When I first heard rumors that there was going to be a Harry Potter theme park, the thought that ran through my mind was “yes!” Immediately, I called up my friend and together we scoured the Internet and Mugglenet in search of more information.
Don’t even get me started on how ecstatic I was to see the ad for it during the Super Bowl.
The planning and construction for the theme park have been taking place since 2009, with an official press release sent out on May 30, 2009 confirming the creation and existence of the park.
Universal Studios informed excited fans that “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter” will officially open on June 18, 2010, but special vacation packages allow fans in earlier for a test run on May 28.
The stars of the Harry Potter films that are confirmed to be attending the park opening will be James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley), Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley), and Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy). However, fans anticipate that J.K. Rowling and other cast members will also be in attendance.
As for the location of Wizarding World, it is going to be one of the parks in Universal’s Islands of Adventure. The layout will include an authentic Hogsmeade, Hagrid’s Hut, and Hogwarts. In terms of thrill rides, the park will have three main rides: Dragon Challenge, Flight of the Hippogriff, and Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey.
I have to say, the two places that excite me the most are Hogsmeade and Hogwarts, especially since Hogwarts will house the Forbidden Journey.
Hogsmeade will include all of the iconic shops fans know by heart from the books and a special guest from Diagon Alley.
At the entrance of Hogsmeade will be the famous Hogwarts’ Express waiting at Hogsmeade Station. Across the way will be Fred and George’s favorite haunt, Zonko’s joke shop. The storefront of the shop will have a student vomiting into a cauldron from one of Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes’ infamous Puking Pastilles. Zonko’s will sell such mischief-causing items as Extendable Ears, Sneakoscopes, and Boxing Telescopes.
Next to Zonko’s is Honeydukes. Its storefront will have a chocolate frog that jumps out of its box and leaps around the window. This wizard candy shop will sell Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Bott’s Every-Flavor Beans, and hopefully many more iconic candies such as Acid Pops and Cockroach Clusters.
The Three Broomsticks and its counterpart, the Hog’s Head pub, will be the main restaurants of the park and serve traditional British fare and drinks with such fan favorites as Butterbeer and pumpkin juice. The Three Broomsticks will have everything from shepherd’s pie to Cornish pasties to chocolate trifle. As for the décor of The Three Broomsticks, pots and pans will float around magically and sounds from the above inn’s patrons will be able to be heard from the upstairs, along with some house elves in the shadows.
The Hog’s Head will be more for the adults, with its selection of imported and domestic beers, specialty drinks, and wines.
Other shops in Hogsmeade include The Owlery, which will house the owls used for deliveries, the Owl Post, which will send letters with an authentic Hogsmeade postmark, and Dervish and Banges, which will sell Quidditch gear, Triwizard outfits, Spectrescopes, and Remembralls.
The guest from Diagon Alley is Ollivander’s, “Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C.” According to the official Universal press release, “guests of Ollivander’s will get to experience the same type of magical moment Harry had in ‘Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone’ when a wand ‘chooses them.” The shop will be a replica of the shop seen in the films and described in the books.
As for Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, all I can say is that it will make any Potter fan’s dreams come true. It takes place in a highly authentic Hogwarts that includes the random stair cases that lead to nowhere and the famously magical moving paintings (including the Four Founders and others exclusive to Wizarding World). The ride will utilize state of the art technology in order to allow visitors to fly along right beside Harry during a Quidditch match.
You will be able to see Dumbledore and the Golden Trio. The queue for the ride is actually in Hogwarts, since the ride takes place deep in the heart of it, making the long line a whole lot more bearable.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter takes the idea of a “theme park” and goes a step beyond it. For fans that have always wanted to transport themselves into Harry’s world, the chance has finally come. For me, this is really a dream come true and I can hardly wait to go and visit the Wizarding World.
Alex Dunn can be reached for comment at [email protected]