The Wizarding World of HarryPotter- anyone been?

[SB621]

DH and I are doing a super quick trip to FL in early Oct without the kids. I desperately want to go to Universal so we can check out WWoHP. The problem is we really only have 1 full day at the park. I would love to know any tips from people who have been there. What they liked and so forth. Also, are there any discount tickets for people who don't need a park hopper pass? DH has a FL license adn we are military. it seems like all the deals are for ppl who are at disney for days and going between different parks etc.

TIA!

 

[justginger]

Me! DH and I went last year as part of our 6 week honeymoon. As a big HP fan, I loved it! Even DH thought it was good, but got tired of the lines - we were there in August so it was packed.

We got our discounted tickets online - do a bit of Googling. We didn't really like the other Universal park - there wasn't as much to DO. Lots of sitting around. But the park WWoHP was in was fun. I could have gone on everything twice! Especially loved the "big" ride in the castle. I'm normally a scaredy cat but would do anything HP-related and am so glad I went on it. It was unlike any ride I've ever been on, totally one of a kind. And the area where the line wrapped around was like being on a tour of the castle, so cool.

I would definitely recommend going - such a great day!

 

[KatSullivan]

My husband and I went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in late Sept. of 2010 and it was fantastic! I would highly recommend you go if you have the time. We just visited for 1 day before we went on a cruise and found there was more than enough time. While there is a lot to see, the actual size of the Harry Potter section of Universal is pretty small, so it's pretty efficient to visit everything in a short amount of time.

I would say we spent about 4 hours total in the Harry Potter section and we visited almost every store and rode every ride. It was so amazing! The main ride - I think it's called the forbidden journey - is fantastic and worth the long wait in line. Luckily, the line winds through the Hogwarts castle so there is plenty to see. They really make it part of the entire experience with holograms, talking portraits, Dumbledore's study, Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, and the Hogwarts greenhouses complete with crying mandrakes. I would also highly recommend the butter beer from the Hog's Head pub! Every restaurant and store looks exactly like they do in the movies. They do an amazing job with Zonko's, Honeydukes, and Ollivanders. Needless to say I bought a wand - or rather, the wand chose me!

We really spent most of our time in the Harry Potter section as well as the Jurassic Park portion. I've been to Universal in CA, so we just did a walk through of the rest of the park. Since we were visiting for just one day, we just bought a 1 day ticket. I seem to recall it was around 80 dollars? I believe there may be a slight discount if you purchase online. Have fun!

 

[LoveLikeCrazy]

I am not a HP fan, but i am a universal fan and i have been 2x.

First experience - March 2011: We had the express pass but they are no good on Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. The line was over 2 hours long and i was NOT waiting. I did use my express pass to go on the "used to be called" Dueling Dragons in HP. They have since changed the name to "Dragon Challenge". They used to run these coasters at the same time and you would have a bunch of "near misses"... it was really fun!

Second time - Feb 2012 - We stayed at a universal resort and had an "unlimited" express pass (which really comes in handy - you can cut the line multiple times!) and EARLY entrance to the park! So we were let into the park an hour before the public and went on HP and the forbidden journey this time around. We were actually the first people on the ride. We also got to ride the dragon challenge over and over again (both coasters)

The lines in HP are almost always well over an hour from when i have been there. i would say go to go as early as possible to beat the rush...or keep checkin in on wait times. HP is extremely congested with park guests which makes it tough to navigate at times. But the main ride The forbidden journey is well worth the wait!!!

Enjoy your time in Universal. It's def one of my favorite places to go!

 

[Haven]

I'm soooooo jealous! I hate theme parks, but I LOVE Harry Potter, and I cannot wait to go!

I've been rereading the series these last few weeks to gear up for our annual Harry Potter movie marathon, so I've been especially achy about wanting to go!

Anyone have any photos to share????

 

[LJL]

get the frozen butterbeer, not the just-liquid one!

 

[KatSullivan]

It was magical and the butter beer was awesome!

 

[justginger]

I'll post a few of my photos when I get home tonight, Haven.

 

[SB621]

Ok thank you everyone for the details! I'm an HP addict so I'm so happy to find out the park exceeded everyone's expectations....now I can't wait to go.

Was there a place to eat there and how was teh food? Or am I better off going someplace else in Universal?

 

[justginger]

Of course there was food - at The Three Broomsticks! It was good, as good as theme park food can be.

So excited for you; all HP fans will love it!

 

[imitcan]

My husband and I, with our two teenagers were there last July. One teen is a real HP fan, the other, not so much! We all had a blast. It was stinking hot - but not as hot as I thought it would be. We got to the park early and the lines were very manageable. A lot shorter than I thought they would be. We ate at the park but not in the Harry Potter village. The meal was great. We stayed at a condo with a beautiful pool about 10 min. away so it was great to cool off after the long day in the heat. We all agreed that if we are ever in the area again we would go back for another day at Universal, specifically to revisit Harry Potter World. Hope you have as great a time as we did.

 

[Haven]

Love the pictures, KatSullivan! (You look just like my college roomie and good friend!)

