No visit to Universal Studios is complete for our family without going on the boat ride Jaws. No matter how many times we go on this ride although it is a little bit cheesy we always manage to scream a little as well as laugh a lot. I believe it originally opened in the early 1990s and although in its early years had a few technical problems it has been a very popular ride for over twenty years. Although there is no height restriction on this attraction although I believe children less than 48 inches high have to be accompanied by an adult.
I feel this is one of the best organised attractions at Universal with plenty of boats which means the queue is continually moving and even if the wait is quite long this along with the things to see as you queue makes the time go quickly.
We usually go on this ride early in the morning straight after we have been on Men in Black, whilst Fantasmic which draws big crowds is on or very late in the day nearer closing time when the Park tends to quieten down. If any of your party do not want to go on the ride there are plenty of refreshment areas nearby where they can sit and have a drink whilst they wait for you.
As you enter the attraction under the Amity Boat Tours sign you will see lots of fuel barrels you will realise the significance of these later! The well organised queue takes you through the boat shed with sailing boats in nets hanging from the ceiling and you enjoy a lovely sea view as you progress through the queue.
When you board the boat if you do not want to get wet (or pretty scared) do not sit on the left hand side of the boat! You start your leisurely ride with your guide giving you a running commentary and all seems well as you pass the lighthouse. Then suddenly you can tell by the guide’s voice that something is wrong and you get a sighting of Jaws as its fins comes out of the water.
To get to safety the guide steers the boat into the Boat House only to find it is in darkness and then there is threshing of the water and you realise Jaws is in there. Quickly exiting the Boat House and firing at Jaws the fuel barrels get hit and they explode. This is very realistic and you can feel the heat from the fire and then Jaws tries to attack your boat – this is when most people on the boat scream! There follows a lot of splashing about and shots being fired and Jaws is finally killed.
A quiet leisurely boat trip that turns into quite an adventure, don’t miss it.
I feel this is one of the best organised attractions at Universal with plenty of boats which means the queue is continually moving and even if the wait is quite long this along with the things to see as you queue makes the time go quickly.
We usually go on this ride early in the morning straight after we have been on Men in Black, whilst Fantasmic which draws big crowds is on or very late in the day nearer closing time when the Park tends to quieten down. If any of your party do not want to go on the ride there are plenty of refreshment areas nearby where they can sit and have a drink whilst they wait for you.
As you enter the attraction under the Amity Boat Tours sign you will see lots of fuel barrels you will realise the significance of these later! The well organised queue takes you through the boat shed with sailing boats in nets hanging from the ceiling and you enjoy a lovely sea view as you progress through the queue.
When you board the boat if you do not want to get wet (or pretty scared) do not sit on the left hand side of the boat! You start your leisurely ride with your guide giving you a running commentary and all seems well as you pass the lighthouse. Then suddenly you can tell by the guide’s voice that something is wrong and you get a sighting of Jaws as its fins comes out of the water.
To get to safety the guide steers the boat into the Boat House only to find it is in darkness and then there is threshing of the water and you realise Jaws is in there. Quickly exiting the Boat House and firing at Jaws the fuel barrels get hit and they explode. This is very realistic and you can feel the heat from the fire and then Jaws tries to attack your boat – this is when most people on the boat scream! There follows a lot of splashing about and shots being fired and Jaws is finally killed.
A quiet leisurely boat trip that turns into quite an adventure, don’t miss it.