UNIVERSAL STUDIOS SINGAPORE DECODED

 

UNIVERSAL STUDIOS SINGAPORE DECODED!

Hey everyone! As you all know and must have read, how exciting this place called Universal studios, Singapore is! I had been waiting to see it sometime now and had read a lot about it. However, all info was in bits and pieces. Hence, I decided to write a blog after I visit it and literally have a decoding version of USS where it is possible to cover all rides in 1 day's time!

For a quick background, I am from Mumbai, hence, have experienced Imagica, and it is a similar experience rides-wise, however, superior in terms of attractions, meet and greet etc. 

So, here we go!

Things to know first-

1. Universal Studios Singapore is abbreviated as USS. It comes under the many attractions offered by Resort World Sentosa (RWS) which is an integrated resort on the island of Sentosa, which is located off the southern coast of Singapore.

2. It is open only from 11am to 6pm and hence, requires thorough planning to ensure you cover everything in that time. One exception is 1st Jan of every year, when it is open till 8pm. 

3. Hence, plan to go on weekday instead of weekend. Check whether its open on its website prior to booking tickets.

4. Sentosa island has many attractions, hence, ideally it is better to prep 2 days here. Day 1 can cover USS and Wings of Time via MRT or other options, Day 2 can be kept for seeing the Cable car and other Sentosa attractions. 

Sentosa Map here - Sentosa discovery guide is a pdf which has all the attractions on the last page

Location

Travel steps are well-captured in this blog. Only update, Sentosa express is a free travel. You just need to tap your EZ link card or credit card only to open the gates but no monies are deducted whatsoever. 

Sentosa express has 4 stations as shown below. The sight-seeing at each station is mentioned below the line. So, USS comes under Resorts World Station whereas Wings of Time Show comes under Beach Station. (although not mentioned in the image)

If you plan to take cable car, you will have to leave a little early to reach on time. Better, keep it for next time. 

Aim to leave in a manner that you reach outside USS by 10am-10.15am as there are lot of photo spots outside - especially the Universal globe and currently there is Bunnyverse. If you have Express pass, you can join the last queue (left of the globe) from the entrance side which ideally will be the shortest and quickest. 

Booking tickets

We were looking for cheap tickets. EP/DP/Citizens and PR holders have slightly lesser ticket price then tourists. Trip.com had buy-one-get-one free offer for the USS ticket, however, it literally goes in less than 2-3 mins once the offer starts. Similar experience to booking Xiaomi phones on amazon. We later reached out to Joyoffer on Carousell and got $1 cheaper rate and booked through them. 

Always book 2 types of tickets-

1. Admission ticket
2. Universal Express pass - This helps to skip queue once for each ride. (which is enough). 

There are lot of students who comes and sit in long queues for getting in first and the queues are really long even on weekdays where wait time can be 50-60 mins for some rides. Hence, it's really important to buy both tickets to experience all rides. 

Not required for first-timers:

Universal Unlimited pass - It has unlimited queue skipping for rides which ideally is good for people visiting 2nd/3rd time who wish to ride particular rides multiple times. Unlike, first timers, who will hit 6pm even before covering all the rides once. 

USS App

Download the USS app one day before your travel day. Experience the app interface in detail and you will be able to see the wait times approx at different times on the app. And all other details required for ease of navigation. 

USS Map: 

Map here

View the map above and you will understand the different sections of the USS. 

There are 6 key sections with above rides.

Things to Carry

Here are some of the essential things to pack: 

1. Light, quick-drying clothing (there are some fun drying stations if you got wet on a water ride, but there are 5SGD extra)

2. Sandals or secure, quick-drying shoes

3. Sunscreen, glares & hat

4. Empty water bottle (you can fill it up inside)

5. Poncho (for water rides & wet season)

6. Camera

7. Printed or electronic ticket (& reservation if you have open dated tickets) – it is not necessary to print out your ticket if you can show it on your phone. However, its easy to carry a printed ticket as you can keep your phone in the lockers. 

8. Deodorant - By evening, you might need one

9. Wet wipes

10. Sun-block - Apply in the morning before leaving

11. Empty plastic bags, hand towels incase someone pukes. 

12. Power bank

13. Some dry snacks/food

Avoid eating in the morning, if you plan to take roller coaster at the start.