Can't wait for your pictures, Ginger!

 

[Skippy123]

Kat, great pics!!!! looks like fun! I want go

 

[justginger]

Just a couple, don't want to flood you guys with HP nerdiness.


Us with Ollivander (sunburnt after waiting in line to see him for 2 hours!)


Hog's Head, for all your HP drinking needs


And, of course, Hogwarts!

 

[Tuckins1]

Omigod, I want to go there so bad!! I'm entirely jealous!!!

 

[blacksand]

We waited on line pretty much forever for everything when we were there (October 2010). But it was SO WORTH IT. I loved everything. Every little detail. The storefronts, the snowy rooftops in Hogsmeade, the moving pictures and the wanted poster of Sirius Black, the castle, complete with holograms of all the characters and snow(!) while we waited on line. Absolutely magical. The Three Broomsticks was great. Butterbeer was sickly sweet, but I loved it anyway. The pumpkin juice was delicious. I also got a chocolate frog and a Ravenclaw scarf. Oh, I loved it so much. I didn't even mind the lines. We did spend basically the entire day there, but we didn't really mind. I think we went on one ride in the Dr. Seuss section and we went on the Hulk rollercoaster, but otherwise, we spent a full day at the Wizarding World.

I will say that I ADORED the ride in the castle, but every other member of our 6-person party had major motion sickness. I was really sad, because I loved the ride and got off excited to talk to everyone about it, but they were all sick and kind of miserable for the next half hour or so. So it might not be the best idea for people prone to motion sickness. That said, I would CRY if I missed it. It was amazing.

 

[Haven]

Love the pictures, Ginger! (You are so beautiful!)

Now I'm really geeking out and I cannot wait to go. I'm wondering if DH will stay home with the baby and I can go off to Orlando with my sister in January????

We have a big HP movie marathon right around Halloween every year. I decorate the house of course, and it's a ton of fun. I recently found a website (Therpf.com) where really talented prop makers recreate props and share them. They have an entire forum of free HP paper props, so this year we'll have a wall of Proclamations from Umbridge, all the wanted posters, AND (this is what I'm most excited about,) candy boxes from Honeydukes and WWW! I made some mock-ups using plain printing paper of a bunch of boxes a couple weeks ago. I'm going to use card stock for the boxes I make for our actual party, but how cool are these?

 

[justginger]

You're too kind, Haven.

Those props are SO cool. Seriously. Now *I* want to do a movie marathon night! And I'm definitely adding a framed Umbridge announcement to the photo wall I'm compiling for our bedroom...

 

[Haven]

Aren't they awesome? The people on that site are so talented. The Umbridge proclamations are amazing. I just went out and bought card stock for the boxes today. I'm so excited! Now I have to order the chocolate frog molds.

I'm so excited for fall, it cannot come soon enough!

 

[KatSullivan]

Wow! Haven thank you so much for posting that website. Those Umbridge proclamations are awesome! I'm helping to plan my company's Halloween Party this year and now you have my gears turning... maybe I can convince everyone to have a Harry Potter themed party!

justginger - I love your pics! Did you end up getting a wand? I actually use it to train my dogs. When I swish and flick and say "wingardium leviosa" they jump! And when I cast "Avada Kedavra" they roll over and play dead.

Here are a few more pics

 

[Haven]

Kat--I am laughing so hard at your awesome dog training method! That is amazing! So cool. Do you yell "Accio!" instead of saying come?

Isn't that site the best? I'm amazing at everyone's skill. I was a theatre major in college, and our prop masters were always amazing at recreating things, but these HP props are really something.

I just bought light brown muslin yesterday. I'm going use a sponge and paint "bricks" on it and hang it up with a slit down the middle on our front door to make the entrance to platform 9 3/4. I am so excited for this year's party!

ETA: If you end up doing a Harry Potter-themed party, search "Harry Potter party" on Pinterest. People post pictures of their awesome home decorations. I got a lot of great ideas there. There are also some GREAT alcoholic HP-themed drinks, if it's going to be that kind of a party. Your Three Broomsticks bar could really be hopping.

 

[KatSullivan]

Haven - lol great minds think alike! We actually have a whole routine - Accio for come, then wingardium leviosa for jumping, then Crucio (beg and waving their paws), and then we finish it up with avada kedavra. sometimes my nerdiness gets out of hand!

 

[KatSullivan]

Great idea about pinterest! We usually do a haunted house - so maybe we could have dementors, moaning myrtle, and Aragog. The three broomsticks would be a great theme for the food. Bertie Bots every flavoured beans, butter beer, pumpkin juice,the possibilities are endless! I'm getting beyond excited now I'm a scientist at a biotech company, so I'm sure there are lots of nerds like me who would love it!

 

[Haven]

OH my gosh, your pictures are killing me. I love it!!!! I wish DH was a Harry Potter fan, but he's never even seen the movies. Otherwise, we would totally have a new training system going on.

I hope you go crazy with your party! It's so much fun to really do it up. This will be our third or fourth year of doing the HP marathon, and every year the decorations get better. I can't wait!