Harry Potter- Wizarding World FAQ

[macraven]

I tried doing a search, but it doesn't seem to come up -- so forgive me if this is answered somewhere in this thread. But does anyone know when the addition to the HP park is opening? Thanks

next summer

 

[DISNEY180]

I am a ride chicken as well as terrified of spiders. Will probably use chicken exit.

If you have an express pass do you still go through the main queue? Is the castle tour a separate attraction or is that just the name of the queuing area?

Also, any other ride chickens who rode this (and lived to tell the tale) who could share there feelings? Would you do it again?

Any comparisons to WDW rides?

I did the ride last summer and had a blast. If you can do Disney Rocl Roller Coaster or the the Spiderman or Mummy ride you will do fine

 

[RedSox68]

I am a ride chicken as well as terrified of spiders. Will probably use chicken exit.

If you have an express pass do you still go through the main queue? Is the castle tour a separate attraction or is that just the name of the queuing area?

Also, any other ride chickens who rode this (and lived to tell the tale) who could share there feelings? Would you do it again?

Any comparisons to WDW rides?

We all went in and did the whole tour of the school and it was wonderful. Then my husband and I took the chicken exit and my daughter did the ride alone. She was 24 at the time and HATED it. She said every time she opened her eyes, there was something coming at her. Plus she wasn't prepared for it to go backwards and upside down. She didn't get sick or anything, but she came off the ride kinda green. She said never again. And she doesn't do the roller coasters, so that could be why.

 

[horseshowmom]

We all went in and did the whole tour of the school and it was wonderful. Then my husband and I took the chicken exit and my daughter did the ride alone. She was 24 at the time and HATED it. She said every time she opened her eyes, there was something coming at her. Plus she wasn't prepared for it to go backwards and upside down. She didn't get sick or anything, but she came off the ride kinda green. She said never again. And she doesn't do the roller coasters, so that could be why.

It's hard to say. My husband enjoys roller coasters, but there was something about that ride that didn't agree with him. My daughter and I love it, but it made him feel bad. Not really sure why. It's the most amazing ride I've ever ridden though.

 

[BrinkofSunshine]

We all went in and did the whole tour of the school and it was wonderful. Then my husband and I took the chicken exit and my daughter did the ride alone. She was 24 at the time and HATED it. She said every time she opened her eyes, there was something coming at her. Plus she wasn't prepared for it to go backwards and upside down. She didn't get sick or anything, but she came off the ride kinda green. She said never again. And she doesn't do the roller coasters, so that could be why.

It doesn't go upside down, it just puts you on your back. Just want to make sure nobody gets confused!

 

[Dizneydaz]

We rode it 7 times last Oct. and both DD13 and I loved it! We loved WWOHP a lot! DD has been a huge HP fan since she starting reading his books at 6. We waited a few years to go so it wouldn't be to crowded. And it wasn't-thus being able to ride FJ 7 times.

The first time we went through the regular line to get the whole experience. Then we did the SR line after that. Finally, we went through the regular line, with our cameras, and took photos. Then we exited without riding.

One thing that took longer than I hoped was having to get a locker each time. Getting the locker, and then getting everything out, each time, was annoying. But you can't carry anything on the ride so if you don't have someone to leave your things with it's the only option.

We are going back to WDW in 3 weeks and we plan on going to IOA and WWOHP at least one day. Crowds should be low. We will get there at opening and stay 'til close. 9-7.

 

[sophiagymgall]

Hi everyone, thank you so much for the helpful information that's already been posted on here

I'm halfway through reading the thread and plan on getting through it soon, but I would to like to have some advice that is specific to our situation. My parents and I will be spending a day in Orlando at the beginning of January. We will only be able to visit one park as tickets are very expensive, and I don't know which one to pick! We are huge HP fans and moderate Disney fans. However, since we only have one shot at experiencing an American theme park, I am worried that WWOHP's relatively limited size/activities will leave us wanting more, and at $92 per person, I definitely want to avoid that. My parents don't do thrill rides at all, but would be fine with Flight of the Hippogriff and similar rides.

As a whole, if you had to pick between IoA and one of the Disney parks, what would you pick? Which one would be more enjoyable for people who are just wanting to soak up the magic and take in the experience? We definitely like HP better, but I'm worried that we'll just walk around and be done at noon.. Is the rest of IoA worth it?

Thanks for your time and happy holidays

 

[bobbie68]

Hi,

We have been to both US IOA and all the disney parks a couple of times. We are huge HP fans and visited there last summer. We are a family that likes thrill rides so IOA worked out great for us.

