Universal Studios Singapore Guide 2023: Perfect 1-Day Visit!

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Universal Studios Singapore guide – Living in Indonesia, we’d only heard of families we knew visiting Universal Studios but hadn’t visited it ourselves. So after visiting many places in Singapore, the last one I visited was this ever-lively spot.

I decided to write about this visit now as I haven’t had the opportunity to travel now. Since I visited Universal Studios Singapore a few years ago before the pandemic, access to attractions and regulations of visiting have changed.

Still, I’ll keep the basic details of entry ticket prices, timings, things to do, and some tips updated for you on this Universal Studios Singapore guide.

Universal Studios Singapore Guide

Universal Studios is a part of RWSentosa and is a paradise for all age groups. Some rides are age-restricted, some height-restricted, and others also look for health conditions. But there’s always something for everyone to do here! The Singapore Zoo and Universal Studios are simply must-visits for kids.

The National Gallery of Singapore and Singapore River Cruise at Clarke Quay can get cheap but boring for kids. It’s expensive but keep this gem on the list.

Tourists from all over the world visit this theme park. After all, it’s the only Universal Studios in Southeast Asia. With the water rides, roller coasters, and 4D shows, it’s similar to the attractions most theme parks have. But what makes Universal Studios different is of course – the themes!

The park lies over 20 acres of land and consists of 7 themes. In case you don’t have an idea about the spot, search for Universal Studios Singapore guide or map and download its pdf for reference.

It should look like this:

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Universal Studios Singapore guide

It doesn’t matter whether you’re aware of all the characters, themes, and buildings that represent the movies and shows of Universal Studios, the theme park is a fun place for all!

Though I explained some characters like Shrek and the Donkey to my parents, they’d enjoy the show anyhow. So don’t worry about all the jokes and references and go straight for those rides.

Universal Studios Tickets and Pricing

  • One Day Ticket to Universal Studios
  • Universal Express Pass
  • Universal Express Unlimited
  1. One-day ticket
    1. Adults (13-59) – SGD $82
    2. Children (4-12) – SGD $61

The Universal Express/Express Unlimited passes are add-ons to purchase after you get your one-day ticket. The express passes give you the fast lane to your rides and save you time in waiting for your participation turn.

  • The Universal Express costs SGD $65 and allows you on the express lane only once for each ride.
  • Express Unlimited pass at SGD $95 lets you ride on the express without having to wait in the queue with no limits.

The express passes are applicable only for one-date and one-day tickets. It’s best to purchase the express passes only when you’re short of time or visiting on-peak hours. During the weekdays, the one-day ticket is sufficient.

Get your tickets from the official site or trusted sites like Klook for the best offers when touring Singapore. Since we’re an affiliate partner of Klook, our readers get the best deal for attractions. Here are some great deals for your Singapore itinerary!

Klook.com

Things to know before visiting

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Here are the essentials of the Universal Studios Singapore guide before you visit:

  1. How to Get there?
  2. Best time to visit
  3. What to pack when visiting USS

Universal Studios is one of the largest attractions in Singapore and it’s a vast place. Due to the pandemic, the tourism spot had shut down for months. But tourism, being a large income to Singapore, it’s open for tourists again.

However, there are many conditions for travelers and Singapore’s serious about its rules. Stay updated on the travel regulations before visiting.

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Here’s me and my mom waiting in a queue for a big ride

How to Get there?

Take the Sentosa Express monorail from HarbourFront, Vivocity to get to Universal Studios Singapore. Get down at the first stop – Waterfront.

You see, Universal Studios is part of Sentosa Island and there are several ways to get there:

  • Take the Boardwalk: It’s free to walk or cycle to Sentosa Island over the Sentosa Boardwalk. Also, getting to Sentosa Island for tourists is easier for travelators along the Boardwalk. It’s a good workout!
  • Public Bus/RWS8 bus: Singapore public bus charges differ from where you board the bus to arrive at Vivocity Merrill Lynch or HarbourFront. Then take the RWS8 bus (Shuttle bus) into Sentosa.
  • Private Cars: Cars are allowed inside. The parking rates between timings vary.
  • Monorail: This one’s my favorite! You get a great view of the island from above – it’s beautiful and worth it! The monorail comes under public transport. You can switch to the monorail easily when traveling with MRT – it costs SGD $4.
  • Use the Cable Car

Another post for you to read: River Wonders Singapore Review: 5 Rare Creatures to Spot!

