baileybrad
and Casey, too!
- Joined
- Apr 30, 2000
The 2 existing rides that were integrated into the area (Flight of the Hippogriff and Dragon Challenge) work quite well. I do miss the Dragon's running at the same time straight into each other but I suppose one cannot have guests being injured at a theme park. The Weasley's still running car setting outside in the grass at the entrance to Dragon's Challenge is priceless.
We were able to tour this area without much of a crowd due to proper planning/research and based on our choosing to enter the park early on one morning since we were staying @ the Hard Rock Hotel. We were there 4 days during the busy 4/1 – 4/5 Easter period but had no problems seeing everything in WWHP and were not impacted by the crowds.
The park was open until 10:00PM during our stay. We went over there on Sunday evening around 8:00PM on our 1st day of touring and did a general walk through of the area. Crowds had already thinned. We went into the main shop near Hogwarts. It was not overly crowded. Then we did the tour only line through Hogwart's Castle to see and get an overall understanding. It was better than we could have imagined. It is like Dumbledore is right there speaking to you. The talking pictures on the walls are amazing. We spent about 10 minutes just listening to the conversations going on among them. Salazar is a real jewel. Just wonderful. After our walking tour was over, we then rode the Hippogriff ride a couple of times with no wait (our 9 year old loved that) (Hagrid's place looked grand) and we all rode the Dragon Challenge, also with no wait. The nine year old was just tall enough. We thought he was okay but you never know until the attendants give you the thumbs up. The timing of this trip was based mainly on the projection that our youngest's height at the time of this trip would be 54" making him tall enough for all of Universal's rides. Our party of 8 (4 adults--Amy & Chuck; Jeff & Roxanne, and 4 boys: A&C's 3 sons--Bailey 14/Bradley 12/Casey 9 and J&R's son--Daniel) moved easily through the WWHP area. We had express passes from HRH but they really saved us very little time this night in WWHP, perhaps 15 minutes or so on Dragon Challenge. The express lines were walk-ons for us with the passes. This was the 1st time we had ridden the DC (or Dueling Dragons when we rode it 3 years earlier) @ night in the dark and we prefer it better in the daylight. The ride is really intense but it never phased Casey our barely 54" youngest. Brother peer pressure is an amazing thing. He does anything that his brothers can and usually at a younger age.
We then headed over to the regular Forbidden Journey cue about 9:20PM and did not run into any line until we were in the greenhouse. The line moved fast (we were glad that we had done the tour only line earlier allowing us to enjoy the inside of the castle at a more leisurely pace than while moving through the rider line) and we were on the ride in about 15 to 20 minutes. The ride was awesome. Not to be missed. Our party ranged in age from 9 to 56 and everyone was amazed by the experience. Note that we did not do the solo rider line this night because Casey was a little apprehensive about being separated (he is after all only 9) from the group on the ride. But again, the line was so short that is was not a problem and it was good being a little closer to view Harry, Hermonie, and Ron advise of the details of where to meet them.
We came over to this area again on Monday evening after we experienced the 3 "wet" rides in the park while donned in our swim suits, arriving around 7:30 PM for butter beers and enjoyed them on the patio of the Hogs Head Tavern. One person had pumpkin juice and the rest split their selections between frozen and regular butter beers. Here the opinions were mixed about which was the best and everyone had their favorite. I loved the frozen version and while I am not a fan of butterscotch I still enjoyed BB. The wait at the stand where (near 3 Broomsticks) we made our purchase was only about 3 or 4 minutes. The young lady working there was amazing. You tell her the break-out ie., how many of each beverage and she immediately gave you the price very quickly.
We came back to WWHP the next morning (Tuesday) for early entry. We were lined up at 6:30AM outside the gates. We were laughing about the crazyiness of it. The gates opened around 6:45AM, and the 3 oldest boys headed straight for the Ollivander's Wand Shop line. Much to our surprise (4 adults and our 9 year old son) when we arrived there after a brisk walk, they were 1st in line. Rumor has it was that there was some running involved. Not encouraging it; just reporting it. We witnessed folks heading to the WWHP heading the long way through Suessland rather than taking the cut-through the water area.
We had been iffy on whether to do this or not. We did not want to wait in a long line and since we were really doing it for our youngest, we had advised our friends who were travelling with us if they opted out of getting up early on this day, we would understand. They were all for experiencing it. We all had a great time watching the line grow behind us. And when they ushered in the first group at around 7:10AM for the ceremony of one wizard 'having a wand select him or her" we led the way. Mr. Olivander's assistant was great. His character was right on the money. He turned to our youngest son (Casey) and said I believe you were the first at my door…..the look on his face was amazing. He asked Casey his name and how old he was and remarked that 9 is a bit young but that Harry was just a little older than that when he first visited. It was an awesome experience and nobody was prouder or enjoyed it more than his 2 older brothers (Bailey and Bradley) along with our traveling companion's son, Daniel, who had hustled through the park to secure our place in line. It was terrific. And, of course, a wand did finally select him, and, yes, we bought it for him. That had been his one wish to get a wand. Having it "select" was all the more special. We will remember it always. And it was very convenient being able to have it delivered back to our room at the Hard Rock.
