I know its been asked before but...Which HP park first??

[paula70]

I know i've seen threads with this question before so sorry in advance for being repetitive! But im looking for opinions on my 1 day park to park plan. The website shows both HP worlds will have early entry, 7:00 am, on March 30th. Because we only have one day to do/see it all and it will be a high crowd day, what do you all think is the best place to start our day?

My daughters (18 & 15) and I have never been there & I'd love to have an idea so I can take a look at the maps and make a "tentative" touring plan. Im not against "winging it" but function better with a plan..HA HA! I appreciate any help or opinions you're all willing to give!!

 

[macraven]

If your main goal is potter related, start with that
Use HE to hop to other park when done


Or make a list of the must do things in Both parks
Map out the route based on those sites/rides

 

[HM2012Butler]

Diagon Alley Then Hogsmeade. Escape from Gringotts will have the longer line so try to get there first to avoid waiting too long. Lines have gotten much better since opening but every minute counts! Make sure to ride the Hogwarts Express both directions

 

[cigar95]

Although more will suggest the other option, my recommendation has been to start with Hogsmeade. Because it was done first, it is somewhat smaller and less spectacular than Diagon Alley, So you'd see Hogsmeade, and say to yourself "wow, that was great!", and then ride over to DA, and your reaction will be "YOW, that's incredible!".
Whereas if you do it the other way, your reaction to Hogsmeade might by "oh, . . . . . . this is, . . . . . . . pretty nice, . . . I guess. . . I wonder if they're going to expand it. . . . Do you think there's time to get back and do Gringotts again?"

Mind you, there's nothing *wrong* with Hogsmeade - it's just done on a little smaller scale. The view of Hogwarts is as iconic as it gets, though I'm one of the few who thinks very little of the ride inside it.

 

[Hunterr]

My preferred order is go to Hogsmeade first, explore the area and do the ride(s), then take the train to Diagon Alley. I like that you have to leave the "train station" and walk outside before going into the actual Diagon Alley area behind the wall.

 

[SpaceMtnGirl]

Although more will suggest the other option, my recommendation has been to start with Hogsmeade. Because it was done first, it is somewhat smaller and less spectacular than Diagon Alley, So you'd see Hogsmeade, and say to yourself "wow, that was great!", and then ride over to DA, and your reaction will be "YOW, that's incredible!".
Whereas if you do it the other way, your reaction to Hogsmeade might by "oh, . . . . . . this is, . . . . . . . pretty nice, . . . I guess. . . I wonder if they're going to expand it. . . . Do you think there's time to get back and do Gringotts again?"

Mind you, there's nothing *wrong* with Hogsmeade - it's just done on a little smaller scale. The view of Hogwarts is as iconic as it gets, though I'm one of the few who thinks very little of the ride inside it.

Thanks for this post! We're going next week and have two full days in the park (and access to early entry both days). I was torn on which park to hit first, seeing as we've never been. I think we'll go with Hogsmeade first, then.

 

[xlsm]

Although more will suggest the other option, my recommendation has been to start with Hogsmeade. Because it was done first, it is somewhat smaller and less spectacular than Diagon Alley, So you'd see Hogsmeade, and say to yourself "wow, that was great!", and then ride over to DA, and your reaction will be "YOW, that's incredible!".
Whereas if you do it the other way, your reaction to Hogsmeade might by "oh, . . . . . . this is, . . . . . . . pretty nice, . . . I guess. . . I wonder if they're going to expand it. . . . Do you think there's time to get back and do Gringotts again?"

Mind you, there's nothing *wrong* with Hogsmeade - it's just done on a little smaller scale. The view of Hogwarts is as iconic as it gets, though I'm one of the few who thinks very little of the ride inside it.

I agree with this!

I'm a huge HP fan, and was determined to take our one day and do it in the "right" order, like Harry! But after the spectacle of Diagon Alley, I wasn't able to appreciate Hogsmeade the way I wish I could have. If I had it to do all over again, I'd start in Hogsmeade and do Diagon Alley second.

That being said, having Diagon Alley as the first stop was literally (no really - LITERALLY) breathtaking. My eyes were filled with tears - it is stunning in every way.

 

[HM2012Butler]

Although more will suggest the other option, my recommendation has been to start with Hogsmeade. Because it was done first, it is somewhat smaller and less spectacular than Diagon Alley, So you'd see Hogsmeade, and say to yourself "wow, that was great!", and then ride over to DA, and your reaction will be "YOW, that's incredible!".
.

He makes a good point. Hogsmeade is great but when you see Diagon Alley..... Knocks your socks off

 

[cigar95]

That being said, having Diagon Alley as the first stop was literally (no really - LITERALLY) breathtaking. My eyes were filled with tears - it is stunning in every way.

If you want to have some fun, take just a few minutes and wait inside the entrance to Diagon Alley. Look at the expressions on people's faces as they walk in and see it for the first time. Priceless.
One of the great things they did in construction is to build the entrance so that there's that one moment when you just suddenly see everything open up before you. It's a bit like passing under the train station at the Magic Kingdom as suddenly there it all is on front of you.

