TRAVEL // Universal Studios Hollywood

Hey there! 

This is the final post covering my trip across Canada and the States. It has taken me a little while to get this one up -  I will not lie. I was posting a lot of travel posts and thought you guys deserved a bit of a break from my face all of the time. 

Anyway - I got to LA late in the evening and the first thing I did once we got to the motel was book Universal tickets. I love a theme park and really wanted to do Disney (like really!) but my sister wasn't too keen and it was much easier to get to Universal anyway. We booked online and got a small discount before heading to bed - super excited for the day ahead!

We started on the rides. We didn't go for opening (we got a little lost - the metro station wasn't the easiest to find) but still got there relatively early and there were hardly any queues all day. Hooray for going during the week in May. There was almost no-one around.

Like any sane person, we headed to the far end of the park in hopes that people weren't doing the same. We hopped on the Jurassic Park ride and Transformers before I met Optimus Prime. I was utterly starstruck (no sarcasm what-so-ever right there). The Hollywood park may have a lot of the same rides as Florida and far fewer of them but the views around are amazing. I was shocked that it was so green and pretty around. I didn't expect that one bit.


Next up was the Backlot tour. Other than the Waterworld show (which you must see), this is the only attraction exclusive to the Hollywood park. It takes you through the back lots where they do lots of filming, showing you sets and a lot of the showbiz tips and tricks. We saw the houses from Desperate Housewives among other sets including one made with a ripped apart aeroplane. I recall them saying that they just bought the plane and ripped it apart. I'd much rather fly it myself but whatever floats your boat!


Next up we got some lunch and made our way towards the new Simpsons ride. I loved the whole Simpsons area, it was so much fun! I almost got some Duff beer but it was crazy expensive (and I don't even like beer!). Yet again, I wasn't allowed a photo with Scooby or The Mystery Machine so a picture of it will have to do.


After watching Waterworld we left to go browse The Boardwalk. There was so much yummy food everywhere and I ended up managing to convince my sister to let me ask if there was a happy hour at The Hard Rock Cafe (I could live in there - seriously!). Oh, can I mention how at home I look in the chair. If this doesn't prove that I should be a movie star I do not know what does (okay - I'll take TV star).



Luckily for us, it was in fact happy hour with cheap bar food and alcohol. I was in heaven! We grabbed a couple of glasses of wine and ordered some food, looking over our photos from the day. A little while after we came in, a couple of guys came in ordering (very expensive!) drinks. We moved over so they could sit down and they then decided to order the bartender to give us a drink of our choice. The awkward thing was the bartender was in the process of making us drinks for the same reason anyway and so we ended up with a bar full of drinks that cost a grand total of $0. What a way to be welcomed to LA eh? I actually felt like I was in a film - I won't lie. The guys were a film writer/director and music producer (from Croydon - what are the odds?!) and we had a good chat. They were on their way to a Pitch Perfect 2 showing the night before it's release and I was very jealous. We thanked them profusely for the drinks before heading back home in a far more drunken state than first planned. That Hard Rock Cafe is the place where dreams are made and mine definitely were that night. I hope your visit brings as much joy as mine did.


We left the heaven that was Universal Hollywood to go home and sleep. We had a big day of sightseeing ahead of us and quite a long trip back but I'd be lying to you if I said I didn't want to explore some more. There's definitely a different vibe in LA to a lot of other places I have been to. I can't quite explain it but I definitely love it.

Have you been to Universal Hollywood? Did you love it? Let me know!