The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

Wednesday, 8.11.

Practical (NOT) Pedestrian Bridge and Crazy Shower

• We arrive in Orlando in the evening at the hotel right next to Universal Studios.
• “Why did you book the super expensive hotel right next to the parks?” a critical reader might ask at this point. Good question. Two reasons: Firstly, because I wanted to have early access to the park and you can only get this (after our extensive research we are sure of this see blog entry here) in one of the hotels directly next to the park. Secondly, because a ticket for the parking lot costs 30 dollars a day, an Uber is even more expensive and public transport – what public transport? We naively check how long it takes by public transport (buses) from Disney World (where we return our rental car) to Universal Studios – two hours (a 10-minute drive).
• Speaking of the promised excellent and awesome walkway: yes, there is a sidewalk, but no, it’s not super awesome. It’s more of a typical American sidewalk design, kind of like how they build bike lanes in Austria: Someone who never uses sidewalks has built totally impractical but nice-looking sidewalks and then claims there’s a great sidewalk for pedestrians.

• It starts with the pedestrian bridge, which is (on the upside) a ramp for wheelchair users. This leads to it being about 1km long instead of 10m (stylistically necessary exaggeration).

• Via the bridge and the curved footpath along the equally curved and of course not natural river we reach the parks. We thought it would be nice to get an overview and pick up our tickets so that we can make the most of early access tomorrow.
• Although all the parks are already closed, there’s plenty going on in the shopping/party mile in front of them – “We’re entering the bubble,” says Matthäus.

• The super expensive hotel next door gave us an upgrade, which is why we now have a room with a gym inside – there really is nothing that doesn’t exist.

• Now that we have it, I take advantage of it of course, ride the bike at far too high a difficulty, then do a crazy workout (three repeats and burpees are involved) and then look forward to the shower, totally exhausted.
• I’m not a fan of showers that have far too little water pressure and just dribble away so that you need about half an hour before you finally feel like you’re cleaner than before. That’s why I always thought to myself that nothing can go wrong by simply setting the water pressure higher and I couldn’t imagine that you could set it too high. After using the shower in the super expensive hotel right next to Universal Studio, I know – yes, you can.
• American showers have this funny system where, interestingly, you can adjust the temperature but not the strength.
• So I innocently set the temperature, pull up the plug and – bam – I’m hit by a huge, hard jet of water – it must feel something like that when you shower yourself with a fire hose: wild.
• And with that, good night!

Thursday, 9.11.

Hippogreif and Hogwarts

• We enter the Islands of Adventures Park, where Hogwarts and Hogsmeade are located, right on time at (almost) eight o’clock (thanks to the long queue – nonaned).
• Hagrid’s new ride on his motorcycle is the “insider tip”, which is why the queue there has already jumped to 120 minutes waiting time at 5 past 8.

• No matter, we decide to start with the Hippogriff, where we only have to queue for five minutes.
• Buckbeak welcomes us here in the queue – a full-size replica.

• After the relaxing rollercoaster, which is also used by a lot of younger children, we set off for Hogwarts Castle, which has been recreated here – mega!
• You enter the building through the greenhouses, where you first see the dungeons, the Mirror of Nerhegeb and the hunchbacked statue that leads to the secret passage.

• The queue continues past Dumbledore’s office and the Fat Lady to the Gryffindor common room, before reaching the rollercoaster itself, where you board as if on an assembly line (literally).

• The ride is very well designed, you feel like you’re flying on a broom around and even a bit through Hogwarts – of course, a dragon and Dementors chase you, you play Quidditch briefly and fly over the Great Lake.
• Now it’s time to head off for a swim with the manatees, more about that here.
• On the way out of the hotel, we overhear a woman excitedly telling her friends: “I just walked here! From the park!” Yes, that’s something to be proud of.

Friday, 10.11.

