrive 15 minutes early, find the best seat, I don't really recommend the lower rows, it's quite wet there :) and the show will slowly begin. First the actors warm up the audience and then come the wild stunts, jet ski jumps, dangerous jumps, shootouts and mega explosions. Then at the end the plane crashes. Just Hollywood spectacle, which takes your breath away.
Other attractions in the park
Since I didn't look much in advance at what was waiting for me in the park and the studio tour was the main and only attraction for me, I was a little confused after Water World. As a lover of amusement parks and roller coasters, I was a little surprised that I didn't actually see any attractions. Although there are photos in the app, they don't say much. All the attractions are inside the buildings and on the street there is only decoration and the time it takes to wait in line. And yet, I didn't want to wait 45 minutes in line and then be disappointed. So, a recommendation: before you go to the park, check out YouTube to see what attractions it has and what each one does.
I chose first Kung Fu Panda. I stood in line for 25 minutes (it was one of the shorter ones) and then I realized it was a movie theater. Like, yeah, DreamWorks Theater could have given me a clue. But it was great. The screen across the entire hall, moving seats, fun.
Right next to the cinema is The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, which officially opened in 2016. Walk through the gate and you'll find yourself right in Hogwarts. You can have a butter lager, buy a magic wand, go on two rides, and admire a replica of Hogwarts Castle.
The first is a roller coaster Flight of the Hippogriff. The only outdoor roller coaster, so you can see what's coming while you wait. However, after about half an hour of waiting, the ride takes about 30 seconds. A bit disappointing.
But the second attraction is much more interesting. Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. The app says about it: "Fight through the classrooms and corridors of Hogwarts. Join Harry Potter and his friends on an unforgettable, exciting adventure." That doesn't say much either, but I'll go for it. The waiting time is half an hour, it'll do.
You enter the castle and find yourself in the world of Harry Potter. While waiting You walk among movie props. You visit the room with talking pictures, meet a hologram of Harry, Ron and Hermione. The queue moves quickly.
The whole ride is a combination of the movement of the trolley and projections on large screens. Suddenly you are flying on a broomstick together with Harry, catching Snitch, fighting a dragon and Dementors. Everything happens at high speed, you are constantly flying, observing what is happening around you. There are also various effects and a flight vertically downwards. An absolute blast. Definitely do not miss this attraction.
After dark, a themed event takes place throughout the castle. projection. I had a Christmas one. It's also worth watching.
After the screening, I walked through Springfield, where The Simpsons Ride there was still an hour-long queue. So I at least had some food. A burger with fries at Krusty's starts at $15, cola and water are around $5. But what I appreciate about the park is that there are drinking fountains and you can fill your own bottle with unlimited water for free.
After a snack, it's time to explore the lower part of the park. There are several escalators leading up here, so even the high elevation is not a problem and the journey is quick and comfortable.
There are other attractions at the bottom. Revenge of the Mummy - The Ride. Reverse roller coaster with acceleration to 72 km/h, lighting effects and decorations from the film Mummy. At times there is complete darkness around you, so you have no idea where you are going or what awaits you.
The track is very cool then Transformers: The Ride 3D, which uses cutting-edge technology to simulate the battle between the Autobots and Decepticons using 4K-3D screens and riding vehicles on a flight simulator. Here too, you feel like you're in the middle of the battle as one of the Autobots. And the free fall from a skyscraper, where you stop just above the ground, is a real massacre. In the evening there wasn't such a queue, so I went 3 times in a row. And I have to say that if I had a fourth one, the effects would have been too much and I don't know how my stomach would have handled it :D
Right next to it is Super Nintendo World s Mario Kart: Browser's Challenge. A ride where you get a Super Mario hat, put on virtual reality goggles and ride the whole ride, shooting through the goggles and collecting points. It was pretty boring considering the fact that the wait in the single line took about 40 minutes. But judging by the wait time, it seems like the most popular attraction in the park.
There is also a water attraction in the lower part. Jurassic World – The Ride, which I wasn't at and I'm really sorry about that. Maybe next time. But still, even in Los Angeles it's a bit cold in the evenings in December and I didn't want to get all wet.
After nine o'clock in the evening I decided that enough was enough and I would go to the hotel. It was wonderful day, Warner Bros. Studios and then the rest of the afternoon and evening at Universal. On the way I also checked out The Simpsons, where the line didn't get much shorter, bought a huge pink donut (for $10) and went to the subway.
How I liked it here
Even though the park was quite crowded, the waiting lines weren't the shortest and I didn't visit all the attractions, so I left satisfied. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole day.. What I didn't manage to do, I'll probably do next time. I'd also be happy to come back here again in the future.
If you're going to Los Angeles, Both Universal and Warner Bros. Studios are definitely worth a visit.. And if you're interested in what else there is to do in LA, write about my guide. I'll be happy to send it to you. You can also check out my video from Los Angeles, where there is also a lot of footage from Universal Studios Hollywood.
