Can We Do Magic Now? A 2016 TR Adventure. *Complete and DL Paris TR Link Added

[amazingact21]

Well, at least that sounds like a fun type of busy!

And if you wanted to share a few pictures and a little bit about your Rome experience... I wouldn't complain. Just sayin'

When I get around to going through the photos my inlaws copied to my computer, I'll be sure and post a few.

That's definitely not good customer service. As well as Universal does some things, the customer service area seems to be where they definitely lack.

I wasn't even on your February trip and honestly, something like this will probably remind me of that TR any time I see something like that.

But as you mentioned it would be a logistical nightmare.

That reservation system was crazy.
Ugh, I still talk about what an awful trip we had last February.

Holy crap, that makes me feel old. HP was hitting its peak when I was in HS and the first movie came out when I was in college. Which kind of explains why I didn't ever really get into it.
Anyway, I'm glad that your fangirl dreams finally came true and put your hangry in its place.

If it makes you feel better, most of the airmen in Alex's job are basically kids. Like, graduated high school last year. We have a lot of cookouts and get togethers (since we're all over here away from family, etc) and they make me feel so old every single time. They wanted to play charades one time and the theme was tv shows, and I kid you not, me and another spouse didn't even know half the dumb shows they wrote down. Ugh.
Anytime I'm feeling like I'm still young, I run into one of them and am like, "Nope. Not at all."

So excited by your latest update and ready for more. Your European adventures sound great too. You've probably seen more than I have and I live closer. But then again I spend all my money going to Florida lol

That is a good point. Flying to the states and Disney is sooo expensive compared to traveling within Europe. It also helps that we are pretty centrally located to everything, so we only have to take a weekend here and there to experience a lot of places. If Landon gets into the preschool that we are applying for, our traveling will also peter out due to school schedules, so we are trying to take advantage of the time while we have it.

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

Trying to imagine Landon at preschool and just can't believe he's that age already! Fingers crossed you get a place at the one you want. He will have so much fun and I'll bet Evie will love getting her mum all to herself for a bit while he's there

 

[natebenma]

First off, no apologies needed for the speed of posting. So happy to hear about all of the things that are keeping you busy as you live life overseas!

Thing two outfit is extremely cute!

That is excellent that you have personal Universal experts to be your guides.

I appreciate the review of Cabana Bay. I know a few people who have stayed there and really liked it. We are big Hard Rock fans, for the theming, location and Express Passes. But from your initial feedback, it sounds like it wasn't a crowded time for you to be there.

Kind of a tease stopping right before you cross over into Hogsmeade! I remember that feeling going through the arch and then seeing the castle was breathtaking!

 

[Steppesister]

I probably hadn’t had my coffee yet.

Oh how I can relate to this. 100%.

A few days beforehand, we talked with the siblings and let them know what we wanted to do and see, which was basically all the Harry Potter things, and put our trust in their touring skills.

Sometimes this is the very best way to roll!

On our way to our room, we passed a room that had a ton of dirty towels and sheets piled outside their door and I could hear someone having a badddd morning.

Flashbacks to our February trip jumped into my head and I had a couple terrifying minutes.

noooooooooooooooooooo!

The initial sight of our room was completely ruined by my paranoia, and I spent the first ten minutes using some bleach wipes I had picked up on every square inch of our room. I wiped everything down. That room was sparkling like a diamond when I was through with it.

Smart girl! That may have saved you from yet another really bad vacation.

Cabana Bay uses a shuttle bus for resort guests to get to and from the parks, and we had zero issues with it the entire time we were there. Fortunately, the stop was right outside our building, so it took less than five minutes to get there. And I want to say the longest we waited at either end for a shuttle to pick us up was five minutes.

Well, that's certainly an improvement from another similar company....

 

[Dugette]

Really cool to hear about your Universal experience. I hope the non-planning-following-the-experts worked out well for you!

