Top 11 Rides at Universal Studios

By CJ Tiernan

Amusement parks are the bees knees. The proverbial cat's pajamas. I have been to Universal multiple times over the years and have always loved my time there. Now I haven't been to Universal Studios Florida in several years, so I haven't gotten the chance to explore DreamWorks Land. I've also had the pleasure of attending dating back to the early '90s, so I have several attractions on this list that no longer exist (insert sad face emoji here). This list doesn't include any rides from Universal Islands of Adventure or the newly opened Epic Universe (future lists en route). Here are my 11 favorite rides at Universal Studios of all time.

Studio Sarah Lou, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

1. E.T. Adventure

This ride is a nostalgic delight. More and more, rides are utilizing screens and discontinuing animatronics. Keep the animatronics, please! They create such a uniquely magical experience at theme parks. This ride starts with a queue that weaves through impossibly tall trees. Then you get to hop on a bike and fly through the air to aide the titular alien in getting home after he's already made the call. Soaring over a tiny town is always fun (Peter Pan in Magic Kingdom lets you do the same thing) and then there's the end. E.T. thanks you for your help. By name! It was such a cool wrinkle when I was a kid, even though he kinda butchered my cousin Siobhan's name. To be fair, that one gets most of us from this planet as well. Check this one out next time you're there. I don't think you'll have to worry about it being replaced anytime soon like some of the other rides on this list. Legend has it, as long the theme park remains, this ride is contractually obligated to exist. Yay!

2. Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit

Full disclosure: I only ever got to ride this one once and now it's gone forever, so I don't have quite the sample size of most of the other rides on this list. However, my one experience was all time great. My sister, 2 of my brothers, my brother-in-law, and my dad were just getting to the lockers before the ride and stowing our valuables when an employee went up to my dad (who looked a lot like Santa Claus at the time) and asked us to come with them. We didn't know what was going on, but we followed to an elevator. At the top, we had a small area to stow our effects, and then came around the corner and the ride was right there. We were chosen like the 3-eyed alien in Toy Story (sorry, wrong IP) and got the VIP treatment. It was magical. We called it a Christmas miracle because it was Christmas Eve. The ride itself starts with a full 90 degree vertical climb and then it's off to the races. I found out after the ride you can also choose your song from a pretty long list of options. I went default. No regrets. If you got a chance to ride this one, be thankful. If you're looking for the VIP treatment, go with Santa.

3. Revenge of the Mummy

This is an indoor roller coaster. It is based on one my Top 20 favorite movies of all time. When I rode it in 2021, they announced that it would be undergoing a revamp, so I don't know how different it is now, but when I was on it, it was sick! Even my mom loved it and she doesn't do roller coasters. My favorite part is when you're in a room and then the entire ceiling lights on fire and you can feel the burn. How cool!?

4. Jaws

This ride is also extinct. If you got a chance to climb aboard, cherish it. This ride has shades of Jungle Cruise, as you would hop on a boat and someone would talk to you as they led you around. They would take you to spots where there were shark attacks and show you the sights, but then there is a distress call over the radio and the game is on. Don't worry! Your skipper has a frickin' grenade launcher. Aw man, I wish this one was still in play.

5. Earthquake: The Big One

This ride gave you the opportunity to live out an 8.3 earthquake while in a train car in San Francisco. It was so cool to watch the infrastructure crumble above and around you (and not feel like you were going to die). There was a semi-truck that came sliding down at you from the road above and a giant flood of water came rushing by. There was a second version of the ride that I don't remember, but this first one, based on a '70s movie I never saw, was so much fun!

6. Transformers: The Ride 3D

The 2007, Michael Bay-helmed movie was tons of fun. It transported these animated robot cars into the real world. This ride took it a step further, by placing you in that world at the same time. In 3-D! This ride is very reminiscent of the Spider-Man ride in Islands of Adventure, as the style of the ride is quite similar, but the action and sound-effects are a real treat. Peter Cullen and Frank Welker, two of the greatest vocal performers of all time, go head-to-head as Optimus Prime and Megatron and we come out the winners. Check this one out. It still exists!

