After a short flight, we made it to LA. Getting through LAX is a nightmare, and even worse when you have to go and pick up a car. The car rental place was a shambles, and after finalising all the paperwork inside, we went out to the lot to find they didn't have any cars in the range we had ordered (and we were about the 5th group of people there in the same boat)! After a good 45 minutes of backwards and forwards, they finally upgraded us to the next level and we left. We headed over to our hotel at Universal City, dumped our bags in the McMains room, and walked across to Universal Studios.
By the time we got there it was around 10am and we were reminded why we usually drive from Las Vegas to LA. Had we gotten up at the same time, and driven, we probably could have gotten there quicker (and less stressed)!
We met up with the McMains, who had our tickets, and hit the park. As we only had limited time here, and it was one of the busy days of the year at the park. we all decided to buy the Front of Line passes, which got you quick access to each ride once.
We started with the Backlot Tour, and then the boys and the kids went on the Simpsons ride.
After that we all moved on to the Mummy ride, then the Transformers ride and then Jurassic Park ride (where poor Trav got saturated). It was then time for lunch so we headed out of the park to Universal City Walk where we all grabbed something to eat.
Once we had finished lunch it was back to the park to do the Shrek ride, the Minions ride and see the Animal Actors show. By this stage the sun was going down so we went back to our hotel to get warm and take a break.
Around 6pm we headed back to the park to watch the Waterworld show, and wandered through checking out all the lights and the lighting of the Grinchmas Tree. From there it was off to dinner at the Saddle Ranch Chop House.
We had a great day at Universal Studios, and were so grateful for our Front of Line passes, as all the wait times on each ride were so long, there was no way we could have done it all in the time we had there.
Day 2 and after a slower start we headed out to Glendale Galleria, a nearby mall. We wandered around the shops for a while, the McMains bought a suitcase to bring all their extra goodies home in, and then we went and had lunch at the Cheesecake Factory (another one of our traditions while we are in the US).
After lunch we took a drive up to the Griffith Observatory, to check out the Hollywood sign and see the city from above. We then drove into Beverly Hills, along Rodeo Drive, and through some of the nearby streets to check out the massive houses. We didn't actually know what we were looking at, but guaranteed there were a few houses owned by famous people on our drive!!
After that it was back to the hotel to drop off the McMains, pick up our bags and say our goodbyes, as Wade and I were heading home tonight!
Once we arrived at the airport, we were able to both get an upgrade to Business Class for the flight home! We left LA around 11.30pm on the 31st December and arrived in Brisbane around 7am on the 2nd January. So we missed New Year's completely!
It was a great trip - with the highlight definitely being Whistler, but as usual we were glad to be home.
Until next time.......
Here are some photos from our time in LA......
Universal Studios
Backlot Tour
Heading down to the lower section of the park
Back for the night to see some shows and the lights!
Hollywood sign & views from the Griffith Observatory in LA
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