Something Other than DLR? How about 5 more days in LA - a TR

[flynnibus]

There really isn't a TR forum for West Coast.. so will stick this here and if they move it somewhere.. great

So in this thread I covered the start of my trip.. 3 days at DLR - https://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/flynnibus-returns-to-dlr-thoughts-and-experience.986768

But that's just the start.. I had 5+ more full days in the LA area. What would I do? A ton of stuff.. Let's go on a trip report and hear some commentary along the way!

Day 1

So wife had been in SoCal for an extended time for work, so I had planned to come out and steal some days with her to get a break from work, and maybe double dip on some hotels and airfare.

Unfortunately the work schedule keep changing delayed the trip a bit and made it so there was basically no pre-planning. Ultimately, I got the go sign with only about 10 days before I would go. So this would be a very adhoc trip. But people say when you are in SoCal you should do more than just Disney right? So that was the intent of this trip... do 3 days of Disney and then.. what else? Let's find out.

Trip started with me flying into LAX, getting a car, and then heading to Torrence to meet the wife at work. Drive was decent, decided to hit Hermosa Brewing for a bit to play some pinball while killing time waiting for the wife to be finished work.

After 2hrs or so, I collected the wife, and then headed to Anaheim to our next home base.. Camelot Inn on Harbor for our DLR portion.

Days 2,3,4
I won't rehash the Disney portion.. you can see some thoughts in this thread - https://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/flynnibus-returns-to-dlr-thoughts-and-experience.986768 But we basically did 2 days of DL, 1 day of DCA. I had tried to move the days to get to see the evening entertainment, but only managed to see Fireworks on Friday night.

Day 5
After our Disney days.. I knew we'd need a bit of a break, so I planned a low key day. Monday morning we checked out of Anaheim, and headed towards Hollywood area... We'd have a few hours to kill before Checkin time, so we checked out the Petersen Museum.

Dream car

They had some cool collections right now.. like all of the Ken Brock vehicles (gymkhana and Hoonigan - look it up if you don't know).

We even did the Vault add-on to the ticket, where you go through their parking garage where they have like 300 MORE cars

Overall an insane collection.. a bit heavy on the concept cars.. I thought they'd have more screen used cars than they did (movie cars). But if you are even remotely interested in cars - a worthy destination.

Without a plan about what's next.. we decided to walk over to the La Brae Tarpits since they were just a few blocks away. We just walked through the park, skipping the museum (we have the Smithsonian in our backyard.. kinda hard to top them). We got to see one of the active dig sites.. but its def one of those things you can check off you did, but don't put high expectations on the place.

Next, we headed towards the hollywood hills to check in to our next hotel.. The Garland, which is an older hotel right near Universal Studios, that I picked for knowing it had a relaxing pool deck+food setup. The evening was dinner on the pool deck, and soaking in the adult only hottub..

Day 6

Tuesday was our next big activity... Universal Studios Hollywood! Neither of us have ever been to the OG Universal, only having done the orlando version. Since we only had one day, and I was kinda jazzed by the studio potential, I opt'd to do the VIP tour package for our day. It includes an enhanced version of the tour, small group+guide for the park, lunch, and unlimited express pass.

Proof

Our Tour time was 10:30, with the park opening at 10. The VIP includes valet parking, so we were able to drive right up close and park easily. We still got there about 9:50.. and our day started with checking in at VIP, where they had light fare and snacks for you while you waited for your time. View from the balcony as I ate some breakfast

I used my time to check out the store and get on my team of choice... Unfortunately the team member in the store was freaking awful. Unfortunately she was hard of hearing.. so no idea why you put someone like that at the register where people need to interact.. but she was so useless in helping me understand how to pick a band or use it. I was on my own.. so picked.. MARIO!

When our time was ready, our guide gathered us up.. our group was about 12-13 people, and we'd start with the studio tour, then do some rides, lunch, and then about 2more hours with the guide, then we'd be free in the park with express pass to do as we pleased. You can always leave your guide early, divert, etc.. but we stayed with her for the duration.

Part of the VIP package is your small group rides on different trollys vs the normal tour, and you are able to get off in key areas and be walked through different stuff. This is what I was most interested in. Unfortunately, it was the part that let me down the most.

Our tour consisted of going through the various backlot areas and doing the same sequences the general tour does (kong, disaster, jaws), but parking and walking through some of the backlots. We didn't get to goto any soundstages at all. We did walk through the prop building, but only floor 1 which is all... furniture. Literally just rows of chairs, tables, etc. Interesting from a 'how things work' angle, but very bland. The lots we got off and walked through were long idle.. and most of the movie references they had were more from the 70s and some 80s films at best. Or a 30 second clip from Pirates of the Carribean, etc. I really wanted to see the BTTF square.. but not sure what they did there after the last fire. Either way, we didn't go there.

Honestly, as fake as the DMGM tour was... in its heyday it was honestly a lot better than this was. The tour was a big let down - not worth anyone's time IMO.

 

[flynnibus]

After the tour, we started with Super Mario Land.. and rode the only attraction in the land.. Mario Kart. My first opportunity to use my band! Unfortunately... it didn't seem to work.. it didn't save my progress or achievement

After that we were walked right on Transformers by our guide.. USO's copy is identical AFAIK. Next, we were walked right onto Jurrassic World. We also had free ponchos from the VIP tour which we used. I do like the upgrades to this ride.. I think its a very solid and fun ride, even if one of the big screen/tank sequences is kinda drawn out/repetitive. Next, walked right onto Mummy - I passed due to my back so can't compare, but I know this ride differs some vs USO. After that, we headed up to the upper lot and I think Lunch was next.

