The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is a chain of themed areas at

Universal Parks & Resorts Universal Parks & Resorts, also known as Universal Studios Theme Parks or solely Universal Theme Parks, is the theme park unit of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. The company, headquartered in Orlando, Florida, operates Universal theme par ...

based on the ''

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, all of whom are students at ...

'' media franchise, adapting elements from the Warner Bros.' film series and original novels by

J. K. Rowling Joanne Rowling ( "rolling"; born 31 July 1965), also known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and philanthropist. She wrote ''Harry Potter'', a seven-volume children's fantasy series published from 1997 to 2007. The ser ...

. The areas were designed by

Universal Creative Universal Creative designs and creates themed attractions, rides, and resorts, for Universal Parks & Resorts. Its divisions include master planning, creative development, design, engineering, project management, and research and development. The ...

from an exclusive

license A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...

with

Warner Bros. Entertainment Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

Background

A ''Harry Potter''-themed attraction at either a

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

or Universal park was rumored in 2003. However, the rights to the ''Harry Potter'' franchise had been acquired by Warner Bros., who denied all rumors. Both Disney and Universal entered bidding negotiations with Warner Bros. and Rowling for the theme park rights to ''Harry Potter''. In 2004, Rowling signed a letter-of-intent with Disney, with the company intending to develop a ''Harry Potter'' section within an area of

Fantasyland Fantasyland is one of the "themed lands" at all of the Magic Kingdom-style parks run by The Walt Disney Company around the world. It is themed after Disney's animated fairy tale films. Each Fantasyland has a castle, as well as several gentle ...

at the

Magic Kingdom Magic Kingdom Park, previously known as Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom (1971–1994) and The Magic Kingdom (1994–2017), is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando, Florida. Owned and operated by The ...

park at

Walt Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort, also called Walt Disney World or Disney World, is an entertainment resort complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States, near the cities of Orlando and Kissimmee. Opened on October 1, 1971, ...

. In January 2007,

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reported a rumor from a "highly credible source" that the

Islands of Adventure Universal's Islands of Adventure (also known as Islands of Adventure or IOA), originally called Universal Studios Islands of Adventure, is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida. It opened on May 28, 1999, along with CityWalk, as part of an ...

park's

Lost Continent Lost lands are islands or continents believed by some to have existed during pre-history, but to have since disappeared as a result of catastrophic geological phenomena. Legends of lost lands often originated as scholarly or scientific theor ...

area was going to be re-themed "to the stories and characters of one of the most popular children's franchises". Other sources followed up in the next few days with unofficial confirmation that the new area would involve ''Harry Potter''. On May 31, 2007, Universal, in partnership with Warner Bros., officially announced ''the Wizarding World of Harry Potter'' would be added to Islands of Adventure.

Parks

Universal Orlando Resort

Both theme parks at the

Universal Orlando Resort Universal Orlando Resort, commonly known as Universal Orlando or simply Universal, formerly Universal Studios Escape, is an American theme park and entertainment resort complex based in Orlando, Florida. The resort is operated by Universal Pa ...

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...

Islands Of Adventure and Universal Studios Floridahave Wizarding World of Harry Potter themed environments. Both parks include

Hogwarts Express Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry () is a fictional Scottish boarding school of magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's '' Harry Potter'' series and serves as a maj ...

stations allowing passengers to reach both theme parks aboard the full-scale replica of the train that appears in the

film series A film series or movie series (also referred to as a film franchise or movie franchise) is a collection of related films in succession that share the same fictional universe, or are marketed as a series. This article explains what film series are ...

. At the

Universal's Islands of Adventure Universal's Islands of Adventure (also known as Islands of Adventure or IOA), originally called Universal Studios Islands of Adventure, is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida. It opened on May 28, 1999, along with CityWalk, as part of an ...

theme park, ''the Wizarding World of Harry Potter'' opened on June 18, 2010. It includes re-creation of

Hogsmeade J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' universe contains numerous settings for the events in her fantasy novels. These locations are categorised as a dwelling, school, shopping district, or government-affiliated locale. Dwellings The Burrow The We ...

and three rides. The flagship attraction is ''

Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is a motion-based dark ride located in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter-themed areas of Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida; Universal Studios Hollywood in Universal City, California; Universal S ...

'', which exists within a re-creation of

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry () is a fictional Scottish boarding school of magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series and serves as a m ...

