Ultimate Guide to Universal’s Harry Potter Rides
Have you ever visited The Wizarding World of Harry Potter? If so, when’s the last time you went?
I ask because Universal has updated and added since its inception in 2010. Unless you’ve gone to the park since last June, you haven’t done everything.
Photo: Universal
Let’s take a look at the five Harry Potter rides at Universal Orlando Resort. And 10 points to Gryffindor for remembering all your wands!
5) Flight of the Hippogriff
The first thing you should understand about Universal Orlando Resort is that it features three different theme parks, one of which is a water park, Volcano Bay.
Photo: Universal
The two actual theme parks are Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure. For various reasons, the latter park languished for more than a decade.
Then, Universal introduced The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Islands of Adventure. The rest is magical history, as this park instantly became world-famous.
Photo: Universal
However, Universal didn’t invest in The Wizarding World as much as you might believe. The entire Islands of Adventure project cost between $250 and $300 million.
Universal has improved the park over the years with additional investments. Still, I mention this because the oldest rides are also the least impressive.
To wit, Flight of the Hippogriff is a junior roller coaster that is over in 75 seconds.
This attraction’s line queue is nothing special, either. So, don’t get your hopes up a lot here. I would argue it’s one of the least impressive roller coasters in Florida.
Still, kids love it. The coaster tracks naturally deliver a terrific view of Hogwarts Castle, and the cast members’ themed outfits are hypnotic to children.
Photo: Universal
4) Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey
The industry uses the term E-Ticket attraction as a way of acknowledging the crème de la crème.
Harry Potter and the Forgotten Journey was unquestionably the E-Ticket superstar when The Wizarding World debuted.
Photo: Universal
Universal constructed Hogsmeade first, and the ride designers plotted a dark ride unlike anything that Muggles had never witnessed before.
The entire experience starts in the line queue. Guests literally enter the real-world representation of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
So, the attraction delivers two experiences at once. Harry Potter fans get to wander this castle-like structure built into the tall rocks.
Inside the building, magic is everywhere throughout the line queue. Statues of powerful wizards and foes adorn the walls.
Magical botanical practices are visible in the exterior sections of the waiting area. Paintings on the walls spring to life, as is true in the books and films.
Photo: ThemeParkHipster.com
Finally, you’ll encounter the three friends who defeated He Who Shall Not Be Named: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley.
Your entire party will feel thrilled before they ever board the ride, which is equally spectacular.
Screen Grab: Attraction Traction – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jw4Ae3pzOwI
Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey plays out as Potterverse’s Greatest Hits.
You’ll watch a Quidditch match, encounter Dementors, and escape from Hagrid’s misbehaving pet dragon.
The entire experience will leave you breathless and exuberant. Here’s the remarkable part. Three Harry Potter rides are even better!
Photo: NBC via Getty Images
3) Hogwarts Express
Universal married form and function with its transportation system. Once Hogsmeade proved wildly successful, park officials doubled down on the premise.
Universal Studios Florida received its own Wizarding World in 2014. This update would feature Diagon Alley with its lucrative shops.
Unfortunately, the two Universal Orlando parks connect at the front, not the back. To solve this problem, ride designers did something inventive.
The park built a real-world version of Hogwarts Express, one that transports guests back and forth between Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida.
Guests can’t look outside and watch the change, though.
Instead, Universal crafted a fully immersive ride experience, and it’s different depending on where you’re going!
When you leave the Hogsmeade station, your train ride will present a different story than if you’re departing from King’s Cross.
Photo: WheresAmanda.com
In fact, the King’s Cross to Hogsmeade version includes an encounter with Dementors!
You can watch the videos to understand how this works. However, the details don’t matter as much as the brilliance of the entire experience.
Hogwarts Express is perhaps the most Disney-like of all Universal attractions due to the immaculate nature of its theming.
When you board this train, you’ll escape into a fantasy realm wherein you believe that you are truly heading to Hogwarts!
Photo: Universal
2) Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts
For five straight years, Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts towered over everything else at Universal Orlando.
This ride was the unquestioned alpha at the park and, arguably, all of Orlando, at least until Avatar Flight of Passage arrived.
Photo: NBC
Since then, a different Harry Potter attraction has surpassed Escape from Gringotts, but that speaks more about the greatness of the new ride than any dig at its predecessor.
Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts marries two disparate concepts: the dark ride and the roller coaster.
Photo: BeyondtheThrills.com
The best way that I could describe it is that Universal took the ride structure of Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey.
Then, ride designers put everything on a coaster cart with ride tracks.
So, you’re still experiencing a brilliant Potterverse story, only everything’s happening during a roller coaster ride!
Photo: Universal
The events take place during the sequence from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, when our heroes break into Gringotts Bank.
However, the rider isn’t with Harry and his friends at the start. Instead, guests luckily encounter Hermione, Ron, and Harry, as the trio saves the day.
Perhaps the greatest thrill is that the greatest evil wizardess, Bellatrix Lestrange, is trying to capture you throughout the experience. Oh, and Voldemort joins later.
This ride is a true masterpiece of storytelling and theme park design. Somehow, Universal still created something better, though…
1) Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure
In the Summer of 2019, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter leveled up again.
Photo: Orlando Sentinel
Park planners reclaimed the space of a previous attraction in the Hogsmeade section. Universal turned this area into the signature attraction at Universal Orlando Resort, Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure.
The genius of this roller coaster is that it combines two character traits from the Potterverse – Hagrid’s love of monsters and Arthur Weasley’s love of muggle artifacts.
Photo: Universal
After watching an introductory pre-show movie, guests board an old-timey motorcycle, complete with sidecar. This aspect doubles the quality of the ride.
The experience is different depending on where you sit. You can choose to “drive” the motorcycle, or you can ride as a passenger.
Also, which car you’re in somewhat impacts the sensation, too.
Photo: Tim Shortt
You will absolutely want to sit in the front row of Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure at least once.
Best of all, there’s onboard narration to propel the story, and a dark ride portion akin to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom.
Photo: MickeyBlog.com
The latest Harry Potter attraction is truly the greatest, as demonstrated by the fact that the lines started at 14 hours on the first day and remained six hours or more throughout the year.
This one is worth both the wait and the hype, folks.
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