A very special moment happened for Jasmine while we were at Universal Studios.
While walking around Diagon alley, Jeff let us into this rather unassuming doorway next to Ollivander’s Wand Shop.
There were only up about 10 of us in the group and we walk into this dark room floor-to-ceiling with the little boxes.
A wizard comes out of a door, walks down the stairs and chooses Jasmine. Watch the videos to see what happens next.
One of the most popular rides at Universal is the virtual roller coaster with interactive movie inside the Gringotts bank. Impossible to miss because of the huge fire breathing dragon on top of the building. People were waiting hours in line for this ride. Including us since they did not have special access for wheelchairs until well inside the building. Was waiting over an hour and having the ride break in the middle down worth it? No. Coming back the next day and waiting 45 minutes to ride it twice….sure. And watching Helen Bohnam Carter reprise her role and eat major pieces of scenery during the ride was an additional treat.
There are two Harry potter themed areas, one in both parks. By far the largest and most detailed was Diagon Alley. Every nook and cranny was filled with something unusual. We visited every day and could have spent more time exploring. If you are a crazy Harry Potter fan or just a causal observer you can not help but be totally engrossed.
There are quite a lot of imaginative touches at Universal Studios Harry Potter theme parks. One of them is the Hogwarts train that takes you from Diagon Alley at the Universal Studios park over to Hogsmeade and the Islands of Adventure Park and back again.
The train station, the train and the individual cars that you sit in, are all very much from the movie.
While it gets you from one park to another, it is also a ride in and of itself. On one side are the windows looking out. You get to watch London segue to the countryside and ominous dark clouds appearing and then suddenly Hogwarts is in the distance and you’re at the train station with Hagrid waving at you. It’s a little mini movie.
But wait there’s more. In the hallway is also some action going on you see silhouettes of our heroes talking and then a death eater hand appears against the glass, Harry casts a spell and before you know it a silhouette of the trolley cart shows up.
You have to ride the train a lot to really get an appreciation of everything that’s going on.
There’s still more, the return trip from Hogsmeade to Diagon Alley has different indoor and outdoor scenes.
This link to YouTube shows it in detail if you want to be spoiled.
Welcome to the town of Hogsmead with Hogwarts Castle looming in the background. There is a virtual ride that takes you through the castle and encounters with some memorable creatures – a tree that tries to kill you – a giant snake roaming through the pipes. You do feel as though there is something missing. Moving staircases? Not as impressive as Diagon Alley, but still fun.
