Orlando Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley

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Have you heard that Universal Orlando has something new coming up?  They sure do, and if you love Harry Potter you are going to love Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley.  Even if you’re not a fan it’s going to be an amazing experience!

I love Florida. There are so many things to do in Florida with kids or without kids.  There are plenty of kid-friendly beaches, and I’m sure most of you know you can visit Universal Orlando while you’re in Florida too.  We travel to Florida with kids every single year, sometimes twice.  It’s our favorite family vacation destination, and I would love to move there.  My husband and I were actually all set to move; I had a job and everything, but I didn’t have it in me to tear my oldest daughter away from the life she has made for herself.  She’s almost 16 and has a serious boyfriend that my husband and I love.  She has great friends, is doing wonderful in school, and most importantly, she is happy.  It doesn’t matter how badly my husband and I want to move to Florida; we can’t, not for a few more years.  My other children are young enough that it wouldn’t be too big of a deal.  So we are waiting a few years until Catie has graduated from high school.

Since we travel to Florida with kids at least once a year, I am always on the lookout for new exciting things to experience, and this year Universal Orlando has some great things happening, Not only are they going through an epic historic expansion, they are also introducing The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Diagon Alley.  If you have not heard about it yet, be sure to keep reading; I’m going to fill you in.

This is an awesome, new area that will feature something for everyone!  We will be able to enjoy a multi-sensory, multi-dimensional new attraction, themed shops, as well as dining.  The guest will go on an amazing adventure and journey using story-telling and innovative technology.  To make things even cooler, the themed area will double the size of the already-sweeping area that is dedicated to Harry Potter’s Adventures at Universal Orlando.  It will expand across both Universal theme parks!  I know right, sounds amazing does it!  Just like in the books, you will be able to journey between London and Hogsmeade on the Hogwarts Express!

Universal Orlando Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley

It’s no wonder The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley is 2014 most anticipated New Theme Park.  The adventure will be open this summer, and will bring more of Harry Potter’s Adventures to Life!  There will be shops, along with the new ride called Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts!  It’s truly amazing, I personally cannot wait to experience The Hogwarts Express, A Groundbreaking Ride, shop, and enjoy themed dining too.

I’m sure excited for our vacation to Florida this summer.  The new adventure at Universal Orlando is on my list of things to do with kids in Florida this summer.

I think the best way to explain everything to you is to show you this YouTube video from Universal Orlando!  It really helps put just how amazing experiencing The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Dragon Alley is going to be.

UNIVERSAL ORLANDO RESORT REVEALS DETAILS FOR THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER – DIAGON ALLEY

2014’s Most Anticipated New Theme Park Experience Opens This Summer and Brings More of

Harry Potter’s Adventures to Life

Expansive New Area Will Feature Something for Everyone:

The Hogwarts Express, A Groundbreaking Ride, Plus Spectacular Shops and Dining

*CONCEPT RENDERINGS FOR THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER – DIAGON ALLEY ARE AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD AT https://universalorlandoresort.sharefile.com/d/s1fb947522fd4e2fb*

ORLANDO, Fla. (January 23, 2014) – Never before has a theme park created a guest experience like this: you climb aboard the Hogwarts Express in Hogsmeade and moments later arrive at King’s Cross Station – where the wonders of London and Diagon Alley unfold before you. And it is all real.

With this summer’s opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley, Universal Orlando Resort and Warner Bros. Entertainment will bring even more of Harry Potter’s adventures to life inside a new, magnificently themed area that includes a revolutionary attraction experience, as well as all-new themed shops and dining.

The two companies today revealed first-ever details about the new area and the one-of-a-kind adventures it will offer the whole family. The spectacularly themed environment will double the size of the sweeping area already dedicated to Harry Potter’s adventures at Universal Orlando, expanding it across both Universal theme parks.

And – just like in the books and films – guests will be able to travel between the two areas aboard the iconic Hogwarts Express.

Universal Orlando launched a global phenomenon when it opened The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade at its Islands of Adventure theme park in 2010. That area includes the iconic Hogwarts castle – which houses the groundbreaking Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey attraction – and the village of Hogsmeade. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley will be located within Universal Orlando’s second theme park, Universal Studios, and will create new experiences based on the signature areas of London, Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley.

Universal’s creative team has been working closely with Stuart Craig and the production team from the Harry Potter films to make the new area as authentic and spectacular as possible – just as it did with The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade.

The vision for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley is unprecedented, with Universal Orlando creating the world’s first centrally themed, multi-park experience.