. A new roller coaster,

Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure is a multiple-launch steel motorbike roller coaster located at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade section of Universal Orlando’s Islands of Adventure theme park. The attraction op ...

, which replaced the

Dragon Challenge Dragon Challenge (known as Dueling Dragons from 1999 to 2010) was a pair of intertwined, inverted roller coasters in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter area of Universal Studios' Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida, United States. The ri ...

, opened on June 13, 2019. Other rides include '' Flight of the Hippogriff'', a

family roller coaster A roller coaster, or rollercoaster, is a type of amusement ride that employs a form of elevated railroad track designed with tight turns, steep slopes, and sometimes inversions. Passengers ride along the track in open cars, and the rides are o ...

, and the Hogwarts Express. Other attractions include Ollivanders Wand Shop, the Triwizard Spirit Rally, and the Frog Choir. Hogsmeade contains many gift shops and restaurants from the book series including Dervish and Banges, Honeydukes, Ollivanders, the Three Broomsticks, and the Hog's Head. At the

Universal Studios Florida Universal Studios Florida (also known as Universal Studios or USF) is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida. Primarily themed to movies, television and other aspects of the entertainment industry, the park opened to the public on June 7, 1990 ...

theme park, ''the Wizarding World of Harry Potter'' opened on July 8, 2014. It includes a re-creation of

Diagon Alley J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' universe contains numerous settings for the events in her fantasy novels. These locations are categorised as a dwelling, school, shopping district, or government-affiliated locale. Dwellings The Burrow The ...

and connecting alleys, as well as a small section of

Muggle In J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series, a Muggle () is a person who lacks any sort of magical ability and was not born in a magical family. Muggles can also be described as people who do not have any magical blood inside them. It differs fr ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. It includes the rides ''

Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts is an indoor steel roller coaster designed by Universal Creative and built by Intamin at Universal Studios Florida, a theme park located within the Universal Orlando Resort. Similar to dark rides, the ro ...

'' and the

. Other attractions include Ollivanders Wand Shop, a puppet performance of '' The Tales of Beedle the Bard'', and a live performance by Celestina Warbeck and the Banshees. The area also contains many shops and restaurants from the book series including The Leaky Cauldron,

Ollivanders Wand Shop J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' universe contains numerous settings for the events in her fantasy novels. These locations are categorised as a dwelling, school, shopping district, or government-affiliated locale. Dwellings The Burrow The Wea ...

, Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, Borgin and Burkes,

Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' universe contains numerous settings for the events in her fantasy novels. These locations are categorised as a dwelling, school, shopping district, or government-affiliated locale. Dwellings The Burrow The Wea ...

, Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment and Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour.

Universal Studios Japan

At the

Universal Studios Japan is a theme park located in Osaka, Japan. Opened on March 31, 2001, it is one of six Universal Studios theme parks worldwide and was the first to open outside the United States. The park is owned and operated by a wholly owned subsidiary of ...

theme park in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

, ''the Wizarding World of Harry Potter'' opened on July 15, 2014. It includes the village of Hogsmeade, ''Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey'' ride, and ''Flight of the Hippogriff'' roller coaster. Two features in the Japanese park not found in Orlando or Hollywood are

Hogwarts Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry () is a fictional Scotland, Scottish boarding school of Magic in Harry Potter, magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Pot ...

' Black Lake and live owls.

Universal Studios Hollywood

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter opened at

Universal Studios Hollywood Universal Studios Hollywood is a film studio and theme park in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles County, California. About 70% of the studio lies within the unincorporated county island known as Universal City while the rest lies w ...

on April 7, 2016, Replacing

The Adventures of Curious George Curious George Goes to Town is a children's aqua play and ball play area at Universal Studios Florida and formerly at Universal Studios Hollywood. The Florida attraction originally opened in 1998, on the former site of ''The Bates Mansion Set' ...

which closed on September 6, 2013. The flagship attraction is the flight-simulating ride ''

'', similar to the Orlando one. Visitors once wore Quidditch-inspired 3D goggles throughout the ride for an enhanced ride experience, but the 3D visuals have recently been replaced by 2D.

Universal Studios Beijing

Attractions

The table below shows the different attractions across all the parks around the world.

References

External links

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wizarding World of Harry Potter Harry Potter in amusement parks Licensed-properties at Universal Parks & Resorts Universal Parks & Resorts attractions by name 2010 establishments in Florida