Family travel,  Singapore,  TRAVEL/HOLIDAYS

Universal Studio Singapore

Having experience driving to Singapore to visit Singapore Zoo And Night Safari in 2011 is a privilege and our second roadtrip to Singapore last December was smooth as we know what are the requirements to enter Singapore by car. But we did have little extra things to do before we can enter Singapore; get new Autopass Card with VEP at the LTA office and get new IMM27E cards to be filled. I forgot where I keep the cards, if not it would’ve been much faster to write it at home instead of writing at the immigration booth. I have to get new Autopass as I was using another car. If you want to know how to enter Singapore by car, read my 7 things you need to know before travelling from Malaysia to Singapore by car.

Anyway, to the main point: Universal Studio Singapore (USS). Bought our tickets from a travel agency in Danga Bay, Johor Bahru. Saved us the hassle to queue for tickets at USS. We reached Resorts World Sentosa around 1.00pm and it was raining.

raining

 First thing we did when we arrived: find food! Yassin was hungry to the max.

hungry-Yassin
Yassin having nasi lemak with fried chicken at the food area in the Resorts World Sentosa.

Next, USS!

YAssin-and-dad-at-USS-entrance
Yassin and his dad in front of the famous Universal Pictures’ rotating globe

USS is the talk in town and after talking for few months about wanting to go, we finally have the time to visit the place. We wouldn’t want to miss for the Southeast Asia (read: world)!

USS Entrance
Heading to enter the USS.

USS is a theme park located within Resorts World Sentosa on Sentosa Island, Singapore. It is the second Universal Studios theme park to open in Asia (Japan being the first), and the first in Southeast Asia.  Opened on 18 March 2010, USS has since attracted more than 2 million visitors in the 9 months from its opening.

Yassin-USS-Store
Yassin in front of USS Store.

Universal Studios Singapore is 20 hectares (49 acres) in size, occupying the easternmost part of the 49-hectare (120-acre) Resorts World Sentosa. There are a total of 24 attractions, of which 18 are original or specially adapted for the park. The park consists of seven themed zones which surround a lagoon. Each zone is based on a blockbuster movie or a television show, featuring their own unique attractions, character appearances, dining and shopping areas. The park features the world’s tallest pair of dueling roller coasters that are based on the popular television series, Battlestar Galactica; a castle from the world of Shrek and Monster Rock, a live musical show featuring the Universal Monsters. Universal Studios Singapore has over 30 restaurants and food carts, together with 20 unique retail stores and carts located around the park. Dining outlets that are certified Halal are marked with “Halal”.

Themed zones here include Hollywood, New York, Sci-Fi City, Ancient Egypt, The Lost World, Far Far Away and Madagascar.

Hollywood: Themed after the real Hollywood Boulevard of the 1970s, the Hollywood zone is framed by dynamic architecture, palm trees and the famous Hollywood ‘Walk of Fame’.

hollywood
Emila goes to Hollywood!

JohnForsythe
Posing at John Forsythe’s star.

jewelry
Yassin and me admiring a jewellery store in Hollywood. I was attracted by the Red Poppy poster.

New York: Themed after post-modern New York City that features sidewalks and classic landmarks that mimic its cityscape. The area is enhanced by neon lights and flanked by street facades that set the scenes for big city fun and also real-time movie production for most Hollywood blockbuster films. We went in the Lights, Camera, Action! Studio and got to see an mazing show of how effects are made.

Light,-Camera,-Action!
At the set of movie production- Lights, Camera, Action! Mr. Spielberg giving his talk about effects.

Studio
A model boathouse studio in New York City. Once the command to roll cameras has been given, the sky darkens, thunder and lightning fill the room, heavy rain pours through the ceiling, and we were immersed in various effects such as strong wind, intense fire, signboards crashing through the roof, the boathouse windows blowing away, movement of the platform they are standing on, and a huge cargo ship slamming through the boathouse entrance.

NY-Library
My husband in front of New York Public Library.

Rockefeller Center
Yassin and me in front of Rockefeller Center.

Sci-Fi City: Sci-Fi City is themed after what cities and metropolis may look like in the future, equipped with space-age technologies and the ultimate modern conveniences. We took the Transformer Ride and I tell you, the effect makes me went dizzy! Yassin and his dad thought that the ride is the coolest thing at USS!

Transformer-Ride
Patiently waiting in line for the Transformer Ride.

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Yassin in front of his favourite Transformer car.

Ancient Egypt: As the name suggests, the Ancient Egypt zone is themed after the rich Egyptian architecture and artifacts found during the Golden Age of Egyptian Exploration in the 1930s.

giantanubis
Yassin standing at the foot of giant Anubis statue.

Ancient-Egypt
At the wall of Ancient Egypt.

The Lost World The Lost World zone features two smaller themed regions: Jurassic Park and Waterworld. We went to the Jurassic Park but skipped the Waterworld.

dinosaur
Yassin and his dad taking the Dinosaur Ride.

Far Far Away: Far Far Away is based on the kingdom of the same name featured in DreamWorks Animations’ Shrek. Those who have a Graphic Design Service Subscription would have heard about it. We went inside the castle and got to see two shows: Shrek 3-D Show with added physical effects that is based on the story of Shrek and his quest to save Princess Fiona and Donkey Live Show – an interactive live show using digital puppetry technology, which features Donkey entertaining and engaging guests in conversation in an intimate theatre setting.

farfaraway
It was raining Shrek and Donkey, so we had to get ourselves raincoats when we reached the Land of Far Far Away.

Madagascar: The Madagascar zone features a displaced cargo ship that houses the Madagascar: A Crate Adventure ride. It also features all of the characters from DreamWorks Animations’ Madagascar.

Madagascar
Posing with Madagascar’s stars: from left – Melman, Marty, Alex and urm..Melman’s body.

We went on A Crate Adventure ride and had to queue for an hour and it was fun. Could not take pictures during the ride, so I cannot show you how it was like. A Crate Adventure is a river boat ride with state-of-the-art animatronics, digital projection and surround sound, all housed within the hull of a displaced cargo ship. This attraction features the famous voice talents of Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer and Jada Pinkett Smith throughout the ride.

We had a great time at Universal Studio Singapore and hope to return again to explore some other part that we skipped. And here are some more photos from USS. Enjoy!

chevrolet
Yassin and vintage Chevrolet, in front of Mel’s Dine-In, Hollywood.

NY-buildings
New York buildings.

NY
Street of New York.

 Reference: Wikipedia – USS

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