“home to Hogwarts”
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is a themed area spanning two theme parks in the Universal Orlando Resort in Orlando, Florida, USA. The first phase was officially announced for Islands of Adventure on May 31, 2007, and after a two-and-a-half year construction period, the area officially opened to the public on June 18, 2010.
The area's flagship attraction is Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey which exists within a re-creation of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It takes riders on a journey through Harry Potter's wizarding world. Other attractions include Dragon Challenge, a pair of inverted roller coasters, and Flight of the Hippogriff, a family roller coaster.
The area also features a re-creation of Hogsmeade containing many gift shops and restaurants from the series of Harry Potter books including Dervish and Banges, Honeydukes, Ollivanders, Zonko's Joke Shop, The Three Broomsticks and The Hog's Head. The second phase was initially announced on December 6, 2011, as a significant expansion of the existing Wizarding World of Harry Potter. On May 8, 2013, it was officially announced that a substantial portion of phase two would be constructed in the adjacent Universal Studios Florida theme park with a replica of the Hogwarts Express taking guests between the two lands. This area's flagship attraction will be a roller coaster themed around the Gringotts Wizarding Bank. The remaining attractions will be themed around London and Diagon Alley. The second phase is expected to open in 2014.
This park (both sections) is so well done! The attention to detail is absolutely amazing! And I LOVE that since the Diagon Alley/King's Cross section has opened, visitors can now buy wands that activate "magic" in different locations. The fact that people are waving wands around all over the place really adds to the experience. And of course the butterbeer is not to be missed!
Get the Butterbeer! It's non alcoholic and delicious.
The addon opened this summer and takes fans aboard the Hogwarts express to the different parts of the park dedicated to Harry Potter. Now you can explore Knockturn Alley as well, and take a ride through Gringotts Wizarding Bank. Absolutely a must for Potterheads, but even non-fans will have an awesome time.
This is a must visit for all the potter heads out there. The whole thing is just exceptional. The park was very well done, I must say. Imagine how it looks like in the movie and on the book; it surely looks that way. The entire place was really huge. The Diagon Alley looked so surreal. Walking here just gave me the shivers! Ride the Hogwarts Express for a nice experience. We absolutely loved everything; the sights, sounds, the shops. Don't forget getting some butterbeer to complete the whole experience!
Very expensive, and you need to buy two park tickets to get to see both parts of the Harry Potter world. We only went to the Island of Adventure, and that was nice enough. Loved the Hogsmeade and the small shops. The line for the Castle Ride was long, but worth the wait. Didn't know quite what to expect tho, so I was caught off guard by how extreme the ride was! It was very cool though, and it feels so real. Too real.
Oh this place is magical.
I'm a huge Harry Potter nerd. The correct term is actually a Potterhead, but I didn't want you all getting the wrong idea.
We got to the park and immediately went back to Diagon Alley. I was speechless. I felt like I was in a whole different world. First stop, Ollivander's, of course. A wand is a necessity to experience the real magic of the place, or you know, just watch other people having all the fun. My, now, Fiancé had to pull me away from the shops in order to get me to the Gringott's Ride. I was dressed in my house attire that day, and Slytherin's actually were being accommodated on the Gringott's Ride, so we got to skip the line. Score! Afterwards, we needed a break and after taking some pictures we sat down for a rest in front of the Daily Prophet. And then, my boyfriend (now Fiancé, don't get confused), got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. A POTTERHEAD'S DREAM.
The rest of the trip was even more magical (if possible), after that. We rode the Hogwarts express, went to Hogsmeade, drank Butterbeer, shopped 'til we dropped.
Pretty much, aside from one other ride, we spent the majority of our trip in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter... and I wouldn't have had it any other way. So perfect.
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