I have to tell you I was blown away with the HP world it really feels like you are there. Personally even if I didn't like rides I would go there just to see it. However, in your case I can understand your dilemma. I think you would find the rest of IOA not that interesting. It is a great park but I am not sure it would be for you for a day. If you were going to do a park to park ticket then maybe. You could go over to the studios section.

If you were to do a disney park I would have to say Epcot would probably be the best for your family. It is geared more to adults, the rides are more mellow, lots of dining options and the countries are great. They also have a firework light show at night.

Good luck with your choice you can always PM me if you have any other questions.

 

[Dizneydaz]

My daughter and I too loved HP! We spent a lot of time there on our one and only trip (so far). As for the rest of IOA it was fine, but my heart still belongs to Disney. There are a lot of thrill rides there, several of them are very good. We started our day in HP and then walked around IOA and ended our day back at HP. There is a lot of walking, there are no short cuts.

If I only had one park to choose and I wanted to absorb the "magic" I guess my choice would be.....Hmm, that's really hard for me..I live close to Disneyland so MK wouldn't be my one and only choice, but if I didn't I would go with MK.

So, that's my 2 cents worth!

BTW, we are returning to IOA in January. Plan to spend a lot of time in HP, it is really amazing! Disney's Carsland at DLR has the same feel to me, it's like you are literally in the movies! IOA will have short hours when we are there, 9-7, just like when we visited in Oct. 2012. It wasn't very crowded, we rode FJ 7 times and DD 14 loved walking around HP. One note, the shops are authentically very small-this was really evident when it rained and everyone crowded into the tiny stores.

My DD was on cloud 9 the whole time we were at HP. She was sooo happy! It's a memory I will treasure to the end of my days.

 

[sophiagymgall]

Thank you for the answers, it is a big help! I think we'll probably go with WWOHP, as everything I'm reading seems to indicate that the magic is truly worth it. How long do you think it takes to see the whole land? I'm not expecting to spend 10-12 hours there, but at least 5-6, would that be about right?

Thanks again, I really appreciate your help

 

[macraven]

if you don't have crowds in the parry hotter section, you could do it all in 2 hours.
there are only 3 rides and 1 show besides the shops.


i hit it during the early entry time period and able to breeze through it.

depending on the date you go, will help determine the crowd level there.

go in a crowded time, you'll spend more time in that one section of the park then.

 

[glocon]

Welcome Sophiagymgal!

I think that if my family and I were huge HP fans and I only had one chance to visit a theme park, I would do IoA. If HP holds your heart, you would end up regretting the fact that you were so close and didn't visit. Not only can you ride the rides (or walk thru the lines to see the queue then take the chicken exit), and visit the stores, you can eat at the Three Broomsticks, have a Butterbeer at the Hogs Head, and go to the "loo" to hear Moaning Myrtle moan. The ATM machine is from Gringotts and the Owlery is a place to sit and take it all in. There are also mini "shows" of the Beauxbutons (sp?)
spinning ribbons and Durmstrang doing flips and such. Also the Owl Choir singing.

After you walk through it all once and take it all in, you can go back and take pictures. There are tons of things HP fans would want to photograph.

Even if you do not ride the rides at all, walk thru the lines till the end and take the chicken exit so you don't miss anything. The queues are great!

Then go thru the rest of the park, and go back to HP at night to see it then.

If you weren't huge HP fans, I would say go to Magic Kingdom. Love that place.

 

[sophiagymgall]

Welcome Sophiagymgal!

I think that if my family and I were huge HP fans and I only had one chance to visit a theme park, I would do IoA. If HP holds your heart, you would end up regretting the fact that you were so close and didn't visit. Not only can you ride the rides (or walk thru the lines to see the queue then take the chicken exit), and visit the stores, you can eat at the Three Broomsticks, have a Butterbeer at the Hogs Head, and go to the "loo" to hear Moaning Myrtle moan. The ATM machine is from Gringotts and the Owlery is a place to sit and take it all in. There are also mini "shows" of the Beauxbutons (sp?)
spinning ribbons and Durmstrang doing flips and such. Also the Owl Choir singing.

After you walk through it all once and take it all in, you can go back and take pictures. There are tons of things HP fans would want to photograph.

Even if you do not ride the rides at all, walk thru the lines till the end and take the chicken exit so you don't miss anything. The queues are great!

Then go thru the rest of the park, and go back to HP at night to see it then.

If you weren't huge HP fans, I would say go to Magic Kingdom. Love that place.

