My Universal Studio Visits

My Universal Studio Visits – Universal Studios are theme parks based on Hollywood movies and owned by NBC Universal, headquartered in Orlando, Florida. They are currently(as of 2024) located in 5 locations, Two in the US(Orlando, Florida and Los Angeles, California), One each in Japan, Singapore and China. The visitors can have a glimpse of the behind the scenes of movies and television programs. There are also rides based on movies. One also gets to see the people dressed in different characters from the movies and can take photos with them. They have different shows, rides, stores where one can buy souvenirs, etc. One needs to plan the trip properly so as to cover all the attractions and beat the queues. There is an option of fast pass for some attractions and can use the same.

The first park, Universal Studios Hollywood was setup in Los Angeles, California (which is famous for Hollywood) in 1964. It has different theme based rides, shows displaying the techniques of what goes into movie making like the special effects, etc. Hollywood park also has a Studio tour by bus and takes the visitors through the various sets used in movies as well as TV shows and also gives a glimpse of the special effects. I visited this park thrice between 2004-2006.

The second park, Universal Orlando resort was opened in 1990 in Orlando, Florida.

The third park, Universal Studios Japan was opened in 2001 in Osaka, Japan and was the first Universal Studios outside of United States. It has attractions from both Hollywood and Orlando parks. The shows are in Japanese and English. Visited this park in the year 2003 in Japan and experienced my first Bullet train for this from Tokyo to Osaka. The ET adventure was specific to this park and also Jaws.

The fourth park, Universal Studios Singapore was opened in 2011 in the Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore. It features attractions similar to the other parks and is the smallest park of them all. Visited it twice in 2011 and 2012. Highlights here were Madagascar ride, Revenge of the Mummy ride, Transformers.

The fifth park Universal Studios Beijing was opened in 2021 in Beijing, China.

It is always fun to visit these parks and better to plan it properly to enjoy it fully.