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Using the monorail for our visit

Having used the cable car before, the Sentosa Express was a sweeter option. We used the monorail while entering and leaving Universal Studios.

As we were visiting from Batam Riau, all we had to do was get to HarbourFront, Singapore by ferry (BatamFast) and find the monorail station in that mall.

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Getting to Singapore with BatamFast – Yep, my brother just woke up

Best time to Visit

The best time to visit Universal Studios Singapore is the non-peak days. Anytime is good to visit but crowds will make you weary and wait longer. Avoid the weekends. But with the pandemic, there’s not much option:

  • As of 28 Feb 2021: USS is now open for visitors from 12 pm to 7 pm on the weekends (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday only). The pandemic has changed its timings since the last time I visited some years ago. Keep alert to the pandemic and its open timings before visiting.

You wouldn’t need to wait long for rides during the weekdays hours even without the express pass.

Also, in case you have your tickets prebooked, get to the USS as early as possible – even on weekdays. Singapore’s known for its tourism and the USS never fails to have huge numbers of tourists visiting. Get to the Universal studios early to avoid waiting in long queues.

Trust me about this queue, we waited over an hour to get into the theme park –  thus it had to be on this Universal Studios Singapore guide.

Another post for you to read: Singapore Travel Advice from Australia

What to Pack when visiting USS

Universal Studios Singapore guide: That’s one bright side when it comes to waiting in lines here, there isn’t much to pack. Wear comfortable clothing and you’re good to go!

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Nevertheless, here are some essentials to pack for Universal Studios Singapore:

  1. Wear light clothes and put on comfortable footwear, you’ll be walking a lot. (preferably shoes)
  2. Bring a change of clothes: Though not all, some water rides can get you wet.
  3. Carry an umbrella. An umbrella or a raincoat comes in handy when it rains. It rained a short while when we visited and we hadn’t any to cover ourselves!
  4. Keep a power bank handy. Make sure to keep your devices fully charged and keep a power bank for backup.
  5. Water bottles
  6. Stroller and toys for children. The long queues are tiresome for children. The stroller and some toys to keep them busy will come really useful here. Though my brother could walk back then, we had his pram along and it saved us energy when he slept for half the trip.
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Dozing away as we tour!

Visual Sketch of the theme park

This is the best part of this Universal Studios Singapore guide – the description from a traveler’s perspective. With a pond at the center of the park and the 7 themed zones surrounding it, it makes the place more spacious.

As every zone has doorways to two others, a tourist simply has to keep walking from one zone to another. There’s no confusion as to which zone to visit first. You’ll walk into the zone – Hollywood when you enter USS.

Through Hollywood, one gets into the beautiful setting of New York with classic cars and sidewalks. From there, just keep walking through to the next zones!

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Shot of a car in New York – USS

Since the theme park is gigantic, I took time to realize that we were actually walking in a circle. By evening, we made it back to Hollywood again to exit – but this time emerging from Madagascar.

Accommodations near USS

With Universal Studios placed on Sentosa Island – one of the most popular tourist spots in Singapore, there are plenty of accommodations to choose from.

There are many stays to choose from in Sentosa Island itself and around HarbourFront. Here’s a map of hotels listed on Booking.com in and near Universal Studios Singapore along with their prices:



Booking.com

However, the prices on the island are much higher than normal stays in Singapore. For budget or solo travelers, if you’re looking for a place to crash for the night, check out dormitories and pod stays (My favorite is the Spacepod at lavender). Getting an individual room in Singapore is expensive.

HostelWorld stays offer basic essentials such as a bed, wifi, and sometimes breakfast at cheap rates. They’re great when you’re planning to tour Singapore longer with a tight budget.

