I have to say when I arrived in the “Wizarding World Of Harry Potter” that I was a bit weary of waiting around 75 mins for a ride, and within the line itself I kept making comments on how they could have put something there or done something different with the sections of the line outside. It wasn’t until I got into the castle itself that I was starting to feel slightly impressed by what Islands Of Adventure had done to the place.

Without spoiling it for those of you that haven’t been on the ride yet I will only say that you should expect to see appearances from a certain headmaster, four of the founders and the hat that decides the house. This isn’t all you are going to see either and bare in mind that this is all before you have even got on the ride.

Again without giving away too much about the ride I would say it is like a cross between Soarin’ and Spiderman but does not just contain a screen. Let me just say this, you are in for a real treat when you head on this ride.

Despite many people complaining about the line if you go early enough in the day you will get on it in 20 minutes easily and even during the course of the day when I was there it usually peaked at around 60 minutes, it was only 75 on the first afternoon of our Universal stay.

I will be going into more detail on some of the finer aspects of the “Wizarding World Of Harry Potter” in the coming days and weeks.

So far it would seem there have been a lot of mixed messages on what people think of the new land opened up in Islands Of Adventure within Universal Studios. Here is a brief summary of what people are saying.

Not Enough Rides

This makes perfect sense to me and although I have actually not been to the land yet I could have bet money on people saying this. Despite there being three rides within the land, Universal have only really created one and simply redesigned two older rides to fit in with the Harry Potter universe. A lot of fans are a bit annoyed with this as Universal have had plenty of time to plan for new rides to be put in place.

On a positive it would seem the fan reaction to the ride Harry Potter and The Forbidden Journey has been a good one which is encouraging for me when I arrive there in mid September.

Too Many Shops

Again I cannot say I am surprised with this one either as Universal along with Disney are always keen to make as much money back from their investments as possible. Again although this might be initially a bad thing I am hoping that over the years more rides will start to pop up and take the shops over in quantity.

There is once again a positive to the early negative in that the fans have generally been pleased with what the shops are selling which is great, I really hope they have things like extendable ears and other things right.

Harry Potter Restaurants

The last problem that is cropping up is that the restaurants are selling very typical English food. Whilst I come from England I cannot think of the last time I ate shepherd’s pie or a trifle. It makes sense to change the menu a bit to make it a bit more, well, magical!

The overall reaction to the Wizarding World Of Harry Potter has been good and whilst there have been a few negatives there were always going to be and I am almost certain that they will be improved upon!

Well it has been six years in the making (according to figures) but today the wait is finally over as the Wizarding World Of Harry Potter finally opens to the public at long last.

Wait Times

It is expected that for the much anticipated Harry Potter And The Forbidden Journey that wait times are going to reach a massive five hour mark which is pretty much half the day gone. I cannot see the other two rides being that big because they have been in the park in the past.

The Rides

The press aren’t too happy with the rides and although they feel that Journey is a fantastic ride they just do not think there are enough rides in the place and I can see where they are coming from on this.

Shops

The press also feel that Universal have gone a little overboard when it comes to the shops in the place and they feel to a certain extent that Universal are trying to take Harry Potter fans for granted.

Opinion

My opinion on this is that they look to have done a good job on the place, I will not give my full opinion on the place until I am back from my travels there in September but from what I can see it looks to be fantastic. Of course they could have put more rides into it but the truth is that it is much easier to put shops in than rides. I feel more rides will be added in the coming years.

It would seem that the Mayor Of London Boris Johnson is still getting rather annoyed with Warner Brothers in that Universal Studios in Orlando has gotten the very first Harry Potter entertainment section anywhere in the world. As a Brit I see where he is coming from on this, after all Harry Potter is largely based in London when not at Hogwarts and Florida just never has that gloomy feel that Harry Potter locations such as Kings Cross and the outside of the Ministry Of Magic has.

On the other hand do we have a successful theme park in this country, arguably not? Chessington is for kids that have nothing to do on their days off, Thorpe park can be done in a couple of hours on a quiet day and Alton Towers is a poor rip off of Universal Studios and Disney combined. It really is no wonder Warner Brothers chose the biggest location for theme parks in the world for Harry Potter as it is going to be getting much more attention and more importantly for WB, money.

Once again I see Johnson’s point in that loads of British people will have to save up just so they can go and see something that rightfully belongs in their own country but that’s life right? Better to be in Florida where it is half decent rather than London where you are more likely to get mugged than have a good time.

