Enjoy Awesome Rides in Universal Studios Japan

Meet your favorite movie characters in a visual thrilling effect and cast a magical spell in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter while the huge walls of Hogwarts and the vile dementors of Azkaban will leave you spellbound for the rest of your life. You can also discover the World of Despicable Me and its stars along with the Minions which is the latest addition to the many popular attractions in the park. You can enjoy the monster rock-shows and other colorful parades and other spectacular performances while you rescue the world from the Rogue’s gallery with Spiderman across the New York Skyline. Also, take a stroll at the Sesame Street of Tokyo with your favorite Manga characters.

The entire theme park has more than 30 different attractions, rides, live shows and many more. It is an award-winning theme park in Japan with a record 10 million visitors a year and is amongst the top 5 theme parks in the entire world.

Once you reach Central Osaka it is very easy to reach Universal Studios Japan by train. It is a 30 minutes train ride from Osaka. Once you reach the destination at Universal City Train Station, it is only a 5 minutes’ walk to the park. Also, you need to stop at the Nishikujo Station while you change the onward journey to the JR Yumesaki Line.

Let us take a close look at the main seven sections in Universal Studios Japan.

The state-of-the-art technology from Universal Studios Japan and the world’s leading rollercoaster manufacturer comes together to give you a thrilling yet memorable experience in this sensational ride. Hollywood Dream Ride is the first attraction you will find right after the main entrance of the park. It has a variety of souvenir shops and merchandise shops you can browse upon. It has the best two rides in the entire park – the Hollywood Dream Ride and the Space Fantasy. Hollywood Dream Ride is a magnificent ride similar to a journey through the skies with a popular soundtrack running in the background. The thrill and adrenaline rush you will experience is beyond description as the wind blows from behind the back while your gush through an ultimate ride of a lifetime. It goes up to a height of 40meters above the ground as it gets pulled up on your back just to dive back in as you experience the unknown, resulting in an exhilarating ride. The other Fantasy Ride changes occasionally based on special events, for instance, the Kyary Pamyu Pamyu XR Ride which draws a lot of crowd in the park. It is similar to a rollercoaster ride except that it includes a fun virtual reality experience that overwhelms you from such a glide in the virtual park.

The New York Universal Studios Japan is by far the coolest building in the whole of Universal Studios Japan. It has got amazing storefronts with a nice and detailed building structure across the street. The most popular rides are the Spiderman Ride and the Attack on Titan. The Spiderman Ride is one of the world’s popular joy-ride and the first one to win the Best Ride in the World for a record seven times for consecutive years. It has state-of-the-art ultra-clear 3D technology as it blurs the line between reality and the world of augmented visualization with its imaginative and immersive experience. Visitors are left awe-struck and the latest 3D glasses add up to the imaginary visual journey, yet delivering a remarkable ultra HD with a 3D animated storyline.

The developers of this ride have added new elements as the costume and the lightings have a shimmering effect with detailed image quality offering a real visual treat. The details in the background are magnificent with sharp color gradients and texture while the headlights of cars seem so real as it passes by in the virtual streets. You may even notice the rats and small insects moving across the sidewalks while the virtual car sets in motions with realistic 4D elements of heat, shower, and wind making the villains, chasing behind the car look astonishingly real. It is basically a 4D ride in a car which gets entangled in a virtual rollercoaster ride where you get spun over in almost all the direction while making the battle look realistically amazing.

The Colossal fight between the Titans in the Attack on Titans Ride looks overwhelmingly real as the thrilling virtual ride keeps the visitors in their seats gasping fas the motion-based rollercoaster ride progresses. It is one of the latest additions in the many themes at Universal Studios Japan.

The San Francisco theme area is the center of attraction at Universal Studios Japan. It was once home to Back to the Future franchise, now the best and the only rollercoaster attraction is the Backdraft – a widely acclaimed 90s Universal Feature film with enhanced special effects and a 20-minute immersive extravaganza. The film, back then, was a massive hit as the Universal Creative Team started constructing the layout re-creating the cinematic experience with a huge screen as the visitors enter a city alley where a massive fire breaks out in the milieu. As the film stars appearing on the screen talking about the incident and finally a movie-set resembling a simulated fire in the warehouse emerges to much shock and awe to the visitors. They are finally directed to exit through the building as the fire is virtually tamed to the ground. In reality, a gas flame is created under a controlled and well-executed environment where a recorded audio track recreates the sound in a real-life situation.

The San Francisco theme area houses the Happiness Café which serves exotic rice curries besides other cuisines in a re-modeled San Francisco warehouse backdrop. The Dragon’s Pearl is a Chinese-styled restaurant offering you the best and mouth-watering Chinese dishes that fit the bill.

The Jurassic Park offers an over-the-top rollercoaster experience in the Flying Dinosaur, which is an incredible 3-minute thrilling ride well integrated with the rest of the Jurassic Park area. It begins with a flying reptile attacking from behind and taking you up high into the sky as the turn gets nasty with a 90-degree flip making your face upside down. After the first drop, it takes you for multiple 360 degrees inversions that will flip, twist and turn the rollercoaster as the ride goes through numerous surprises en-route like the airtime hill and an over-water swoop. It is a perfectly synchronized and choreographed adventure ride for the thrill-seekers and indeed the best rollercoaster ride in the Universal Studios Japan. It is a fast and extremely fun roller-coaster ride for the adventurers and thrill-seekers. It is always recommended to take an express pass as there is a long wait for this awesome ride due to huge crowd attraction.

