I am part of the Harry Potter generation. I grew-up standing in line at Barnes & Noble waiting for the next book to be released at midnight. Of course, I was at the midnight showing for all of the movies. Harry Potter is part of who I am. Even though I wish with all my heart I was a witch, I am proud to be a muggle. However, I was sorted into the Ravenclaw house and I wear that badge proudly. When Zoe, my cousin, asked if we wanted to go to Universal Studios in Orlando with her I had nothing to think about, it was an absolute yes. I had been waiting to go to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter until they opened both Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley. I wanted the full experience of both and to ride the Hogwarts Express. I had to live out my childhood dreams the right way! We did explore Orlando a little bit, but we were there for Universal Studios.
Even though Harry Potter was the main thing on my mind, I still wanted to explore the rest of Universal Studios. I had only been to Disneyland at that point and I was craving some thrill rides! We did all of the rides except Despicable Me, The Simpsons, The Mummy, Fast & Furious, and the Hollywood Rip Ride Rocket. Which is quite a bit, but we were able to get through most of the big rides. The Harry Potter rides have very long lines and it eats up a lot of your day. If I were to go again, which I will, I would plan a day for just Harry Potter and a day for the other rides. There is so much to see in Hogsmeade & Diagon Alley. I felt super rushed through both and would love more time to explore. I also purchased a wand and playing with the interactive parts of the park was a blast. Totally worth the $50. Yes, I spent $50 on a wand, but they had a hazelwood and how could I not get the wand that chose me?!
I don't want to say more about the rides, because I loved being surprised by what was in store. All I will say is it will make as excited as your 12-year old self waiting in line for the next book! I can give you details on where we stayed and ate.
We stayed at the Rosen Inn International. They had breakfast at the hotel and a shuttle to the park. Which saved us plenty of time and money avoiding parking. We stayed so late we missed the last shuttle, but we were able to take a Lyft back to the hotel for a reasonable price. What did we do before Lyft?! Another great thing was that it was close to delicious food. We ate at Hot N' Juicy Crawfish. This is my kryptonite. I am obsessed with creole style crab. It is the best. The next night we wanted some good margaritas and went to Rocco's Tacos & Tequila Bar. It was a long wait, but the atmosphere was really fun and they had great food and margaritas. After dinner we met up with some family that lives in Gainesville and went downtown to bar hop. I wasn't super impressed with the bar scene. But we stumbled upon a street party that ended up being a good time. I can't wait to go back and spend more time in the wizarding world!
What You Want to Know:
Where to Stay:
The Rosen Inn was great. They had free breakfast, a shuttle to Universal Studios, and free breakfast.
What to Do:
Eat all the seafood you can get your hands on. Play in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Go to a fun club and dance in the streets of Downtown Orlando.
Where to Find the Best Deal:
We booked our flight, hotel, and car with Expedia. I do have to say that we flew with Frontier and that will be the last time. It was awful service and they lost my bag with my wand in it. You can imagine how angry I was. The baggage claim attendant is lucky I didn't turn her into a balloon like Aunt Marge.
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