Friday, June 9, 2017

Family Getaway: Universal Studios

June 3, 2017: We spent the day at Universal Studios Hollywood.  Josh got "Front of the Line" passes for us and it was definitely worth it!  They have set up special lines specifically for "Front of the Line" and with the pass you get to go on each ride and attend each show the park has to offer one time, without the waits!  Not having to wait in miserably long lines, in the heat, made our day so much more enjoyable!








 Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey made everyone's top 5 favorite rides list. It was so much fun!  And it was the first ride we tested our "Front of the Line" passes on.  The regular line was a 60 minute wait, and we just walked up the the ride and they put us right on.  It was amazing!  


 We all loved the WaterWorld Show.  Especially the plane crash at the end!  It landed almost right in front of where we were sitting.  So much fun!  Because of our passes Versii and I were able to stay for a special behind-the-scenes.  We found out that to get the plane to fly in, they catapult it from behind the wall and the plane is designed to take on 300 pounds of water so it landed in the same spot, every time.  After the show, they drain the water and a crane lifts it up and back over the wall to reset it for the next show.  The whole process takes 45 minutes.  
 Josh ran into Dracula.


 Only Josh and Kaden went in the Walking Dead.




 Megatron was very entertaining.

 So many stairs.  This was only one of 4 flights to get back up to the Upper Lot.  I walked this flight, but took the escalor up the rest.

 We all really enjoyed the Studio Tour too. 


 Amity Island, home of Jaws!


 Whoville.
 The Bates Motel.
 I can't remember the exact dollar amount, but the studio spent a ridiculous amount of money to purchase this real airplane only to destroy it for a 4-minutes of film.

We learned that when they film a production in the Old West Set, they hire a company to cover the pavement with sand.  When they are done filming, they come to vacuum the sand back up with huge vacuums, so they set stays clean during the times it's not in use.  
 The Animal Actors was a fun show too!
We loved Universal Studios!  We went on every ride and attended 2 of the 3 shows.  
***
Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey
Flight of the Hippogriff
WaterWorld
The Walking Dead (Just Josh & Kaden)
The Simpsons Ride
Despicable Me
Revenge of the Mummy
Jurassic Park
Transformers
Studio Tour
Animal Actors
***
I would definitely go back to Universal Studios in the future!  They definitely are a step-up from Disney with their "Front of the Line" option.  It's the only way to go!

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