Lunch however was great. It was an all you can eat buffet in a dining area just for the VIP tours. Food was good and plentiful. I think we had about an hour for lunch, and then we met back with our guide.

She led us through Secret Life of Pets.. which is a solid modern "dark ride".. then Minions Mayhem... and then we caught the last Waterworld show of the day. Again with reserved seating for the VIP tours. The stage and stunt shows seem to be a dying breed in modern parks, but Waterworld is a pretty solid show. Having live actors is a welcome throwback to earlier days. But boy do people in the splash zone get wet.. and not wet.. POUNDED with water. That's extreme

Lastly after the show, we went over to Hogsmede, where we rode Flight of Hypogriff for the worst coaster experience in a theme park, and then were walked on Forbidden Journey. It seems the queue here is significantly different than USO, but generally the same jist. I skipped the ride again due to my back. After that, our time with the tour guide was up.. it was about 4pm, and the park was closing at 6pm that day.

So from 10:30 to 4pm, we hit all the headliners in the park. The only attractions we didn't do were Simpsons and Kungfu Panda. We never waited at any attraction except at Mario Kart, where we had to wait in the pre-show room, but still had our own line.

So was VIP worth it? I think for a first time visitor, it certainly maximizes your time. But it also basically puts you in commando mode.. you just move from point to point. I think the enhanced version of the Studio Tour was a huge let down... Lunch was good. Valet parking was great. The only real negative IMO was we had such little free time afterwards. If you were a repeat visitor, you'd probably want to skip things like Waterworld.. or even the tour.. so compared to just buying express pass I guess it would really depend on the price for the days you are there. For us, I bought through undercover tourist and it cost us $700 total for 2 people. I think normal park admission was like $160 or something for those days.. and I didn't look at what express pass cost was for that day.

So, we had about two hours left.. since my adhoc setup meant I missed key things like Olga's in SWGE at DL.. I figured I didn't want to miss the Toadstool cafe here. It was on a virtual queue all day, so late in the day I made a reservation for 5:15. So with only about 30-40mins before then, I wanted to explore SMW more.

I got to do all the activities, and since it was so late in the day, SMW was virtually empty. I think I waited once or twice for things. While the land is built for exploring.. I do wish there was a bit more guidance in the app on things you could try.. or at least hints. I struggled to decode everything the map was telling me to do.. and I think I missed a bunch of stuff. The bowser jr battle was pretty fun. The other mini games, are aimed pretty young... I think probably 7-12 is probably peak target here. While us GenXs get the nostalgia, it's wide open nature doesn't really give me immersion vibes. It's neat fun.. but felt more like a playground than 'I'm in the game!'

When our time was ready, we walked to the Cafe.. to find it virtually empty. Yet they had the place throttled with a sign saying there were no more spots available today (and had been out for awhile). It's really perplexing how they limit themselves so much here. We ordered some snacks (the cupcake and garlic bites) and really just wanted to take the place in atmosphere wise. While the place was nice, I don't think it was anything to write home about. Maybe I'd put the atmosphere on something like Animator's Palette on the cruise ships, but less. It beats a McDonalds.. was cute... but not awe inspiring. I wouldn't say buy food just to see it.

After our food, we went back for one more Mario Kart ride... hoping I could collect my trophy I was denied the earlier ride. Once again, I completed the objective (with like 109 coins) but once again, my band didn't register with the ride... and I was denied any progress recorded There really were no TMs around either to assist.. just the people focused on the ride itself.

By this time it was basically 6pm.. so they were already on lockdown in SMW... funneling guests towards the exit. Our day was over.

That ride out from the lower lot is a long one... UNI really closes up shop quick and hard too. We went through the shops at the front of the park, but alas didn't find anything really grabbing our attention. My partial progress Mario band was all we ended up buying merch wise in the park.

So conclusion on USH?


1 - USO is a ton more to do and more fun
2 - Maybe you need more than one day to really see it all, but I don't know why anyone would buy a AP except for the special events
3 - Simpsons Land is arguably a lot better in USH
4 - Super Mario with only 1 ride is a crime
5 - A good day dodge while in the area, but I find it hard to think you'd travel just for this...

A one and done in my book.

After that, we headed back to the hotel to decompress for the night... trying to make the most of my 'semi-resort' experience at the Garland.

More to come.. from all over LA!

 

[flynnibus]

Day 6

So what do you do when you visit LA area? I actually struggled a bit to form a plan of what to do.. but I figured 'get on a TV show!' or see a taping was an easy thing to do.. right they make so much TV out here! Well, when I started googling, all I really found was the Jimmy Fallon show, and The Price is Right. This really confused me, but I really didn't see much more besides these attendance sites that would show upcoming shows.. oh I think the Voice was taping too.

