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Post by a1000monkeys on Mar 30, 2024 23:41:16 GMT -5
This year my 3 kids’ spring breaks did not align. The two older kids had spring break before Easter but DS15 had it after. We decided we would drive DS19 back to UC Santa Barbara after his spring break and make a quick weekend trip to LA before we dropped him off.
Since we only had one full day, and it was going to be a busy Saturday during spring break, we decided to splurge on VIP passes at Universal as it was the only way to bypass the line for Mario Kart at Nintendo world.
We did the VIP experience a couple years ago and it was great but that was on a weekday. With the surge pricing and the opening of Nintendo World, it was about $100/pp more than 2 years ago.
While I booked the tickets months ago, I was not expecting LA rain. It rained the night before and the morning we arrived and that was plenty to keep the crowds away. The park attendance was about 1/3 of what they were expecting. It stopped raining except for an occasional drizzle but it was also surprisingly chilly. Still, I’ll take less than ideal weather over crowds any day.
while the crowds were light enough that we didn’t really need to bypass the lines, the VIP experience was still worth it, especially for the Backlot tour.
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Post by a1000monkeys on Mar 30, 2024 23:54:38 GMT -5
The VIP tour starts with a lounge check in. There they give you ponchos and your VIP lanyards and you head upstairs to a lounge with tasty snacks and drinks. You are assigné a tour guide who will come scoop you up for your allotted tour time. Our guide was very knowledgeable and super enthusiastic.
We headed down to the lower lot first and did all the rides, Transformers, Jurassic Park, the Mummy and Nintendo World with Mario Kart ride. To me Mario Kart was like TSMM on steroids. It was pretty cool. We ended up going back later to ride it again.
Because of the low crowds we finished everything sooner than expected so our guide arranged a van to pick us up backstage at the lower lot and then whisked us up just in time to catch the Waterworld Stunt Show. It is amazing show. Definitely better than the Indiana Jones show, but the Raider of the Lost Ark was a much better movie.
After the show we hit Harry Potter land. I walked through the castle but ducked out before the ride as it made me a bit queasy the last time I rode. My family went on it though.
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Post by a1000monkeys on Mar 31, 2024 0:28:57 GMT -5
After Harry Potter we walked backstage to City Walk for lunch. This was a bit of a disappointment. Last time they provided a fabulous buffet lunch at a French restaurant in the park but it was closed for refurbishment (or maybe due to the Fast and Furious coaster they are building. Instead they closed off Margaritaviile for us. It was good but not nearly as good the buffet we had last time.
After lunch it was time for our backlot tour. This was definitely the highlight of the day. We had a completely different tour than last time. Last time we got to walk around Little Europe (where they filmed the Good Place) and the War of the Worlds plane crash scene, this time we got to explore a sound stage and walk through the set of Quantam Leap, then we walked through a props building and finally got to walk around the Metropolitan set including the town square famous for Back to the Future. This was in addition to the Kong 360, Jaws and Fast and Furious Turbocharged experiences. The fact that it is a busy, actually working backlot make US Hollywood way more interesting than its Orlando cousin.
The backlot tour was far longer than tram tour for regular guests. You get a smaller and more comfortable tram and the opportunity to get out and explore. But the tour changes frequently depending on where they are filming. Last time filming prevented us from even driving through the Metropolitan set.
After the backlot tour, our tourguide left us but we were free to use our VIP passes to skip the lines. So we explored Springfield and hit the Simpsons ride. It made me less queasy this time. Did it use to require 3D glasses? It didn’t this time and maybe that made the difference.
After that we breezed through Minion Mayem and Secret Life of Pets. After that we headed back down to Nintendo World to explore it without any crowds. It started drizzling again so most people left. At that point Mario Kart had the longest line in the park at 25 mins.
After riding Mario Kart again we headed back up to a very empty Harry Potter land because the kids wanted butter beer. After we got a butter beer we watched the nighttime castle light show. We then got to explore the land without crowds and could walk into any shop with room to move. I finally saw what Olivanders was all about sine there was no wait. Fortunately we weren’t picked to receive an overpriced wand.
After a stop in the candy shop, we were done. We got our call, hit no traffic and we were back at our hotel by 9p.
I think the VIP tour for this day cost about $429/pp. expensive but I felt it was worth it. Our guide was great and they really do make you feel like VIPs, whisking you backstage with private tours. It also comes with valet parking and lunch. If you only have one day and want to experience everything without a hassle, I definitely recommend the VIP experience.
Please forgive all the typos. I’m doing this on my phone.
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Post by baymaxfan on Mar 31, 2024 1:58:48 GMT -5
Thanks for this report. My wife and I are planning on doing this sometime in 2024.
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Post by dlwdwdvc on Mar 31, 2024 4:01:06 GMT -5
I also enjoyed your trip report .
Thanks !
I often have wondered how crazy crowded fun their CityWalk is for New Years Eve !
My family is in the San Diego and Ventura County areas and I see they had flooding weather alert about to expire .
But you got lucky kinda .
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Post by Adelard of Bath on Mar 31, 2024 11:13:38 GMT -5
I'm excited to hear the backlot stuff still exists out there!
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Post by a1000monkeys on Mar 31, 2024 11:55:41 GMT -5
I also enjoyed your trip report . Thanks ! I often have wondered how crazy crowded fun their CityWalk is for New Years Eve ! My family is in the San Diego and Ventura County areas and I see they had flooding weather alert about to expire . But you got lucky kinda . I bet it would be really fun. The drizzle and cold kept the crowds away but a DJ still got about 30 young people to dance in the rain at City Walk. |
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Post by MinnieMom on Apr 1, 2024 7:45:51 GMT -5
That's really cool! Thanks for sharing the details.
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Post by Brian5581 on Apr 6, 2024 18:26:39 GMT -5
Thanks for sharing. I miss the Hollywood Studios working backlot tour, would be nice to visit one again.
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