Islands of Adventure and Harry Potter World

WARNING!! Serious spoiler info in this blog...do not read if you dont want to know every detail of the Harry Potter World rides and the rest of the park!!!

After a lovely night's sleep in a proper bed we got up early and finally had our long awaited shower!! Feeling refreshed, if still sore from the sunburn, we walked back to Universal to arrive there just after opening time (9am) and entered the Islands of Adventure park. There was no one there!!! A few people here and there, but almost more staff than customers at this time! Not to let such an opportunity go to waste we got in the queue for the 1st ride we came across, The Hulk and patiently waited for it to go round twice before it was our turn. We could have got on after the 1st time round but decided to wait for a front seat and were well rewarded with an amazingly smooth ride that was completely different to the rollercoasters we're used to. Not only did it make a nice change not to come off like you'd been beaten about the head but also the way it looped and twisted were really unique and totally AWESOME!! Grinning from ear to ear we walked a little further through the comic superhero themed section to go on the Spiderman Ride which had an equally long proclaimed waiting time of 5 minutes (we're pretty sure the machine just doesn't have a 0 button!) which was taken up with getting through the themed queueing system, a recurrent theme throughout the park which makes you actually want to spend time waiting so you can see everything!! Once seated and with our 3D specs dutifully perched on our noses (they're one size fits no-one!) the ride began. A combination of rollercoaster, 3D animation, moving scenery and special effects, this was looking to be a wicked ride, again like nothing I'd ever been on before, so when it stopped and all went quiet I thought perhaps it was part of a suspense build up, but as the seconds wore on and still nothing happened I realised for the 1st time ever I was on a ride that had broken down! After many recorded announcements, a few false starts and 3 very annoying, whiny american children, we we're eventually 'rescued' and escorted back outside with many apologies and an express pass each that would let us skip the queue to 1 ride (excluding Harry potter of course) that day to make up for being stuck for half an hour. Andy said later he heard them say that they fixed it the old fashioned way...turn it off then on again!! The day got better tho, we next went on the Dudley Do-right log flume which unlike the ones in the UK is quite prepared to not just get you a bit wet but make sure you exit completely sodden!! Just for good measure, if the ride doesnt get you drenched enough (and believe me it does, head to foot!) then onlookers can pay a quarter to blast you with super soaker like jets mounted around the edge!! A fantastic ride, we weren't a bit upset how wet we were as it was so hot, it was lovely to cool off a bit on this part flume, part coaster, part washing machine type ride!

As we were already dripping we thought it worthwhile to go on the other water ride before we dried out...Jurassic Park River Adventure!! Just like the movie you enter this section of the park through 2 huge pillars amidst the jungle foliage and sounds. Walking around there are various things to see like the JP jeeps etc. Once through the queue (another 5 minute wonder!) you get into a tour boat and a fairly substantial bar comes down across your laps to stop you from trying to escape, oops I mean fall out lol! Then after passing through the giant park gates a recorded narrative informs you about the various dinosaurs you are seeing as you gently wend your way along the peaceful river. The dinos are very convincing, moving realistically and making the appropriate noises, the scenery is beautiful, you really could be there and then the narrative continues but the boat takes a wrong turn!! Obviously, just like the film, there are escaped raptors which hunt, jump out and scream at you scaring the life out of you before narrowly avoiding being swallowed by T-rex as you make the final plunge down the waterfall to safety and soaking!!

The other ride in this section we were disappointed to find out that we could not go on as you had to be accompanied by a child!! So unfair, sulk!! It actually looks really cool, a pterodactyl flier ride where you soar above the trees on rather skeletal looking, 2 person, hanging seats....a bit like squirrel nutkin at Alton except fun!!

We soon got over our disappointment however as leaving Jurassic Park we crossed a wide wooden bridge and raised our eyes to see the splendour that is Hogwarts Castle!!!!!!!!!!

