Fast forward to today, as the proud parents of three kids, we still get to visit this exciting theme park every now and then because guess what, the first Universal Studios in Southeast Asia opened on our shore in 2010 and it was touted that the park would remain as the "only one of its kind in Southeast Asia for the next 30 years".
It turned out that this isn't just a park for thrill-seeking youngsters or daring couples without kids; it is every bit as fun when you visit it with your family because there is something meant for the enjoyment of everyone. I know that because we've brought our entire family there and from the 1-year-old toddler to the 60-year-old grandma, all of us loved the experience to bits. (Did you read about how my mom conquered Battlestar Galatica and Revenge of the Mummy? If not, you have to go here, I promise it will make you laugh!)
Mandatory family picture with the Universal globe
So, I've lost count over the years but we have likely visited the park over half a dozen times already, much of it is credited to how the annual Navy Family Day has been held here more than once and we got to enjoy the park exclusively up till wee hours. Last Sunday, we made a trip to Universal Studios again and the kids were so psyched about it. It's amazing how my kids can go without rest or sleep and be in full-fledged play mode for over 10 hours, but it only goes to show how much they enjoy and cherish the time spent here. Here's sharing about some of our fond moments that day and I'm also sharing about our experience at A Chocolate Adventure - a new, kid-friendly interactive experience that takes place in the month of May.
Are we tall enough, Mama?
Before you enter, you can let your child check his/her height at the board near the entrance and determine which rides he/she can qualify for. It once again reminded me just how fast these two are growing! Wasn't it just yesterday when the big girl couldn't barely make it for half of the rides? Now, she can qualify for almost all of them already and the little sister is also more than midway there. Awww, too fast too fast.
So much to see, so much to do
With 20 hectares of space and over two dozen attractions to choose from seven themed zones, you can hardly finishing exploring the entire park in a day! Yes, that just gives you a reason to keep coming back to this magical paradise, right? Nonetheless, we accomplished so much that day and here are some of our favorite moments.
The kids were ecstatic to come up close with the Sesame Street characters who gave them high fives and hugs
Being with friends means you help to look after each other's baby so you get to play! It's been long since we both went on a roller coaster right with the girls and they seriously loved the high speed Enchanted Airways
Guess who's now tall enough to join her sister for the Transformers Ride and was so eager to become an Autobot (in her words, the good robot)? She sat on it not once, but twice and seems to share our love for this ride!
We went on the Puss in Boots' Giant Journey ride and enjoyed hunting eggs while defying gravity. My only regret was that the ride was too short and the queue was too long, but we would definitely do it again if given the chance
The baby went on his first real ride (other than the merry-go-round)! It was the first time we rode on the Madagascar: A Crate Adventure together and yes, we moved it moved it!
He doesn't need, or want, me to hold him on the carousel and he's not afraid of gigantic robots too. This one will join the sisters and form the fearless trio very soon!
"We will be back, Universal Studios Singapore, because we love you too much!"
Yes, it's been proven. Universal Studios is definitely a wonderland and one of our favourite, happiest places to be.******
A Chocolate Adventure
If your kids love chocolates and candies, then you will be excited to learn that A Chocolate Adventure is now open to all guests in the park and takes place from now till the end of May.
It is a fun-filled, interactive experience with the kids where they get to come up close with larger-than-life candies, do some colouring, dip marshmallows in chocolate fondues, meet and greet characters, and also participate in a hands-on workshop where they get to decorate their own cupcakes and cookies to bring home.
Once you enter the premise, you will be greeted by lots and lots of candies! See, even the floor is 'filled' with candies and it is definitely a welcoming sight that triggers lots of happy emotions.
As if those are not enough, you also get to see, touch and come up close with chocolate trees, giant cookies and a candy house. Yes, we wished we could taste them too!
I assumed that my kids will love the marshmallows but it turned out that these had some kind of filling in it so they didn't go crazy over the fondue or the marshmallows. In fact, we ate a grand total of... TWO. Haha. If your kids love them, do grab some marshmallow packets which are distributed at the main entrance or you might have to end up paying for extras here.
The fondue consists of four different flavours and while we didn't experience anything unpleasant, we did hear about cases of people putting in half eaten marshmallows or kids letting chocolate drip into their mouths. I'm hoping that the management has increased the vigilance or followed up with remedy action after the feedback, but unless you are the lup sup jiak, lup sup dua kind (we are kind of like that, actually), do keep an eye out just in case.
We were hoping to decorate some lollipops, only to realize that the only craft activity available that day was colouring. Well, no complaints though because the girls loved the lollipop printout and would keep coming back to this station so as to finish up their masterpieces.
For those who prefer to run around, you can have a game or catching or hide and seek in the Cocoa Hedge Maze. Despite the fact that it isn't huge, the kids had a blast just running in and out and in and out, chasing after their friends and hiding from Daddy and Mummy. We were told that if you looked carefully, you would be able to spot some candies hidden amidst too!
You will also get to meet and greet characters including Cookie Monster, Candice Cupcake and Mama Cookie. While the kids were thrilled when they made their appearances, it got a little chaotic at the beginning because everyone was just dashing up trying to get a photo with the cute mascots. The queue formed eventually but then again, we were ushered into the candy house for the next activity so we didn't really get a proper family photo with Cookie Monster. (You can see him more up close, even playing a game of hide and seek, in A Little Million Echoes' post here.)
A Chocolate Adventure takes place in the month of May and is available for all guests to Universal Studios Singapore. It is located at Soundstage 28 located just behind the Sesame Street Spaghetti Space Chase. For more information, go here. Workshop and meet and greet timings are as follow.
Disclosure: We received a media invite to experience A Chocolate Adventure at Universal Studios Singapore. All opinions and photos are our own.