Klook.com

Zones at Universal Studios Singapore

This is about what to expect in each zone and my experience of it – a Universal Studios Singapore guide through each zone. We weren’t aware of the zones until we started walking through huge gateways into other themed worlds.

It doesn’t matter whether you know the themes beforehand as you’ll walk down all of them. However, to make sure you don’t miss anything here’s a tip:

Universal Studios Singapore guide: Once inside, pick up a map of the USS and guide yourself across the zones:

  1. New York
  2. Sci-fi City
  3. Ancient Egypt
  4. The Lost World – Jurassic Park
  5. Far Far Away
  6. Madagascar
  7. Back to Hollywood (Entrance)

New York

USS New York is my favorite among all the themes. The main attractions here are the Lights! Camera! Action! hosted by Steven Spielberg and Spaghetti Space Chase.

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Universal Studios Singapore Guide: Spaghetti Space Chase!

I loved strolling the streets more than the attractions here. The pathways, streetlamps, and the building settings – even the benches, and dustbins match the classic theme!

Meet and Greet: Here, the characters you get to visit are Sesame Street and Woody Woodpecker. We got to see the performance by Sesame Street:

Cars in USS New York

Universal Studios Singapore guide – Being a car enthusiast, the cars were the most beautiful part to me. Here are some shots I took:

Another post to check out: Things to Do in Genting Highlands

Sci-Fi City

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Remember the head-turner giant rollercoasters you see in most pictures when looking up for Universal Studios Singapore – yes this is where they are.

The humongous roller coasters – Battlestar Galactica rides are the key attractions of this zone. There’s also the meet and greet with the Transformers here.

Rides in Sci-fi City

  • Battlestar Galactica – Human (Red) and Cylon (White)
  • Accelerator
  • Transformers 3D battle

The Galactica roller coasters have the longest queues in USS and it can take hours to get on the ride. The place being confusing, we went through the doors of Transformers 3D battle. Only after some minutes did we realize that it wasn’t Galactica.

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Galactica Rides lurking in the background

But the queue behind us had piled up, so we decided to go for this anyway – and it was awesome! After that, I looked up at the Galactica ride and decided to take a step back, not this time.

And the accelerator would churn up our stomachs, so we decided to move to the next zone after the 3D show.

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Close-up shot of the Galactica Human
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Coming out of the Transformers 3D battle

Another post to check out: Bali 7 Days Itinerary: The Complete Guide

Ancient Egypt

I couldn’t go on the Galactica ride, but I did get on Revenge of the Mummy. This one’s also a terrifying roller-coaster ride, except it’s in the dark!

The ride takes you slowly at first with mummies on the screens around then it stops at a wall. Without warning, the cars start moving back and down a deep pit – yep, the roller coaster starts backward.

I’d waited a long time with my mom in the queue for this one and it was totally worth it!

Rides in Ancient Egypt

  • Revenge of the Mummy
  • Treasure Hunt
  • Character meet and greet – Eqyptian Royalty

Rides aside, the theme of Ancient Egypt is beauty with its enormous statues.

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Ancient Egypt USS

The Lost World: Jurassic Park

Unlike the last zones, there’s greenery in The Lost World. It’s a nice spot to sit down and have a feast (just be careful of dinos around).

The Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure and the WaterWorld show are the features of this zone. The rapids adventure is an easygoing ride. Except for the end where the water vessel lifts you off the water and pushes you down a steep slide.

The ride was so fun I went on it twice – once with dad, then with mom. Since my brother was young, he couldn’t come and had to stay back with one of us.

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Some other rides here are Waterworld, Canopy Flyer, Dino-Soarin, and Amber Rock-climb.

We missed out on the Waterworld show. As we were getting late, we had to move on. But don’t miss it, it’s an awesome show! The Lost World is where most of the wet attractions are – especially Waterworld and Rapids Adventure.

  • Also check out Meet and Greet – The baby dinos meet and greet are something not to miss for kids. Both the Raptor Encounter and Hatched! are worth watching.

