Visiting Universal Studios Hollywood after 10+ Years

4 Jul, 2023 · 10 min

Last updated: 9 Jul, 2023

I recently visited Universal Studios Hollywood on the 18th and 21st of June. This is the first time I have been there after more than 10 years. While some aspects remained unchanged, there were numerous alterations, for better or for worse. This blog documents my experiences throughout my time at Universal Studios Hollywood, including my personal opinions on how much the park transformed the past decade. Please note that this blog contains many of my subjective opinions, and while you are welcome to agree or disagree, I kindly request that you respect my opinions.

tl;dr

Among all of my visits at Universal Studios Hollywood, this recent experience stands out as my favorite by far. Despite the large crowds on Father's Day, I was fortunate enough to experience nearly everything that the park has to offer. While I did encounter some negatives, the pros ultimately outweighed the cons.

Pros

• Everything in Super Nintendo Land
• New Simpsons environment
• The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
• The Secret Life of Pets - Off the Leash
• Pink's Hot Dogs
• Every attraction that I've already experienced and liked
• Jurassic World - The Ride

Indifferent

• Fast & Furious - Supercharged
• Giant pink frosted sprinkled donut
• Butter beer
• Despicable Me - Minion Mayhem
• Revenge of the Mummy - The Ride
• Only the food at Chick Chick Chicken

Did not experience

• Flight of the Hippogriff
• Every other attraction in The Wizarding World

Cons

• Breakfast
• Studio Tour
• DreamWorks Theater
• Too many rides sharing the same theme and story concept
• Lackluster customer service at Chick Chick Chicken

One of the worst breakfasts I had

To kickstart the day, we went to a France-themed restaurant for some breakfast. I got a vegetarian "bánh mì" and Thu, my girlfriend, got crepes. As I picked the bánh mì from the cold stand, Thu warned me that I shouldn't buy Asian food at non-Asian restaurants because of the authenticity and quality of the food. I still wanted to try it out and see if I would like it.

Unfortunately, the bánh mì was terrible. There was no protein in it, not even tofu, and only consited of vegetables. Its tastes had no resemblance to the authentic flavors of traditional bánh mì, leaving me confused as to why this "bánh mì" bears that name. In addition, Thu had one of the strawberry crepes. Even though it's called STRAWBERRY crepe, there were barely any strawberries in it. I don't understand why this restaurant at a highly-established theme park can offer such low quality food.

Studio Tour

As a kid, the first attraction that I always go to when I enter Universal Studios is the studio tour. This attraction is a great introduction to park visitors, allowing them to explore studio backlots and witness how films are shot. We did the same thing again for this visit.

While the tour didn't change much, this experience wasn't as good as back when I was a kid. The tour used to have exciting stops, such as Mini Skull Island, Fast & Furious' Carnage and Carma, The Mummy, and Jaws. This time, none of those attractions weren't present. The only two that were there were King Kong 3D and Fast & Furious - Supercharged. The latter was the first time that I've experienced this, and I believe it replace The Mummy studio tour experience. I thought this attraction was ok, but overall, this studio tour didn't provide the same excitement I had as a kid.

The Simpsons

The Simpsons Ride

Next, we went to The Simpsons ride. I'm still sad that this replaced the Back to the Future ride, which I only got to ride it once before its replacement. Nevertheless, I still greatly enjoy The Simpsons ride, and fortunately, nothing changed about it since last time I've been there.

When The Simpsons ride was initially introduced, the surrounding scenery was still undergoing construction. At that time, the only available spot was the Kwik-E-Mart, offering Simpsons-themed souvenirs. However, the area has now been transformed to include buildings and references from show. Some of these structures serve as guest facilities, such as Moe's Tavern (a restaurant and bar) and Luigi's Pizza.

Giant Pink Frosted Sprinkled Donut

Arguably the most popular food item that's being sold in The Simpsons area is the large Lard Lad Donuts. These donuts are colossal, approximately the size of an average adult's head. There's dedicated store solely for selling these donuts, and there is always a long line that forms outside. We decided to get the giant pink frosted sprinkled donut since that is the most common donut featured on the show.

The donut tastes good, but it's nothing special. It's just like every other donut. Obviously the only selling point for these donuts is their tremendous size, but it was still a good experience to try it out.

