A Muggle’s Guide to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Hogsmeade
Our visit to Hogsmeade was short but sweet. If you’ve read my previous post (if you haven’t, click THIS) I mentioned that I enjoyed Diagon Alley a bit more. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t love Hogsmeade. From the snow capped rooftops to Hogwarts itself, it was just as charming as I imagined it to be. To get there, we rode the Hogwarts Express from King’s Cross station in Diagon Alley.
Must Do:
board the hogwarts express
The Hogwarts Express connects the two Wizarding World parks. This isn’t just a simple train ride that takes you back and forth between the two parks. It’s also one of the best attractions in the park. Walking through the train station, I found myself super impressed once again with the amount of detail that went into recreating this. With the help of some magic illusion (see video), you’ll appear to be going through the solid brick wall at Platform 9 3/4 just like every other kid attending Hogwarts. Once you board the train, direct your attention to the window because that’s where all the action is. I won’t get into full details and spoil the fun for you but one thing I have to say is that they definitely did an awesome job recreating the Hogwarts Express.
Hogwarts Express Tips:
- You need to purchase the Park to Park admission ticket to access this train ride.
- Ride the Hogwarts Express both ways. Each direction offers a different experience that you don’t want to miss out on!
- The feature that involves you going through the solid brick wall can only be found at King’s Cross station near Diagon Alley.
- Make sure you head to the bathroom before you fall in line. There’s no bathrooms inside the station and you might encounter a really long line on a busy day. Trust me, because it happened to me. I had to run all the way back to Three Broomsticks just to use the bathroom. Ugh.
- On a rainy day, I don’t recommend lining up for the train in Hogsmeade station. It’s both indoors & outdoors and depending on the progress of the line, you might get stuck on the outdoors side for a really long time and you will definitely get rained on. Conveniently, the station near Diagon Alley is entirely indoors so you don’t have to worry about the weather.
soar above hogwarts castle on the “harry potter and the forbidden journey” ride
This is one of my favorite rides in the park. Why? Because the line itself is an immersive experience! You’ll get to visit iconic locations as you go through the queue line. Some of them are Professor Sprout’s greenhouse where Herbology is taught, Dumbledore’s office, Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, the Gryffindor common room, the Room of Requirement and more. You’ll also get to see the Sorting Hat! If you get motion sickness then you should probably skip this one because it’s a simulation ride (Transformers and Simpsons Ride).
Approx waiting time: 40 min – 1 hr
ride a hippogriff with the help of hagrid
Before you get to ride the Hippogriff, you need to follow Hagrid’s instructions on how to properly approach it. Don’t end up like Malfoy! This is a family friendly ride so don’t expect big drops, inversions or loops. Btw how cute is this replica of Hagrid’s hut?
Approx waiting time: 30 – 35 min
join the triwizard tournament and pick your dragon
This ride consists of two high-speed roller coasters intertwined that’s made to look like they’re chasing each other. Each “dragon” is a completely different ride. You get to choose one of two dragons, either the aggressive Chinese Fireball or the ferocious Hungarian Horntail. We chose to mount the ferocious Hungarian Horntail, the same dragon that gave Harry quite a scare. It was definitely a thrilling ride! We didn’t get to ride the Chinese Fireball because the line ended up being too long. But overall, two thumbs up for this ride!
Approx waiting time: 1 hr – 1 hr & 40 min
dine at the three broomsticks
Located between Honeydukes and Hog’s Head Pub, this tavern serves traditional English meals such as Fish and Chips, Shepherd’s Pie and Cornish Pasties. They also have Rotisserie Smoked Chicken Platter, Spareribs Platter and Smoked Turkey Leg for those who don’t really fancy an English meal. The menu here is waaay better than the one in Leaky Cauldron, in my opinion.
shop for magical supplies and wizarding equipment at dervish and banges
One of the coolest shops in the park can be found adjacent to the Owl Post. Dervish and Banges houses a large selection of wizarding equipment and magical items such as: Sneakoscopes, Spectrespecs, Omnioculars and the particularly vicious textbook that attacks anyone who attempts to open it, The Monster Book of Monsters.
visit the legendary sweets shop, honeydukes
This colorful shop caters to everyone with a sweet tooth! It features some of the most popular wizarding treats such as: Ton-Tongue Toffee, Fizzing Whizbees, Chocolate Cauldron, Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans, Salt Water Taffy, Exploding Bon Bons, Honeydukes Candy Floss, Fudge Flies and many more.
Exploring The Wizarding World of Harry Potter on my birthday was beyond amazing! My 9-year old self is still screaming inside whenever I go through photos from my trip. I’m definitely excited to check out the new Harry Potter park opening in Hollywood in April 2016. Make sure to check back and re-read this guide if you’re planning to do the same. 🙂
Have you been to Hogsmeade at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter?
What was your favorite ride? Let me know in the comment section below.