Another post to check out: Things To Do In Batam (Traveler’s guide!)

Far Far Away

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Far Far Away USS – No worries, I’d just spilled water on my t-shirt!

The castle building setting (Shrek 4d Adventure), Enchanted Airways, and the Puss in Boots’ Giant Journey made up for most of the majestic design of this zone.

I went for Enchanted Airways first with my dad. The Enchanted Airways in USS is smaller than the Revenge of the Mummy and Galactica roller coasters, but the cars themselves being small, the ride turned out to be edgy and fun!

Later, the Donkey LIVE opened up – and boy was it funny! The audience interaction and the donkey speaking right to us makes the show worth the wait.

Another post for you to read: Chinatown Singapore Guide

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Universal Studios Singapore Guide: Puss in Boots Giant Journey

Since Puss in Boots Giant Journey was a slow-going ride with a lot of queues, we skipped it.

At last, we went into the 4D Shrek show. As a lot of audiences are allowed in for the show at once here, it doesn’t take long to get in for the show. As we were getting late, we couldn’t meet the characters in Far far away – Shrek, Princess Fiona, and Puss in Boots.

Another ride in this zone is the Magic Potion Spin which is an indoor Ferris Wheel for kids.

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Universal Studios Singapore guide: Shrek!

Madagascar

As a kid, Madagascar was my favorite series – Alex, Marty, the Penguins, and even King Julien! Madagascar zone featuring A Crate Adventure is a simple water ride yet it was nostalgic to me. It was a pleasant ride.

This zone, Madagascar features 2 rides:

  • A Crate Adventure
  • King Julien’s Beach Party-Go-Round

The Party-Go-Round is a Carousel for kids with all the Madagascar characters to sit on and King Julien’s favorite songs playing.

My brother with his sleep round 2 missed the carousel. But hey, he was happy when he woke up!

Another post for you to read: Jurong Bird Park ultimate 1-Day Trip in Singapore

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Universal Studios Singapore Guide: peace!

Back to Hollywood

Finally, we were back in Hollywood to the entrance of Universal Studios Singapore again. The attractions here are Elmo’s TV Time and Turntables.

But the characters meet are more popular at this entrance

Character Meet and Greet Hollywood USS

  • Illumination’s Despicable Me
  • Dreamworks Animation Trolls
  • Aloha Talk – King Kahula

For the Despicable Me characters, we were looking forward to meeting the minions (Minion show), but we were too late.

Another post for you to read: Ultimate SEA Aquarium Singapore Blog

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Universal Studios Singapore Guide

Tailpiece

That ends this post on my visit and Universal Studios Singapore guide. It took us 1 whole day at USS and we still had some missed out rides.

But overall, it was a great time. I’d visit it again if I get a chance – and get on that Galactica! USS isn’t just for kids, it’s a world for everyone!

Picture Credits: Apart from the map, most pictures are by my dad in this post. The car pictures in the New York zone are my shots. And lastly – credits to my parents for taking us to the USS!

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Universal Studios Singapore Guide

Another post for you to read: Best Things to Do in Marina Bay Singapore on a Budget


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Universal Studios Singapore Guide

Universal Studios Singapore guide – This post contains affiliate links at no additional cost of the products to you.

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Manas Patil

Hi there! I'm a 22-year-old dude all the way from India, I love traveling and building itineraries! Sign up and get your FREE COPY of my travel checklist to get the best of your next vacation!

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7 thoughts on “Universal Studios Singapore Guide 2023: Perfect 1-Day Visit!”

    1. Hi Eliza! Yes the USS tickets are 1-day admission passes and lets re-entry for the same day. But keep in mind to hold your tickets and inform the staff when leaving. I believe they’ll provide a re-entry stamp to you.

  1. Thank you for this very helpfull post! I am going to USS tomorrow and I can’t wait. I’m extra excited after reading your story :)

    1. Hi Noah!

      So great to know you’re visiting and I believe you already visited. I hope you had a great time! Thank you very much for your kind words.

      Manas :)

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