Thank you, this was very helpful! I think we'll end up going to WWOHP, and just be prepared to take things slow and see absolutely everything there is to see! The rest of IoA isn't as interesting for us, but we're not too picky, so I'm pretty confident that we'll be able to enjoy the atmosphere and the other attractions anyway, should we go through WWOHP more quickly than we thought. And I guess we can always swing by DTD at the end of the day, if we want to get our Disney fix!

I'm getting pretty excited, thanks to everyone for their advice

 

[reesecup]

Wow! I'm trying to read as much of these posts as I can but don't see myself getting through them all. Thanks to all for the advice.

I have a question or two:

We are staying onsite at Disney. Got a great price for the week of coming in on Jan. 5th. However, this trip we are trying to plan a day trip to IOA , HP in specific. OUr kids (big...they grew up with the books and the movies) are HUGE HP fans. What we are trying to decide is if we should go ahead and book an onsite hotel for one night so that we have the early admission benefit. We probably will not go until closer to the end of the week (or it may be that Sunday we come in), so we are wondering how the crowds will be and if it is really worth extra money.

Also, I'm confused on the other hotels that are linked to the parks like the Hyatt. Do you get early entrance by staying there are well? Thanks!

 

[mmounsey]

Wow! I'm trying to read as much of these posts as I can but don't see myself getting through them all. Thanks to all for the advice. I have a question or two: We are staying onsite at Disney. Got a great price for the week of coming in on Jan. 5th. However, this trip we are trying to plan a day trip to IOA , HP in specific. OUr kids (big...they grew up with the books and the movies) are HUGE HP fans. What we are trying to decide is if we should go ahead and book an onsite hotel for one night so that we have the early admission benefit. We probably will not go until closer to the end of the week (or it may be that Sunday we come in), so we are wondering how the crowds will be and if it is really worth extra money. Also, I'm confused on the other hotels that are linked to the parks like the Hyatt. Do you get early entrance by staying there are well? Thanks!

We did one day at IOA during a Disney trip...stayed offsite the whole time at a condo since it was thanksgiving week and did fine with the lines...in fact, we practically walked onto everything. We started with HP, then finished the rest of the park and came back to do HP again. We did not miss staying onsite for universal and it wouldn't have have added much to our day. This may change depending on the time of year, but it worked out fine for us. I'm pretty sure it was weekend too.

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

Wow! I'm trying to read as much of these posts as I can but don't see myself getting through them all. Thanks to all for the advice.

I have a question or two:

We are staying onsite at Disney. Got a great price for the week of coming in on Jan. 5th. However, this trip we are trying to plan a day trip to IOA , HP in specific. OUr kids (big...they grew up with the books and the movies) are HUGE HP fans. What we are trying to decide is if we should go ahead and book an onsite hotel for one night so that we have the early admission benefit. We probably will not go until closer to the end of the week (or it may be that Sunday we come in), so we are wondering how the crowds will be and if it is really worth extra money.

Also, I'm confused on the other hotels that are linked to the parks like the Hyatt. Do you get early entrance by staying there are well? Thanks!

We did this in August. We were staying at disney and just did a day trip to IOA. We were able to get on everything we wanted, did all of harry potter and that was in august. We got there before the park opened and just went right over there, did what we could and then did the rest of the park and went back to hp towards the end of the night and did mostly everything again. Worked out wonderfully! Now I don't know how crowded things are in january but I can't imagine it would be that bad but maybe someone in the know can verify. My opinion is that it's not worth the extra money! Have a great time! It's so much fun!

 

[reesecup]

We did one day at IOA during a Disney trip...stayed offsite the whole time at a condo since it was thanksgiving week and did fine with the lines...in fact, we practically walked onto everything. We started with HP, then finished the rest of the park and came back to do HP again. We did not miss staying onsite for universal and it wouldn't have have added much to our day. This may change depending on the time of year, but it worked out fine for us. I'm pretty sure it was weekend too.

Thanks so much! We can stay at Disney cheaper and just didn't want to have to move but was hoping we would not encounter long wait lines. ONe more question for you or anyone else on here: Would we be better of going here first (it would probably be the 5th ) or wait until later in the week like that Thursday, the 9th? I hate we would not see the Christmas decorations but am thinking the crowds might be better. OR I'm wondering if it would be better for us to do the Disney later in the week. Thank you!

 

[mmounsey]

We did IOA as our first park day...only because I wanted to end with Disney and not be 'interrupted' once we were there. But if you're not crazy like I am...then any day would probably be fine that time of year.

 

[mmounsey]

And I can't remember when they take the decorations down...so maybe opposite might work best for you.

 

[ilovemk76]

next summer

Is it behind schedule? I thought it was spring of 2014. Maybe I am remembering incorrectly.