So when planning, I picked The Price is Right using https://on-camera-audiences.com/

I picked a date and time.. and got 'priority tickets' - which basically meant as long as we were on-time, we should get into the taping. I was then exposed to all their 'dress code' rules and suggestions, which make perfect sense, but in your normal tourist kind movement, you don't think about. So I had to specifically pack slacks, a certain kind of shirt, shoes, etc. I then had to navigate how to tell my wife to dress a certain way.. so we could avoid getting excluded from being on the show or on camera. Next was all the reviews or past info about 'how to get picked' or just generally, what the whole experience was like. People said expect a ton of waiting.. eat before hand.. and no cell phones. Well, I picked tickets for 1:30 for Day 6, knowing we would be checking out of our hotel that day, and it would give us a relaxed sleep in day, and would carry us over till check-in time for our next hotel.

We had some breakfast and then headed to the designated spot.. A church parking lot. Turns out there is a big building next to where the new studio is, and they stage you here, then send you to the studio. Wanting to be there early for potentially good seating.. we planned to be there 1hr before our must-be-there time of 1:30.

We arrived to find a previous group of people walking out.. so found some parking easy enough, and then found a pop-up tent with chairs lined up, luckily all under pop-up tents. We were told to sit and they'd be with us soon. At first there was only like 5 other people sitting there with us.. but as more and more people started moving around, other groups were being seen by the assistants at the table. Were we getting passed over? It was kinda confusing, but I was just trying to trust the system.. Seems like people from earlier shows were being processed again to be in the next show, etc. As more people started showing up, the assistants were adament they hadn't started checking in 1:30 people yet, so please have a seat.

After awhile they started handing out numbers to those sitting in the seats.. we were #3 and #4! Then they lead us to some laptops to fill out the consent forms.. easy.. then we were lined up waiting for our group of about 25 people to finish. This was really the only time we were made to wait out from under cover. They also had water for us back at the earlier waiting point. The waiting spot was to go into the church.. and first signs of life..

The sign got people excited.. people were taking photos, etc.

We were then lead inside to another holding room.. this one was like your high school band room or something.. but was decorated with various Price is right stuff.. there was a podium in there, a fake showcase showdown setup, etc.. just kinda stuff for you to pose with, etc. Again there were chairs in here to sit, they asked us to stay in order.. but we could do whatever in this room, and there was water and snacks available to hold us over. I think we were in here by 1:40pm or so..

At checkin they had given us our iconic name tags too - but we weren't wearing them .. yet

The whole thing with the show and contestants is they really want to see energy, etc.. so plenty of people are hamming it up, trying to be all party, etc. It wasn't too over the top, but you can certainly see people trying.. They tell you to be yourself, but have fun, be excited, etc. So we're just playing some, killing time while we wait..

Not long after we get in there, they start playing some 'coaching video' which is basically just watching some old price is right shows Then, they started calling us in for interviews. They basically took us about 10 at a time, walked us into a room with 2 producers, we were lined up, and one by one the producer would ask us who we were, 2-3 questions.. where you from, what you do, etc. It's pretty quick. But you also don't know how much they've been watching you before, who is really taking notes, etc. So after that, we go back to our holding room.. watch more old shows, until they get everyone through. There are 60 people in our room.. They call 9 people in the show. They say the studio is small.. but it can't be only 60 people right? There must be more people...

Well, it turns out the contestant pool really is these 60 people. The rest of the audience will be filled in by returners, etc.. but the 9 contestants.. gonna be picked from these 60 people!!

Eventually the producers come out, tell us how the show is gonna happen. How they are going to cue us for applause, etc. Letting you know you won't be able to hear when they call your name.. there will be someone at the front holding up a card with a name.. see your name... GO CRAZY!! I think they did a good job outlining how the studio experience was going to go.

Now it was roughly 3pm, and they were walking us over to the studio.. which was maybe a 150yrd walk. There, they had someone checking all electronic devices like a coat check.. all phones, smartwatches, etc. Nothing allowed in the studio. We're still lined up in our assigned order.. so hoping we get to sit up front or right behind the contestants to be on camera for sure!

We walk into the soundstage, through some usual back of house stuff, and then.. onto the stage! We enter from the back of the studio.. it's very modern.. They just moved to this new set and studio like 4-5 years ago due to redevelopment happening on the CBS lot. The screens are animated, etc. The entire set is probably the size of a small school gym? Seating for about 150 people.. But as we come in... producers are there.. and group by group, they pick where you are going to sit. That's right, they assign you.. and they were spreading people all kinds of places..

Turns out though, we got to sit 2nd row, right along the aisle the contestants come down!! Gotta be on camera here right??

It didn't take them long to load things up.. and there are people mulling around the stage with their cameras, etc.. I think there were at least 3 rollers plus a boom camera. The producers are there talking to everyone.. one even came and gave us a last min word of encouragement.. and before you know it the announcer George Gray comes out.. tells us welcome, a min outline of how things will go, and then Drew Carey comes out. He does some intros.. and before you know it.. they are ready to roll!

It really was kind of informal how things started.. but bam.. make some noise, cameras are rolling.. and before you know it.. the first card is up and the place goes wild! They tell you to be ready to be exhausted because of how much cheering you are expected to do. I did so much, I even hurt my hand!

Straight up bruised my thumb clapping!

The first game was up... I couldn't hear a thing about the prize they were bidding on as the crowd was still going nuts. Then you see some of the TV production.. they basically stop... do some extra footage of the host with the prize, etc.. and then they are bidding.. and you can hear Drew, but not much else. The part that caught me off guard was, after the first player went up on stage and played their game.. there was like ZERO break before bam! next card is up and everyone's going wild again. The pace was pretty hectic at first!

