Universal Studio's Grinchmas!

What a Grinchy Greeting!

With one of the largest theme parks in the world just down the road, one might think that Universal Studios gets overlooked as a theme park destination.  Au contraire! This theme park/movie studio brings in thousands of visitors everyday.  And that increases significantly during their Grinchmas celebration.

The idea is based around what else? A movie.  In particular, they seemed to have glossed over the classic children's book by Dr. Seuss, and gone right for the Ron Howard version from 2000.  That being said, their celebration has all the glitz and glamour that you'd expect from a Hollywood production.

All of their usual rides are open like The Simpsons (simulated roller coaster), The Mummy (actual roller coaster), and Jurassic Park. So the holiday touches you'll find are solely wrapped up in the Grinchmas theme.  A giant picture of the Grinch greets you as you walk down the red carpeted entrance.  Fun!  From there you'll see festive trees and "Wholiday" decorations throughout the park.

Some highlights include a brand new Whoville area complete with snow. Yes, snow!  It's sectioned off in the middle of Universal and is just like a park.  Only it's filled with snow and surrounded by a beautiful Seussian Christmas tree and festive backdrop.  There are Who's walking around greeting kids young and old. And there's an actual Grinch taking pictures with families.  And Max too!

Another spot not to be missed is in the Studio Tour.  This is normally just a behind the scenes look at the Universal Studios movie lot.  But in addition to that, the tour includes a special visit to Whoville as a grande finale.  Guests are taken right up next to actual sets used in the "Grinch" film. Dancers perform a montage of numbers while dressed as Whoville residents. Cindy Lou Who is there and so is the Mayor, Max and the Grinch!  But it doesn't end there. The tram continues on to Mount Crumpit! A cave has been decorated to look like the snowy mountain top where the Grinch lives-complete with presents, flashing lights, and a closer look into the Grinch lair!  The tour guide walks the guests through the adventure before returning everyone back to the park.  This is so much fun for kids and parents!  A definite must see if you're looking to keep the "wholiday" fun going.

But my favorite part, had to be the celebrity tree lighting event. Each evening, they have several tree lighting ceremony's where a celeb will come and read from the original Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas.  Then the giant Whoville tree is lit up while everyone sings along to songs from the classic Grinch cartoon. There's such a feeling of nostalgia mixed with sentiment during this part, even if you're crammed in an area with thousands of other people.  Try to go to at least one of these. They have several scheduled for each evening.

Beware that during this next week, everyone and their mom is going to Universal. The day I was there, the park reached capacity and they had to turn people away.  Get there early. It took a long time to get food, or a place to sit, or go to the bathroom.  Plan for that. But otherwise, Grinchmas didn't leave me feeling Grinchy at all...but then again, my heart isn't 3 sizes too small.

The Grinchmas event goes until January 2nd.  Tickets start at $74 a day but there are other ways to save if you check out their website.

Grinchmas Universal Studios

Happy Tradventuring!
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