 

[amazingact21]

Trying to imagine Landon at preschool and just can't believe he's that age already! Fingers crossed you get a place at the one you want. He will have so much fun and I'll bet Evie will love getting her mum all to herself for a bit while he's there

He's growing up fast. It feels like just yesterday I was planning his first ever Disney trip, now he's asking me what coasters he's tall enough to ride.
And, yes, Evie will definitely appreciate the one on one time with me. Almost as much as she'll love having the playroom all to herself.

First off, no apologies needed for the speed of posting. So happy to hear about all of the things that are keeping you busy as you live life overseas!

Thing two outfit is extremely cute!

That is excellent that you have personal Universal experts to be your guides.

I appreciate the review of Cabana Bay. I know a few people who have stayed there and really liked it. We are big Hard Rock fans, for the theming, location and Express Passes. But from your initial feedback, it sounds like it wasn't a crowded time for you to be there.

Kind of a tease stopping right before you cross over into Hogsmeade! I remember that feeling going through the arch and then seeing the castle was breathtaking!

We're trying to see and do as much as possible while we're over here!

The only negative to that outfit was that one of the snaps on the bottom broke almost immediately after putting it on. And then when we took it back the following day to get a new one, the next one did the same thing. Clearly, Universal doesn't put a lot of care into their clothing materials.

If we were going during a busier time, I think the Express Pass at the bigger resorts would have been really beneficial. However, since our main focus was the WWoHP and Diagon Alley, and none of those attractions accept the pass, we decided to save some money and stay at Cabana.
Now that the Hulk is reopened, I'm sure Alex will want easy access to it the next time we go.

It's pretty incredible to see how the park instantly transforms into Harry Potter theme when you arrive.

 

[amazingact21]

Oh how I can relate to this. 100%
Sometimes this is the very best way to roll!

noooooooooooooooooooo!

Smart girl! That may have saved you from yet another really bad vacation.

Well, that's certainly an improvement from another similar company....

I enjoyed having someone else lead the way a lot more than I thought I would.

I don't go anywhere without some sanitizing wipes now. I kept some in a container and put them in my suitcase when we flew to Rome, and my in-laws thought I was bonkers when I pulled them out at our AirBnB.
But nobody got sick....

Transportation at Disney moves at a snail's pace compared to Universal! I'm sure a lot has to do with the fact that Universal's parks are all centrally located, and you don't have to drive from park to park, but Disney could still speed the process up a bit.

Really cool to hear about your Universal experience. I hope the non-planning-following-the-experts worked out well for you!

I thought not being in the lead would end in chaos for us, but I was pleasantly surprised. In fact, I'd say being able to go with the flow was my favorite part of the trip. Well, that and a treat we got on our second day.

 

[vamassey1]

It's nice to get the opinion of "the dark side" from a fellow Disney lover. I haven't made the trip there yet but would love to just to see Harry Potter. I would like to go with someone to lead me too. I think of all the people we have gone to Disney with who just let us lead them.

 

[amazingact21]

It's nice to get the opinion of "the dark side" from a fellow Disney lover. I haven't made the trip there yet but would love to just to see Harry Potter. I would like to go with someone to lead me too. I think of all the people we have gone to Disney with who just let us lead them.

The only reason I went to Universal was to see the Harry Potter stuff.
It was a nice change of pace not being the one in charge, for once. It gave me the opportunity to relax and explore the parks more than I might have had my in-laws not been there.

 

[amazingact21]

April 24th Part 2:

We had arrived at the entrance to Hogsmeade and without any delay, Alex and I dashed into the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

f1 by Alicia Wolchick, on Flickr


“Look at the snowcapped roofs!”

“Over there, I see Olivanders!”

“All the wands…everyone is carrying around wands!”

“BUTTERBEER!”

f2 by Alicia Wolchick, on Flickr

I’d like to say Alex and I kept our composure and reacted to all the sights in a mature, adult-like fashion.

But that’d be a lie.

We were grinning from ear to ear and jumping up and down and exclaiming over everything.

Well, I was.

