Paki Nomad

Since childhood I have dreamed about living inside a movie. I grew up with fantasies like  clinging with Spiderman, guiding Alice in Wonderland, transporting from one place to another (Star Trek)  and running away from dinosaurs of Jurassic Park. Deep inside my heart I knew that these fantasies will remain fantasies. But all of that changed after I visited Universal Studios Singapore (USS).

About USS

USS is a theme park featuring several thrilling rides and attractions based on blockbuster movies. It is claimed to be one of its kind in Asia and only one in South East Asia. Located within Resort World on Sentosa island, it consists of seven zones all with unique themes and activities of different nature. While I was planning my trip to Singapore last year, I knew that if I visit only one place, it would be USS.

Planning

I booked my ticket online at www.rwsentosa.com. I was lucky enough to avail MasterCard promotion of 20% discount on day pass. There are different package for peak and off-peak days and several bundle offers.

Don’t forget to check the latest discount promotion before booking.

Reaching there

I was very excited on the day of visit to USS and wanted to reach by 10:00am (opening time) to beat the crowd. Unfortunately,  I had to meet someone in the morning who after frustrating wait of 4 hours didn’t show up. I rushed to my friends apartment, quickly changed from formal to casual attire and immediately left only to find out heavy rain shower.

It was impossible to walk to MRT station which was only 3 minutes away so I took the cab which took me to the station. It was 2:00pm and all I was thinking was that I will not have sufficient time to explore USS completely.

Eventually  I reached VivoCity stations. I took Sentosa Express (Monorail) from Level 3 for Sentosa island which costs only SGD 3 and covers all three station on the island. There are other ways to reach sentosa such bus, taxi or walk, but I found Sentosa Express to be the most convienenat way.

Exploring USS

As I entered the park, I felt that I have left  outside world behind for another world – The Movie World. All seven zones are build around a lagoon.  I picked the USS map and show timings. I immediately started exploring the map. The recommended order is to start from Hollywood and end at Madagascar circling anti-clockwise. For some reason unknown to me,  I decided to start from Madagascar.

Entrance of Universal Studio Singapore

Here I am covering only two zones, remaining will be covered in my next post.

Madagascar

It is based on the animation film series of same name which features four zoo animals escaping from the zoo. Boat ride of  A Crate of Adventure is the featured attraction. I boarded the boat with Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman that took me to the fun of life time.

The 8 minute ride is packed with state of the art animatronics,  power sound, and moving show-action effects which made me one of the characters of Madagascar. I got the honor of meeting Rico, Skipper and  Kowalski. I even attended King Julien’s party.

Entering Madagascar – Universal Studio Singapore

Far Far Away

Inspired by animation film Shrek this zone taught me how fairy tale characters live in daily live. The 40 meter tall Far Far Away castle is the landmark of this zone. I entered the castle for Shrek 4D Adventure.  The pre-show beginned with magic mirror narrating the story about Three LittlePigs, Gingy and Pinocchio being captured by Lord Farquaad.

Before the main show, Lord Farquaad threatened the audience to torture them in order to find Shrek and Fiona.  After entering the main hall with 3D goggles and I made myself comfortable in the seat. The short film starts right after the first Shrek film. I won’t spoil the story here however 3D animation with physical effect such as movable chair and mist sprayer made it a real 4D experience.

Far Far Away Castle – Universal Studio Singapore

I have covered remaining zones in my next post.