The Amity Village is a peaceful harbor town with a quiet neighborhood which draws maximum attraction in the entirety of Universal Studios Japan. It is the most popular tour supposedly to be a leisurely one but instead turns out to be an epic chase between a great white shark and the visitors in the boat. It features the world-famous man-eating shark which will draw its wide big teeth towards the crowd to thrill them. It is based on the popular movie series – 'Jaws' where the peaceful port town with calm air and a peaceful boat-ride suddenly becomes a nightmarish experience while you and the other crew members try to get out of the water alive as the shark bites a hole in the bottom of the ship.

While waiting for the Amity Tour boat, browse the Amity Historical Society and a short narrative on its history while you thrill yourself by looking at the gun collection stored on the boat. The Amity Village has another attractive – the Amity Broadwalk Games. Once you set your eyes for Amity Village, hop on this boat ride to experience the memory of a lifetime. It is always better to get a Holding Express Pass to save a lot of time due to heavy rush on account of its huge popularity.

The Waterworld is a hugely popular show in Universal Studios Japan with intensive battles raging between two gangs fighting for limited resources amidst searching for the Dryland continent. The story unfolds in an amazing open-air studio which will leave you breathless throughout the end with a wild water-boat chase, explosions, gunfires and immense sound effects, similar to the ones seen in the blockbuster movie. The stunts and immense water battles will leave you spellbound as the show enthralls the cheering crowds in the background. While you vividly re-create one of your favorite movies getting unfolded just before your eyes for a nostalgic moment, it will leave you gasping for breath.

In the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, you will come across two most fascinating and popular rides – The Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, which is the most popular ride and draws the maximum visitors in the whole park, and the Flight of the HippoGriff. The first one starts by taking you inside the nostalgic Hogwarts Castle while you feel the enchanting ambiance of the Gryffindor’s common room, Dumbledore’s office, the classrooms and the talking wall-paintings on the walls of the staircase.

It is a virtual reality created to simulate the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Experience riding on a magical broomstick while exploring the different places of this magical world. It will enthrall you while taking part in a Quidditch match as you experience some exhilarating virtual effects like the Dragon’s fire and getting spit by giant spiders at the other end.

Flight of the HippoGriff is yet another amazing rollercoaster ride in the open. It draws the largest crowd in the Universal Studios Japan. The HippoGriff has the head of a giant eagle and the body of a horse as seen in the Harry Potter movie. The ride takes you off on a fun-filled family ride that spirals and turns around some of the famous places – the pumpkin patch and Hagrid’s hut. Just outside the Hogwarts castle, you will sometimes meet the students walking in the Hogsmeade stage for a scintillating performance. There are also special performances which happen seasonally, like the Expecto Patronum Night Show, which is a marvelous performance and will leave you awe-struck in this magical land.

Drink Delicious Butterbeer – Enjoy the best of Harry Porter moments by taking a collectible mug of Butterbeer for an experience much akin to the movies. It is available in three favors – cold, frozen and warm and available at two locations – Three Broomsticks and Hog’s Head.

Your trip to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter isn’t complete without stopping by at the Ollivanders. You can also take part in the wand choosing ceremony by a member of the Wizarding staff. Also, buy a magical wand apart from other school supplies from the store as memorabilia. Also, don’t miss out on some of the amazing spots for a photo with your family – the Hogwarts Express, the Archway to Hogsmeade and the enchanting street shows.

The Despicable Me - Minion Mayhem brings you a captivating journey into the whirling world of the famous Minions at Universal Studios Japan. The epic setup with a hyper-realistic visual projection and the gigantic dome screen at the backdrop will surely challenge your senses while you plunge into the biggest and wildest ride in the park. The ride starts with the visitors being minionized by a ray gun while being sent through a narrow tunnel that leads to a huge training area for the Minions. Several problem-solving skills and team efforts are put to test in the middle of the training. Then, Edith holds up a fishing rod to lure the Minions as he starts swinging it back and forth, the Minion chain gets broken causing a mayhem among the riders to stumble upon a bomb-making arena and the ride continues through a series of events while the riders are glued in the world of a realistic virtual simulator.

This park is easily accessible from central Osaka through the train line. Once you get down in Universal City Station, you can choose to stay in some of the best and convenient hotels around the park’s vicinity. They are all a few minutes’ walk from your destined park. They are –The Park Front Hotel, Universal Studios Japan: – It is one of the latest and the finest official stay and the closest to Universal Studios Japan. It has a lot of amenities and surprisingly large rooms for your family.

Hotel Universal Port: - It has the greatest sea-viewing sides and the best location to stay put, in and around the park.

Hotel Universal Port Vita: – It also has sea-viewing sides and a perfect location to stay with your family in this funky and vibrant hotel.

La’gent Hotel Osaka Bay: – If you are looking for a budget hotel for you and your family, this is the best place to stay. It is hygienic with an optimal room-size and located at a walkable distance from the park.

It is prohibited to bring foods and edible items inside the premises of Universal Studios Japan. You will find the best family restaurants inside the campus and will love the theme-based food items being served for each specific area. The Pop-A-Nana Popcorn Stand in Minions’ Park is worth a try for the fabulous and mouth-watery flavor of salted caramel with banana. You can also try the Cookie-Sandwiches from the Cookie Kitchen at Despicable Me Area. If you have affinities for chocolates and chocolate-flavored cakes, try the ones in Beverly Hills Boulangerie. The cold and fizzy Butterbeer at Three Broomsticks in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is worth trying while you enjoy the magnificent view of the Hogwarts castle from the back terrace. The Waffle-styled French fries along with Salsa topping at The Fossil Fuel in Jurassic park is a match of Heaven and Earth. If you are looking for a service restaurant, try the Azzurra di Capri for vegetarian pizzas and other finely served meals for your family. The Parkside Grill is a service restaurant which serves steaks on the menu. It is also the best place for you to relax and enjoy a full-course meal with your family.