Field Trip! Movie Studio Tours
It's fun to be a tourist in your own city, yet many of us don't take advantage of the great scenes here and leave them for our visitors. We know. Life happens. We get busy with showing houses, helping neighbors, organizing our team of experts, and aiding people in the search for their next home. Sometimes we need to remind ourselves to take a few hours off, take a breather, let our heads touch the sky, and to enjoy beautiful Los Angeles. One of our team members calls these opportunities Shiny Days, and we think that's the perfect name for them.
So let's go out, enjoy the sunshine, and go on a Shiny Day family field trip to the movie studios we have in our beautiful backyard.
UNIVERSAL STUDIOS HOLLYWOOD STUDIO TOUR
The world-famous Studio Tour takes you through the 13 city blocks on 4 acres of their historic studio lot. Hosted by Jimmy Fallon, the tour will take you through the plane crash scene from War of the Worlds, Desperate Housewives’ Wisteria Lane, the legendary Bates Motel of Psycho fame, and the sets of Jaws, King Kong 360, and Fast & Furious Supercharged. Studio tours are an hour long and available daily during theme park hours.
WARNER BROS. STUDIO TOUR HOLLYWOOD
The Warner Bros. many backlots and soundstages include The Gilmore Girls’ hometown, the Friends iconic coffee shop Central Perk Café, Big Bang Theory sets, among others. You start with a one-hour guided tour, then two additional hours unguided with shopping and dining. Studio Tours are available Thursday – Monday 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM (WB used to have a deluxe tour which included a five-hour guided tour of the 110-acre Warner Bros. lot, but it's not currently available.)
PARAMOUNT PICTURES STUDIO TOUR (on hold)
The century-old Paramount Pictures Studio is the longest operating studio in Hollywood. Cecil B. DeMille, Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Marlene Dietrich, Mae West, Gary Cooper, the Marx Brothers, and Elvis Presley have all filmed at this iconic studio lot. It is home to the iconic New York Street backlot that can transform into 10 different NYC neighborhoods. Unfortunately, both their 2-hour regular and 4 1/2-hour VIP tours are temporarily on hold, due to the pandemic.
SONY PICTURES STUDIO TOUR (on hold)
Walk through the famed gates and you’re behind the scenes at one of the most historic and exciting studio lots in the world. The two-hour guided walking tour will give you the real experience of a working studio. The Wizard of Oz, Men in Black, and Spider-Man were all filmed here. The lot is also home to a studio museum and is the permanent home of the Breaking Bad RV. Sony has several different types of tours including VIP and twilight tours. Unfortunately all tours at Sony are also on hold due to COVID-19.
It's disappointing that some of our city's treasures are closed due to the pandemic, but these companies are doing their best to keep their employees and our favorite actors safe. The studios that are open are requiring and enforcing LA County’s Public Health order. All persons ages 12+ must be prepared to show proof of full FDA or WHO approved COVID-19 vaccination (a full 14 days after final dose was administered), or a negative test taken within 72 hours of visit, prior to entry. A COVID-19 self-test, sometimes referred to as a "home test", is not acceptable. Persons ages 18+ must also show photo ID.
As conditions improve, these experiences will be available again, so do your due diligence and use Google often. Shiny Days are so refreshing. They make us more creative and help us work better when we return to our desks.