Check out this complete guide to Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando and learn all about this magical place.
What is Hollywood Studios park like in Orlando?
Hollywood Studios is one of Walt Disney World’s four parks, along with the Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom and Epcot. At first, the park was called MGM Studios and had a gigantic sculpture of Mickey’s magic hat at the entrance. But later, the park underwent a makeover and was renamed Hollywood Studios.
It became an incredible space dedicated to Disney movies, as well as the great classic Mickey Mouse animations. There are many themed attractions dedicated to the famous Star Wars franchise, Toy Story, Pixar Studios and the history of Walt Disney and how it was all created. Hollywood Studios is therefore a great park to visit as a family, with attractions to please both adults and children.
What are the areas of Hollywood Studios park in Orlando?
The park is divided into 8 areas: Hollywood Boulevard, Echo Lake, Commissioner Lane, Grand Avenue, Star Wars, Toy Story Land, Animation Courtyard and Sunset Boulevard. Among the other Disney parks, it’s usually the emptiest, so you can plan your visit around the whole park.
IMPORTANT: The city of Orlando has many theme parks and attractions spread across various regions of the city. To get to visit everything, the ideal is to use a rental car. If you want, see our article here with all the tips on how to rent a good car at the lowest price.
Main attractions at Hollywood Studios park in Orlando
Check out the park’s must-see attractions:
1. Fantasmic Disney Show: one of the park’s main attractions is its closing show. At the end of the day, there is the incredible Fantasmic Disney show, with fireworks and many ships filled with Disney characters. The show simulates a battle between Mickey and Maleficent, one of the studio’s main villains. The Mickey in the show is reminiscent of the character’s classic cartoons, in which he wore a big blue wizard’s hat.
All with lots of fireworks, it’s a beautiful show for all the family. It takes place on an open-air stage and is very popular with visitors, with seats filling up during the high season. So it’s best to check the Disney app for the right time and get there in advance.
2. Beauty and the Beast musical: is one of the park’s most beloved shows. It tells the story of the classic movie, with lots of music, dancing and incredible costumes. The show follows the style of Broadway musicals and lasts 20 minutes.
The show takes place several times throughout the day and our recommendation is to go right after lunch, as you don’t want to exert yourself too much during this time. This way, you can take a break from the park and enjoy a beautiful show.
Another option is to go to the Little Mermaid musical, which follows the same line as Beauty and the Beast. It’s a show with all the characters from the movie and the original soundtrack. However, it attracts younger children, who are enchanted by the effects and colors.
3. Frozen attraction: as before, at Hollywood Studios you can watch the musical First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration. It will charmingly tell you all about the movie Frozen, with lots of music. And in each song, the audience is encouraged to join in, singing along with the beloved Anna and Elsa. Fans of the movie shouldn’t miss this attraction, which lasts around 25 minutes.
4. Tower of Terror: one of the most extreme attractions at Holliwood Studios is the Twilight ZoneTower of Terror. This is a large haunted hotel with great mysteries. The queue is usually long due to the success of the attraction, but despite this, it is very interactive and you discover many of the stories of the Tower of Terror right there.
After the queue, you’ll enter an elevator that will make visitors scream a lot. It drops and rises several times and, added to the horror context, it becomes one of the most electrifying attractions.
5. Aerosmith roller coaster: is one of the most popular attractions at Hollywood Studios. It goes from 0 to 97 kilometers per hour in just 3 seconds, all to the sound of a special soundtrack recorded by Aerosmith himself.
6. Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway: is one of the park’s newest spaces, which brings together the best of Walt Disney World’s technology. It shows a short film with various beloved characters from the Disney universe, aimed at people of all ages.
7. Toy Story area: Disney’s Hollywood Studios park has an exclusive area full of Toy Story-themed attractions. The area has been a hit since it opened in 2018. In Toy Story Land, there is the Slinky Dog Dash, a quiet roller coaster, ideal for children, which imitates the spring of the Toy Story dog. As well as the Alien Swirling Saucers, which is a large cup that spins around with visitors in the middle.
Of course, the best part of the area is seeing the characters from the movie running around: Buzz, Woody, Jessie, the Sergeant and the little green soldiers.
8. Star Wars area: similarly to Toy Story Land, there’s Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge, an incredible area for Star Wars fans. In the area you can take part in the Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance toy, a realistic simulator in which you ride an intergalactic ship and join the Resistance in a great fight against Kyolo Ren and General Hux of the First Order.
You can also enjoy Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, another simulator, but now about piloting and battling in space, very faithful to everything in the Star Wars saga.
And for the kids, there’s Jedi training, where the little ones, of both sexes, are dressed up as real Jedis. They are given a lightsaber and, after training, use it to fight Darth Vader in a fight full of special effects. Finally, there is another simulator developed by George Lucas himself, director of the Star Wars films.