Food

Ideally, outside food is not allowed. However, the queues are really long and chances of bag checks are lesser. We carried dry snacks like cheese-chutney-sandwich, dry fruits, protein bars, and hard boiled eggs to sustain the day. There are lot of restaurants inside, however, they are really expensive plus you also do not feel like eating anything heavy coz you're more excited to experience every corner on a low body fuel. Also, if you spend time in any of these restaurants, you are sure to miss some rides before 6pm. 

Being vegetarian, also there are fewer options-

1. You can head to Hollywood and look for the Celebrity Cafe & Bakery where you will find a selection of bagels, pitas and other light food.

2. Oasis Spice Café (Indian & Middle Eastern food) at Ancient Egypt

Covering rides

Plan your rides in advance. Below is the plan for someone who is a thrill-seeker and loves roller coasters. For people who don't like roller coasters, ideally must plan the below differently. 

Note that Treasure Hunt & Canopy Flyer is not included in Express pass. Hence, as soon as you enter-

1. Walk fast towards the Treasure hunt ride and do it first. (Bags allowed). It's more for kids. 

2. Keep your bags with phone at the free locker next to Ancient Egypt. It is free for 45 mins. Carry your printed tickets.

3. Right opposite to Treasure hunt is the Revenge of Mummy ride. the most amazing roller coaster thrill ride. Just do it. You might also get to see the Ancient Egypt show that happens on the road. 

4. Also next go to sci-fi and cover Human and Cylon- The next best roller-coaster rides

5. Try to cover- Transformers & Accelerator if possible (within 45 mins of bag storage)

6. Go to the locker section again, and remove the bags. Keep the bags again with different person's name details. And head to The Lost World. 

7. Start with Jurassic rapids adventure, and then dry yourself by sitting in Dinosaurin (kid's ride). After this, join the queue for the Canopy Flyer as it is not in Express. It's just 53 sec long ride, however, wait time can be quite high. You can also get your bags from the locker into the Canopy Flyer if your time limit goes above 45 mins by this. Nonetheless, cover all the rides in this section, so you do not have to come back here. 

You can take a quick sandwich/bio break now, as the most adventurous rides are over. 

8. Walk back towards sci-fi city towards New York and click some pics on street. Now cover the Light, Camera action and sesame street ride. You can carry your bags here.

9. Go to King Julien merry-go-round (kid's ride). Can carry bag. Ask someone to wait outside with bags to click your video and then you can return the favour. 

10. The last section you cover is the palace called Far far away- where you first head to Puss in the boots, and then do the Shrek 4D ride followed by Enchanted airways. 

11. The Magic potion is a kids merry-go-round inside a shop. You can skip if you don't have kids. 

Basia a  “thrill-o-meter” of Universal Studio’s rides – from the most thrilling to the most sedate. In that order, they are:

• Revenge of the Mummy
• Battlestar Galactica: CYLON
• Battlestar Galactica: HUMAN
• TRANSFORMERS The Ride: The Ultimate 3D Battle
• Canopy Flyer
• Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure
• Enchanted Airways
• Puss In Boots’ Giant Journey
• Accelerator
• Dino-Soarin’
• Sesame Street Spaghetti Space Chase
• King Julien’s Beach Party-Go-Round

By this, you will almost hit 6pm. Check the app in advance, if you plan to meet Minions/Gru/Elmo etc as they appear for visit at a particular timings -approx 3-4 times and there are queues to take pics with them. 

You can check you on-ride pictures next to Starbucks - Dark Room Hollywood boulevard on your way out. Our pictures were very hazy due to the weather being sunny. You can check and get printed if you like any at a cost. 

Visit: Wings of Time in evening- 7:30 PM show

After this, you can head back to Sentosa Express and ride further down to the Beach Station. Do not forget to carry the pdf format of the Wings of Time ticket, as they check it. And enjoy the show. Carry print/pdf in a phone and carry power bank as phone batteries get drained in the USS full day by the time you reach here. We faced this and had to ask the agent to send the tickets again 15 mins before show time on another phone number that had some battery left. 

After wings of time show, it gets really late, and we preferred to eat in Vivocity mall. There is a food court on the 3rd floor for non-veg and also basement. We found one veg place in basement called Pangat (1 HarbourFront Walk, #B2 - 39, Singapore 098585) that closes by 10pm. And had food there before heading home after a day full of great memories. 

Good blogs to read for USS before you go:

1. https://www.littledayout.com/tips-for-visiting-universal-studios-singapore/

2. https://preparetravelplans.com/universal-studios-singapore-rides-guide/#mrt

3. You can view each rides by searching them on Youtube and plan in advance. 

Hope you have a great time at USS. 😊