Double, double, toil and trouble

• Of course, we got ourselves the park app, where you can see exactly how long you have to queue and which attractions have early access.
• It tells us today that a few more attractions are open than we thought.
• So we think to ourselves, haha, instead of running to Hagrid like everyone else, we are super smart and visit to the other attractions that are already open.
• Of course, as is usually the case when you think of something like this, it goes totally wrong as the app feeds us misinformation. It turns out that the attractions aren’t even open, and the whole thing just leads to us running back and forth through the park like crazy – from one closed rollercoaster to the next.
• We are at least a bit lucky and just as we pass it for the fourth time, the Velocicoaster opens and we immediately join the – still relatively short – queue.
• Immediately afterwards, we join the not-so-long Hogwarts Express queue, only to discover that it’s not running at the moment and no one can tell us how long the problem will last.

• While queuing, a lady asks the parking attendant who is dressed up as a conductor: “How many people fit into the Express?” He replies: “156.”
• So instead we organize some butterbeers, which we drink with relish in Hogsmeade with a view of Hogwarts.

• Funnily enough, Hogsmeade is designed very wintery, with snow on the roofs and everything.
• “A real design flaw,” says Matthäus and it’s a bit strange – I have to admit – how everyone here strolls through snowy Hogsmeade in shorts and T-Shirts.

• But I also think that it all in all looks charming and idyllic, if not downright kitschig.
• We also finally get to see the shows: First up on stage here is the Hogwarts Choir, which never appears in the books but does in the movies (I think in the third and fourth, but no guarantees here for completeness or accuracy).

• Immediately after the choir, the Triwizard Tournament schools from the fourth movie, the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students, put on a show.

• We then leave Hogsmeade and walk over to the Jurassic Park part of the park, where we ride a water coaster through a dinosaur landscape.
• A little boy sitting behind us is not very convinced by the whole thing: as we pass a particularly large Triceraptos, which roars like crazy, he says loudly to no one in particular: “It’s not real!”
• We would like to ride some kind of flying bike attraction, but – you won’t believe it – even I’m too tall for the ride. Matthäus is surprised as well.
• We walk on to a freefall tower, the adrenaline factor of which I have some doubts about until I discover a pair of sunglasses lying on the roof next to it (it’s not quite as exciting though).
• Next, we ride an attraction in the cartoon section that we are allowed to ride, a water roller coaster that says “You will get wet!” right at the entrance. – a promise that it truly and thoroughly keeps.
• One rides in round rotating tires that can accommodate eight people and remind me of an attraction in Walibi that was so boring that we named it “Tea Time”.
• But that’s where the similarities end, because this ride is anything but a tea time – we are shaken, ride wildly through the waves and are literally showered by waterfalls and springs – nobody and nothing stays dry.
• Sitting in the tire with us is a family from – you won’t believe it (we almost couldn’t believe our ears either) – Carthage, where we have just passed through on Route 66 and where we spent our legendary drive-in movie night.
• We are, of course, completely thrilled and have a great chat with them – especially about the eternal American suffering of far too few vacation days.
• Suddenly we see that the King Kong Ride is finally open (it has not been before) and as we are very close by, we immediately get in line.

• That was very optimistic, because it doesn’t take long before the announcement is made that it is closed until an unknown time due to a technical fault.
• So we finally, finally make our way to the Hogwarts Express, where the queue is long – but that hardly ever changes during the course of the day, as we discover.
• At least we queue in a beautifully designed station building and can take in the detailed decoration in peace.

• When we board the train, I’m absolutely thrilled – the compartments are superbly designed, you really feel like you’re on the Hogwarts Express.

• During the journey, images pass by, of the castle you leave, of Hagrid waving at you, we even pass Malfoy Manor until we reach London and you even catch a glimpse of the knight-errant.

• We get off at Kings Cross station in “London” and I’m amazed – this is where you really get sucked into the world – it’s so well done!

• In front of the station is London, they have designed an entire street in the English style, and on one corner is the knight bus, where you can talk to Stan and the shrunken head – the actor dressed as Stan looks uncannily like the film character, by the way.

• The entrance to Diagon Alley is next to the Leaky Cauldron and looks just like in the first movie – mega!
• However, you can’t tap the stones with your magic wand to move the wall, but there is already a large passageway so that the masses of people can flow through.