But then they went to their first commercial break, and for some reason they do like long breaks during the commercial breaks, almost like it was real-time or something.. Drew and George talk to the audience during most of the breaks.. asking questions, etc.. very informal, very personal, which was cool in itself if you are a fan.

The taping was fun and interesting.. the only other TV magic reveal was they do all the wheel spins together at the end, so they don't have to break down that set more than once. They also pretty much just use curtains on wheels to hide the next game before the reveal. Contestants don't really have any enhanced view of the prizes, etc.. it's literally what they can see across the room.

I can't give any spoilers.. but luckily our show is airing soon.. Oct 24th! So keep an eye out. Hoping at least with our seating we should get good screen time.

Eventually the taping wraps up. I think we were walking out by about 5:30.. after being lead to the studio about 3pm. Had been there since 12:30... it never felt draining or really dragged out. I don't know if I could do two tapings, but one, I would definitely recommend.

From there, we had to make our way to our next hotel, which was just a simple Hampton Inn picked for it's hopefully kinda central location and reasonable prices. So this was more over in Glendale/Burbank/NoHo area.. when we got there, it was certainly just a lot more avg city and nothing special, but it was affordable and not too far from the areas we wanted to visit. There was a Denny's right next door, which made for some easy comfort food to finish the day. As I still had to plan what tomorrow would be!

Till the next episode...

 

[flynnibus]

Well, after settling in.. I finally got some input on what SHE wanted to do on the trip.. as up to this point she'd been largely in 'tag along' mode and I had to pick everything to do. I suggested doing some tourist stuff in Hollywood.. she gave me some checkboxes she wanted.. like see Rodeo Drive.. maybe some hollywood stars.. see the hollywood sign.. wanted to goto the beach. I had some ideas.. maybe some bus tours.. there were other studios like WB or Sony you could goto.. but only WB seemed like a maybe worth it.

So I made a plan.. tomorrow was maybe iffy weather.. but Friday was looking better. So how about Friday a beach day, Thursday a Hollywood day? Looking around on tripadvisor, I settled on a 3.5hr tour that went to the hollywood sign, beverly hills and more - picked this one - https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attract...everly_Hills_Tour-Los_Angeles_California.html

Again, picked a later start time so we could have an easy morning.

Day 7
The day started with sleeping in, and then breakfast at Red Maple in Toluca Lake. It was nice. Then we figured we'd walk around the Chinese Theatre area, etc and sight see a bit before our scheduled tour time at 2:30pm

So rather than fight parking.. we just parked at the Dolby Theatre which is part of basically a mall, which made parking simple. We then walked up and down the street to checkout the walk of fame...

First, turns our Jimmy Fallon is right here too!

Checked out the Chinese Theatre.. I was keen on doing a tour, but didn't make it happen at the end...

I gotta say.. I feel the DMGM version is a good stand-in and really is a similar vibe/experience.. Except for the fact the entire area around it feels more like a smaller version of Times Square or the LV Strip

Took some photos of favorites...

Overall.. walking the area really was like walking the strip in Vegas.. you're mainly there to look around, but don't really need any of the junk they are pushing. The area is a nice 'checkbox' to say you've seen it, but nothing super stand out.

Maybe going into one of the theatres like El Captain or the Chinese Theater would have boosted it a bit.

After walking up and down the blvd there.. we basically had to find our meeting point for the tour. Now in hindsight, these tours were a bit all over the place in what they offer, but if you were trying to get a deal.. the guys trying to sell the tours are EVERYWHERE down there, so probably trying to negotiate a 'right now' deal probably is in the cards. I had turned off my thrift brain cells long before on this trip, so I was fine with my pre-purchase.

After one false start if 'hollywood vip tours' was the same as ours.. he pointed us to a 'visitor center' store front just adjacent that was our spot. They actually had a lounge up stairs indoors we could wait in and gave us a bottle of water. We waited about 25mins, talking to another couple up there till our tour time. Then, we loaded up in a van, about 6 of us for our tour.

At first I was a little concerned about the van.. vs those open top tour buses... but the tour guide was adament this was the better thing because he could go places those bigger buses couldn't go!

Our tour started by heading towards the Hollywood sign.. and driving through the hollywoodland neighborhood up into the hills. This was our first real exposure to the tight hillside neighborhoods and streets.. and it's certainly an experience! Being a private tour, we went to a spot near the base of the hill, that was nothing more than a gravel lane between three houses.. rather than the state park which is further away. We got great views of the sign..

more to come...

 

[PiratesMansion]

After the tour, we started with Super Mario Land.. and rode the only attraction in the land.. Mario Kart. My first opportunity to use my band! Unfortunately... it didn't seem to work.. it didn't save my progress or achievement

After that we were walked right on Transformers by our guide.. USO's copy is identical AFAIK. Next, we were walked right onto Jurrassic World. We also had free ponchos from the VIP tour which we used. I do like the upgrades to this ride.. I think its a very solid and fun ride, even if one of the big screen/tank sequences is kinda drawn out/repetitive. Next, walked right onto Mummy - I passed due to my back so can't compare, but I know this ride differs some vs USO. After that, we headed up to the upper lot and I think Lunch was next.

