Exploring Diagon Alley Universal Orlando

 

Welcome, intrepid explorer to the last in my series of articles about my experience in Universal Studios Florida.  For those of you just tuning in, I decided to celebrate my 60th birthday at Universal in Orlando primarily because I’m a devout Potter Head.  When I read that Diagon Alley would open up this year, there was no other place I’d rather be than there.  What follows is what I found.

First, You Have to Find It

We knew Diagon Alley was near when we stumbled onto a serious piece of London, beginning with Grimmauld Place.  Fans will remember this street as where Sirius Black lived.  Watch window #12, as the house-elf, Kreacher peers out every 30 seconds. 

The opening to Diagon Alley is a bit obscured, so take your time and enjoy the London waterfront.  It’s difficult to ignore the triple-decker Knight bus stationed next to a beautiful replica of a Piccadilly Circus fountain.  The bus sports the shrunken heads introduced in the Prisoner of Azkaban movie.  They interact with Stan the conductor and visitors.

Tip: This is a great photo op.

From the bus, turn around behind you, and walk to the wall.  There you will find the opening to Diagon Alley.  We don’t have to tap any bricks to reveal the opening.  Instead, we walk around the wall where we find an opening accompanied by sound effects, welcoming us to a real magical world—one I could stay in all day.  

(Follow me to the entry to Diagon Alley)

“If Yeh Know Where to Go”

For die-hard fans who have read the books and watched all the movies multiple times, we know about the businesses of Diagon Alley.  Some of us have even dreamt about them.  Come on.  Admit it.  I certainly have.  Nevertheless, to see all the storefronts as if they are tangible and real...it was truly magical.  The attention to detail astounded me.  I confess, I cried with joy after I stepped through the brick wall from London and into the Wizarding world.  Yep, I’m a serious Potter Head. 

Visible from the entry, at the end of the main street, is Gringotts (Please read my review).  At the top of the crooked towering building is a giant—very realistic—chain-wearing dragon who breathes fire every 15 minutes.  Resist the urge to jaunt down to the goblin-run bank and choose to look around first. 

Tip: the dragon will growl several times giving visitors time to adjust their cameras.  It’s a great photo op.

Here we found all the stores and restaurants mentioned in the books, some were actual stores and some merely storefronts, such as Flourish and Blotts.  I was a bit disappointed that it was just a very well-designed replica.  Check out all the detail though.  You just may notice a stack of books sporting a very familiar face.

“The Wand Chooses the Wizard, Harry”

There were three things I vowed to do on my first day at the park: ride both the Escape from Gringotts and Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey rides, and to be chosen for the Ollivander’s wand experience. 

Therefore, it was imperative to visit Ollivanders.  It was early in the day, I had my “It’s my birthday” button prominently positioned and I was wearing the widest smile possible on a human face.  So, of course, I was chosen for the experience.  BEST DAY EVER!

There are two doors for the Ollivander Wand shop.  So, if you want to experience the wand choosing, don’t enter through the main shop door.  Only a few are allowed in to see Ollivander at one time, so we were ushered in with about 10 other witches and wizards.  After I was chosen, Ollivander gave me various wands to try out a few spells.  The special effects looked remarkably real. 

The only “Oh jeez” moment was when Ollivander asked me to recite the “Wingardium leviosa” spell.  I completely flubbed it, eliciting giggles from my fellow witches and wizards.  Recovering from my humiliation, my wand chose me and we were all ushered into the main store where we could purchase our wand of choice.  I chose an interactive Dumbledore wand. 

Tip: Check out my “Product Reviews” on my wand.

Feeling a Bit Peckish?

Performing spells all morning can work up an appetite.  Luckily, there are some great places to eat in this section of the park.  Prices aren’t bad either. 

The Leaky Cauldron offers English pub-style fare, like fish and chips, cottage pie, and banger and mash.  (Please read my restaurant reviews)

In the book, “Prisoner of Azkaban” Harry sat out front of Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor eating bowl after bowl of ice cream.  Now we only shared a few, but each was yummy.  My fav is Salted Caramel Blondie.

Tucked into the far corner of Diagon Alley in the Carkitt Market is the Hopping Pot.  As a “walk-up counter” establishment, it serves a limited menu of drinks and light snacks.  Best place to purchase a Butterbeer.

Eternelle’s Elixir of Refreshment Cart only sells expensive water in a decorative bottle and four varieties of magic elixirs. 

Fountain of Fair Fortune is charming and offers a limited menu of beverages.  

Please read my review for more information on all these dining/drinking options.

For Your Dark-Arts Needs, visit Knockturn Alley

Remember when Harry used Floo Powder for the first time and accidentally ended up in a shady—quite frightening—store in Knockturn Alley?  Well, we visited the same very store. (Please read my review on Borgin and Burkes) Unfortunately, Borgin and Burkes claim much of the real estate in Knockturn Alley.  However, there are a few more attractions if one looks just a bit closer. 

We found Knockturn Alley by following the finger pointing the way (wooden sign on a wall—near the entry of Diagon Alley).  The first thing to notice is the lack of light.  The mood is set by near-total darkness, which is a stark contrast to the bright Orlando sunshine.  Here we found signs that come to life, much like in the films. 

There was a large, four-sided case—like a small open room--at the end of a building facing Borgin and Burkes.  Inside, there were a number of strange magical items, like a claw hand and jars of...not sure what that was.  The theme of the glass room appeared to be anatomy with skeletons and some sort of film show.  A picture on the back wall changed every so often.  Those with interactive wands can make the skeleton appearing on the back wall mimic the wizard's every move—very cool.

Interactive wands perform excellently at five places inside Knockturn Alley, which comes in handy for silencing a display of talking heads.  Please check out the wonderful video by Inside the Magic for all the various spells. 
Our video didn’t turn out nearly as well.  Perhaps it there was a strong magic current interfering with our technology that day. 

Time for a Show!

Sprinkled throughout the day two different shows entertained the crowded masses of Diagon Alley.  I read about a third, but never saw it advertised or shown. The two we saw, we enjoyed immensely.  In fact, we returned all four days of our visit to see the shows at least once each day. 

Celestina Warbeck vowed the crowd with her usual flare.  She and her banshees sang and danced enticing all even choosing an unsuspecting wizard from the crowd to join the troop and then discard him in the end.  Great fun.

Most fans will remember the story of the Deathly Hallows from the book The Beedle and the Bard.  The story is about three brothers who tried to trick death while using gifts they won from him: elder wand, the invisibility cloak, and the resurrection stone.  A theater group treats visitors with a live theater/puppet show of the entire story.  It’s quite well done.  I found it charming.

Time to Escape!

There is only one ride in Diagon Alley and it is a blast!  Beginning in Gringotts Goblin Bank, we explore the elaborate, ornate lobby before we continue to the depths of the vaults.  Please read my review on this very exciting and realistic ride.  For now, let me entice you with this: there are villains, snakes, giant armored guards, twists, turns, drops and our heroes save us by the dragon. 

Tip: Check out my “Product and Venue Reviews” on this section of the park.