After arriving at King’s Cross Station aboard the Hogwarts Express, guests will pass through London and the iconic brick wall archway from the films into Diagon Alley – a bustling, wizarding hub within a Muggle city. There will be shops, dining experiences, and a new ride called Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts – a multi-sensory, multi-dimensional journey that will take theme park attractions to a new level.

– more –

THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER – DIAGON ALLEY – 2

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley will give visitors the exciting opportunity to:

* Board the Hogwarts Express and journey between London’s King’s Cross Station (located in Universal Studios Florida) and Hogsmeade Station (located in Universal’s Islands of Adventure). The journey will be filled with views of London and the British countryside – as well as a few surprises. Park-to-park admission is required.

* Experience a groundbreaking new, multi-dimensional thrill ride, Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts, which will place riders in the middle of an incredible adventure as they navigate their way through the perils of the Gringotts vaults

* Witness the magical experience of a wand choosing a wizard at Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 BC, one of the wizarding world’s premier wand shops

* Discover the darker side of magic in Knockturn Alley, the darkest of dark places that features Borgin and Burkes – a shop specializing in the Dark Arts that will offer a wide variety of Dark objects, such as Death Eater masks, skulls, and other sinister items

* Explore some of Diagon Alley’s famous shops, including:

o Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes, a vibrant shop featuring novelty items, magical jokes, and toys inspired by the books and films that will amaze the mischievous child in everyone

o Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occasions, where guests will find a variety of wizardwear from Hogwarts school uniform ties, scarves and jumpers, to authentic wizard’s robes and character costumes

o Magical Menagerie, which features a collection of plush animals, such as owls and Hippogriffs

o Wiseacre’s Wizarding Equipment, where guests can grab wizarding essentials such as telescopes, binoculars, armillary spheres, compasses, magnifying glasses and hourglasses

o Quality Quidditch Supplies, offering a wide assortment of apparel and equipment including Quidditch sweaters, brooms, Golden Snitches, Bludgers, Bludger bats, Quaffles and more

o Scribbulus, featuring authentic writing implements and products such as feather quills, ink and inkwells, bookmarks, journals, parchment paper, seals, stationery sets and postcards

* Enjoy traditional British fare that includes favorite dishes such as fish and chips, bangers and mash and more at the Leaky Cauldron

* Visit Florean Fortescue’s Ice-Cream Parlour for frozen treats in a variety of tantalizing and unique flavors such as strawberry-and-peanut-butter ice-cream and many others

* And more!

More details about the unique experiences that can be found in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley will be released over time. For more information about the area, visit www.universalorlando.com/harrypotter. About the Harry Potter Series Harry Potter continues to be a global phenomenon. Each of the seven books by author J.K. Rowling has broken sales records, with the series to date having sold over 450 million copies worldwide and translated into 77 languages. The Harry Potter films, produced by Warner Bros. Pictures, have grossed more than $7.7 billion to date worldwide at the box office, making Harry Potter the largest-grossing film franchise in history. About Universal Orlando Resort Vacation like you mean it at Universal Orlando Resort – where every heart pounding, jaw-dropping, goose-bumping second counts. With two incredible theme parks, Universal Studios Florida and Universal’s Islands of Adventure, three magnificently themed on-site hotels and a nighttime entertainment complex, Universal Orlando is the only place where you can turn spending time with your family into spending time as a family. Together, you can soar above Hogwarts with Harry Potter, swing above the streets with Spider-Man, become a Minion in the hilarious and heartwarming Despicable Me Minion Mayhem ride, and join Optimus Prime in the fight to save mankind on the new mega-attraction, TRANSFORMERS: The Ride – 3D.

THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER – DIAGON ALLEY – 3

About Warner Bros. Entertainment Warner Bros. Entertainment is a global leader in all forms of entertainment and their related businesses across all current and emerging media and platforms. A Time Warner Company, the fully integrated, broad-based studio is home to one of the most successful collections of brands in the world and stands at the forefront of every aspect of the entertainment industry from feature film, television and home entertainment production and worldwide distribution to DVD, digital distribution, animation, comic books, video games, product and brand licensing, international cinemas and broadcasting.

HARRY POTTER, characters, names and related indicia are trademarks of and © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Harry Potter Publishing Rights © JKR.

Makes me want to head for Florida!  I know I have to wait, but I don’t want to.  I guess I could use the Universal Orlando Vacation Planner to start planning my epic family vacation.

What do you think about Universal Orlando Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley.  Will this be something you experiance on your next Florida vacation?

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