Alex doesn’t squeal. Or hop. Or demonstrate any outward sign of excitement.

But I know my husband.

He was just as happy as me.


I tossed my phone to my sister in-law. “Take a photo of me, take a photo! I need photographic evidence that I was here. I gotta share it on social media.”





My brother in-law had one of the interactive wands with him and handed it to Landon for him to hold.



Look at my little wizard.

A future Slytherin, probably. Although if he gets his act together he could be a Ravenclaw, yet.

I guess I should apologize here to all you non-Harry Potter fans for the onslaught of HP references I’m going to throw your way. There will be a lot, just be patient with me.
And just know, whatever I have written here – a year after the trip – was nothing in comparison to how much I said and/or muttered while in the park. So take solace in the fact that you didn’t have to deal with me in person while my inner dork reared its head.


As thrilled as I was to be there, my stomach was still growling, and I need sustenance.

Immediately.

Fortunately, the Three Broomsticks was right next to us, so all we had to do was walk into the queue that was formed outside the entrance.


It took a good ten minutes to get inside the restaurant, and even when we reached the doors there was yet another queue to wait in before we got to the ordering kiosks. The only perk was that we were in the air conditioning and there were displays of most of the menu items to look at.

Along with awesome interior:
f3 by Alicia Wolchick, on Flickr



Landon had fallen in love with Eddie’s wand and wanted to play with throughout the wait.




Alex and I studied the menus that were given to us at the front door and tried to decide what to order.

f4 by Alicia Wolchick, on Flickr

Butterbeer, of course.

All the butterbeer.


Eventually, we decided on the kids chicken finger meal with a side of corn on the cob for Landon. Alex picked the fish and chips, while I got the Cornish Pasties with a side salad.

And two orders of Butterbeer.

One frozen, one regular.

For taste comparison, naturally.

It was a running joke between my sister in-law and I that I had to try every version of the stuff I could.

We were keeping a running tally.


The ordering process at the restaurant was set up the way I like it. Makes life smoother on us frazzled parents. You go up to a platform, order your food, receive a ticket number, walk across the room to a pickup station and wait for your number to be called. Then, your party goes up to a Team Member who leads you to an available table.


Three cheers for the hardest part of Quick Service restaurants being taken care of!

Alex snapped a quick picture of the awesome tap handles behind the counter:



(Another great perk to having our in-laws with us…they were able to get us a 10% discount on all our meals. What’s better than Butterbeer? 10% cheaper Butterbeer!)

We were all seated at a long table next to the bar that was accessible to folks outside.

Fun fact: If you have an annual pass, the carts outside that sell drinks can’t give you a discount, but if you go into the bar and order there, you can get the discount.

The more you know…


Evie was only 6 months at the time of the trip, and she was still having trouble fitting into a highchair. We had to shove my bag and the baby carrier into the back to give her less wiggle room.



(She barely looks like this now!)



Our first noticeable difference with Disney versus Universal came with our drink cups.



Alex went back to the front and asked and was informed that the parks did not carry lids for drink cups. Which meant Landon had a massive glass of milk open and ready to be spilled.

Alex even said the Team Member looked surprised at the request. Like, nobody has ever brought a child young enough to need a lid to the restaurant before.

So, that was quite the adventure for me during lunch. (I had sat down next to him before the milk realization hit. Otherwise, I probably would’ve sweet talked a relative into dealing with that stress.)

Landon was at the age where he wanted to be independent and hold the cup himself, but he wasn’t coordinated enough to pull the stunt off with grace and precision. If memory serves me right, I think Alex eventually grabbed the drink and chugged a fourth of it really fast so the sloshing-over factor was eliminated.

While the milk situation wasn’t the greatest, at least the corn on the cob was a big hit.



Landon loved getting to eat the corn right off the cob, and I was happy he wasn’t getting the typical fries as a side. A win all around.


And now, folks, the big moment had arrived.

It was time to try our Butterbeers.


Hooray!


I had the frozen one and Alex the regular.






