The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios

We recently had the best travel holiday of our lives when we visited Disney World Orlando and stayed at Caribbean Beach Resort but the place we were most excited to visit was The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios!!

How to get to Universal Studios

We purchased a two day pass for Universal Studios and set off from Caribbean beach resort early in the morning. We ordered an Uber which we found was by far the easiest way to travel out of the Disney area. The drivers are able to come straight up to your location without you having to try and explain where you are when you are unsure on the area yourself. The trip took around 25 minutes and cost roughly $15.

Getting into Universal Studios

We took the long walk from the taxi drop off point into the Universal City walk which is where the dining, nightlife and entertainment areas are. We feel we didn’t make the most of this area when we visited as we were too excited to get into the park but there is golf area, AMC Cinema and lots of other things to do. This place looks like it really comes alive at night time and is something we wished we had done on our visit.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

As soon as we entered the park we headed straight for Diagon Alley! This was the main attraction we wanted to see and we got to the park at opening time as we thought this would be the busiest area. Diagon alley is located at the very rear of the park and is very hard to actually find. We first noticed Kings cross station and the nightbus and presumed the entrance would be in that area when we noticed people walking behind a brick wall. We were a little confused so we decided to check this out and it was like we were walking as Harry did in the film through the brick entrance into Diagon alley! We have visited the London studios where Harry Potter was filmed 3 times and we must say Universal Studios absolutely blows that place out the water. Every shop is open for people to walk in to. You can buy wands from Olivanders, you can buy all the joke sweets and tricks in Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes and also in Borgin and Burkes plus many more!! There is also a giant sized fire breathing dragon on top of Gringotts Bank, if you catch it at the time when it actually breathes fire you will be amazed! The heat from the flames makes it feel so real! We didn’t do this but we did notice people had wands which were interactive to certain points which looked fun.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter Escape from Gringotts 

We then headed for Gringotts bank and the Escape from Gringotts ride. After entering this you start off inside the bank and it looks you are actually on the set! The attention to detail is amazing and we were just blown away by how good it looks. After queueing for a short time we were seated on the ride. This ride actually make you feel like you are flying and riding in the actual movie. You are looking at a screen which makes you feel emersed in the settings, you actually feel like you’re riding on the back of a dragon and flying on a broomstick around Gringotts bank.

Kings Cross station and the Hogwarts Express

We then headed to Kingscross station. From the outside it looks just like the station in London. In order to enter the station, you must have purchased both Universal Tickets – Universal Studios and Island of adventure tickets as the Hogwarts Express connects the two. Walking again through the station makes you feel like you are in the movie as the attention to detail is amazing, you eventually reach the brick wall to platform 9 3/4. There is a mirror on the wall here which is placed in an angle where if you run towards it the reflection looks as though you travel through it, just like the film!! You then reach the platform with a Huge Hogwarts Express waiting to take you onboard. Once seated in your carriage you watch a short video which is shown on the window so it feels like you’re really riding the Hogwarts Express with the scenery. Even the dementors make an appearance! We have to say the creativity and imagination that has gone into the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is just mind blowing, we were just in awe of it throughout the day.

Hogsmeade at Universal Studios

Getting off the Hogwarts Express at Islands of Adventure you arrive in the snowy town of Hogsmeade. This place is filled with all the Harry Potter shops like Honeydukes, Ollivanders and the must-visit three broomsticks where you can grab some food and try the famous Butterbeer. After walking around all the shops you can head towards the top where you can see the main attraction, Hogwarts Castle! This building looks amazing and this is where we got engaged! The ring was in a golden snitch! Watch the proposal HERE, After all this we were approached by one of the workers at Hogwarts Castle and were given some fast passes as a congratulations so we headed straight for the ride inside the castle. This was very similar to the Escape from Gringotts ride with the motion screen in front of you. You fly over Hogwarts on a broomstick and see all the magical creatures. We found that this ride is quite jerky and with it being absolutely boiling outside so we were still feeling quite hot when we went in to the ride we found it gave us a little motion sickness. The ride was a lot of fun but the Escape from Gringotts was definitely our favourite.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

We were so excited to visit Harry Potter World and it truly exceeded all our expectations. This place really is so magical and brings the enchanting world of Harry Potter to life. If you are as in love with Harry Potter as we are then you have got to visit this place. It is out of this world and such an amazing experience! We created the best memories here.

Let us know if you have ever been and what you thought about it?

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