7. Back to the Future - The Ride

Nerd fantasy became a reality with this ride as you had the opportunity to hitch a ride with Doc Brown in the DeLorean (An 8-passenger, convertible facsimile) to try and catch Biff Tannen as he runs amok in the space-time continuum. Alas, it has gone the way of the dodo, and the effects would seem pretty crude by todays standards, but man was it a real treat back in the '90s. Speaking of treat, just outside the queue for this ride, a youthful 6 and a half year old me was about to bite into a footlong hotdog when a seagull swooped in and Bogarted about 10 inches. Core memory.

8. The Simpsons Ride

The entire Simpsons world (Springfield, U.S.A.) is a really cool thing to see. There are several landmarks from the show and who doesn't love the idea of Duff Beer topiaries. The ride itself takes you through Springfield and puts its cast of zany characters on full display. It's pretty cool. They take you to a little room with the Simpsons car parked in it. Then they raise the car up into the air and you get to view a giant domed screen as the story plays out. The car you're sitting in does whip around a lot, so make sure to keep your head pressed against the head rest or you'll look like Sideshow Bob after he steps on all those rakes.

9. Hogwarts Express

The Hogwarts Express is both a ride and a mode of transportation. It allows you to travel between Hogsmeade in Islands of Adventure and Diagon Alley in Universal Studios. The train looks just like it does in the movies from the outside, but the bigger surprise is that it becomes an attraction while in motion. There are silhouettes of Harry Potter characters that talk as they walk by the train corridors, and the window is a screen that allows you to watch some Harry Potter characters and easter eggs play out. Plus, it gives a different show depending on which way you're traveling. And yes, you get on to the train at platform 9¾. And yes, you can have a butterbeer (or 10) when you arrive.

10. Men in Black: Alien Attack

Can you tell why I like this amusement park? After Back to the Future was in my Top 10 favorite movies of all time, and The Mummy was in the Top 20, Men in Black makes the list and is in my Top 30. The queue alone is so fun for this ride as you get to parade through the starched-white walls of the Men in Black headquarters. You even get to eavesdrop on the little smoking worm aliens as they hang out in the break room. Once you get on the ride, it is a shoot-'em-up adventure. You are out there shooting the bad aliens (remember, they're not all bad) and trying to rack up a higher score than the person next to you. You don't get Noisy Cricket, but you still get to wield a lot of fire power. Check it out while it lasts!

11. Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts

Back to the Potterverse, y'all! This ride allows you to hurl through Gringotts bank in a mine cart. As the title would suggest, it's not a leisurely stroll. The ride is a lot of fun, even if it is a little too reliant on video screens. More animatronics, please! The queue for this ride is the greatest queue I've ever experienced. You enter through the big, marbled lobby of the bank before descending into the bowels of the operation. Every Harry Potter fan ought to be given the chance to live a day in this universe. From the immersion in Diagon Alley (with a fire-breathing dragon) to the chance to team up with Harry, Ron, and Hermione on the ride, this place is an honor and a privilege. Unlock your next trip right now! Alohomora!

Final Thoughts

All of these rides were so much fun. If you are someone who makes an annual pilgrimage, or frequents this park even more often than that: Jealous! I had the great fortune to attend several times with my family, and it forged memories I wouldn't trade for anything (except maybe a frozen butterbeer on a hot July afternoon). I hope you get the chance one day. Plus, I even had to leave some great attractions off my list. Kongfrontation was a really cool King Kong ride where you rode an aerial cable car during an evacuation of New York due to the presence of an oversized gorilla. You would get to play witness to Kong himself, as well as the carnage he wrought. Twister...Ride It Out was also cool. Like Earthquake, it gave you an opportunity to ride out (eh, see what I did there?) a natural disaster without all the pesky imminent demise vibes. Imminent Demise Vibes! Dibs on that as my band name! Anyway, please let me know in the comments what your favorite rides in the Universal Studios park are. Thanks!