The verdict?


Oh my gosh!!!

It was so, so, SO good.

Amazing!

I much preferred the frozen version, although I wouldn’t pass on the regular if it was the only one available. It was like a caramel, cream soda slushie only a hundred million times better.

I’ve tried to recreate the drink a few times at home with a few of those social media recipes, and nothing comes close to the real thing. I wish you could buy it bottled from the parks. I’d have walked away with cases.


Now that it is almost a year later, I can say this. It is the one treat/snack in all of the parks that I genuinely miss. Sure, I enjoy dole whips and zebra domes and school bread, but I never really crave them when I’m home.

But Butterbeer I do.

I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve gone, “Man, I wish I could have another frozen Butterbeer.”

It’s just THAT good.

Give me a Via Napoli pizza and a Butterbeer and I’m pretty much set.


The food at the Three Broomsticks was good. Alex’s fish was a little cold which made them soggy. My pasties were really, really tasty. I loved the filling; the only issue I had was that three were not nearly enough. I walked away from the meal hungry, even after eating my salad and a couple bites of my brother in-law’s Shepard’s pie. I wish there were a couple more on the plate, although now it might not be so bad. I’ve gotten accustomed to European portions and would probably be all right with the serving of pasties.

But who knows?

Guess I just gotta get back to Universal and test that theory out. That’s really the only way to know for certain…


Once lunch was over, Alex, Leslie, and I walked to the outside seating area to try and find a quiet place to let Evie eat. Alex and I got our first look at Hogwarts and were blown away by how awesome it appeared.

It was also out there that we noticed how nice the weather was that day. It was after one o’clock and it was maybe eighty degrees. And while the sun was bright, the humidity was almost nonexistent which made for fantastic conditions.


A perfect Florida day.

Eddie had taken Landon out of the restaurant and let him try the interactive activities available with the wand.



Apparently, Landon thought it was tons of fun. (The photo above is from a later venture.)


He came running back to us (where Evie had refused to eat) happy as a clam, shouting, “I can do magic! I can do magic!”

And thence began the constant, “Can we do magic? Can we do magic?” badgering from him the rest of the afternoon. It was all the kid wanted to do.


Up Next…Well, aren’t you guys just lucky?

 

[afwdwfan]

We were grinning from ear to ear and jumping up and down and exclaiming over everything.

Well, I was.

Alex doesn’t squeal. Or hop. Or demonstrate any outward sign of excitement.

Well, you know... he's a guy.

I tossed my phone to my sister in-law. “Take a photo of me, take a photo! I need photographic evidence that I was here. I gotta share it on social media.”

That's a great picture.

I guess I should apologize here to all you non-Harry Potter fans for the onslaught of HP references I’m going to throw your way. There will be a lot, just be patient with me.
And just know, whatever I have written here – a year after the trip – was nothing in comparison to how much I said and/or muttered while in the park. So take solace in the fact that you didn’t have to deal with me in person while my inner dork reared its head.

Honestly, it would probably be more fun to visit with someone who is that into the world of Harry Potter.

And two order of Butterbeer.

One frozen, one regular.

For taste comparison, naturally.

Of course! Gotta try both.

Alex even said the Team Member looked surprised at the request. Like, nobody has ever brought a child young enough to need a lid to the restaurant before.

Look at Universal as a whole. There are height requirements on some of the rides in Seuss Landing. Clearly they don't know what a child is or why one would ever be brought there.

The verdict?


Oh my gosh!!!

It was so, so, SO good.

I'm glad it lived up to the high standards I'm sure you already had for it.

I much preferred the frozen version,

Me too.

Give me a Via Napoli pizza and a Butterbeer and I’m pretty much set.

Ok, while I don't think I like butterbeer as well as you do, I do like the stuff. So I'll say you have very good taste.

He came running back to us (where Evie had refused to eat) happy as a clam, shouting, “I can do magic! I can do magic!”

And thence began the constant, “Can we do magic? Can we do magic?” badgering from him the rest of the afternoon. It was all the kid wanted to do.