 

[paula70]

Great opinions everyone...thank you! To say we're excited is an understatement to say the least! I know we'll enjoy all of it, no matter what order we go. if we choose Hogsmeade, do you think we'll have time to get over to diagon alley before regular park time opens? Otherwise it was suggested to wait until later afternoon/eve...but I can't imagine waiting that long to see it & go on Gringotts?!

 

[Disxuni]

Normally, I'd say Diagon Alley since Gringott's can get some crazy wait times, it's the "newer" park, and it's so amazing.

However, Hosgmeade is a little more narrower and smaller, therefore later in the day gets more congested quickly, so it would be a little more wise to go to Hogsmeade simply to enjoy it while it has a light crowd and so you can breathe. Also, the Dragon Challenge (if you want to ride it) it is required to store all your belongings (bags including everything in your pockets) into a locker. And while the wait times are not massively long (at least lately), the trouble of getting and waiting for a locker can seem like it takes a lot of time and effort when it's later in the day, and therefore might be best to do that ride as early as possible while it's still light in the crowd. Flight of the Hippogriff is a ride that can have wait times well over 60 minutes (and that's been during it's slow season right now), so if you have children with you, I'd suggest doing that first thing in the morning if it's a low wait time, because it would not be worth waiting for it later (as it's only a mere minute long ride and feels less than that). I've also noticed that the Hogwarts express tends to be busier on the Hogsmeade side (later in the day), therefore it might be better to enjoy Hogsmeade and get onto the train before wait times get too long to enjoy Diagon Alley later in the day.

 

[freewill]

For us, we have two park days eligible for EE. On the first, both parks are supposed to have EE; on the second day, only US is slated to have EE. So I assume it makes sense to hit IOA EE on the first morning and US EE on the second day? HP is the priority for us -- everything else will (hopefully) be gravy.

Also, on days when both parks have EE, does the Hogwarts Express run during EE or does it wait until regular park opening?

 

[bchbetha]

I did find Hogsmeade a bit underwhelming...but not the castle! Wow! I preferred doing DA first, just like Harry did.

 

[Disxuni]

For us, we have two park days eligible for EE. On the first, both parks are supposed to have EE; on the second day, only US is slated to have EE. So I assume it makes sense to hit IOA EE on the first morning and US EE on the second day? HP is the priority for us -- everything else will (hopefully) be gravy.

Also, on days when both parks have EE, does the Hogwarts Express run during EE or does it wait until regular park opening?

I was curious about this myself and I found out on a website that if EE is for only Universal, it will not begin running to Hogsmeade until ten minutes before both parks have officially opened for the day. And if EE is only for IoA, Hogwarts Express should begin operating up to 30 minutes before Universal officially opens for the day. I found no specifics on starting times on the case of both parks having EE, however, I did find out if both are open for EE that the Hogwarts express would be operating.

 

[macraven]

maybe it is different based on the month a person is there?
in october HE would load up at the studios and leave about 9 to ioa.
ioa opened at 9 for the period in october i was there.
never saw it leave much before 8:55.

possible larger crowds made it necessary to do the way you read on a site.
which website has the listing on that?

when both parks have ee, HE runs back and forth the entire time.

 

[Disxuni]

Touring Plans, however it is information about 2015 and we all know how things can change and website itself even states that.

 

[freewill]

Bumping this thread since I think both parks are having EE right now. Which of the HP areas are on-site folks going to first during recent EE days when both options are available?

Thanks and happy Easter!

 

[macraven]

Difficult to answer as both parks will have many in if both parks have EE

 

[thegajone]

I think it comes down to personal preference honestly, but to me I would choose Hogsmeade first. I like what Disxuni said about Hogsmeade; if your group wants to ride Dragon Challenge and Flight of the Hippogriff, then that side probably makes the most sense.

But there are arguments to be made for DA first. Some people said to do Hogsmeade first because DA is even better; well to me that's a reason to do DA first. I did DA first the first time and I had goosebumps walking in because of how awesome it is, and I'm not even a Harry Potter fan. I feel like if I did Hogsmeade first, then DA wouldn't blow me away quite as much. Secondly, taking HE from DA to Hogsmeade is cooler in my opinion because of Platform 9 3/4. And the line for HE can get ridiculous on crowded days (I'm talking like an hour or more), so if your plan is to hop back and forth more than once, it might not be worth your time to wait for the train. HE doesn't take Express Passes either (nor do FJ or Gringotts) so people with EPs should keep that in mind. And finally, if anyone in your group has motion sickness issues, FJ can REALLY be a problem. I'd hate for anyone to ride that first thing in the morning then feel like crap the rest of the day. Just something to consider.

 

[cigar95]

And the line for HE can get ridiculous on crowded days (I'm talking like an hour or more), so if your plan is to hop back and forth more than once, it might not be worth your time to wait for the train.

A note on this from our experience. Hogwarts Express is really two things - it's an attraction *and* it's transportation. Early in the day, the guests on the HE are doing it mostly as an attraction, but in the afternoon, when more guests begin to park hop, it's acting as both an attraction *and* transportation. So the lines get significantly longer. Data on TouringPlans confirms this.
I would suggest riding the HogEx in both directions before about 1pm, and you can save a good deal of time. (And on the Hogsmead-DA leg, keep your eyes open for the "hidden Voldemort"!)