A little late writing this review, but I needed to make sure I wrote one.
This was my husband and I's second time doing the VIP tour at Universal Studios Hollywood. We previously did it in 2019 and again on August 23 2022.
We had such a great time the first time we did it, we thought this would be an amazing experience for our moms. Who were meeting for the first time as well.
When I first booked the VIP Tour online, it was easy. Afterwards I called Customer Service, because I was wondering if possible we could get the same tour guide (Laura) as we did in 2019. I even said to the customer service person, this is probably a crazy request and it being 3 years later and a pandemic, who knows if she even works there anymore, but he said he would make a note.
The day we arrived and checked in, to my surprise we got Laura! I was over the moon excited. She is an amazing tour guide, so knowledgable, funny, and just a wonderful person. You spend a whole day with your tour guide and get to know them, so by the end of our second tour with Laura she is like a friend to us.
I just want to thank Universal for taking my request and for Laura switching her schedule to make sure we got her as our tour guide.
This second time around was also wonderful, because it was a bit different from the first time we went. Usually you can enter one of the sound studios where they are filming current shows and walk through the prop warehouse, but do to COVID restrictions we couldn't. This may have changed by now, not sure. Which I wasn't mad about, because we got to be on the outdoor sets longer and see something totally different.
The whole VIP experience is wonderful. When you first get there, you are treated like a movie star. You get breakfast which is delicious. Then you meet your tour guide and they go over the day. There are two ways it can go. First half do the backlot tour, lunch then rides, or vice versa. We did the rides first and you get the skip the lines! Also if there are any issues with rides, the tour guides make an effort to get back to it later. That happened this time with Jurassic Park, it wasn't operating, but then later we came back. Also during the backlot tour there is plenty of water they provide you with and two groups come together so when one tour guide is giving you inside info the other can answer questions and take pictures for you.
You also get special seating to the Water World stunt show. The lunch you get is so yummy. It is a buffet with so many choices, there is something for everyone and they even have speciality diet items as well. Different characters come out and chat with you also. We got to meet Lucy on this trip and she was so funny! Just like the actual Lucy....Amazing!
If you have the budget to do the VIP tour it is worth it. I don't think we will ever visit Universal Hollywood Studios without doing it, because it just makes it so easy, wonderful and stress free.
Laura mentioned she also does the RIP tours during Halloween Horror Nights. I hope she is still with the company next year, because my husband and I are planning to come and want her as our guide!
Thank you to Laura for twice making our experience memorable and something we will always cherish. Your smile, humor, and personality left a place in our hearts!
Thank you to all the folks who work the VIP experience at Universal Hollywood for making this experience so enjoyable and worth every penny!