This is the place we were most excited to visit. We love theme parks! I don't like extreme rides, but I just love the feeling of going around a theme park, seeing familiar characters, taking pictures, etc etc. And just like our Hong Kong blog post, I would be breaking down the USS into the different areas featured there. So it's going to be a multiple blog entry about USS. Anyway, Universal Studios Singapore is located at Sentosa Island. Again, it is recommended to allot 1 whole day for USS, and another day for Sentosa since both places are big. We made the mistake of cramming both areas into 1 day and Sentosa paid for that dearly. We got our USS ticket from Klook which was cheaper than the ones found all around Singapore or even online. Check out their website to see the latest prices. If you want, you can also check out your hotel reception if they're selling tickets, the hotel we stayed into was selling tickets but it was still cheaper at Klook. Also, if you do purchase your tickets from Klook, you don't have to print it out. You can just save the page, they have those bars in it, and show it at the entrance. Very convenient! Also, ver important note, compared to our horrendous HK Disneyland experience wherein each ride has a waiting time of around 3-4 hours, our USS experience was a breeze! We were able to get inside almost all the rides, some even twice. So, it's very important to take note of the date you would be going there, make sure it's not vacation time for the kids. And also, make sure to take that famous picture infront of the Universal Studios Globe!
Anyway, Universal Studios Singapore is the second Universal Studios theme park to open in Asia, and the first in Southeast Asia. It opened last March 18, 2010. The theme park is 20 hectares big with a total of 24 attractions. The park has a seven themed zones which surrounds a big lagoon. Each zone is based on a blockbuster movie or a television show, with several different places to go to in each area. Each zone also has random character appearances so watch out for that.
The first area you would be going through is the Hollywood Area which is at the main entrance area of the park. As the name implies, it looks like the Hollywood Boulevard, flanked by stores in both sides. We literally ran through the streets of the Hollywood Area with gaping mouths. It was so beautiful! It also features a replica of the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame. It's more of a shopping area though there's one attraction which is a theatre show. This is where you can also do your souvenir shopping, although there are stores in each area, in Hollywood, it's like a compilation of all the stores in different areas. So here are the different sections of the Hollywood Area.
Sesame Street Show - When I Grow Up
We didn't went inside this because it looked like it was for kids. But, according to the USS website, it features Elmo and the rest of the Sesame Street gang in a whimsical all-singing, all-dancing stage show where they talk about their dreams of being a firefighter, police officer, a singer, and a paleontologist. Barf.
Street Entertainments
You get to see either the Mel's Dinettes (the waitresses of Mel's Drive-in Restaurant) or The Cruisers, dance and sing in a stage. We were able to watch the Cruisers and it was a fun show, they sang groovy 1950s song I guess?
Hollywood China Bistro
At the name implies, it serves traditional Chinese dishes.
Mel's Drive-In
It's a drive-in diner, the typical 1950s diner serving American food favourites suck as milkshakes, burgers, fries, etc. Prices are a bit steep though. I was able to eat here when I was with my family, and the food was so-so. Nothing special though.
Starbucks
'Nuff said.
Meet and Greet
In the Hollywood Area, you can meet and greet the Minions, which is a must, and other Hollywood Icons such as Marilyn Monroe, Woody Woodpecker, Charlie Chaplin, etc. I think they have schedules of appearance in their website.
Shopping Areas
Go crazy over all the souvenirs that they have, ranging from keychains, to ballpens, to t-shirts, etc! This is one of our favourite part, souvenir shopping! So get your wallets ready because there's a lot to buy here! Of course, kind of a common sense, but do your shopping after you've explored the whole of USS so you don't have to carry all those plastic bags while going on rides.
- Universal Studios Store: USS themed items
- Silver Screen: Latest merchandise from famous blockbusters and other Hollywood memorabilia.
- Minion Mart: Despicable Me Themed Merchandise of course!
- The Dark Room: camera accessories and you can take fun photographs.
- Star Characters: exclusive character merchandises, ranging from Shrek to Jurassic Park to Transformers, etc.
- The Brown Derby: Sesame Street themed merchandises
- That's A Wrap: Located at the Entrance Plaza, pick up a variety of apparel, toys, novelties, hats and Universal Studios Singapore souvenirs. This is also where you can get your GSTs
Next up is the Madagascar Area!
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