3 Countries, 3 Parks, 24 hours!

[Gyoza Dog]

I was busy last weekend.

At Lunch:
Batman Dark Flight at Studio City, Macau.
(Its a Soarin' type attraction through a CG Gotham City)


While waiting for my flight that night:
Mystic Manor at Hong Kong Disneyland.


The next morning:
Hogwarts at Universal Studios Osaka.


It was a good weekend!

 

[ClownOfTheJungle]

Hogwarts looks impressive. Are you able to walk around in it?

 

[Gyoza Dog]

Hogwarts looks impressive. Are you able to walk around in it?

The interior is a clone of the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride that is at Orlando and Hollywood. So all the talking portraits and classrooms are in the queue. (The queue may have been a bit shorter. There didnt seem to be a greenhouse section). The ride seemed a little gentler and had the 3D goggles they now use in Hollywood.

The whole land was really well done. To get there you pass through a circle of standing stones and then down a long winding forest path (actually sandwiched between the JAWS ride and the Wonderland kids area) before you get to Hogsmeade. It really makes it feel like you've entered another world. Unlike the US parks there is also a lake below the castle with a long stone pier jutting out into it.

There was also a lot more entertainment running than I have seen in the US parks. As well as the Frog Choir and the Spirit Rally (which I'd seen in the US) there was a Wand Studies class that ended up the the audience accidently levitating huge boulders positioned behind the stage.

I didn't actually end up spending much time in the Harry Potter section of the parks because it was so similar to the US. My favorite ride was actually JAWS which is no longer in the US parks and I'd never ridden before. (Also got to ride Back to the Future which closes forever at the end of the month).