Every detail is perfect, absolutely enchanting!! We walked through the entrance to Hogsmeade and we were there...every detail totally immerses you into the wizarding world from the owls perched here and there abouts to the occasional witch strolling by, the slightly 'not quite allowed' look of some of the buildings as extra storeys and chimneys sprout in odd places and the general buzz and atmosphere of the place. You feel just like Harry looked the first time Hagrid took him through the Leaky Cauldron into Diagon Alley...excited and awed!! After gawping for a while we started off towards the castle where the entrance to the Forbidden Journey ride is found, but got side tracked along the way by a street show about to take place. The students of Durmstrang and Beauxbatons were there to perform their routines from the film Goblet of Fire. Obviously without the aid of actual magic (movie or otherwise) it was not identical to the film, but the costumes could have been off the set and the performances themselves were fantastic!! After much applause we left the crowd waiting to have their photos taken with the performers and made our way to the castle to join the queue, which unfortunately was more than the customary 5 minutes. But like I said before and especially in this case, this is a queue you want to spend time in!! Round the side of the castle you go, gazing upwards until you come into what looks like a station with a high light roof and lamp post like pillars that could only be for here as they have the large letter H embossed on every one. From here you twist and turn until you climb some steps into what must be 'Greenhouse 3' as in a locked openfaced potting shed is a shelf of ugly Mandrakes (thankfully minus sound effects!). Above is the same light, high sheltering roof but with many hanging baskets containing exotic looking plants including huge tubular fly catchers. Along with this, something we found across the park and which the UK should take note, fans...lots of them, blowing water vapour across the lines to help keep you cool while you wait!! Also at regular intervals throughout the park and the queue lines are water drinking fountains, a very welcome addition as of course the food and drink within the park is quite expensive. Anyway, back to Harry Potter....once through this section of the queue you finally step inside the castle walls and the dark and coolness is blissful after the heat outdoors. A rough stone passageway lit with wall mounted torches takes you past statues of founding members of Hogwarts, the House Points hourglasses filled with appropriate coloured crystals for each house, of course with Griffyndor just ahead of Slytherin, closely followed by Ravenclaw and poor old Hufflepuff with the least points. There is the Tri-Wizard Cup high up on a stone plinth and the 3 Golden Eggs in a mirrored cabinet, various other memorabilia are dotted around for you to look at while the sound of voices gets closer as you move along. Soon you come to the Portrait room where as you'd expect they are moving and not just talking but having a heated debate about Harry, Salazar against Godric, Helga and Rowena of course, with the multitude of other portraits looking on. You leave them to it as you enter Dumbledore's Office which is fasciinating, not only is he talking to you from behind his desk across the room but there are cabinets containing all sorts of curiosities around the walls as well as the famous pensieve!! After this room you go past the Fat Lady (Dawn French) guarding the entrance to the Griffyndor Common room who reprimands you for not having the password as you go into a perfectly replicated room from the films. Once again you can hear voices and after passing the stairs to the dorms you go through another passage and into Professor Binn's classroom which also appears to be used as Defense Against the Dark Arts as the writing on the Blackboard is about Dementors! This is where you find out why the ride is called 'The Forbidden Journey', Harry, Ron and Hermione appear at the front of the classroom from underneath the invisability cloak and welcome you, warn you that you're gonna be bored stiff by Prof Binn's if you stay here and tell you they've found a way to sneak you out so you can go and watch a game of Quidditch instead!! After Ron makes it snow (it really does snow on you) and Hermione makes it stop she tells you to meet her in the Room of Requirement. You leave the classroom and head to the final stretch of the queue where ahead all you see is the enchanted ceiling full of floating candles, a completely magical effect, then you step onto a moving (enchanted) floor to get on the ride. 4 chairs with the usual harnesses sit next to each other but are moving sideways instead of forwards, meaning there is no 'front row' and everyone gets a perfect ride no matter where they sit..fabulous idea :) !!!! Once strapped in you're off, Hermione reappears and casts the spell to make your chairs fly as the floor drops away and soon your whizzing through passages right up to the observatory where Harry and Ron are waiting to escort you on their broomsticks to the Quidditch Pitch. Soaring over the grounds you swoop under the bridge as Hagrid rattles an empty collar and chain off the side asking if you've seen his dragon?!! You soon do as it chases