We did some more looking around in WWHP on this morning taking pictures(rode the Dragon Challenge a couple of times and Flight of the Hippogriff a few times) before moving out around 8:30AM as the thundering hordes continued to arrive. We did do some more window gazing. It was cool to have experienced the area in both the dark and the daylight.
We returned to the WWHP around 9:30PM in the evening on Wednesday (our last day in the parks). We rode Forbidden Journey using the single rider line for all eight of us. We had about a 20 minute wait. The lines were longer on this night than they had been on Sunday evening. We walked off the ride at 10:05PM and much to our surprise were able to get butter beers at a stand around 10:15PM. We stopped at the main shop at the front of the park to purchase some Harry Pointer souveniors. Chocolate frog and specific tee shirts that we had decided on earlier in the week. We actually remembered to use our AAA card this time for the 10% discount.
Again, we thoroughly enjoyed this section of IOA. It was being built 3 years earlier when we were visiting Universal for the 1st time. We knew then that we would return again once it was completed.
Just the overall theming…..so many details: how the buildings lean, the smoke coming out of the chimneys, and the locomotive engine, the butter beer, 3 Broomsticks, the shops and all the things going on in the store fronts, Hogwarts Castle both inside and out, the supporting castmembers in the area, moaning myrtle in the bathroom, the sorting hat as you approach the FJ seating area, just so much. While the Forbidden Journey ride is great (nothing like having Hagrid greet you, a dragon cover you in smoke or death-eaters chase you and then have Harry lead you to safety). The overall theming of the area and how it all fits together really makes it a not to be missed experience for Harry Potter fans. I am not sure how not having a famililarity with the series would be all that much fun. Our sons have read all the books (Casey finished them last year--again the youngest one has done everything earlier) and we have all seen the movies countless times so, again, we loved the WWHP.
I do understand that people do not like the crowds (massive at times). I, also, know that we are/were very fortunate to be able to spend our vacation at the Hard Rock Hotel and enjoy 4 days leisurely touring the 2parks. That being said before we visit any attraction we get as much information as possible to understand how to tour the attractions. (We used Dan Hatfield's informative Orlando Informer website to great advantage before our trip.) We understand that you must understand the logistics of a park's areas. For people to show up during a holiday period at mid-day and think that they are going to be able to tour the most popular attraction in Orlando is just short-sighted. You have to plan. If you do not, you will not have much success. And most likely leave the area very frustrated. We see this all the time at the Disney Parks.
This area is a must for any Harry Potter fan.
We were able to tour this area without much of a crowd due to proper planning/research and based on our choosing to enter the park early on one morning since we were staying @ the Hard Rock Hotel. We were there 4 days during the busy 4/1 – 4/5 Easter period but had no problems seeing everything in WWHP and were not impacted by the crowds.
The park was open until 10:00PM during our stay. We went over there on Sunday evening around 8:00PM on our 1st day of touring and did a general walk through of the area. Crowds had already thinned. We went into the main shop near Hogwarts. It was not overly crowded. Then we did the tour only line through Hogwart's Castle to see and get an overall understanding. It was better than we could have imagined. It is like Dumbledore is right there speaking to you. The talking pictures on the walls are amazing. We spent about 10 minutes just listening to the conversations going on among them. Salazar is a real jewel. Just wonderful. After our walking tour was over, we then rode the Hippogriff ride a couple of times with no wait (our 9 year old loved that) (Hagrid's place looked grand) and we all rode the Dragon Challenge, also with no wait. The nine year old was just tall enough. We thought he was okay but you never know until the attendants give you the thumbs up. The timing of this trip was based mainly on the projection that our youngest's height at the time of this trip would be 54" making him tall enough for all of Universal's rides. Our party of 8 (4 adults--Amy & Chuck; Jeff & Roxanne, and 4 boys: A&C's 3 sons--Bailey 14/Bradley 12/Casey 9 and J&R's son--Daniel) moved easily through the WWHP area. We had express passes from HRH but they really saved us very little time this night in WWHP, perhaps 15 minutes or so on Dragon Challenge. The express lines were walk-ons for us with the passes. This was the 1st time we had ridden the DC (or Dueling Dragons when we rode it 3 years earlier) @ night in the dark and we prefer it better in the daylight. The ride is really intense but it never phased Casey our barely 54" youngest. Brother peer pressure is an amazing thing. He does anything that his brothers can and usually at a younger age.
We then headed over to the regular Forbidden Journey cue about 9:20PM and did not run into any line until we were in the greenhouse. The line moved fast (we were glad that we had done the tour only line earlier allowing us to enjoy the inside of the castle at a more leisurely pace than while moving through the rider line) and we were on the ride in about 15 to 20 minutes. The ride was awesome. Not to be missed. Our party ranged in age from 9 to 56 and everyone was amazed by the experience. Note that we did not do the solo rider line this night because Casey was a little apprehensive about being separated (he is after all only 9) from the group on the ride. But again, the line was so short that is was not a problem and it was good being a little closer to view Harry, Hermonie, and Ron advise of the details of where to meet them.