To end on a positive note I am sure it is going to be worth saving up and visiting, it is one o f the main reasons I am once again heading out to Florida this year. (although I was going to go anyways, I cant resist the place). With the opening just a couple of weeks away now you can enjoy this very cheesy trailer that was aired at superbowl this year.

In a break between explaining all of the details on what is going to be located within the land itself I thought it would be a good idea to put a video of the stars enjoying Hogsmeade before everyone else walks through the doors on June 18th.

In the video you will see a sneak peek of the Harry Potter and The Forbidden Journey ride as well as a small look at some of the stores and restaurants around the village.

Next on the list of things to talk about when it comes to the Wizarding World Of Harry Potter is the restaurants you can expect to eat in and the things that they are going to be serving.

The Three Broomsticks

Any fan will rush to dash here when it comes to having a bite to eat and this is because it is the main location the characters attend when they are in Hogsmeade in the novels. By the looks of the drawings and impressions of what this restaurant is going to be like I would say it looks like a perfect rendition of JK Rowling’s imagination.

Of course the important thing to ask is, what on earth are they going to be serving? Here is a list of the food you can look forward to divulging in come next month.

Full Meal’s

• The Great Feast Platter (still to be confirmed on exactly what this will contain)
• Fish and Chips
• Shepherd’s Pie

Snacks

• Cornish Pasty
• Turkey Legs with fresh vegetables

Desserts

• Apple Pie
• Strawberry and Peanut Butter Ice-Cream
• Chocolate Trifle

Kids can look forward to things such as chicken, macaroni and cheese, fish and chips and chicken bits. All of these are going to be served with grapes and apple sauce.

The Hogs Head

Although not located anywhere near the Three Broomsticks in the books it would seem you can find this at the back of the Three Broomsticks Pub and they serve drinks more than anything else.

It is here you will find your (non-alcoholic) Butterbeer along with pumpkin juice and a selection of other magical beverages. Adults over the age of 21 can look to purchase normal beers imported from all over the world. Doesn’t really sound as magical does it.

So these are the two current locations where you can sit and have something to eat or pick up a drink, I am a bit disappointed the Great Hall isn’t included on this list.

Next on the list are places to shop and this is by far the most interesting thing to look into.

Universal rarely disappoint when it comes to brand new rides and it would seem they have kept something up their sleeve for this kind of thing for a very long time indeed. Here are the rides you can expect to go on when the park opens in June.

There are three major rides that the land is opening with and they are as followed:

Harry Potter And The Forbidden Journey

Universal have expected long queues for this ride which is why they have built it around Hogwarts castle itself. Expect to walk around the room of requirement, Dumbledore’s Office , Gryffindor’s common room and much, much more before you set off on a ride that Universal have kept secret for a very long time indeed. All that has really been revealed is that some of the cast have recorded scenes just for this ride. My opinion is that it is going to be a lot like Spiderman but with more recent technology implemented into it.

Dragon Challenge

You guessed it, this ride is a total new skin on the Duelling Dragons ride that is already housed in Islands Of Adventure. I wouldn’t expect too much when it comes to this because according to someone who has just visited the park they have still not closed the ride for renovation. I am thinking it is going to be a simple paint job on the track and perhaps a few props added in the queuing area.

Flight Of The Hippogriff

This ride is once again another rehash of a previous ride, anyone remember Flight of the Unicorn? Yeah, I didn’t think much of it either. On the other hand this ride has been closed for over a year so expect something a bit better than the paint job on Duelling Dragons. It has been noted that Hagrids Hut will feature in the ride and rumour has it that to “ride” the Hippogriff you have to introduce yourself in the correct way. Any Harry Potter fan will know this means riders will have to bow before getting on the ride.

So there you have it, there are only going to be three rides when the land opens but expect more to crop up as the years go by. Next on the list of things to update you on, the restaurants and the food they are going to be serving!

The section of Islands Of Adventure within the Universal Studios resort is that is going to be home to the Wizarding World Of Harry Potter is almost ready to open to the public with just a few final tweaks left to be finished this looks to be a must see for any fan of the franchise.

A mate of mine has recently been to the park and has managed to get some pictures of the completed Hogwarts castle. Now although the land itself has not been opened yet he was able to take some fantastic pictures of the castle itself.

I am going to be continually blogging on the Harry Potter part of the park over the next week or so and this will include posts on the rides, restaurants and of course the magical shops that you can expect see.

For now, enjoy these pictures:

Hogsmede Village Islands Of Adventure

Hogsmede Village Rear View

Hogsmede Roof's

Hogwarts Castle Wall

Hogwarts Castle Islands Of Adventure