Anaheim to Universal Studios

Hi everyone. We will staying in Anaheim mid May and would like to do Universal Studios and a tour of downtown. Would it be best to do the tours with a tour company or to take the train and find our own way round. We won%26#39;t be driving in LA. If we do the train can someone give us directions etc. Many thanks in advance

Anaheim to Universal Studios

Hi zuki,You can easily take the train from the Anaheim Train Station to downtown LA and Universal Studios. To get to Universal studios, take Amtrak from Anaheim train station (or Fullerton train station) to Union Station. Then take the metro red line to Universal City. From the Universal City stop, you can take a complimentary shuttle that will bring you to Universal Studios. If you want to go to downtown, same thing, take the Amtrak to Union Station. Take the Gold Line, one stop and you%26#39;re in Chinatown. Or you can take the Red Line, stop at Pershing Square or Civic Center for downtown. To go to Hollywood, just take the Redline and get off Hollywood and Highland.

I%26#39;m sure HitchKennedy who lives in downtown can give you some more information on public transportation and sites to go see in downtown. Have fun!

http://www.metrogoldline.org/about.html

www.amtrak.com

Anaheim to Universal Studios

Take Public transportation.

To do this, catch the OCTA route 43 bus north to the Fullerton Train Station.

Take an Amtrak (or Metrolink) train from Fullerton to Union Station.

From Union Station, take the Metro Red Line subway to North Hollywood (make sure and check that it is going to North Hollywood, not all Red Line trains do).

Get off at Universal City, walk across the street and catch the free shuttle bus that Universal Studio supplies to the park.

Cost for this...

OCTA bus $1.25 each way.

Amtrak is normally $8.50 each way, but using the promotional code H570 would give you 25% off most of the time.

The Metro Red Line is $1.25 each way, but if you want to get off in Hollywood (I recommend Hollywood and Highland) get the $3 all day pass.

That is $22 per Adult, cheaper than the bus, and you can choose the times you go, instead of the bus schedule, which only has one trip a day.

Kids prices, OCTA allows up to three kids 6 and under to ride free per paying adult, Amtrak fare is just $4.25 one way for children 2 thru 15, and the Metro Subway allows up to 2 children 4 and under to ride free per paying adult.

Hey there amcsocal, thanks for the directions, i have already printed out and filed away with travel docs. Just to pick you brain a bit more, do you think this is better than doing a set tour, where they pick you up and drop off. My way of thinking is that your set to their time schedules and may want to spend more or less time and the driving would always be in the peak times, hence taking forever to get there. The trains sound easy enough and I do like a little venturing out in new places.

Thanks again.

Hey there darkbeer, thanks to you also. I was posting when your reply came in. I%26#39;m ready to take on the metro...counting the days

I%26#39;m looking at starline tours. For example, when I went to look at starline tours for Universal Studios, it is $75 per person inc ticket + transportation from Anaheim, all day tour. LA City and Hollywood tour is $48 per person pickup from Anaheim. This tour is for 4 hours.

As the previous post mentioned, taking the Amtrak is $8.50 one way($17 round trip) and the metro train lines is $3 for the whole day. If you%26#39;re going to Universal Studios, it maybe cheaper just to take the tour. Since admission is about $55-$56 unless you can get coupons and can get a discount. But for Hollywood and downtown sites I think it would be cheaper just to take the train. And you can go explore on your own time.

I%26#39;ve taken the redline before just to experience it, playing tourist one time with my husband and it isnt bad at all. The redline is safe. Amtrak is also safe. The metro lines run till midnight I believe and run 7 days a week. Amtrak does have a schedule, so you might want to check schedules.

correction-Taking the tour to Universal studios is not cheaper, it%26#39;s about the same price, but they pickup directly from your hotel, so it maybe be better.

You can still have an organized tour if you take the train. Just ';train it'; to Union Station (as stated above), take the %26#39;redline'; metrorail train TOWARD North Hollywood but get off at HOLLYWOOD/HIGHLAND. Wneh you reach the top of the escalator, you%26#39;ll be on Hollywood Bl. Turn right and 1/.2 block down (next to the Chinese Theatre) is the depot for Starline Tours (one of the two largest coach tour companies in L.A.). Here is a link to the coach tours that they have commencing from this location:

starlinetours.com/hollywoodtours.asp

(Note: there are tours that are 1-hour, 4-hours and 8-hours covering much of the L.A. metro area).

Enjoy!

I have to say you people are just the best. I only stumbled across this site by chance some time ago and have told everyone about it including my travel agents and the Carnival cruise agent in Australia. I really appreciate all your help, it saves so much time researching once you get to LA. A big thank you to everyone. I hope I can return the favour if any of you guys decide to take a trip downunder. Remember your US dollar goes a lot further down here. Thanks heaps.

Have a fun time!!

It looks like you%26#39;ve been given plenty of advice getting from Anaheim to Universal via train. However, you also ask about touring downtown. You should bear in mind that downtown is quite spreadout and consists of very distinct neighborhoods. You won%26#39;t be able to take it all in.

Here are some resources which are more downtown focused:

1) Check with the L.A. Conservancy. They offer excellent walking tours of the downtown area. Here is their URL: http://www.laconservancy.org/

2) Red Line Tours offers plenty of touring options in downtown and elsewhere. Here is their URL: http://www.redlinetours.com/

3) Getting around downtown without a car can be quite easy using the DASH buses. You can%26#39;t beat the price of 25 cents! Just remember, routes and schedules are different during the week and weekends. Here is their URL: http://www.ladottransit.com/dash/

4) There are a couple of self-guided walking tours sponsered by an organization called Angels Walk. The site is old. But, if you contact the agency, there are at least a couple of excellent brochures you can get for walking tours. Here is the URL: http://www.cityofla.org/ANGELSWALK/

You can also tour the downtown yourself. Recently, a new signage program was instituted which is really handy. There are signs directing you to specific districts and on most corners now, there are signs of the immediate area you%26#39;re in. Very handy for visitors. Red Line stations have very good maps of the immediate area and signs directing you to sights within walking distance of the station.

As a downtown resident, here are places I%26#39;d recommend for visitors. It is not comprehensive nor in any particular order.

1) Disney Hall at Grand %26amp; First -- Impressive architecture. Be sure to visit the rooftop garden.

2) New Cathedral at Grand %26amp; Temple -- Very modern with a wonderful public plaza. There is a nice little restaurant on-site.

3) Central Library at Flower %26amp; 5th -- One of my favorite places in the city.

4) Grand Central Market at Broadway %26amp; Third -- Lots of inexpensive eateries. Lovely patio on Hill Street side.

5) Bradbury Building at Broadway %26amp; Third -- Best appreciated from the lobby for its interior.

6) Angels Flight at Hill %26amp; Third -- Hopefully, this tiny funicular railroad takes you up Bunker Hill to California Plaza.

7) Museum of Contemporary Art at Grand adjacent to California Plaza. There is another location in Little Tokyo at Central %26amp; First. Good permanent collections. Nifty gift shops.

8) Olvera Street across the street from Union Station. This is the birthplace of the city. Be sure to visit the very well-hidden adobe. Nearby is Philippes restaurant, one of the oldest in the city. Great for lunch.

9) If you like to shop, check out the Fashion District. Saturday is the best day. Don%26#39;t go on Sunday as many shops are closed. Take the DASH to get there. Get off around 9th %26amp; Santee (near the Starbucks) and walk south on Santee. Here is the URL: http://www.fashiondistrict.org/

One more thing, if you%26#39;re taking Metro, buy yourself the $3 daypass.

HTH. Enjoy your trip.