• And – tadada (that’s really appropriate here) – as if announced with a bang, an amazing picture opens up in front of you – here lies Diagon Alley – it’s as if you’ve fallen straight into the movie.

• On one side is the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron, while just opposite is Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes, which really invites you to take a look inside.
• However, we decide to go straight to the Leaky Cauldron as we’re already a bit hungry and it doesn’t look quite so full.

• An ignorant woman is on the phone in the queue in front of us and says into the receiver “Yeah, it’s right at the corner; it’s called the ‘Leaky Cauldron’ and it’s a restaurant.”
• We have to queue for a while, but then we get a seat – at a table with two American women.
• They fulfill all the clichés, order food, eat it within about 5 minutes and then leave again straight away.
• At the table next to us, you can really see the opposite and the cultural differences, because a group of French people have taken a seat here, taking all the time in the world, chatting comfortably, eating with relish, ordering more to drink and laughing out loud again and again.
• We order beer, a Wizards’ Brew and a Dragon Scale beer.

• When the waiter comes to bring the beers, he says to us: “I need two IDs for the beers.” I somehow misunderstand him due to the noise all around and reply “Nonono, we do not want Butterbeer!”, whereupon he gives me a strange look and Matthäus quickly clears up the misunderstanding.
• Over the beer, and when the Americans have left us, we take our time to look at the Leaky Cauldron in peace.

• Once again, it’s fascinating how well the designers have set the tone and mood and the attention to detail helps to bring the restaurant to life.
• Unfortunately, there’s no “Soup soup soup” on the blackboard I spot, but well, you can’t have everything.

• Out we go again into Diagon Alley, where we continue to be amazed by store after store.
• Next to Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes is a store selling Quidditch accessories.

• We also discover Flourish and Blotts, which makes me very excited.
• Suddenly we discover a narrow alley that branches off and turn off to find ourselves in Knockturnalley.

• This is mega well designed – it’s really dark and gloomy.
• Of course, Borgin and Burkes is located here, which you can also look into and where there is actually a store inside where you can buy Slytherin and Death Eater-themed robes etc.
• We even discover the Vanishing Cabinet in the store and every now and then you can hear a bird chirping.
• There are “Wanted” posters on every corner.
• We leave Knockturn Alley and find ourselves back in the brighter and livelier Diagon Alley, where Gringotts is located, on which the dragon sits and occasionally breathes fire.

• We are also thrilled when we discover Florean Fortescue’s ice cream parlor, where Harry spends a lot of time at the beginning of the third book and where you can actually buy ice cream, of course.

• We don’t do that, instead we look into a stock exchange where a goblin is sitting.

• We take a look inside Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes, which is also really well designed.
• Umbridge walks around on a rope calling for order, there’s a collection of U-No-Poo in a display next to a loo on show and the shelves and store stretch across several floors.

• Finally, we go to Ollivanders, where there is also a show in which the scene from the first Harry Potter film is re-enacted in which Harry buys his wand.
• The actress who sells the wand does a very, very good job and the little child, who is about the right age, also plays along bravely.

• The child is already wearing a Gryffindor cloak with at least two wands in it, Matthäus notes – I wonder, will his parents buy him the third wand that has chosen him?
• At this late hour, the Gringotts queue is finally not super long and we get in line.
• The bank is beautifully designed with great attention to detail and we can’t get enough of it.
• The Gringotts entrance hall is exactly as you would imagine it and the goblins sitting on either side actually move from time to time, giving the impression that they are working.

• Then the queue moves down to where the goblins’ offices are located and you can see newspapers lying around.
• Eventually one ends up in Bill’s office, where the show starts.
• We take an elevator down to the bottom where the dungeons are located and then start the “Escape from Gringotts” ride.

• Once again, the designers prove that they are good at their job, and the ride is really great and captivating.
• Now it’s getting dark outside, which also gives Winkelgasse a great atmosphere, especially now that Christmas lights are up everywhere.

Saturday, 11.11.