Lunch however was great. It was an all you can eat buffet in a dining area just for the VIP tours. Food was good and plentiful. I think we had about an hour for lunch, and then we met back with our guide.

She led us through Secret Life of Pets.. which is a solid modern "dark ride".. then Minions Mayhem... and then we caught the last Waterworld show of the day. Again with reserved seating for the VIP tours. The stage and stunt shows seem to be a dying breed in modern parks, but Waterworld is a pretty solid show. Having live actors is a welcome throwback to earlier days. But boy do people in the splash zone get wet.. and not wet.. POUNDED with water. That's extreme

Lastly after the show, we went over to Hogsmede, where we rode Flight of Hypogriff for the worst coaster experience in a theme park, and then were walked on Forbidden Journey. It seems the queue here is significantly different than USO, but generally the same jist. I skipped the ride again due to my back. After that, our time with the tour guide was up.. it was about 4pm, and the park was closing at 6pm that day.

So from 10:30 to 4pm, we hit all the headliners in the park. The only attractions we didn't do were Simpsons and Kungfu Panda. We never waited at any attraction except at Mario Kart, where we had to wait in the pre-show room, but still had our own line.

So was VIP worth it? I think for a first time visitor, it certainly maximizes your time. But it also basically puts you in commando mode.. you just move from point to point. I think the enhanced version of the Studio Tour was a huge let down... Lunch was good. Valet parking was great. The only real negative IMO was we had such little free time afterwards. If you were a repeat visitor, you'd probably want to skip things like Waterworld.. or even the tour.. so compared to just buying express pass I guess it would really depend on the price for the days you are there. For us, I bought through undercover tourist and it cost us $700 total for 2 people. I think normal park admission was like $160 or something for those days.. and I didn't look at what express pass cost was for that day.

So, we had about two hours left.. since my adhoc setup meant I missed key things like Olga's in SWGE at DL.. I figured I didn't want to miss the Toadstool cafe here. It was on a virtual queue all day, so late in the day I made a reservation for 5:15. So with only about 30-40mins before then, I wanted to explore SMW more.

I got to do all the activities, and since it was so late in the day, SMW was virtually empty. I think I waited once or twice for things. While the land is built for exploring.. I do wish there was a bit more guidance in the app on things you could try.. or at least hints. I struggled to decode everything the map was telling me to do.. and I think I missed a bunch of stuff. The bowser jr battle was pretty fun. The other mini games, are aimed pretty young... I think probably 7-12 is probably peak target here. While us GenXs get the nostalgia, it's wide open nature doesn't really give me immersion vibes. It's neat fun.. but felt more like a playground than 'I'm in the game!'

When our time was ready, we walked to the Cafe.. to find it virtually empty. Yet they had the place throttled with a sign saying there were no more spots available today (and had been out for awhile). It's really perplexing how they limit themselves so much here. We ordered some snacks (the cupcake and garlic bites) and really just wanted to take the place in atmosphere wise. While the place was nice, I don't think it was anything to write home about. Maybe I'd put the atmosphere on something like Animator's Palette on the cruise ships, but less. It beats a McDonalds.. was cute... but not awe inspiring. I wouldn't say buy food just to see it.

After our food, we went back for one more Mario Kart ride... hoping I could collect my trophy I was denied the earlier ride. Once again, I completed the objective (with like 109 coins) but once again, my band didn't register with the ride... and I was denied any progress recorded There really were no TMs around either to assist.. just the people focused on the ride itself.

By this time it was basically 6pm.. so they were already on lockdown in SMW... funneling guests towards the exit. Our day was over.

That ride out from the lower lot is a long one... UNI really closes up shop quick and hard too. We went through the shops at the front of the park, but alas didn't find anything really grabbing our attention. My partial progress Mario band was all we ended up buying merch wise in the park.

So conclusion on USH?


1 - USO is a ton more to do and more fun
2 - Maybe you need more than one day to really see it all, but I don't know why anyone would buy a AP except for the special events
3 - Simpsons Land is arguably a lot better in USH
4 - Super Mario with only 1 ride is a crime
5 - A good day dodge while in the area, but I find it hard to think you'd travel just for this...

A one and done in my book.

After that, we headed back to the hotel to decompress for the night... trying to make the most of my 'semi-resort' experience at the Garland.

More to come.. from all over LA!

I also did the VIP experience hoping for more of a behind-the-scenes experience than I actually got. All we got in addition to the regular tour was the ability to walk around some of the backlots, so if you got to go into the costume shop, that's actually better than anything we did. I honestly consider the regular tour superior in aggregate to the VIP-specific version of the tour.

If you want to see a soundstage, any of the studio tours other than Universal is a better bet. I don't remember if it was the case for Paramount, but both Sony and Warner Brothers (at least in the past) used to include a soundstage as part of the regular tour. At WB I've gotten to see the Ellen and Big Bang Theory sets (now TBBT set is just open to anyone on the tour, but at the time the show was in active production), and at Sony we got to stand inside the set for The Goldbergs.

I also did the WB Deluxe tour during the same stretch of days. They have revamped their normal tour offerings, so I'm not entirely sure what normal guests get now, but with the fancy tour we got to drive through the mill, walk through their costume shop (no photos) and prop shop, and eat at their commissary, in addition to the same sorts of things we would have been able to do on the regular tour (in addition to backlots and soundstages, there is/was on the regular tour a how-to-make-a-movie/Friends exhibit and a display of costumes, with HP interactive nonsense to try and get their tourists to forget that the HP theme park attraction is down the street).