That's great! I'm glad he's enjoying himself!

 

[Imagineer5]

That is so adorable about Landon "doing magic" and being so excited over it!! So glad you had such a wonderful first impression of Hogsmeade, and then later seeing Hogwarts. I like both Butterbeers as well, though typically would choose the frozen over regular. Good to know you've been unsuccessful in recreating it at home, haha! I have been meaning to try but am always afraid it just won't taste the same.

Glad lunch was good (despite not being very filling) maybe you filled up at Honeydukes?! :-D

 

[SarahDisney]

It's really very difficult not to get excited when you see everything in Hogsmeade. I don't know how Alex managed to keep his happiness inside ... it's just so much wonderful perfect everything.

Very weird that the park doesn't have drink lids. And not just because kids. I'm a fully grown adult (well, mostly) and I prefer to have a lid for my cup. You don't have to be a kid to accidentally spill your drink (although it is definitely more common with kids whose hands aren't quite big enough to hold the cup...).

I'm glad the butterbeer was a hit! I haven't had it, but everyone seems to love it. I wish they sold bottles of it that you could order online or something.
Also ... have you heard that someone just came out with butterbeer ice cream? I haven't gotten a chance to see if I can hunt it down yet. (I'm guessing you may not be able to get it in Germany, so ... something to look forward to when you're back in the states)

I'm glad that Landon enjoyed his adventures with magic!!

 

[vamassey1]

I’d like to say Alex and I kept our composure and reacted to all the sights in a mature, adult-like fashion.

But that’d be a lie.

We were grinning from ear to ear and jumping up and down and exclaiming over everything.

Well, I was.

Alex doesn’t squeal. Or hop. Or demonstrate any outward sign of excitement.

But I know my husband.

He was just as happy as me.

I would be excited too! DH would not be near as happy as me.

I tossed my phone to my sister in-law. “Take a photo of me, take a photo! I need photographic evidence that I was here. I gotta share it on social media.”

I would do this too.

Butterbeer, of course.

But of course!

One frozen, one regular.

For taste comparison, naturally.

I like your reasoning.

Alex went back to the front and asked and was informed that the parks did not carry lids for drink cups. Which meant Landon had a massive glass of milk open and ready to be spilled.

This is just wrong. I'm an adult and still need the top so I won't spill.

Landon loved getting to eat the corn right off the cob, and I was happy he wasn’t getting the typical fries as a side. A win all around.

Excellent choice for a side.

I much preferred the frozen version, although I wouldn’t pass on the regular if it was the only one available. It was like a caramel, cream soda slushie only a hundred million times better.

I think I would like the frozen better too.

It was also out there that we noticed how nice the weather was that day. It was after one o’clock and it was maybe eighty degrees. And while the sun was bright, the humidity was almost nonexistent which made for fantastic conditions.

I have never experienced this nice of weather in Florida except in February. For our April, May or June trips it was hot and humid. I'm jealous.

He came running back to us (where Evie had refused to eat) happy as a clam, shouting, “I can do magic! I can do magic!”

And thence began the constant, “Can we do magic? Can we do magic?” badgering from him the rest of the afternoon. It was all the kid wanted to do.

This is just too cute. Does he still ask to do Magic?

 

[amazingact21]

Well, you know... he's a guy.
That's a great picture.

Honestly, it would probably be more fun to visit with someone who is that into the world of Harry Potter.

Of course! Gotta try both.

Look at Universal as a whole. There are height requirements on some of the rides in Seuss Landing. Clearly they don't know what a child is or why one would ever be brought there.

I think my in-laws were getting a kick out of watching me react to all the new HP stuff. They visit the place so often and they were older when the HP craze happened that I think they enjoyed seeing it all from a new perspective.

Yeah, we were about to learn how non kid-friendly Universal is in terms of toddlers and babies.