Breakfast in the Three Broomstickes, The Tales of Beedle the Bard and many (dead) Aliens

• We enter the park at 8am with our Early Access ticket and immediately make our way to the Velocicoaster, which gives us a wake-up adrenaline rush.
• Then we head to the Journey through Hogwarts, which is so refreshingly empty that we can look at everything in peace – mega!!!

• Afterwards, we finally take a leisurely stroll through Hogsmeade, which we have always tended to run through.
• Zonkos, the honey pot and the boar’s head are just some of the places to be found there.

• We decide to have breakfast at the Three Broomsticks, which is great because it’s not that busy at this time of day (usually the queue was always several turns long).
• The breakfast is not bad at all and, above all, the ambience is great: just like in the Leaky Cauldron and all the Harry Potter attractions, the restaurant is exactly as you would imagine and very authentically designed.

• We take the Hogwarts Express to “London” and discover what we had previously missed: the Sirius Black House in Grimmauld Place, just off Kings Cross.

• We hear a performance by Celestina Warbeck, who regularly performs on a stage in Winkelgasse and does her job very well.

• As the queue time is very short according to the app, we decide to take a detour from the Harry Potter world and head to Men in Black, where you can ride a rollercoaster and shoot aliens with an alien gun.
• While the people next to us are really ambitious and want to beat their own high score and sprint straight back to the entrance at the exit, we are here more to look at the aliens in peace, not to shoot them down. A fact, you can tell by looking at the scores: Matthäus has a score of 33, I have a score of 15 and the lady next to us has 300.
• Back in the Harry Potter world, we go into Gringotts again, which still excites me, before we watch the fairy tales of Beedle the Bard on stage – several actors perform the tale of the Three Brothers.

• Now we take a break from the parks and walk back to the hotel for our Wachstumsrunde session.
• During the break, we try out the hotel pool, a cozy chiller pool that’s great for a break.
• We return to the world of the parks and this time we immerse ourselves in the world of The Simpsons.

• While queuing for one of the Simpsons rides, one of the Simpsons videos plays, ironically including one in which amusement parks are ridiculed.

• To our delight, there is Moe’s, where we immediately treat ourselves to a Duff beer – next to Barney at the bar.

• Refreshed we set off on the E.T. ride, which – although it is mainly made for children – turns out to be surprisingly beautiful and really lovingly designed – we are thrilled.

• However, the Transformers ride, which we do immediately afterwards, turns out to be an epic fail.
• Even the “Awakening of the Mummy” doesn’t convince us.
• Apparently we’re on a losing streak, because the New York Jimmie Fallon show is similarly unspectacular.
• So we’re only a little sad when everything finally closes and instead chill out in our hotel room, where we watch one of the Harry Potter films chilling in bed – nice!

Sunday, 12.11.

Owl Post, Cauldron Cake and Firewhisky

• We start the day relaxed in Hogsmeade, where we take our time to look around and discover that you can send owl post from here.
• Cool, of course we do that straight away!

• Then we take the still nicely empty Hogwarts Express to the other park, where we try out the Rip Rocket Ride, a rollercoaster that is firstly nice because it is old and therefore a bit more adrenaline-inducing than newer ones that run smoothly, and secondly because you can choose your own soundtrack and we enjoy the rollercoaster ride with “My Chemical Romance”.
• Off we go to the Minions, where there are two attractions that aren’t really worth mentioning either.
• By chance, we come across a drive-in dance show that reminds us a lot of the Route 66 road trip – mega!

• The Bourne stunt show also turns out to be well worth seeing – it’s really well done – even with real actors!
• I’m starting to suffer from Harry Potter withdrawal symptoms, so we stroll back to Diagon Alley.
• There we buy butterbeer and Gillywater at the Hopping Pot, the most expensive normal water I’ve ever bought – but with nice packaging, which I decide to keep for Hanna.

• Speaking of Hanna: I write to her about our experiences here and mention the “Butterbier”, which my autocorrect turns into “Bürgerbüro” – Scherzkeks.
• In the “Fountain of Fair Fortune” we discover fire whisky, which we of course try straight away and which turns out to be surprisingly good.

