As you will know from previous blogs, our boys are Harry Potter nuts. So we couldn’t visit Orlando without a trip to Universal Studios home to a recreated Hogwarts, Hogsmeade and Diagonal Alley. A trip to Universal did mean an early morning taxi because we would be trying to visit 2 theme parks in a day.
We arrived on opening time at 8am and the process to enter was incredibly efficient and the crowds were half that of Disney. The boys chose to visit Islands of Adventure park first as it was home to Hogwarts and Hogsmeade. The path to Hogwarts took us past Marvel Superhero Island (where the kids took advantage of there being no line up to meet Spider-Man), Cartoon Alley and Jurassic Park. I was looking forward to riding the new Incredible Hulk Roller Coaster but was bitterly disappointed to find that it was closed, apparently due to weather. Although it was cold and a little windy I wasn’t sure it warranted the closure.
The boys audibly gasped with excitement when Hogwarts came into view. The replica was created with surprising detail and scale. Just across the bridge a recreated Hogsmeade came into view to even more excitement. As we passed between the two destinations the kids caught a glimpse of the Hippogriff ride whizzing past. As non-thrill riders the lack of speed comforted them enough to join the line and have a go. While in the line they studied the replica of Hagrid’s Hut.
Taking advantage of the adrenalin running through the boys’ veins I convinced them to have a go at the Forbidden Journey ride housed inside Hogwarts. We entered the castle with the girls in toe so we all got the chance to see inside the castle. Great care had been taken to recreate key areas of the castle’s interior much to our delight. We were able to pass through Dumbledore’s office, common rooms and portrait galleries – complete with moving talking familiar portraits. When the end of the line appeared the girls exited the castle and I convinced the boys to ride with me. They were so glad they did because it was a real treat as we were whizzed through an adventurous journey comprising props, and 3D surround screens around familiar areas of Hogwarts and its grounds, while interacting with dementors and other characters. It was wonderful.
On completion of the ride we met the girls at Filch’s Emporium where it became quickly apparent I was going to part with more hard-earned cash. The shop provided a veritable treasure trove of souvenirs. We managed to convince the boys to wait on purchasing things until they had seen the treasure in other stores.
Our next stop was to explore Hogsmeade in more detail. Jack had been given a voucher for his birthday to visit Ollivander’s Wand shop to purchase the wand that chose him. We were disheartened to find a long line to enter the shop so Yvette joined the queue while I watched the Hogwarts Frog Choir with the kids. When the show had finished we checked that we were in the right queue to discover that all that was offered was a demonstration by the wand maker and purchases were made in a separate shop. They did inform us that the experience we were looking for was offered at Diagonal Alley at the neighbouring theme park. So we reluctantly left the line with the intention of changing parks.
Before changing parks Yvette and the kids explored the treasures offered in the Owl Post shop while I rode the Dragon Challenge. The ride was a real fast-paced thrill ride complete with twists, turns and loops. Once I had passed through the metal detector checking for empty pockets the wait was brief as I was a single rider. The kids loved the shop as it included lovely details like a caged Book of Monsters.
I met Yvette and the kids in Honeydukes, surrounded by shelf upon shelf of the familiar fantasy sweets. The kids reacted as the cliché suggests and would have left with mountains of sweets if they had been allowed.
We chose to leave exploring the rest of Hogsmeade until we had our interactive wands, so instead headed for Hogsmeade Station to board the Hogwarts Express, bound for Kings Cross station at Universal Studios Florida park. We didn’t have to wait long for the train and were ushered to our cabin which had been made to look like a legitimate Hogwarts Express cabin. The windows and cabin door had been fitted with screens which projected moving images to create the illusion that we were actually travelling aboard the famous train. We travelled through the forbidden forest, across the viaduct and encountered the Ford Anglia before being greeted by Hagrid. We all loved the journey, except for the illusion that we were being overrun by spiders.
We were delighted to arrive at platform 9 3/4 and reminisced visiting the actual King’s Cross station almost a lifetime ago. From the station we followed the signs to Diagon Alley. We walked through the brick wall and were instantly transferred into the fictional wizarding world. We were immediately greeted by the sight of Weazley’s Wizard Wheezes but chose to head straight for Ollivander’s Wand Shop.