As for not seeing the Back to the Future lot, it was likely closed off for filming. One asset to riding the tram tour more than once is that you might see different scenes based on what is or is not filming at that moment-I've seen different sets on the same day in the past, and there's not all that much variety in terms of places visited. Your experience on the tram tour was likely superior to many people's over the past year, as until recently tram guests were forced to experience Fast and the Furious: Supercharged.

I personally really like the vibe of USH, but Orlando is dramatically more impressive as an overall complex, and while Universal is very competitive in Florida, it's still highly lopsided in Disney's favor in California IMO. They used to lean more into being a real studio, and even a few years ago they still had the Special Effects Show and Animal Actors; on my earliest visit they had a permanent walkthrough haunted house available year round. I really miss those things, as right now the park is in transition that neither offers many of its (to me) more charming older offerings while lacking a lot of the polish and attraction lineup of Orlando.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

I only had one day to visit USH last year and decided to skip getting the VIP tour

Based on the reviews here, I'm glad I didn't get it. I enjoyed the regular tram tour enough, except F&F. Even if we skipped the BTTF square and New York Street due to active filming. No express pass either and I still did all the rides I wanted.

I think it makes a difference if you go week day vs weekend and if it's a school holiday

 

[truecoat]

Day 6

So what do you do when you visit LA area? I actually struggled a bit to form a plan of what to do.. but I figured 'get on a TV show!' or see a taping was an easy thing to do.. right they make so much TV out here! Well, when I started googling, all I really found was the Jimmy Fallon show, and The Price is Right. This really confused me, but I really didn't see much more besides these attendance sites that would show upcoming shows.. oh I think the Voice was taping too.

So when planning, I picked The Price is Right using https://on-camera-audiences.com/

I picked a date and time.. and got 'priority tickets' - which basically meant as long as we were on-time, we should get into the taping. I was then exposed to all their 'dress code' rules and suggestions, which make perfect sense, but in your normal tourist kind movement, you don't think about. So I had to specifically pack slacks, a certain kind of shirt, shoes, etc. I then had to navigate how to tell my wife to dress a certain way.. so we could avoid getting excluded from being on the show or on camera. Next was all the reviews or past info about 'how to get picked' or just generally, what the whole experience was like. People said expect a ton of waiting.. eat before hand.. and no cell phones. Well, I picked tickets for 1:30 for Day 6, knowing we would be checking out of our hotel that day, and it would give us a relaxed sleep in day, and would carry us over till check-in time for our next hotel.

We had some breakfast and then headed to the designated spot.. A church parking lot. Turns out there is a big building next to where the new studio is, and they stage you here, then send you to the studio. Wanting to be there early for potentially good seating.. we planned to be there 1hr before our must-be-there time of 1:30.

We arrived to find a previous group of people walking out.. so found some parking easy enough, and then found a pop-up tent with chairs lined up, luckily all under pop-up tents. We were told to sit and they'd be with us soon. At first there was only like 5 other people sitting there with us.. but as more and more people started moving around, other groups were being seen by the assistants at the table. Were we getting passed over? It was kinda confusing, but I was just trying to trust the system.. Seems like people from earlier shows were being processed again to be in the next show, etc. As more people started showing up, the assistants were adament they hadn't started checking in 1:30 people yet, so please have a seat.

After awhile they started handing out numbers to those sitting in the seats.. we were #3 and #4! Then they lead us to some laptops to fill out the consent forms.. easy.. then we were lined up waiting for our group of about 25 people to finish. This was really the only time we were made to wait out from under cover. They also had water for us back at the earlier waiting point. The waiting spot was to go into the church.. and first signs of life..

View attachment 886042
The sign got people excited.. people were taking photos, etc.

We were then lead inside to another holding room.. this one was like your high school band room or something.. but was decorated with various Price is right stuff.. there was a podium in there, a fake showcase showdown setup, etc.. just kinda stuff for you to pose with, etc. Again there were chairs in here to sit, they asked us to stay in order.. but we could do whatever in this room, and there was water and snacks available to hold us over. I think we were in here by 1:40pm or so..

At checkin they had given us our iconic name tags too - but we weren't wearing them .. yet
View attachment 886043

The whole thing with the show and contestants is they really want to see energy, etc.. so plenty of people are hamming it up, trying to be all party, etc. It wasn't too over the top, but you can certainly see people trying.. They tell you to be yourself, but have fun, be excited, etc. So we're just playing some, killing time while we wait..

View attachment 886044

Not long after we get in there, they start playing some 'coaching video' which is basically just watching some old price is right shows Then, they started calling us in for interviews. They basically took us about 10 at a time, walked us into a room with 2 producers, we were lined up, and one by one the producer would ask us who we were, 2-3 questions.. where you from, what you do, etc. It's pretty quick. But you also don't know how much they've been watching you before, who is really taking notes, etc. So after that, we go back to our holding room.. watch more old shows, until they get everyone through. There are 60 people in our room.. They call 9 people in the show. They say the studio is small.. but it can't be only 60 people right? There must be more people...