We came over to this area again on Monday evening after we experienced the 3 "wet" rides in the park while donned in our swim suits, arriving around 7:30 PM for butter beers and enjoyed them on the patio of the Hogs Head Tavern. One person had pumpkin juice and the rest split their selections between frozen and regular butter beers. Here the opinions were mixed about which was the best and everyone had their favorite. I loved the frozen version and while I am not a fan of butterscotch I still enjoyed BB. The wait at the stand where (near 3 Broomsticks) we made our purchase was only about 3 or 4 minutes. The young lady working there was amazing. You tell her the break-out ie., how many of each beverage and she immediately gave you the price very quickly.
We came back to WWHP the next morning (Tuesday) for early entry. We were lined up at 6:30AM outside the gates. We were laughing about the crazyiness of it. The gates opened around 6:45AM, and the 3 oldest boys headed straight for the Ollivander's Wand Shop line. Much to our surprise (4 adults and our 9 year old son) when we arrived there after a brisk walk, they were 1st in line. Rumor has it was that there was some running involved. Not encouraging it; just reporting it. We witnessed folks heading to the WWHP heading the long way through Suessland rather than taking the cut-through the water area.
We had been iffy on whether to do this or not. We did not want to wait in a long line and since we were really doing it for our youngest, we had advised our friends who were travelling with us if they opted out of getting up early on this day, we would understand. They were all for experiencing it. We all had a great time watching the line grow behind us. And when they ushered in the first group at around 7:10AM for the ceremony of one wizard 'having a wand select him or her" we led the way. Mr. Olivander's assistant was great. His character was right on the money. He turned to our youngest son (Casey) and said I believe you were the first at my door…..the look on his face was amazing. He asked Casey his name and how old he was and remarked that 9 is a bit young but that Harry was just a little older than that when he first visited. It was an awesome experience and nobody was prouder or enjoyed it more than his 2 older brothers (Bailey and Bradley) along with our traveling companion's son, Daniel, who had hustled through the park to secure our place in line. It was terrific. And, of course, a wand did finally select him, and, yes, we bought it for him. That had been his one wish to get a wand. Having it "select" was all the more special. We will remember it always. And it was very convenient being able to have it delivered back to our room at the Hard Rock.
We did some more looking around in WWHP on this morning taking pictures(rode the Dragon Challenge a couple of times and Flight of the Hippogriff a few times) before moving out around 8:30AM as the thundering hordes continued to arrive. We did do some more window gazing. It was cool to have experienced the area in both the dark and the daylight.
We returned to the WWHP around 9:30PM in the evening on Wednesday (our last day in the parks). We rode Forbidden Journey using the single rider line for all eight of us. We had about a 20 minute wait. The lines were longer on this night than they had been on Sunday evening. We walked off the ride at 10:05PM and much to our surprise were able to get butter beers at a stand around 10:15PM. We stopped at the main shop at the front of the park to purchase some Harry Pointer souveniors. Chocolate frog and specific tee shirts that we had decided on earlier in the week. We actually remembered to use our AAA card this time for the 10% discount.
Again, we thoroughly enjoyed this section of IOA. It was being built 3 years earlier when we were visiting Universal for the 1st time. We knew then that we would return again once it was completed.
Just the overall theming…..so many details: how the buildings lean, the smoke coming out of the chimneys, and the locomotive engine, the butter beer, 3 Broomsticks, the shops and all the things going on in the store fronts, Hogwarts Castle both inside and out, the supporting castmembers in the area, moaning myrtle in the bathroom, the sorting hat as you approach the FJ seating area, just so much. While the Forbidden Journey ride is great (nothing like having Hagrid greet you, a dragon cover you in smoke or death-eaters chase you and then have Harry lead you to safety). The overall theming of the area and how it all fits together really makes it a not to be missed experience for Harry Potter fans. I am not sure how not having a famililarity with the series would be all that much fun. Our sons have read all the books (Casey finished them last year--again the youngest one has done everything earlier) and we have all seen the movies countless times so, again, we loved the WWHP.
I do understand that people do not like the crowds (massive at times). I, also, know that we are/were very fortunate to be able to spend our vacation at the Hard Rock Hotel and enjoy 4 days leisurely touring the 2parks. That being said before we visit any attraction we get as much information as possible to understand how to tour the attractions. (We used Dan Hatfield's informative Orlando Informer website to great advantage before our trip.) We understand that you must understand the logistics of a park's areas. For people to show up during a holiday period at mid-day and think that they are going to be able to tour the most popular attraction in Orlando is just short-sighted. You have to plan. If you do not, you will not have much success. And most likely leave the area very frustrated. We see this all the time at the Disney Parks.
This area is a must for any Harry Potter fan.