That is so adorable about Landon "doing magic" and being so excited over it!! So glad you had such a wonderful first impression of Hogsmeade, and then later seeing Hogwarts. I like both Butterbeers as well, though typically would choose the frozen over regular. Good to know you've been unsuccessful in recreating it at home, haha! I have been meaning to try but am always afraid it just won't taste the same.

Glad lunch was good (despite not being very filling) maybe you filled up at Honeydukes?! :-D

There hasn't been a recipe that's perfected the Butterbeer taste! I think some of it might have to do with foam topping; none of the ones I have found recreate that foam.
Now that I've been to the WWoHP, I am antsy to get to the Warner Brothers studio set in London and see how it compares. It's Number 2 on our Bucket List for our summer vacation next year!

It's really very difficult not to get excited when you see everything in Hogsmeade. I don't know how Alex managed to keep his happiness inside ... it's just so much wonderful perfect everything.

Very weird that the park doesn't have drink lids. And not just because kids. I'm a fully grown adult (well, mostly) and I prefer to have a lid for my cup. You don't have to be a kid to accidentally spill your drink (although it is definitely more common with kids whose hands aren't quite big enough to hold the cup...).

I'm glad the butterbeer was a hit! I haven't had it, but everyone seems to love it. I wish they sold bottles of it that you could order online or something.
Also ... have you heard that someone just came out with butterbeer ice cream? I haven't gotten a chance to see if I can hunt it down yet. (I'm guessing you may not be able to get it in Germany, so ... something to look forward to when you're back in the states)

I'm glad that Landon enjoyed his adventures with magic!!

I agree; I'd much rather have a lid on my cups! The water bottle I use has an open mouth and I can't tell you the number of times I've ended up wearing more of my water than I drank.
I did not know they sold butterbeer ice cream outside of Universal! Wow, that would be something I would have to hunt down. I definitely don't think I'll find it here in Germany, though.

I would be excited too! DH would not be near as happy as me.

I would do this too.

But of course!

I like your reasoning.

This is just wrong. I'm an adult and still need the top so I won't spill.
Excellent choice for a side.

I think I would like the frozen better too.
I have never experienced this nice of weather in Florida except in February. For our April, May or June trips it was hot and humid. I'm jealous.
This is just too cute. Does he still ask to do Magic?

I was really surprised they don't carry any kind of drink lid. On one hand, I was happy they were using a little bit less plastic, on the other hand...I imagine they go through a ton of napkins due to all the spills that happen.

The kind of weather we had was very rare. About six years ago, Alex and I had an amazingly beautiful May Disney trip, but that was the last time we experienced cooler weather so late in the spring. It seems every year Florida just stays hotter and hotter. I was talking with my sister in-law via FaceTime over the weekend and she said it was 80 degrees already.
Yeesh. That is one thing about FL I don't miss. The lack of spring. Over here it's high 50's/low 60's and beautiful.

 

[Imagineer5]

There hasn't been a recipe that's perfected the Butterbeer taste! I think some of it might have to do with foam topping; none of the ones I have found recreate that foam.
Now that I've been to the WWoHP, I am antsy to get to the Warner Brothers studio set in London and see how it compares. It's Number 2 on our Bucket List for our summer vacation next year!

I am dying to go there, too! Hoping it's still around in a couple years and we can do a big trip visiting England. Otherwise I need to find a friend interested in going to split the costs with because the rest of my family is indifferent about that haha

 

[amazingact21]

Hey guys! I don’t know about you all, but here in Germany we have been having some awesome weather. It’s been sunny and warm for over a week straight. That’s pretty unusual for this area. We tend to get a lot of drizzle and lots of clouds. Someone told us when we first got here that if we didn’t learn to do things in the rain, we would never do anything, and that’s turned out to be pretty accurate.

Therefore, all this amazing spring weather has had my family outside as much as possible. Alex is gone on another long work trip (yuck) so the kids and I have had lots of playdates at parks, long walks through our village trying to spot all the farm animals, and many lessons in gardening. It was also Landon’s 4th birthday last week, and it was Doc McStuffins themed. Cake, decorations, even most of his presents.