Well, it turns out the contestant pool really is these 60 people. The rest of the audience will be filled in by returners, etc.. but the 9 contestants.. gonna be picked from these 60 people!!

Eventually the producers come out, tell us how the show is gonna happen. How they are going to cue us for applause, etc. Letting you know you won't be able to hear when they call your name.. there will be someone at the front holding up a card with a name.. see your name... GO CRAZY!! I think they did a good job outlining how the studio experience was going to go.

Now it was roughly 3pm, and they were walking us over to the studio.. which was maybe a 150yrd walk. There, they had someone checking all electronic devices like a coat check.. all phones, smartwatches, etc. Nothing allowed in the studio. We're still lined up in our assigned order.. so hoping we get to sit up front or right behind the contestants to be on camera for sure!

We walk into the soundstage, through some usual back of house stuff, and then.. onto the stage! We enter from the back of the studio.. it's very modern.. They just moved to this new set and studio like 4-5 years ago due to redevelopment happening on the CBS lot. The screens are animated, etc. The entire set is probably the size of a small school gym? Seating for about 150 people.. But as we come in... producers are there.. and group by group, they pick where you are going to sit. That's right, they assign you.. and they were spreading people all kinds of places..

Turns out though, we got to sit 2nd row, right along the aisle the contestants come down!! Gotta be on camera here right??

It didn't take them long to load things up.. and there are people mulling around the stage with their cameras, etc.. I think there were at least 3 rollers plus a boom camera. The producers are there talking to everyone.. one even came and gave us a last min word of encouragement.. and before you know it the announcer George Gray comes out.. tells us welcome, a min outline of how things will go, and then Drew Carey comes out. He does some intros.. and before you know it.. they are ready to roll!

It really was kind of informal how things started.. but bam.. make some noise, cameras are rolling.. and before you know it.. the first card is up and the place goes wild! They tell you to be ready to be exhausted because of how much cheering you are expected to do. I did so much, I even hurt my hand!

View attachment 886049

Straight up bruised my thumb clapping!

The first game was up... I couldn't hear a thing about the prize they were bidding on as the crowd was still going nuts. Then you see some of the TV production.. they basically stop... do some extra footage of the host with the prize, etc.. and then they are bidding.. and you can hear Drew, but not much else. The part that caught me off guard was, after the first player went up on stage and played their game.. there was like ZERO break before bam! next card is up and everyone's going wild again. The pace was pretty hectic at first!

But then they went to their first commercial break, and for some reason they do like long breaks during the commercial breaks, almost like it was real-time or something.. Drew and George talk to the audience during most of the breaks.. asking questions, etc.. very informal, very personal, which was cool in itself if you are a fan.

The taping was fun and interesting.. the only other TV magic reveal was they do all the wheel spins together at the end, so they don't have to break down that set more than once. They also pretty much just use curtains on wheels to hide the next game before the reveal. Contestants don't really have any enhanced view of the prizes, etc.. it's literally what they can see across the room.

I can't give any spoilers.. but luckily our show is airing soon.. Oct 24th! So keep an eye out. Hoping at least with our seating we should get good screen time.

Eventually the taping wraps up. I think we were walking out by about 5:30.. after being lead to the studio about 3pm. Had been there since 12:30... it never felt draining or really dragged out. I don't know if I could do two tapings, but one, I would definitely recommend.

From there, we had to make our way to our next hotel, which was just a simple Hampton Inn picked for it's hopefully kinda central location and reasonable prices. So this was more over in Glendale/Burbank/NoHo area.. when we got there, it was certainly just a lot more avg city and nothing special, but it was affordable and not too far from the areas we wanted to visit. There was a Denny's right next door, which made for some easy comfort food to finish the day. As I still had to plan what tomorrow would be!

Till the next episode...

I went to a taping of Conan O'Brien back in 2014. It was at the WB lot and we had to park in an offsite parking ramp. They load you into lines and take you across the street in groups. Here they put you into 2 queues like you're waiting for a ride. They empty one queue and the next one follows the first through the streets past the soundstages. Conan's studio was just built into a corner of a soundstage on scaffolding. When you go in the side door and up the stairs, you could see the scaffolding supports.

Like the Price Is Right, they tape the show in about an hour breaking for commercials. I found that very interesting as I thought there would be longer breaks between guests and/or sketches. I enjoyed it but was disappointed when I found out Beck was prerecorded due to his schedule. His performance was shown and we had to pretend he was there for the intro and outro. Overall, it was a great experience but it takes most of the day to do if you're planning on a similar show.

 

[chadwpalm]

I went and saw America's Got Talent in 2011 when it was next door to The Price is Right when both were still at Television City on the corner of Fairfax and Beverly. It was one of the live shows, so not pre-taped (except for a couple of acts which one was outside and the other had a lengthy tear-down they couldn't do during a commercial break). It started at 5pm in order to be live on the east coast.

That's the only TV show I've ever been to.

 

[flynnibus]

Continuing Day 7

After visiting the Hollywood sign, we then went to the University City overlook. The 'unexpected cool part' of the whole tour IMO was how much time we spent driving up through the hills. It really is something like we do not have at all back home to that degree... sure you may have a few homes like this, but the sheer scale of how isolated and difficult it is to get to all these home.. and there are so many.. and so many with just wild setups, etc. I didn't bother really with noting the different celebrity names or homes that were pointed out.. as most are just 'hey, see over there..' kind of moments. But some of the homes are pretty damn impressive. Homes owned by people like Justin Timberlake, etc. But the area reminds you just how much you CAN'T see from the public side, but when you look at the homes out over the canyons, etc.. you really see the intensity of these places.

