Favorites in Universal Studios Florida

Special Cookies Not to Missed in Universal Studios Florida

Revised 4/2021

Visiting Universal Orlando is like reliving a childhood only realized in a fantasy world. Since I am a vintage variety of child who thrives on fantasy, this is the place for me. What follows is my list of favorite “cookies” found around the two parks.

Note: Follow CDC and park guidelines when visiting. Always wear your face mask when in public.

Hooray for Hollywood and ...

Turn to the right as you enter the park and you will find yourself in Hollywood—one of my favs and one of the best places to find iconic characters, like Marilyn Monroe and Lucille Ball. One can also find...wait for it... Scooby-Doo and the Gang! The gang even drove the Mystery Machine. As a die-hard Scooby-Doo fan, I was ecstatic.

Not so fast, Hollywood isn’t just about actors dressed up, it is also about the setting. The attention to detail is evident at every turn of the head. This is true in every section of the park: Hollywood, Woody Woodpecker’s Kidzone, Springfield: Home of the Simpsons, World Expo, San Francisco, New York, Diagon Alley and Production Central. Check out these photos.

Brown Derby restaurant in Universal Orland

Movie set to look like New York in Universal Orlando

Iconic building in the Hollywood section of Universal Orlando

“There's only one place we're going to get all this. Diagon Alley."

The entire area is a huge chocolate chip cookie dipped in chocolate! It’s like walking through a Harry Potter movie. For the maximum Potter experience, go very early and then again at night. Nighttime lends an air of magic.

Is that a fire-breathing dragon on that building?

Every 10 minutes (ish) a rather large Ukrainian Ironbelly dragon warms the crowds with a gigantic burst of flames. Impressive during the daytime, but even more so at night.

“Ain't no safer place. Not one. Except perhaps Hogwarts."

Very impressive! Attention to detail makes both Gringotts Wizarding Bank and Gringotts Money Exchange a must-see. I could describe in detail the beautiful marble and gold of the bank, but a video is even better.

At Gringotts Money Exchange, one can find bags of wizarding money and other trinkets for sale on display shelves; but the real draw is the grouchy interactive goblin bank teller. Ask a question, he will answer. For fun, exchange some of your muggle money for wizarding money to spend in Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade.

Curious, very curious

Since Ollivanders has been in the wand making business since 382 bc and Mr. Ollivander is considered one of the finest wandmakers in Europe, I decided to visit his shop...again. Those of you who have read about my last visit to Diagon Alley and Ollivanders know that I was chosen to participate in the “wand choosing”. Well, I must have perfected my “pick me face” because I was chosen again—even over all the children in the crowd. I should be embarrassed, but no. BEST DAY EVER!

Me, Rebecca Black, being chosen by my wand. Ollivanders, Universal Orlando

Cookie alert! Ollivander and his shop is worth the price of admission. Slow down for a few minutes and take in the detail of his clothing, his demeanor, the wand boxes and the shelves on which they lie. When in his presence, one is inside a Harry Potter book/movie.

“You shouldn’t be hanging around in such a dodgy place”

Singing shrunken heads, dancing skeletons await those brave enough to venture into the dark and foreboding Knockturn Alley. All of that aside, the real cookie here is Borgin and Burkes. On every shelf, one will find an object directly out of the movie. Check out the “Hand of Glory” that grabs Harry in Chamber of Secrets and the “Vanishing Cabinet”. Listen carefully to hear the bird Malfoy placed inside the cabinet in the Half-Blood Prince.

The Vanishing Cabinet from Harry Potter in Universal Orlando

Shop Windows in Potter Lands

Potter Heads really need to visit both parks to receive the maximum Potter experience. After all, this is the only way one can ride the Hogwarts Express, which leaves from the King's Cross Station in Universal Studios Florida. More about this in “Special Cookies in the Islands of Adventure”

For now, let’s just focus on shop windows. Many of the shop windows in both Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade are filled with “magical objects” that move and make noise, such as the Monster Book of Monsters (Diagon Alley) and the crying mandrake plant (Hogsmeade).

Tip: With an interactive wand, one can use magic at specific spots in both parks. Look for the brass diamond in Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade.

Where is platform 9 ¾?

Saving the best for last is a tossup. As much as I LOVE the ride to and from Hogsmeade on the Hogwarts Express, watching people disappear through a brick was is quite a treat.