I’m pretty sure I saw Lambie and Stuffy in my dreams a few nights…


Aside from enjoying Germany in the spring and surviving solo parenting again, there’s been another exciting adventure in the works (trip-wise), but I’ll keep that one close to the vest for a little while longer. I will say, though, in order to do something fantastic, I’ll have to go through something terrifying.

Hmmm.

On that note, let’s get back to Universal! (Which was almost a year ago.)




April 24th Part 3:

My hunger satisfied, I was in a lot better of a temperament to wander around Hogsmeade and look at some of the theming I’d heard wonderful things about.



Hogwarts off in the distance.














I loved seeing all the familiar names of shops, and I thought Universal did an awesome job bringing the subject to life. To me, I saw spot on similarities between the buildings and the films, which I did not mind because I always enjoyed the movies.

My biggest complaint about that area was how congested it was! It was as if Universal wasn’t expecting such a huge turnout; the streets had to be half the size of Disney’s and all the shops were wall to wall people.

Mind you, that’s how most shops in Europe are so I guess Universal was being extra authentic on that front.

Still, though…it was near impossible to push our massive double stroller around.


A few minutes of weaving around people and Alex wanted a water. We stopped at a busy cart and Alex purchased two half liter bottles.

They weren’t water, though.

They were “gillywaters.”

That little Harry Potter touch cost us 8 dollars.

I repeat. 8 dollars for 32 ounces of water.


WHA?!

Alex didn’t realize the price until afterwards, otherwise even he would have passed on that. He felt so ridiculous for that stunt that he kept the goshdarn bottle as a memento.

And in case you were curious, we had bought a 32 ounce water from Disney when we were there for our day trip and it cost us 4 dollars. We literally paid double at Universal.

For water.

Ugh.

While we were savoring our gillywater, my sister in-law was on the Universal app checking wait times for nearby attractions. She got to Forbidden Journey and exclaimed, “Wow! You guys must be really lucky!”

Why is that?

Apparently, the standby for the ride was only 10 minutes, and it was the middle of the day. My SIL said that was almost unheard of.


We’d have been fools not to rush over there and take advantage of that break.



We passed Flight of the Hippogriff on the way, and Alex looked to see if Landon was tall enough.




He just barely made the cutoff, but I stood and watched the ride and decided it was a little too wild for him, still. I think Alex was a little disappointed he couldn’t take Landon on it, but ultimately he agreed with me. Landon barely managed Barnstormer. Hippogriff would have given him nightmares.




There it was. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Hot dog.


Alex and I walked up to a Team Member manning the entrance and asked about their Rider Swap policy. I’d read from khertz’s reports that the kids were allowed to follow us through the queue, but we weren’t sure if we needed any kind of card like in WDW.

The guy we spoke to was very nice, told us not to worry, he was going to send us through the queue on the right and he’d page his coworker to let them we were good.


Okay?



We didn’t get any further explanation, so we were still confused as to what or where –exactly- we’d be dropped off in the line, but hey, today was our day to go with the flow.

The Team Member wanted us to go in a certain line, we were going to go in that line.

Although, I’ll fess up.

I don’t remember if we went in the line to the left or the right of everyone else. A year later, that piece of information has long since been dumped out of my brain.

Whatever was the designated standby line…
It was the opposite of that one.





Time to go in!


My group walked and walked and walked and didn’t encounter anybody else waiting. There were entire spots we had completely to ourselves, where we could take pictures to our heart’s content.

Mostly by the moving pictures frames:






Yep. I was still just as excited.




But c’mon, I was inside Hogwarts!



Dumbledore’s office was also deserted and really close.



f1 by Alicia Wolchick, on Flickr

It was a shame I didn’t know Gryffindor’s password…


It wasn’t until we hit the memorabilia that we saw the other guests in the adjacent line.

f2 by Alicia Wolchick, on Flickr

You can kind of see in the picture above where our queue was versus everyone else.


