Visited Harry Potter park yesterday

[GranddadTom]

Just got back from a visit to Universal and it appears as though much of the mania surrounding the Wizarding World of Harry Potter has settled down. We didn’t experience any lines to get into the area and the lines for the HP rides were in line with those at the popular rides at Disney. EXCEPT for the line into the show at Ollivanders. We were staying on-site and we arrived at the turnstiles around 7:45 am. We walked right through the turnstiles and over to the HP area arriving there 5 minutes later. We showed our room keys and went right into the area. All of the rides were open and working (before 8:00 am – I don’t know when they started). We walked immediately to Ollivanders where the line was around 100 people long. But since they take approximately 25 people per show (which lasts around five minutes) the wait wasn’t too bad. We were a group of 21 so one of our granddaughters got picked to be fitted for a wand so, of course, that wand had to be purchased (for $30) and then I got “the look” from the other eleven grandchildren. Wantta guess how much it cost me to get out of Ollivanders? But it was a great experience. I personally thought the dragon ride was much more intense that the castle ride for this reason - the dragon ride is physically stressful while the castle ride is more mentally stressful. For the castle ride you can just close you eyes and the ride is a piece of cake (just my opinion). All of the shops had lines but you better get used to lines if you want to visit WDW/Universal HP in the summer. There were crowds but they were not oppressive and everyone was well behaved. Over the two days we were at Universal we were in and out of the HP area five times and at different times of the day from rope drop to closing (at 10 pm) and in the middle of the day.

 

[MaleficentandGoons]

thanks for the info!!

 

[tfoster]

That's great! Wands for twelve?! And I've been fretting over buying wands for each of our four children!

Hoping that by December, the hype has REALLY died down! Oh yah - and that express is up and running for FJ too!!

 

[damo]

What a nice Grandfather you are!!!!!

 

[Tay N Evie's Mom]

I have twins and only DD wants one, and I've already told her "probably not"!

 

[spima3]

Just got back from a visit to Universal and it appears as though much of the mania surrounding the Wizarding World of Harry Potter has settled down.

From the crowd reports, most people w/ the early entry seem to indicate the area was manageable.

What was it like after the general public was let in?

 

[GranddadTom]

Up until 9:00 am the wait was 20 to 30 minutes - but that was not really a wait, it was actually the time it took to walk through the castle. We felt that when the "wait" was 20 minutes the line was moving too fast for us to see everything. At 9:00 there was a rush of people and the time jumped immediately to 60 minutes, then to 70 but finally settled to 60 minutes. Figuring the time to "tour" the castle, the additional wait was probably only 30 to 40 minutes. Make sure that you check the seat outside the castle for fit before you get into line because there were many people that didn't seem that big but who didn't fit into the seat.

 

[Lou Holtz]

Hope you learned your lesson on that wand ordeal!

 

[realbutter]

Any pics?

 

[hoverpumpkin]

Thank you for the report! We're arriving next Tuesday and I am SO excited - it's nice to hear the mania has calmed down a little. I'll cross my fingers hard!

 

[Metro West]

Thanks for sharing your experiences!

 

[TwingleMum]

Make sure that you check the seat outside the castle for fit before you get into line because there were many people that didn't seem that big but who didn't fit into the seat.

this worries quite a few of us. Did you notice any commonality between those that were turned away?? Bigger in the bottom? Broad shoulder??

What a cool Grandfather you are.

 

[Nimrod.sixty9]

Thank you so much for the info! My GF will be so happy to hear this!

Ill be at the parks later today but I still dont think I will try HP (it being the 4th and all). Ill try the 5th and 6th and Ill report in this thread.

 

[GranddadTom]

I wouldn't know what to tell you about what type of body doesn't fit just that I was surprised by some of the people who appeared to be ruled out. One piece of advise about the shop attached to the wand show. You exit the show into the Owl Post which is where the wands are sold. It's very tight in there so searching for the perfect wand can be challenging (but it's fun). They also have HP stamps and postcards right there with the wands. We left the shop before getting stamps and postcards and then were faced with a line to get back into the shop (so get all your shopping done before you leave the shop/

 

[hopemax]

There is a small cart outside the shop, in the Owlrey and they were selling the postcards, stamps, seal sets and, I think, journals. So if you miss the postcards, you can avoid waiting in the longer line.

 

[AJA]

What a great report (Love the wand story!). So glad to hear the crowds are becoming more manageable!