Wizarding World of Harry Potter Tips: Fifteen Ways to Make Your Visit a Dream Come True
Universal Orlando Resort is made up of two theme parks (Universal Studios Florida and Universal’s Islands of Adventure), three hotels (Loews Royal Pacific Resort, Hard Rock Hotel, and Loews Portofino Bay Hotel), and a dining, shopping and entertainment area (Universal CityWalk). The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is located inside Universal’s Islands of Adventure Theme Park.
I visited The Wizarding World of Harry Potter with my family during Thanksgiving week 2010. Even though The Wizarding World was extremely crowded, we had a dream come true visit. Here’s how we did it:
After entering Islands of Adventure theme park, we went directly to The Wizarding World.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter had already reached capacity when we arrived and the entrance was barricaded off. Only guests with special return time tickets, similar to Disney’s FASTPASS, were being allowed to enter. These tickets were distributed nearby at no charge. We picked up a return time ticket and then used our wait time to explore the rest of Islands of Adventure.
We took a self-guided tour of Hogwarts.
The queue to ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey winds through Hogwarts castle, and is an attraction all by itself. On the days that we visited, the queue was sixty to ninety minutes long, so we took advantage of a quicker way to see the inside of the castle.
I asked an employee at the ride entrance for a “tour” and we were sent to an empty queue that allowed us to meander through the castle interior. We saw a stairwell with talking portraits, Dumbledore’s office, the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, the Fat Lady, and the Gryffindor common room. At the end of the special “tour” queue, we were let out of the castle through the gift shop, Filch’s Emporium of Confiscated Goods.
We proceeded back to the entrance of Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey and asked to ride as “single riders” (see below). We were then sent into a very short queue with only about a ten to twenty minute wait to ride the ride.
We were “single riders.”
My family and I didn’t mind riding the rides separately and comparing notes afterward, so we used the single rider lines whenever we could.
We left our backpacks and bags at the hotel.
Backpacks and bags aren’t allowed on many of the rides in The Wizarding World. There are lockers available in the train station near Hogwarts Express and below Hogwarts castle, but there may be a charge to use them.
We dined at Three Broomsticks.
The queue for Three Broomsticks restaurant was shorter at dinner time than earlier in the day, so we had our dinners there. As we dined inside Three Broomsticks restaurant, we watched for shadows of house elves and owls which appeared intermittently “upstairs.”
We had our butterbeers at Hog’s Head Pub.
Butterbeer was available at outdoor snack carts, at Hog’s Head Pub, and at Three Broomsticks restaurant. The lines on the days that we visited were shorter at the restaurant and pub than at the snack carts.
Inside Hog’s Head Pub we ordered frozen butterbeers from the bartender while watching the moving, grunting hog’s head behind him. We then took our butterbeers to a table in the pub, pulled out our camera, and recorded our first sips.
In addition to trying butterbeer, we each tasted chocolate frogs and pumpkin juice.
Each chocolate frog came with a collectable trading card featuring a portrait of Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Helga Hufflepuff or Rowena Ravenclaw that looked three-dimensional.
We savored chilled pumpkin juice, which reminded me of spiced apple cider, at Three Broomsticks restaurant. Bottled pumpkin juice was also available to take home or back to the hotel.
We visited the restrooms.
Stepping just inside the restrooms, we could hear Moaning Myrtle lamenting.
We took time to window shop in Hogsmeade.
The window displays in Hogsmeade were captivating. My favorite, outside Honeydukes, featured a huge chocolate frog inside a box that slowly opened and closed.
We mailed postcards at Owl Post.
We brought Wizarding World postcards at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and mailed them at Owl Post, where they were given a special cancellation (on the return address side of the card). We bought our own postcard stamps from home because the stamps sold at The Wizarding World were expensive and only available in packs of ten.
We tried to avoid unnecessary lines.
When we visited, there were three lines to enter the shops in Hogsmeade. There was a separate line for Honeydukes/Zonkos, a line for Ollivanders, and a line for Dervish and Banges/Owl Post. I discovered that we could visit both Ollivanders and Dervish and Banges/Owl Post by standing in the line for Ollivanders. After the wand choosing show in Ollivanders, guests exit into Owl Post which is connected to Dervish and Banges
Inside Dervish and Banges, we saw a “real” Monster Book of Monsters in a cage, and some floating broomsticks near the ceiling. In Filch’s Emporium of Confiscated Goods, located at the ride exit for Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, there was a “working” Marauder’s Map inside a glass case. Unfortunately, these items were not for sale.
We took in the atmosphere of The Wizarding World after dark.
When night fell on The Wizarding World, the castle windows of Hogwarts began to glow, the castle was bathed in purple light, and Hogsmeade looked absolutely enchanting.
We got discounts with our AAA card.
We saved 10% at restaurants and gift shops at Islands of Adventure Theme Park with our AAA card.
We didn’t let the crowds ruin our visit.
Because we visited during a school break, we had to share The Wizarding World with lots of people, but with some planning and patience, our visit turned out to be a dream come true.
For a helpful overview of what there is to see and do at The Wizarding World, check out this article:
