We all grew up wishing that our Hogwarts acceptance letter got lost in the mail and would show up at our doorstep one day. The reality is, we are all muggles and will never sit in on a potions class or be firsthand witnesses to the tri-wizard tournament. However, the gracious witches and wizards have grated us temporary access to their whimsical world via Universal Studios and I am here to tell you it is worth the time and money. If you ever find yourself as one of the lucky, non-magical creatures to venture through J.K. Rowling's imagination in real life, you need to do these 11 things:
1. Take the Pottermore quiz and to get placed in a house.
You will have to make an account before being sorted, but it is truly worth it. It will enhance your experience in two ways: you will know where you belong and you will know what gear to buy.
2. Stay at a Universal Resort
If you stay in the park, you are granted early access and you have free transportation to and from the park that runs all day. Some resorts even offer their guests complimentary fast-passes that work on some (not all) of the rides within Harry Potter World
3. If you stay at a resort, take advantage of early access
If you despise long lines and crowds, this is the best time of day for you to go. There will still be bunches of muggles roaming from building to building and ride to ride, but it is more bearable than the afternoon crowd.
4. Do all of the rides in the morning
Because I utilized early access, I was able to get through all of the rides I wanted to without waiting an hour or more. In fact, each line was less than 20 minutes, and we were able to do some of the rides more than once!
4. Get the multi-park pass
You can't see one part of Harry Potter world without seeing the other, and with a multi-park pass you can ride the Hogwarts Express! This was probably the best part of the park, you really feel like you're leaving Hogwarts, or headed back to school! Truly amazing.
5. Try the butterbeer in every form
It was such a tasty treat! It comes in its regular form, frozen, and as ice cream! I would suggest trying all three. What my group did was we bought one of each and shared because they are all very sweet.
6. Go to Ollivander's Wand Shop
You do have to wait in line for this attraction even though it is not a ride. What happens is you walk into the shop and Ollivander himself will be there to pick on lucky muggle to be fitted for a wand. If you don't get picked the first time and the wait isn't too bad, try going in again and he might pick you!
7. Explore outside of Harry Potter World
There is so much to do besides roam around Harry Potter World, take advantage of that!
8. Bring what you want
For every ride that you cannot bring a loose item on, there is secure storage. The lockers are not too big, but you can rent more than one. Initially, they are free, but after a certain amount of time you will have to start paying. In my experience, the amount of free storage time that is offered correlated with the amount of time you would spend in line and riding the ride.
9. Interactive wands
There is a feature with some of the wands where you have the ability to cast real spells and watch the magic work before your eyes. If you purchase one of these wands, you can roam all around both parks and find little symbols in the ground that mark where the wands will work. It is an awesome feature.
10. Go into all of the stores
Some of the stores have the same thing, but most of them each carry unique items. For example, the Weasley Brother's store will hold many of the items mentioned in the movies and books! At Honeydukes, you can find everything from chocolate frogs to chocolate wands.
11. Don't look grumpy!
The amount of unpleasant faces I saw was ridiculous. You are in Harry Potter World, be happy and be grateful! Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be able to sip on butterbeer, fly through Hogwarts, or tour Gringotts. Smile, take lots of photos, and don't forget how lucky you are to be in such a magical place.