The view from the outlook was cool.. looking out over USH, Burbank, etc

The drive included runs down Mulholland Dr - and it was cool to put some context to all these names.. or even understand how areas have changed over time.

Eventually we made our way back down into hollywood and onto Beverly Hills. Along Sunset, you pass things like the Roxy, the Viper Room, etc.. and it just re-enforces these places aren't necessarily grand on their own, but just more about 'the people' that most of the stories are about.

Driving past Supreme... noted the forever lines.. but it was Thursday, which I'm told is a new product drop day.

Next stop - we got dropped off at this place...

In hindsight, some more planning for this stop would have helped.. we had about 25mins.. and all we did was basically just walk around the block.. see City Hall (showcased in Beverly Hills Cop).. but would have liked to walk Rodeo drive if I had know specifically where it was (which was just like 2blocks over from where we actually walked). This stop was more kind of 'checkboxes' stuff to see.. but the wife got at least one Pretty Woman store scene pointed out.. so her checkbox was done

From there we were taken back to Hollywood.. driving past a bunch of stuff some of which we had already seen.. Shot of the Whiskey A Go-Go (unfortunately there wasn't anything scheduled for the big venues on sunset those days.. not comedy nor Rock)

You can check out.. but you can never leave...

Also.. robo taxi (which BTW, had a HUGE paid presence at the Petersen... excessively so)

Eventually we got dropped back near the Chinese Theatre.. which now.. was all completely swamped because that day there was a protest about Jimmy Kimmel getting pulled off air just the day before! Good thing I didn't have that on my schedule

Sunset was about an 80+mins away.. so why not try to see the Sunset on the Ocean? So I pointed us towards...

We walked the pier.. took in some sights.. and watched the sunset from the end of the pier.. unfortunately clouds did not cooperate.

My favorite arcade growing up is named Playland.. so found it fun that same name is in use here

Beach and sunset stuff

We got dinner at the Mexican resturant right there at the end of the pier.. because it was easy. Food and drinks were good... then it was back to the hour plus drive back to the hotel to end the night.

 

[flynnibus]

Day 8

Our last real day here.. 'beach' was a request, so I scoped things out and decided to checkout Malibu. We drove to Zuma beach which is the big state park beach with plenty of parking. Pro-tip.. when its not crowded people parked on the shoulder of the road vs paying the $8 for the state park parking lot just on the other side of the barrier.

Because of our pace and the drive (over an hour) it was already midday by the time we got out there, but the place was deserted... like.. maybe a dozen people within a mile of us. We sat on the beach some, got in the water some..

Curiosity about the beach front homes lead us to walk up the beach...

We actually ended up walking all the way up to that point basically.. 3.5miles walking in sandals in the water+sand wasn't my best idea in hindsight. Ended up rubbing the strap into my foot pretty good!

The homes along there are just wild of course... and you kind of lose perspective of just how big they are. Then this one spot there was clearing and they were building. Here you can realize 1) just how vertical they are building on and 2) just how monsterous the houses really are

This massive escavator just looked tiny on this hill...

Interestingly enough, seemed like the 'after work' crowd was showing up as the beach was actually a lot busier on our way out than it was on our way in.

After our 3.5 mile walk and house gawking.. we thought we'd at least drive past the Pier and 'main' part of Mailbu. Which was like 20mins away. Turns out.. that part of Malibu is WAY more busy and conjested... we didn't even bother trying to park or get out.. much of the beach down this even is just little strips in different spots, vs the massive open beach at Zuma.

We got some quick food, and then just headed back to the hotel. The drive back though was through all the canyons which was pretty cool. The most amazing part of this area is how quickly the landscape changes.. and of course the insane homes that are all over these hills.. but the drive through the canyons back towards the 405 and hollywood area was great.

I really enjoyed my time driving - seeing all kinds of different neighborhoods as Google kept me out of the freeway traffic, and just driving around in general. Tho I am really glad I didn't attempt any kind of 'self tour' through the hollywood hills area.. that would have been too much to navigate.

So with that.. we were pretty much done!

Our trip had consisted of..
3 days at DLR
Half day of Petersen + La Brae tarpits
1 day at USH
Half day of the Price is Right taping
3/4 of day Hollywood sightseeing
Dinner and Sunset at Santa Monica Pier
Half day at Zuma Beach in Malibu

So what do you think? Did we do LA well enough?

 

[Touchdown]

Sorry your VIP universal tour wasn’t worth it, I did it a few years ago and really enjoyed it. I got to walk around the prop department, Wysteria Lane, Bates Motel and an empty soundstage. Also got a meal at Moulin Rouge and after my tour my VIP pass was an unlimited express. Coming from Orlando, I wasn’t going to be happy with one time express, this was the only way to get unlimited. Are the backlot tours at WB and Disney more in-depth? Yes they are, but given the theme park benefits I thought the tour was worth it. I wonder if during HHN season the VIP tour is shortened.

 

[flynnibus]

I wonder if during HHN season the VIP tour is shortened

Nope - same duration. Difference really is just what you do around the lot given the circumstances at the time.