• We take the now overcrowded Hogwarts Express back to Hogwarts.

• There we ride the Hippogriff, which is really spectacular because the children behind us are super hyped and screaming.
• Then we finally try a Cauldron Cake.

• I’m looking for a recipe on how to make your own cauldron cakes, but after we’ve tried a bite of ours, I say to Matthäus: “I don’t think you can legally get the ingredients in the supermarket in Europe.”
• We listen to the Hogwarts Choir again, which supposedly has a Christmas program, which turns out to be an exaggeration (one song is different and not Christmasy).

• Before we sit down in the Hogshead, where we treat ourselves to a Wizards’ Brew.

• On the way home we stop by an ATM, but we only find a drive-through ATM, which we have fun with.

Monday, 13.11.

So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, goodbye

• Our last Harry Potter day, and our last USA day as well, starts with… a packing session and a breakfast consisting of an apple, an orange and cold S’Mores – njam.
• Off we go to the Islands of Adventure Park, where we do our classic move, walk past the Hagrid queue and ride a round of the Velocicoaster, which still thrills us.
• We continue on to Hogsmeade and – due to the queue situation – to Hogwarts Castle and the Forbidden Journey.
• We somehow catch the single rider queue and are quite surprised when we get to see other parts of the castle – wow, that’s something.

• We decide: Cool, we have to use single rider line more often, there are suprises hidden there!
• But first we take the Hogwarts Express to London and this time we manage to get on the train directly without queuing, just walking there – wow!

• Diagon Alley is still refreshingly empty, but is slowly filling up, which doesn’t stop us from going into Gringotts – through the single rider line, which shows us the hall from the other side – nice! However, we do miss the elevator ride and the short theatre/movie show with Bill and the Goblin, whose name I sadly forgot.

• This time we have breakfast in the Leaky Cauldron – with obligatory pumpkin juice, njam.

• As long as the queue isn’t super long, we take the Hogwarts Express back to Hogsmeade.

• We send our last owl post from there.
• We ride the Hogwarts Express again (the theme of the day) and return to Diagon Alley.
• In Florean Fortesque’s ice cream parlor we try a – really amazingly good – ice cream.

• And enjoy the view of the Christmassy becoming Diagon Alley.

• Once again, it’s off on the Hogwarts Express (I mean, the ride is also an experience) to Hogsmeade.
• There we try out the Hagrids Single Rider Line, which is not very spectacular, but offers great views of Hogsmeade.

• And with the Christmas lights in the dark, Hogsmeade looks really great, it has to be said.

• Finally, we buy a chocolate frog before saying goodbye to the Harry Potter world with a heavy heart.

• Our flight is at 5am, so we have decided not to book a hotel for the night and instead chill out in the lobby of our hotel before heading to the airport at around 1am.
• Cathy, our driver, likes to chat, which is also quite funny – she tells us with total enthusiasm that there is even a train station here at the airport in Orlando – yes, she couldn’t believe that at first either, but it really is there, no, not an Amtrak station, but it’s handy, It’s a train from Fort Lauderdale, Miami, and the idea is that you can get directly to the theme parks by train – that’s great, because by car it takes three hours at best and if you fly, it’s quicker, but then there’s the two hours you have to be at the airport beforehand, and then you have to worry about your luggage and with the train you don’t have all that – ah, not that she says of course that you have to worry about your luggage at Orlando airport, she actually only has good experiences there, except for the one time when they lost their luggage, that was funny by the way, she was visiting friends and the airport called her and said they were bringing the luggage by limo and she already had her phone ready to take a photo with the limo, but – ha, you won’t believe this, man, it was embarrassing – they just say “limo” for cab… and so on and so forth.
• In between the chatter, Cathy misses the exit to the airport, but well – we have time, so it doesn’t matter – an Interstate U-ie has its own charms.
• Of course, we still have plenty of time at the airport, but as always, we manage to pass it well – even with a few power naps.