you around, through one of the connecting walkway bridges and into the Forbidden Forest where you are attacked by Aragog's many decendents who shoot web and venom at you before you eventually you escape and are zooming around, underneath and through the Quidditch Pitch and stands on hot pursuit of the Golden Snitch which Harry and Malfoy are chasing. From here you swoop across the grounds, over Hagrid's cabin and narrowly avoid a beating by the Whomping Willow before gliding into the Great Hall accompanied by a round of applause from Dumbledore himself and various students. I have to point out at this time that the staff throughout the parks clap when you finish a ride safely along with most of the passengers....they also say good luck as you set off, not sure how reassuring this is, do they expect the ride to break each time and for you to be seriously injured or is it just an odd American thing, like when they clap at the end of a movie?!! Anyway, the seamless transitions throughout the ride from actual scenery to parabola shaped projection screens accompanied by the speed and motion of the chairs gave what truly is an unforgettable experience of the world of Harry Potter. As we exited through the gift shop we both agreed it was an extraordinary accomplishment and weren't disappointed in the slightest!! From here we went on the other 2 rides in this area which are revamped from what was originally here, a hippogriff rollercoaster that was short but very fast and the 'Duelling Dragons' ride where you choose which Nemisis style coaster you want to go on...the red 'Chinese Fireball' or the blue 'Hungarian Horntail'. The 2 rides are similar but I preferred the red one as I thought it was slightly faster, they are meant to race against each other and the 2 tracks are intricately intertwined so you pass over, under, through and around each other in a race to the finish, however for some reason they were not running in sync today, which was a shame. Being quite warm now we decided it was time to sample a butterbeer in The Hogshead pub which is connected to the Three Broomsticks at the other end. You can have it standard or frozen so we opted for one of each to try, luckily Andy preferred the frozen one and I the standard, it tastes just as you'd imagine it would, delicious, buttery and sweet with a thick creamy head. We're guessing its some kind of butterscotch mixed with slightly carbonated water for the drink and icecream mixed in to form the frothy head, similar to a coke float. Whatever it is, its delicious and throughout the day we had 3 each in total...dread to think how many calories lol!! Now it was time to explore Hogsmeade itself, there were many shops that were just frontages with interesting window displays but the main ones were the real thing...Zonko's joke shop containing everything from Extendible Ears to Puking Pastilles, Honeydukes sweet shop that had all the favourites from the books including Chocolate Frogs, Fizzing Whizzabees, Berty Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Cauldron Cakes, Pumpkin Pasties (which were really tasty!) and much more, sadly most of the sweets were really expensive but probably for the best after the Butterbeers! There was Ollivander's where they let a group of you in at a time and one lucky boy or girl went through the process of having a wand choose them...the actors who work throughout are really convincing and very good, considering how many times a day they must have to do their routines! There was also the Post Office where for a price you can actually have letters sent via 'Owl Post' and various amalgamations for quidditch supplies, writing equipment and books...the monster book of monsters is caged up but there are copies available to buy too!! Finally dragging ourselves (ok me) away we moved on past the Hogwart's Express and out into another area of the park that contained the 'Poseidon's Fury' ride. We decided to go on this before getting some lunch, it turned out to be not so much a ride as an interactive performance with awesome special effects including many pyrotechnics and a revolving tunnel of water you had to pass through! Again, the actors throughout gave it their all and we were very impressed. After going back to the Three Broomsticks for lunch and another Butterbeer we went back on the Forbidden Journey after watching another street performance, this time it was the Hogwart's School Choir, one member from each house and 2 giant toads on cushions along with a conductor! They really were fantastic, the 2 girls having wonderful voices and staying in character (slytherin and hufflepuff) the whole time, the 2 boys providing mainly the accompaniments with some outstanding sound effects from the griffyndor student and some theatrics from the ravenclaw lad. As it was still a couple of hours before closing we went back round the park and taking advantage of the lack of queues, went on everything again!! We ended the day with one final ride on the Forbidden Journey and Duelling Dragons before leaving Islands of Adventure and going back into City Walk. I managed to persuade (without much difficulty!) Andy that we really needed to see the last Harry Potter film again and as it happened to be on at the cinema here we should go!! Perfect way to end the absolute best day of our travels so far!! :)))