Help me get a touring plan for my 15 y/o at Universal please

[golfntob]

Hi,

My 15 y/o has the opportunity to visit Universal California as part of a school trip NEXT WEEK. Yikes! I'm a planner & we have previously done the TGM style for all of our WDW trips. Never been to CA but he knows & understand TGM style.

They will not be there at park opening b/c they are scheduled to eat bfst at the hotel at 8 am and will leave after that. They will stay until about 9pm.

What are some tips I can give him about which attractions to hit first, second, etc? Which ones should he save for later? Where are some good places to eat? Way to maximize food dollars?

So glad to have this board for a reference. I will print off a map and have him familiarize himself with the park before he gets there. I know he will be bummed if he ends up spending time waiting in lines just b/c he doesn't know a good plan.


Thanks everyone!
Tam

 

[CaptainEIEIO]

There are two levels to Universal, top of the hill and bottom of the hill. There are escalators that take you up and down so you don't have to do stairs. The bottom of the hill is a small area, but actually has most of the better rides in it.

Backlot tour is a must do and you must do it first, its up top. The line only gets longer and longer and it closes earlier than the park does. King Kong 360, 3D is on the backlot tour too so he will get that really cool thing out of the way. After that most of the good rides are at the bottom of the hill.

So go down to the bottom of the hill and do Transformers, The Mummy, and Jurrassic Park (water ride). Once those are done then you can go back to the top of the hill and do whatever he thinks he will like up there. The Waterworld show is a great show and he should like that too. Just remember if he sits to close HE WILL GET WET!!!!! They use to have a Terminator 3D show, but I don't see it listed anymore under attractions. If it is still there thats another good show.

Just let him also know that Universal likes to get you wet. A lot of there rides you get squirted or misted or totally wet. How much depends on where you sit most of the time. He should have pleanty of time to see everything because it actually isn't that big of a park.

But dont let him forget the Backlot Tour, its probably the coolest thing they have. Okay, Transformers is pretty damn cool too, but he should recognize lots of areas that he has already seen in movies on the Backlot Tour and if hes lucky he may even see an actor or two.

 

[danaesacto]

Don't forget single rider lines if they are open- we rode The Mummy 2x before the people in the regular line even got on one busy Saturday! I'm not sure what else has a SR line though...

 

[golfntob]

Don't forget single rider lines if they are open-

Great tip! Teens won't feel the need to ride together I'm sure.

 

[golfntob]

Great tips! I will definitely pass them along. I think the backlot is a great idea b/c they will be in LA for a Student Television Network convention. They will also be touring Warner Bros and the Dolby (kodak) Theater. Should be an awesome trip.

 

[golfntob]

Any good places to eat in the park? He knows enough to not eat at peak times.

 

[CaptainEIEIO]

Any good places to eat in the park? He knows enough to not eat at peak times.

We ate at Mels Diner. I had the steak burger and my wife had the chicken sandwich. Both were good.

Thats the only place we at in the park, there are all kinds of restuarants right outside the park. And they are all just right outside the gates, and I literally mean they are right outside the gates, no street crossing or anything, just go past the Universal Globe at the entrance and turn left and there they are, less than 50 steps away. Its called Universal City Walk and it is pretty big with lots of restaurants from quick eats to great dining. Sometimes you have to walk through it just to get to the gates because the parking is below it. I don't know about busses though if he is riding one of those.

Here is the link that will show you all about the City Walk and whats their.

http://www.citywalkhollywood.com/

 

[danaesacto]

A few more things I thought about- first: my girls were 12 & 13 and adventurous when we had our season pass last summer- so I am thinking abt this for a 15 y/o- if he has to pick and choose and not do something- leave the animals show out unless he is huge animal lover- it is cute but not a must see for teens IMO- if he is into special effects- don't miss that show.

