I grew up in generation that experienced the worst FOMO (fear of missing out), courtesy of author, philanthropist and genius, J.K. Rowling. With every Harry Potter book that was released and then devoured by me, the frustration of never being part of its world grew. I wanted to board the Hogwarts Express, to sit in the Great Hall during a feast, to be sorted into Gryffindor and to go to Ollivanders and see which wand would choose me. All of this, obviously, was never going to happen, and as the dramatic 11-year-old that I was, I declared that all my dreams were dead and were never going to come true.
But all good things take time, and in my case, it took about 10 years. At 22, I found myself at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios, Hollywood, staring up at the looming black gates before me. It took a second for any semblance of self-restraint to break, and I hurtled through them headfirst.
The Wizarding World opened its doors a few months ago, and has seen hordes of fans descend upon it. It’s divided into three zones — Hogsmeade Village, Diagon Alley and Hogwarts Castle. As soon as you enter, you’re greeted by a replica of the Hogwarts Express, and a hundred tourists all crammed in front of it, trying to take a picture with the train’s conductor.
Pro tip: If you ever plan to visit, try and go in the middle of the day, when most people are getting lunch. The lines are shorter, the Harry Potter theme music plays all around, and it’s a struggle not to cry as the Hogwarts Express’ whistle sounds behind you.
Hogsmeade is enchanting, and that description doesn’t even begin to do it justice. My first stop was a bright pink-and-green building carved into the walls of the village; the famous Zonko’s Joke Shop and Honeydukes, home to all the magical deliciousness you’ve ever imagined. I’ll admit, as much as I told myself that I wasn’t going to witness objects flying around the way they did in the movies, a part of me couldn’t help but feel let down when I entered and saw nothing levitating. Zonko’s quickly made up for the disappointment though, with all the pranks and merchandise from the series brought to life.
There were brightly packaged Extendable Ears, Sneakoscopes, and even Pygmy Puffs (not real, but they do come with a naming ceremony if you buy one).
Sadly, most of my attention was drawn away by Honeydukes, because well, it’s chocolate. Rows and rows of candy and liquorice and jellybeans line the store, and the sugar high is almost too much to process. Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans are some of their bestsellers and go fast, with competition coming in from freshly baked Cauldron Cakes and Fudge Flies. One of the greatest questions of our age has always been if Chocolate Frogs taste as good as they seem, and the answer is yes, they do.
The highlight of the culinary experience, however, is the Butterbeer they sell right outside the Three Broomsticks restaurant, which is everything you’ve ever wanted in a drink; sweet, fizzy, mildly salty and topped with whipped cream.
Pulling away wasn’t easy, but Ollivanders and Gladrags Wizardwear awaited. A long line snaked around the Ollivanders building, with guests waiting for their interactive wand experience, where you get matched to a wand by one of the shop’s assistants. Right opposite was Gladrags Wizardwear, which was packed with people trying on different robes of all four Houses, as well as hats, socks, shirts and even pyjamas. While the detailing and fit of everything was perfect, the prices were slightly less than ideal, and I had to wave goodbye to a pair of Gryffindor robes. Still, if you find yourself fraught with the dilemmas of a constrained budget, there’s still plenty of merchandise to pick, from shot glasses to banners emblazoned with the House logos.
The park’s piece de resistance, hands down, were the rides situated in the Hogwarts Castle. The wait for each is nearly an hour long, and with the park about to close, I had to make the hard choice of choosing between the two: The Forbidden Journey and the Flight of the Hippogriff. I went with the former, and when I emerged nearly an hour-and-a-half later, I regretted nothing. A simulated rollercoaster, its dips and turns take you on a journey through the Hogwarts grounds, make you fight Dementors, and even play a game of Quidditch. The park makes the long wait easy on you, with guests lining up inside each part of the castle recreated to look like the Great Hall, the Gryffindor Common Room and Professor Dumbledore’s office, all built with astonishing detail that leave you gawking.
While staying in the Wizarding World forever seemed like a pretty satisfying way to live to me, I still had to say goodbye after a few magical hours. The park stayed true to the series in every way, and it was the authentic wizarding experience I’d always dreamt of. And while it was hard to go back to the Muggle world, I knew that if I ever returned, Hogwarts would always be there to welcome me home.