On arrival, we were gutted to be told that the process here was the same as at Hogsmeade. Nevertheless we joined the line with the intention of working it all out as we went along. The process began with waiting inside the shop, which had again been recreated to look just like it did in the movies. We were then escorted as a group into a wand consultancy room. The wand maker, who was true to character, chose a girl from the group and assessed her qualities. He then selected a wand and asked her to try casting a particular spell which went horribly wrong. The process was repeated until the right wand was found. We all then exited the room to enter the wand shop proper. The boys begged to redo the process in the hope of being chosen, and since it was Jack’s birthday treat I obliged while Yvette stayed in the shop with Audrey who was a little anxious of the performance. Thankfully, on our second attempt, Jack and Harry were chosen for the wand selection process, saving me the agony of spending all day at Ollivander’s. The boys then purchased the interactive wands they were matched to while Audrey chose Hermione’s interactive replica as her wand.
As mentioned, the wands we purchased were interactive. This meant that the children were given a map of both Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley, pinpointing sites where they could use their wand. We headed for the first site with no idea what to expect. The site was identified by a small plaque on the floor and instructions of the wand movement and spell required. After a few attempts they were able to turn on the water fountain with an intricate flick of their wand. This had them hooked and we spent the next good while completing all of the necessary spells to their great excitement.
As we wandered around Diagon Alley casting spells, we made stops along the way to explore the familiar sights. The first of these was a visit to Gringotts to exchange muggle money and then for me to ride the Escape from Gringotts ride. The ride was another 3D trip aboard a Gringott’s carriage through the underground vaults. The others joined me for the walk through Gringott’s but did not ride. Other sights we explored included Weazley’s and Borgin and Burke’s.
With Diagon Alley done we needed to eat. Obviously we had no option but to eat at the Leaky Cauldron. There was a queue to be served and seated but it was an opportunity we couldn’t miss. The food was average but the experience and Butterbeer were worth the wait.
Upon exiting Diagon Alley we intended to complete a quick tour of the rest of the park before heading back to Hogsmeade and the Islands of Adventure Park. The first site we came across was the night bus and its conductor. The bus was parked in Grimmauld Place, just outside number 12 of course, home of the Order of the Phoenix.
There wasn’t a lot more at the park that interested us or the children but we did want to wait for the main parade. To pass the time to the parade we passed the Dolorian and train from Back to the Future and stopped at Curious George’s ball park. The kids had a great time firing balls at each other and strangers so much that we nearly missed the parade.
It turned out that it may not have been a big loss to miss the parade. We had obviously been spoilt by the Disney parade because we found the parade to be absolutely miserable. It did showcase some familiar characters but ultimately it was bland.
After the disappointment of the parade, we raced back to the station for the return journey to Islands of Adventure. We were forced to join a decent line but I was pleased to find a shop part way that sold Boddingtons which helped pass the time. As we neared the end of the line, we were amazed to find a projected optical illusion which made it look as though we were walking through the wall between platforms 9 & 10 to board the train. The ride back provided more entertaining projections different to those we encountered on our journey here.
With the sun setting, the kids raced to Hogsmeade to cast the few spells scattered through the village. Their excitement grew with each successful spell and I think they were close to believing they were actually wizards and witches.
Once they had completed each of the spells Harry wanted to ride the Flying Pterydon over the canopy of the Jurassic Park. On the way to the ride we stopped to watch the Triwizard Show. By the time we arrived at the ride we were forced to wait 20 minutes for the ride to reopen. To pass the time I accompanied Audrey and Harry to climb the adventure playground nestled into the trees within the Jurassic Park area. When the ride opened again we all headed to the entrance and Harry and Audrey took turns to soar over the trees swinging gently as we rode. They loved it and would have ridden again if they had time.
We were left with precious little time to explore the Marvel Superhero Island area. While there were some good thrill rides our kids were simply interested in the shops. After a couple of purchases of unique items Harry asked to return to Hogwarts to buy something he had his eye on. He didn’t ask earlier because he wasn’t sure what else he would find. Yvette walked back across the park with the kids and let me take advantage of the lack of queues at a couple of the thrill rides, namely Doctor Doom’s giant drop and Spider-Man ride. They were both great but by the time we met back up it was the park’s closing time.
Our original plan was to catch a cab back to our resort and eat dinner. However, we were distracted on route by Toothsome’s Chocolate Emporium. We gave in to the distraction and chose to go with a sweet dinner. It was a difficult decision but in the end we settled on sharing a sundae rather than one of the enormously impressive shakes before catching the cab home for sleep.
Mark (on behalf of the wandering winrows)
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