In the queue itself, you’ll meet the robots C3PO and R2D2 and many other characters. The attraction lasts 7 minutes and is much loved by everyone, even those who aren’t fans of the franchise. Each visit to the simulator tells a totally different adventure, making it ideal for repeating as many times as you can. It’s in the Echo Lake area of the park, part of Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.
In addition to the Disney Fantasmic Show, there is the Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular, a fireworks display themed around Star Wars. The show takes place at the end of every day for 10 minutes to the soundtrack of the films.
Best restaurants at Hollywood Studios in Orlando
Following this complete guide to Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando, know that there are many restaurant options in the park, with excellent meals for lunch and dinner. The Sci-Fi Dine-In, for example, simulates the open-air cinema of the 50s. The tables are made similarly to the cars of the time and there is a large screen showing various scenes from old movies.
Plus, the entire ceiling of the restaurant imitates a beautiful starry sky, making for a very immersive experience.
And for those who enjoy good pasta, there’s Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano, in the Muppet Courtyard area. Their prices are very affordable, ranging from 15 to 36 dollars per dish. Remember to book before you go, as it’s very busy.
You can also enjoy Min & Bill’s Dockside Diner, which is located inside a fun boat. As well as enjoying the decor, there are lots of tasty snacks, stuffed sandwiches, pretzel sausages, chicken salad and many others.
How to avoid queues and use Single Riders?
There’s a great way to skip the queues at Disney parks using Genie. This is a paid service in which you book times on the rides without queuing, optimizing your time in the park. In the My Disney Experience app, you can track how long you have to wait in line for each attraction. This way, you can personalize your visit, saving time that would otherwise be wasted in huge queues.
In addition, you can save a lot of waiting time by using Single Riders, which are queues for those who are going to an attraction alone. They usually move much faster than normal queues. This way, if you’re going on a roller coaster and don’t mind going with a stranger next to you, you can get there much faster.
How to save money at parks and attractions?
First of all, the first tip is to look for tickets in advance, not to buy them on the spot. That way, you can calmly research the best prices that are within your budget. In addition, there are many ticket combos that are much better value.
At the Disney complex, the ideal is to buy a ticket for all 4 parks, which is cheaper than excluding any of them (plus you can have the full experience of seeing the whole place). Another way to save money is to buy tickets to visit the parks for more days. In the end, the cost of the ticket per day is cheaper if you buy more days to go.
At Universal parks, you can experience a 2-week visit with the 3 Park Explore Ticket, which also allows access to the Volcano Bay water park. However, the best-selling ticket is the 2-day Park to Park ticket, which allows you to visit both Universal parks (Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure).
And to enjoy the famous Busch Gardens rollercoaster park or SeaWorld Park, the best way is to buy the combo that includes the 2 parks along with Aquatica. The price of the combo is only 30 dollars more expensive than a single ticket for just one of the parks.
Where can I buy the tickets for the lowest price?
We always use this website that sells all the tickets and tours. There is everything there and the price is always the cheapest. The only ticket that isn’t sold there is the Disney ticket, which for the time being is the cheapest place to buy it. But for all the other parks like Legoland, Busch Gardens, Sea World and Universal Orlando, this is the best site.
They also have a really cool free tour of all the cities. And it’s where we book the transfer to take us from the airport to the hotel. It’s cheaper and safer than taxis and Uber.
Saving money on NBA and NFL games
For sports lovers, you can’t miss a trip to the NBA and NFL games. It’s a unique experience to be able to enjoy the best of basketball and American soccer in the USA. As I said before, it’s a great idea to check out the ticket offers with our coupon and enjoy the best of American culture.
Ticket prices vary depending on the location you choose to watch the match. We always use this website, which offers great prices for all sports matches. We always use it and have had great experiences, as well as saving a lot.
Save money on your trip to Orlando:
Saving money: do you want to plan your trip while making the most of your budget? Be sure to read our article on how to travel to Orlando cheap, with all the tips to save the most, while still enjoying it!
Tickets: find out where to buy your Orlando tickets in the cheapest and safest way – for theme parks, museums and ticket combos. You can save up to 40%!
Car: if you are thinking about renting one this is the best website. It compares the price at all rental companies and finds unbeatable prices. You can save up to 30%!
Mobile chip: We always use this chip. It’s electronic (eSIM), you install it instantly and you can use your cell phone’s internet anywhere in the world.
Hotels: our article on where to stay in Orlando. You will find out the best area, the hotels that we have stayed there and how to save a lot on the hotel.
Travel insurance: medical care in another country is very expensive and it is extremely important to take out travel insurance for any trip abroad. This is the website we always take out our insurance on. Reliable and at a good price.
Transfer: do you need one, from the airport to the hotel? Find out here how to book and for the lowest price!
