The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

I'm just going to cut to the chase here. Overall we were really disappointed by The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Firstly if you go, you should know that this is not a theme park unto its own. It is only one small part, or "land" if you're a Disneyphile, of a theme park with many other sections. It is in one of Universal Orlando's theme parks called Universal Islands of Adventures, and probably only makes up about 15% of the whole park at best.



Lest you think we just had misinformed expectations that led to our disappointment, we did actually know this before we went. Although it wasn't until our research for this trip that we discovered this, and I personally think that Universal has intentionally led people to believe that the Harry Potter "park" is if not its own or at least much bigger and more of an attraction than it really is. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter? Come on, try the Wizarding Corner of Harry Potter, or The Wizarding Alley, but World!? I think not! Check out the map here and see for yourself . . .



While it comprises of only about 15% of the park, unfortunately I'd say 85% of park visitors were crammed into the Harry Potter-themed section. It was heel to toe throughout; claustrophobics need not enter! They severely underestimated the Harry Potter fan base, which I think was a pretty bone-headed move. It doesn't take a Wharton Business School grad to make accurate projections on the droves of people that will flock to anything labeled "Harry Potter." Duh. Projections for Harry Potter theme park crowds: the inhabitants of the earth.



Additionally the Hogsmede themed Harry Potter-land is largely devoted to commercial activity. Shop after shop. Of course you expect, and even want, to shop for a wand at Ollivander's, and try sweets at Honeydukes and check out what's got everyone laughing at George and Fred's joke shop, BUT it went way beyond that to the point that I really just felt like we were at Pottermart. Only the prices were outrageous! You expect theme park prices to be high, but these were over the top.



If you were lucky (or unlucky enough) to squeeze into Ollivander's, you'd find replica wands for each character for the bargain price of $30. Smashed against a shelf full of wands I kept hearing over and over from wand shoppers "oh, wow, that's way too much for a wand" usually followed by something like "this is ridiculous, let's get out of here." Which leads me to an important point. I think there is a way you can get people to feel okay, even happy, paying an upwards of $30 for a wand. We kept noting throughout the day how different this place felt from Disney. You enter a Disney park and even though your wallet is wide open and money is flying out at a rate that might cause to you take out a second mortgage, you're smiling the entire time. There is a certain magic that Disney has engineered that gets you to such a happy place once you've crossed the turnstiles that you aren't really even aware of the vast amounts of money you are dropping. One could write a dissertation on this topic. And I believe Disney has this down to a science to such an extent that after our day in Harry Potter, we found ourselves repeating over and over what a "great value for money" the Disney experience really is. So the point is that it is conceivable that you could get me happy about paying $30 for a wand, but Universal's poor execution of Harry Potter "World" falls short. So ironic that this place would be sorely lacking in, well, magic.










$15 for one chocolate frog?!







$13 for a tiny box of Every Flavour Beans






The size of the place is not only an issue, but also the scope. After our visit we sat at lunch and reviewed our experience. Our discussion nearly turned to a business meeting on how to successfully revamp Harry Potter "World." Ideas included, handing the keys to Disney and letting them draw up an entire theme park dedicated only to Harry Potter, an actual owlery with real (not stuffed as in the above) owls, magic shows on stage with special effects highlighting some of the book's coolest spells, character meet and greets where you could actually meet Dumbledore and Hagrid, a real train ride on the Hogwarts Express that might even include intruding dementors, a sorting hat experience, and really the ideas go on and on. So much potential. JK Rowling did the hard part already, folks!






The positives? I know this is a harsh review in all, but there were some good things. Overall the structures built to create Hogsmede and that simulated Diagon Alley were pretty good. And the castle itself was pretty stunning.


The best part? Definitely the Butterbeer! We weren't expecting to like it, but it was delish!


So there you have it! Even though we are huge Harry Potter fans, I can't recommend a trip here. Perhaps had it been a little less crowded, we'd have enjoyed it more. But even then it's not extensive enough to warrant the trip. We were done in under two hours. And really it's just missing that certain je ne sais quoi, that magic. Forget Florida, come to London and experience the real thing!