The tour groups start to leave around 5-7 but that is also what time the park closes all next week so this may not work for him- but tell him to pay attention to the studio tour wait times (big board tells you what they are). Sometimes in the evening, the wait drops dramatically as those big groups go. If he can ride it a second time- it is never the same tour twice. There are different routes they take, different areas could be closed- yes even from morning to evening. We went one morning and the were filming Desperate Housewives- so a huge section was closed and we went a way we had never done before. Later that same day that route was open and we saw other things. The special effects look different based on where you sit in the tram- so one time left front, other time back right.

As for food my girls are a "short lines are best- who cares what we eat" kind of people lol! We did Mel's Diner once, but we do the counter service down stairs by Jurassic park and the one in front of the Simpsons- standard theme park food- not horrible, just okay.

 

[golfntob]

A few more things I thought about- first: my girls were 12 & 13 and adventurous when we had our season pass last summer- so I am thinking abt this for a 15 y/o- if he has to pick and choose and not do something- leave the animals show out unless he is huge animal lover- it is cute but not a must see for teens IMO- if he is into special effects- don't miss that show.

The tour groups start to leave around 5-7 but that is also what time the park closes all next week so this may not work for him- but tell him to pay attention to the studio tour wait times (big board tells you what they are). Sometimes in the evening, the wait drops dramatically as those big groups go. If he can ride it a second time- it is never the same tour twice. There are different routes they take, different areas could be closed- yes even from morning to evening. We went one morning and the were filming Desperate Housewives- so a huge section was closed and we went a way we had never done before. Later that same day that route was open and we saw other things. The special effects look different based on where you sit in the tram- so one time left front, other time back right.

As for food my girls are a "short lines are best- who cares what we eat" kind of people lol! We did Mel's Diner once, but we do the counter service down stairs by Jurassic park and the one in front of the Simpsons- standard theme park food- not horrible, just okay.

Oh yeah, now you're thinking like a teen...not horrible, just okay, short lines are best. LOL!!!

I'm guess I'm used to Disney b/c I checked the times and thought a 5pm close couldn't possibly be correct but I guess it is. I will also be sure to tell him to skip the animal shows but to make time for the special effects shows. Is there a site that gives show times like stitchkingdom for WDW does?

Thank you again! Great help!
Tam

 

[StageTek]

Hi,
My 15 y/o has the opportunity to visit Universal California as part of a school trip NEXT WEEK.

Weekday or weekend?

 

[Armadillo4]

If it's a school group, I'm guessing they'll be going during the week. In that case, it will be a weekday before the spring break period and the park will not be crowded--one of the main reasons why the park hours are so short.

I agree that the Backlot Tour (aka the tram tour) should be done first, followed by Transformers and the rest of rides on the lower lot. At first, I thought a teenager might want to prioritize Transformers first, but I don't think anyone will have to worry about long lines on a weekday*, even for the newest attraction.

Note, the Backlot Tour can take anywhere from 40-50 minutes. With a short day, it's something to keep in mind, especially if there's a show they want to catch, e.g. Waterworld.

Someone mentioned Terminator 2 3-D. That attraction unfortunately closed on Dec. 31. They're building a new ride in its place, rumored to be Despicable Me: Minon Mayhem.

For teens, I think a headliner attraction will be The Simpsons Ride. This ride is on the upper lot and is one of my favorites.

There are electronic wait time boards throughout the park, but if your son has a smartphone, go ahead and have him bookmark http://www.ushwaittimes.com on his phone's web browser ahead of time. You can also check this from any web browser at any time, so try it tomorrow (during park operating hours) and you'll get a sense of the wait times during a weekday.

Good luck with the rest of your planning!

*If the school group is going during a weekend, then I would suggest Transformers first.

 

[Armadillo4]

Here is a screenshot from ushwaittimes.com from earlier today (Thursday) at 2:37pm. As you can see, the waits are pretty short for everything, even during the peak afternoon time.

I checked back an hour later and there wasn't much change, except that the wait times for the Studio Tour (aka the Backlot Tour) and The Simpsons had both gone down to 20 min.

I think your son and his school group will have a great time with low crowds!

 

[golfntob]

Wonderful information. We are bookmarking it now. Thank you for your help!