Waterworld

When it comes to intense, fast-paced, action-packed live shows, nothing comes close to Waterworld. Inspired by the blockbuster film, Waterworld pushes the boundaries of visitors' expectations, offering a spectacle that is rarely seen in theme parks. It features death-defying stunts to exhilarating jet-ski battles. Watching this show now still made me feel like the first time I watched it.

Waterworld is my all-time favorite live action show at a theme park, and I'm glad that it's still at Universal Studios. Nothing about it changed.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

I've never consumed a single Harry Potter media, so please excuse me on my lack of knowledge of Harry Potter.

Before the Wizarding World of Harry Potter was here, there used to be Shrek 4D and a mini water park for children that was SpongeBob themed. Now that this area has been established, the park feels so much bigger. I'm not a fan of Harry Potter (nothing against it, I've just never had a chance to read the books or watch the movies), but I must admit that the area was very immersive. I felt like that I was inside of a medieval fantasy land. The giant castle that houses the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride was colossal. It reminded me of the castles found in the game Dark Souls.

One of my friends recommended me to try the butter beer, and the butter beer stand was the first thing I saw as I walked through the towering gates. The butter beer is just root beer float. There are two variations of the butter beer: cold and frozen. I had the frozen one and it's quite enjoyable. It's sweet and a good beverage during a hot weather; however, $10 for one cup is excessively high.

The best attraction in this area was definitely Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. This is one of the most unique rides I've ever seen. Unlike traditional roller coasters, this ride has you suspended in a seat and you glide through many obstacles and screens. It's honestly hard to describe how amazing this ride is and how it works. Just know that it was a remarkable and unparalleled experience.

Unfortunately, I did not get to experience everything that the Wizarding World has to offer. I know that there is Flight of the Hippogriff and other minor attractions in this area, but we decided to focus more on the main attractions in other areas.

Illumination

Illumination Studios is known for producing popular animated films such as Despicable Me, The Secret Life of Pets, and Minions. This new area is dedicated to those films.

Despicable Me - Minion Mayhem

The Despicable Me - Minion Mayhem replaced the Terminator ride. As a huge fan of the Terminator ride and the movie series, I was sad that this was gone.

The Despicable Me ride is a 3D motion simulator that takes you through the story where riders are transformed into minions and must go through the minion training and obstacle courses to be certified minions. The ride itself was alright. It had moderate levels of intensity and it was obviously targeted towards families and children.

From a business standpoint, replacing Terminator with Despicable Me was the right call. The Illumination area now attracts a large number of children and it has way more activity than Terminator ever did, though a huge part of me still wishes Terminator was here.

The Secret Life of Pets - Off the Leash

The Secret Life of Pets ride offers a unique experience in which you would ride in a car shaped like a cardboard box. The ride begins by transforming riders into pets through a camera that tracks the riders' facial features (this facial data is automatically deleted, per Universal Studios' privacy policy). Riders can look at their pet counterparts and make different looks or body movements. The ride then goes through the wacky adventures that pets go through while their owners are away.

This wasn't a simulation ride like most other rides. Rather, this takes you through various sets with physical props and backdrops that resemble the movies. This was definitely a fun and unique ride for all ages. I didn't expect it to be so entertaining.

DreamWorks Theater

This attraction replaced Shrek 4D and instead offers different attraction themes from different DreamWorks films, such as Shrek, Madagascar, and Kung Fu Panda. The theme when I visited was Kung Fu Panda. I was hoping this attraction would be the same or better quality compared to Shrek 4D. Unfortunately, this is way worse than Shrek 4D. In Shrek 4D, it was presented like an actual movie with special effects, like water sprinkling on the audience and the sensation of bugs crawling underneath your feet.

As I experienced the DreamWorks Theater, I noticed a very similar pattern with the rides I've been on. Most of them follow the same format of a 3D simulation where the riders follow the characters on a journey through excitement and danger. DreamWorks Theater follows this same format, which makes the attraction very predictable and boring.

Lunch

We've got lunch at Pink's Hot Dogs since I wanted to give Thu the experience of a renowned, local, and famous hot dog restaurant.