People kept shooting us funny looks as walked along, and I won’t lie, it felt like we weren’t supposed to be there. Why were the only folks on this side of the switchbacks? Why did we not have to wait?



The last thing we saw was the Sorting Hat and then we were at the boarding area. There was a Team Member standing at the merge point who directed the kids and accompanying adults to a small room off to the left. It was a little chaotic at that point because up until then we didn’t know what was about to happen, so when he shooed us in, I asked if I could follow the babies and then come right back out. The guy didn’t mind, so I ran inside to help my in-laws get settled and dropped off my bag, then I rushed back out with Alex. The Team Member didn’t make us wait at all before sending us to our vehicle.


I liked the ride. I liked it quite a bit. Especially the parts that weren’t 3D and utilized animatronics. (Aragog, the spider, for instance.) I also liked how it felt more “coaster”-like compared to other virtual rides, such as Star Tours. However, Alex and I learned a valuable lesson.

When our turn ended, we returned to the baby room where it was my sister in-law’s turn. She didn’t want to go alone, so I told Alex to go again. And then when they came back, my sister in-law went back to the Team Member working and asked if we wanted to ride again if we would need to go all the way back out and return. The guy shook his head and told us to go ahead.


So my sister inlaw and I rode another time. All three of us got to go on Forbidden Journey back to back.

Unfortunately, that ride is not great for that. We all felt a little quesy afterwards, because it’s extremely jerky and then the 3D starts to hurt the eyes.

So, while a fun attraction, not one I could do more than once.


The four of us walked back outside feeling like we’d just beat the system or something. We certainly had no intention of cutting everyone else in line simply because we had kids, but apparently that was how Universal was operating on that particular day. Perhaps during the busy season they don’t allow people to go through that second line? Or maybe they don’t let families get more than one turn?

Who knows?

That’s what the Members told us we could do. Who were we to look a gift horse in the mouth?



Up Next…But It’s Right There!

 

[Imagineer5]

Hmmm interested to hear your news!

I've never done the rider swap on that ride but single rider is pretty awesome! Yes, its SO congested in Hogsmeade and the shops, it was even moreso before Diagon Alley opened up. I had trouble with the City Select, I can't imagine a double wide going through those shops! LOL at the gillywater!

 

[vamassey1]

The kind of weather we had was very rare. About six years ago, Alex and I had an amazingly beautiful May Disney trip, but that was the last time we experienced cooler weather so late in the spring. It seems every year Florida just stays hotter and hotter. I was talking with my sister in-law via FaceTime over the weekend and she said it was 80 degrees already.
Yeesh. That is one thing about FL I don't miss. The lack of spring. Over here it's high 50's/low 60's and beautiful.

I'm hoping and praying for milder weather when we go next month. Living in Louisiana I'm use to heat and humidity, but if we could get a brake that would be even better.

I repeat. 8 dollars for 32 ounces of water.

That's just too much.

We’d have been fools not to rush over there and take advantage of that break.

There it was. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Wow! Some day I'll see it.

I don’t remember if we went in the line to the left or the right of everyone else. A year later, that piece of information has long since been dumped out of my brain.

A little foreshadowing?

So, while a fun attraction, not one I could do more than once.

Not sure if I could do it even once. I did Star Tours once and that was it.

It's great you're enjoying you visit so much. I'm looking forward to more.

 

[MeghanEmily]

That’s what the Members told us we could do. Who were we to look a gift horse in the mouth?

This kind of happened to us to, and for no discernible reason. I have a brain condition and can't ride FJ anymore, but it was the fiance's first time doing it and I wanted to go through the queue with him if possible. They made some kind of special exception to let us go through the accessibility line or something since I couldn't ride, and the team member told us every time we saw a new team member just to tell them, "I'm not riding, and so-and-so sent us here!" ...um...ok! But we had a whole queue to ourselves to look at the castle stuff, and Nathan got on the ride almost immediately. I chalked it up to luck, I guess??