Diagon Alley At Universal Orlando Resort!

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This thread will be used for all current and future updates to Diagon Alley at Universal Orlando Resort!




July 3, 2014
Diagon Alley finally had a soft opening for the general public Thursday afternoon, as Universal Orlando let visitors without hotel packages into the new Harry Potter land.

Universal did not give information about what the soft opening schedule will be throughout this weekend. It has advised guests to watch social media for information. The expansion of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter will officially open Tuesday.

"If you plan to visit before the July 8 Grand Opening, please understand that the hours are limited, and access to shops and food venues may vary ?????? not everything may be open all the time," Universal said on its blog.

"I was in Diagon Alley for a bit and I watched our guests cheer when the dragon breathed fire and smile as they tasted Butterbeer ice cream, as well as explore all the shops," Universal spokesman Tom Schroder said in an email. "It was great."

Guests did not, however, get a chance to try the signature attraction, the Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts ride.


"If it was open, that would be the first thing" to visit, said Daniel Germain, 25, an Orlando Latin teacher who has been waiting outside Diagon Alley each day for weeks in the hopes of being one of the first people in. "They have a sign out front saying it wont be open until July 8."

His friend Megan Stump, a 34-year-old elementary-school music teacher from Davenport, said she was not disappointed.

"It was kind of a relief," said Stump, who tried the Hogwarts Express on Tuesday. "As much as I want to ride it, it didn't have to be my first priority when I came in there. I was just able to enjoy myself."

Stump said the attraction has been worth the wait.

"Diagon Alley itself is just absolutely gorgeous," she said. "I've forgotten I'm in Universal. There's no possible way I'm in a theme park. It's almost too real."

The crowds were not too intense, Stump said.

The friends checked out shops and ate at the Leaky Cauldron restaurant. Germain has been trying out all the different spells you can cast throughout the park with an interactive wand.

The new area has been gradually unveiled at Universal Orlando. Earlier this week, guests who had purchased special Harry Potter-themed hotel packages were able to get unfettered access to the park, including the Gringotts ride. On Tuesday, regular park guests with tickets allowing park-to-park access were able to try out the Hogwarts Express train linking the Harry Potter lands in each park. The original Wizarding World opened in 2010 at Universal's Islands of Adventure.

Soft openings are typical for theme parks prior to official openings.
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[TTD03]

July 10
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Diagon Alley Officially Open to Muggles!

Both theme park and Harry Potter fanatics have been waiting for July 8th to arrive for weeks now, seeing as today is the official opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Diagon Alley at Universal Studios Florida.

The new Potter themed section has already had a big splashy media preview, then select soft openings and resort previews - but the park has kept the wraps on Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts ride until today. That resulted in some crazy long lines, both to get into the new area and for the signature ride.

Just how long seems almost hard to believe as at one point in the day the wait sign showed over 400 minutes - that's over six hours! The ride may be operating with less cars at this point to help ensure it operates the whole day and does not go down for too long - something that it seems to have a bit of trouble with. Nothing the park won't work out in time, though.

The entire area, at least from photos since I have not been to it yet, is a feast for the eyes, with Potter lore details stacked as high as the tops of the buildings. The amount of retail and food locations in Diagon Alley is impressive as well, all of which are faithful recreations from the books and movies. There's even an indoor, and very dark and creepy, Knockturn Alley built as part of the expansion.

Of course there is also the Hogwarts Express, a full size train that carries passengers from Hogsmeade village in Islands of Adventure to the London section of Diagon Alley. A two-park ticket or annual pass is needed in order to ride that attraction, however. And speaking of the London area, the new plaza and giant facades that hide all of Diagon Alley are beautiful, featuring gardens, a water fountain and the Knight Bus parked out front.

Oh, and it is also worth mentioning that with the opening of Diagon Alley the world has gained Butterbeer flavored ice cream - as if you needed any more reason to plan a trip to Florida!
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