Madame Tussauds Hollywood
DETAILS:
Location: 6933 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood, California 90028
Hours: Monday thru Thursday - 11AM to 6PM / Saturday & Sunday - 10AM to 8PM
Parking: Metered street parking & various paid parking lots (rates vary) available in the area. There is also limited free street parking available in the residential area south of Hollywood Boulevard. Please observe all posted street signs.
Cost: General Admission - $29.99 / GA + Marvel Universe 4D experience - $34.99 / GA + Ripley’s Believe it or Not Museum - $45.99
Time Commitment: 60-90 minutes
MISC:
As of this post, free general admission on your birthday with proof of ID.
Located in the heart of Hollywood on Hollywood Boulevard, Madame Tussauds Wax Museum (not to be confused with the Hollywood Wax Museum just down the street) is one of those tourist-trap oddities that you swear you’ll never step inside of as a well-adjusted, self-respecting citizen of Los Angeles. I was one of these people until I recently took advantage of a birthday promotion (as of this post) that allows for free general admission on your birthday with proof of identification. After all, the only thing I enjoy more than my birthday is free stuff.
The museum chain has a long and storied history dating all the way back to the mid 1800s when it was first established in the British Isles by the eponymous Marie Tussaud. Today, it has over twenty locations spread across five continents with the Hollywood location setting up shop in 2009, instantly becoming rivals with the aforementioned Hollywood Wax Museum. (does one city, much-less street, need two wax museums???)
Sitting immediately next door to the Chinese Theatre, Madame Tussauds Hollywood is a three story museum that winds through a series of exhibition rooms hosting a brigade of wax figures organized by a particular theme such as the “A-List Party”, “Pop Icons”, and “Marvel”. The museum also offers various experiences in addition to these exhibition rooms. Some are free with your general admission ticket like “The Ultimate Jimmy Kimmel Experience” (basically a faux interview demo) and some have an add-on cost like the Marvel 4D experience.
All-in-all, my visit pleasantly surpassed my (low) expectations. The museum’s collection was much broader in scope than I had anticipated and many of the wax figures were surprisingly accurate (like The Rock, Jimmy Kimmel, and Morgan Freeman) while others were outright monstrosities that bore no resemblance whatsoever, IMO (like Ryan Reynolds, Brad Pitt, and Barrack Obama). And it was a nice touch that many of these figures were set up to allow for immersive photo opportunities. For me, Madame Tussauds definitely falls into that category of a place that you should visit at least once so that you never have to visit again. I’m not quite sure that I would fork over the $29.99 GA price tag, but it’s certainly worth your time when free. Hooray for birthday promotions!
RESOURCES:
Madame Tussuads website