Oh my goodness, I want to go so bad! This really looks like it’s such a fun time. Your photos are gorgeous, and you really helped me feel like I got to be there at least virtually, so thanks for that!
We were so excited to see the fire breathing dragon last year! They definitely did a great job to encourage folks to buy two park tickets. I was a little disappointed with the train ride though.
One of my fave features too! They did such an amazing job. I think that’s just their way to make more money but oh well lol. They definitely succeeded! What did you not like about the train ride? I actually thought it was well done although the ride was short, I still enjoyed it so much.
I have never been to Hogsmeade at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter before! This looks like a fun amusement park to visit. I love visiting theme parks based off of movies like this.
I’ve never been there before but this looks like such a fun and magical place. I know my 2 kids would love going. I’m sure my husband and I would enjoy being there too. Thanks for sharing your experience.
Your photos look amazing! I still NEED to watch these movies( I know, I know). This looks like an amazing place that I MUST add to my to-do list 🙂
Wow! I live in Orlando and this is a quite in-depth blog post about Wizarding World. It’s obvious you are a big fan and your pictures are simply gorgeous. I was actually invited to take my wedding pictures in Wizarding World which isn’t a service they offer. It’s nice to know all the right people LOL.
Lee
Aw thanks, glad you liked the photos! Yes, I am a big fan! Ever since I started reading it years ago until now. Whaaat? That’s pretty cool! Did you end up taking your photos there?
I want to go so bad!!! I have been trying to plot how to get to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter since it opened!!! I love the books and want to go to Honeydukes and taste butterbeer! I am plotting a trip as we speak!
You have to go and taste butterbeer! It’s so yummy! 🙂
Wow! I’ve never been into Harry Potter but this is quite the guide for fans! Looks impressive.
I have indeed been to Hogsmeade and it was so hot, all I could wish for was to do some magic and get cool. I did love eating at the 3 Broomsticks and riding the rides. It was all good fun, especially for our family who fought over every book as it came out. I think you gave some good tips, especially for wait times!
It was a bit humid when we went too but it wasn’t too bad. It was good, wasnt it? I had the roasted chicken and the turkey leg. Thanks! Glad you found it helpful.
I love the snow on the roof – it really gives it an authentic feel. Also, thank you for putting in waiting times, I always wonder about that.
Oh this makes me want to go so badly! It sounds so cool!! Especially the Triwizard Tournament! And your photos are incredible!! Wishing I was there now 🙁
I AM SO JEALOUS. I’m such a huge Potterhead, this looks amazing!
Now this is simply amazing! I’m a Potterhead too so this is on top of my list! Great recap by the way, Janna. It makes me so excited for my upcoming trip to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter 😀
Thank you Aileen! Nice to meet a fellow Potterhead. 🙂
love this place! went twice last year! So excited for the new opening in Los Angeles!
Dee T
There’s so much to love about this magical place! I was amazed at how good of a job they did with the park! My favorite ride was the Flight of the Hippogriff, so much fun!
That one was my fave too! Not good for people who gets motion sickness though. Glad you liked it too Kaylene!
Oh my god this is so amazing and detailed!! How desperately I want to go cannot be expressed D:! Wonderful pictures!
Oh man this brings back so many memories. It’s been 5 years since I was last here! People say that Disneyland’s the most magical place on earth… NAH, HP land is the most magical place on earth!
Haha! You’re a true HP fan for saying that. 5 years? It’s been too long Ivy. You have to go back and check out the newest additions!
What a magical trip! I love the snow-capped buildings in Hogsmeade. The rides sound like so much fun, and just getting to eat and walk around all those stores we know from the HP books would be amazing. This is so on my bucket list!
Magical trip, indeed. The rides were fun and I’m glad the lines weren’t that long when we went. Hope you make it out there in the future Tamar!
This is so cool! I wish I could go… like right now, haha.
Never been to Hogsmeade, but your post does such a wonderful job of “taking me there.” Love the music as well. Nice touch. Would love to go and try out the “Butter Beer.” Great pictures.
I can’t wait to go in sept and this has made me more excited I love Harry Potter and this is just unreal. I bought my universal tickets last week along with Halloween horror nights the opening night! So excited for … Your pics are amazing!!
Anna
Xx
Yay! Glad you will get to see and explore the HP world in September. You will definitely love exploring every nook and cranny. And thanks! Glad you liked the pics. 🙂
Loved it when I visited! The Forbidden Journey ride was wonderfully creative, although when I rode it close to closing it suffered a technical glitch and stopped. The lights came on and I saw the screen in front of me, was a little disappointing to have the magic broken. Still I enjoyed myself, the corn and ribs from the Hog’s Head was heavenly!
Yeah I heard that ride gets closed for technical glitches most of the time. But fortunately, it didnt happen to us when we went. Agreed! I got the same items from the menu. I had two servings of the corn and the ribs were delicious as well.