Diagon Alley At Wizarding World of Harry Potter

So, this post is a little over due. I had intentions of sharing our Diagon Alley visit last fall, but I had way too many photos to weed through. Since Mariah is a huge Harry Potter fan, I wanted to capture every little detail in photos for her, and I ended up with roughly 700 pictures. I crafted her a photo book from our first visit to Wizarding World of Harry Potter several years ago, and wanted to make another photo book for her birthday this year.

Before heading into Diagon Alley, you'll get the chance to take your photo with the Night Bus. There's a little bobble head guy inside the window, and behind the scenes, there is someone making him speak to all the guests. He's quite funny!

Through an opening in a set of buildings, you'll enter Diagon Alley, But first, check out King's Cross Station and Sirius Black's house. If you look up in the window to the house, sometimes Kreacher will make an appearance!

As soon as you cross over into Diagon Alley, you'll see the impressive fire breathing dragon on top of Gringott's. He roars and blows out a puff of fire every 5 minutes.

Then, get lost in exploring the magical world of Harry Potter! Our first stop was Quality Quidditch Supplies and Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Mariah had most of her money spent in the Weasley's buying up snacks like U-No-Poo and Chocolate Frogs.

Allison had a blast shopping in Magical Menagerie. There you can buy plush of all your favorite magical beasts! And, head to the back and get a glimpse of Nagini!

Head over to the money exchange building, and you can get your real money ripped off turned into Gringotts Bank notes. I think the exchange rate is $50 U.S. for $30 in Gringotts cash. Don't quote me here, though. We didn't buy any and my memory is a big foggy on the deets. I just remember it isn't a 1 for 1 kind of deal. You don't have to exchange any money to go in and have a chat with the banker, though. *I stand corrected, it IS a 1 for 1 exchange. Thanks for the update lady in the photo :)*

Expect to wait quite a while for the Escape From Gringotts ride. We waited about 2 hours to get on, but they did have plenty to look at to keep us entertained during our wait.

Lack of benches and seating makes it really difficult to get in good photo opps at the popular spots, like in front of Gringotts Bank, so I suggest you seize the opportunity to get some snaps as soon as you see no other tourists resting on those spots.

Cross over into the dark side, and explore Knockturn Alley. The girls and I had a bit of fun sporting some Dark Mark tattoos I made us before we went. Check out the wardrobe in Borgin & Burkes, as well as a slew of other creepy treasures.

 

At Olivander's Wand Shop, you can buy a wand that will let you interact with special effects through the park. The wands are a bit pricey at $50 a pop, so the girls had to share one. The interaction is a lot of fun for the kids, but do be warned there are many adults who take more than their fair share of time at each stop, so you could be waiting a bit to use your wand when this happens.

making it rain

 

If you want to ride the Hogwarts Express, you'll need a ticket to Universal's Islands of Adventure. Sneaky, but brilliant way for them to get you to purchase admission to both parks. The ride lasts about 5 minutes, and the screen in the train cabin keeps you entertained during your ride. You also might get a visit from some Dementors!

There are so many things to see and to at Diagon Alley, and we didn't even get to the dining options! Come back later this week and I'll fill you in!

What area would you explore first in Diagon Alley?