The hot dogs were delicious. However, the chili inside my hot dog was problematic at it was too hot or too cumbersome for the bun. This made the bun break off, spilling the insides onto the plate. I had to eat the rest of the hot dog with a fork. Despite the inconvenience, the hot dogs were still enjoyable.

Super Nintendo Land

Super Nintendo Land opened in early 2023, and I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to experience it. As we approached the entrance, we had to go through the green pipe, just like in the Mario video games to enter the area. Walking through the green pipe had enchanting rainbow LED lights and played the familiar sound of descending pipes.

Upon exiting the pipe, we found ourselves inside of Princess Peach's castle. The atmosphere and design of the castle were heavily inspired by the iconic castle from Super Mario 64. It truly felt like stepping into the world of Mario.

Leaving Peach's castle behind, I was immediately captivated by the immersive environment surrounding me. It was as if I had been transported into a real-life Mushroom Kingdom. Everywhere I looked, I saw familiar elements such as lush grassy hills, green pipes with pirahna plants, rotating coins, brick and power-up blocks, goombas, koopas, Yoshi, and much more. The attention to detail was astounding, and there were hidden surprises for those observant enough to spot them.

Super Nintendo Land truly exceeded my expectations with its meticulous design and faithful recreation of the Mario universe. It was an unforgettable experience that brought the beloved video game series to life in a way that delighted both young and old fans alike.

Mario Kart: Bowser's Challenge

This ride is the main attraction of the area. The wait was 90 minutes, the longest I had to wait for an attraction that day, but I hoped that it would be worth it. The queue line crosses through Bowser's Castle, and just like any other area in Super Mario World, there is so much attention to detail. There are racing trophies, a towering statue of Bowser, a Bob-Omb factory, and more. Among my favorites were the bookshelves whose book titles are references to the Mario Kart games. Such includes "The History of Moo Moo Farm" and one that shows shortcuts in several Mario Kart maps.

As for the ride itself, words cannot adequately convey my level of amazement. Each car accommodates four riders, and each individual can control the direction of the kart. Equipped with interactive glasses, riders are immersed in the world of Team Mario and Team Bowser, engaging in a thrilling competition. Using buttons on the steering wheel, we had the exhilarating opportunity to launch shells at Team Bowser while also collecting powerup blocks. Throughout the ride, we ventured through iconic Mario Kart tracks, including Bowser's Castle and Rainbow Road.

Among all the rides I've experienced at Universal Studios, this one undoubtedly claims the top spot. Its innovative features, interactive gameplay, and the sheer joy of participating in a real-life Mario Kart race left an indelible mark. This is an experience that I will never forget.

Other Lower Lot Attractions

Jurassic World

Jurassic World is a boat ride that takes riders through dinosaur habitats. The travel suddenly takes a dangerous turn where carnivorous dinosaurs are let loose.

The ride is essentially the same as the Jurassic Park ride, with the only difference being the updated environments that give it a more modern and futuristic feel.

Transformers 3D

I most likely have been on the Transformers ride before as a kid. Either way, it was a very fun and fast-paced 3D ride that has riders transporting the All-Spark to a safe location while the Autobots and Decepticons are battling each other.

The Mummy

This is my first time experiencing The Mummy ride since I have always been scared of roller coasters as a kid. The ride incorporates cinematic elements, takes place in a dark setting, and even features reverse tracks. Although it wasn't too intense, it provided a nice and memorable experience.

I guess my only complaint is that the ride wasn't too dark. Even inside the dark room, I was still able to see the track paths, which somewhat diminished the immersive experience for me.

Dinner

We ate at Chick Chick Chicken at the City Walk for dinner. We ordered the Asian-Style Chicken Sandwich and the Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich. The food here ranks between "good" and "great." They're tasty, can make you full for hours, but they're nothing really special.

However, the customer service here is non-existent. I can tell that the employees there don't want to be there and don't care about providing quality service. For those reasons, I wouldn't go here again unless they improve their service.

Conclusion

I had a blast with my experiences at Universal Studios. Super Nintendo Land was once of the best places I've been in a theme park. Even though there were some negatives at my visit, the pros outweighed the cons. Universal Studios is a must-visit destination for California residents or tourists.