Ride Review: Hogwarts Express (Hogsmeade to London)
we rate rides base on their relationship to the source material. lets take a look!
BY: V. RHODES
Hogsmeade to LONDON
HOGWARTS EXPRESS
BREAKDOWN OF OUR RANKING
AT THEFILMTRIPPER, WE FOCUS OUR RIDE RANKINGS ON HOW THE FILM OR source material HAS BEEN ADAPTED FOR A THEMED EXPERIENCE. Thats why ‘Overall interpretation’ is our most important category.
FAST FACTS
PARK: UNIVERSAL Studios / ISLAND’S OF ADVENTURE
PLACE: ORLANDO, FL
Coordinates: 28.4794°N 81.4703°W
OTHER LOCATIONS: none
OPENING DATE: July 8, 2014
Based on: The Harry Potter Books & Movies by JK Rowling
RIDE TYPE: PEOPLE MOVER / funicular
Manufacturer: doppelmayr garaventa group
DURATION: 4:01
THE WIZARDING WORLD
The Hogwarts Express in Orlando is a unique ride across all Universal theme parks. It runs between King’s Cross station in the London area of Universal Studios Florida and Hogsmeade station in Islands of Adventure. It provides a connection between Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade which together makes up the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. The best part: it is two rides in one! Whether you take the train from King’s Cross station or Hogsmead station, you will get a different experience. Much like the other experiences in the WWoHP, the ride really begins when you get in line. If you're already feeling immersed by the atmosphere of this theme park, then the queues and rides will blow you away!
OUR EXPERIENCE
Of course every child that grew up in the 2000’s is familiar with Harry Potter if not the books, then definitely the movies. If you, like me, have been obsessed since the age of seven then the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is a bucket list trip!
There are so many unique experiences throughout the park that place you right in the middle of the films you love! The Universal Creative team left so many easter eggs for us superfans to find. But we will have to do a different post about that!
THE RIDE
Regardless of the station you start at, guests load into the train compartments the same way. Once inside, you’ll see lots of theming reminiscent of the movie. Including the blue padded seats, the black and white ink drawings of British architecture, and the lighting fixtures.
The compartment window is a large screen which gives the illusion of your adventure. When you first sit down there is a large brick wall, but as you leave the station that will change. The opaque cabin doors are also created with a cool lighting effect in mind. Small projectors shine on these doors, giving the illusion of people passing and the characters interacting with you.
HOGSMEADE to LONDON
QUEUE - HOgsemeade Station
The Hogsmeade Station queue is a bit less elaborate than the King’s Cross Station queue. Mostly because this station is not expected to service 150,000 muggles in one day, as King’s Cross is. The Hogsmeade Station is a lot smaller, and is more of a shade structure then a full building.
The architecture, planting and signage is more in line with that of Hogsmeade as well. There is more of the ancient looking stone opposed to the very clean and crip brick of King’s Cross station. The large shingled roofs and tall entry portals are very consistent for other Hogsmeade buildings.
The queue starts by going through a winding stone path through pine trees, before getting to the station. This is a major difference between the two stations. This queue is both indoor and outdoors, whereas King’s Cross is all indoors. Once inside the structure, you will see large stone arches along the main room with a few accents of red columns and ceiling paint. This motif is carried through the bottom and top levels of the queue.
RIDE - HOgsemeade Station
On our journey from Hogsmeade to London you encounter some familiar faces, see some fireworks, and follow a magical purple bus. As the idea for this route is that you are leaving Hogwarts to go back home for a school holiday, the people you encounter are different than going from London to Hogsmeade. We won't spoil the whole ride for you, but we will break down all the references we spotted.
EASTER EGGS
RIDE EASTER EGGS - HOgsemeade Station
FABRIC: The cabin seats are actually covered in the exact same fabric used in the movie.
HAGRID: The first person you see when leaving the station is Hagrid. Throughout the books and movies, Hagrid is often the last teacher on the platform waving the students off.
THE VOICES: If you think the voices of Harry, Ron and Hermione sound odd, there is a reason. Although all three actors reprised their iconic roles for the ride videos, only Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) lent his voice to the character for this ride. You can even see his face press against the cabin door when the trio is looking for a seat.
BUCKBEAK: The beloved hippogriff, Buckbeak, is seen flying alongside the train with a shot of Hogwarts in the background.
MUSIC: When you see Buckbeak flying, the song ‘Buckbeak’s Flight’ from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Akzaban (2004) is playing. This song, like the rest of the Harry Potter score was composed by John Williams.
CENTAURS: A herd of centaurs can be seen running past, although on the ride they are unnamed we can assume they would be either Bane, Ronan, Firenze or Magorian.
WEASLEY TWINS: Fred and George Weasly (played by James and Oliver Phelps) fly past the window of the train. They set off a firework that explodes, spelling out the words 'Weasley Wizard Wheezes’. Which is the name of their joke shop that you can visit in Diagon Alley.
SPIDERS: It is well known that Ron has a fear of spiders. In the books it is explained that Fred turned Ron’s teddy bear into a giant spider and he has had a dislike for them ever since. In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry and Ron have to go deep into the forbidden forest to question Aragog the Acromantula. Even though the spiders on the train end up being licorice, the Aragog music still plays.
HONESTLY, RON: This is a very common phrase that Hermione says throughout the books and movies whenever she is correcting Ron. Having it included in this ride was perfect.
KNIGHT BUS: In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Akzaban (2004), we are introduced to the Knight Bus. The Knight Bus is a magical emergency transport for the stranded Witch or Wizard. It is invisible to muggles, which is why they don't partially care about muggle traffic laws.
MAD EYE: As you roll up to King’s Cross Station, Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody (Brendan Gleeson) is waving at you from the platform. In the later book and movies Mad-Eye, and the other aurorus, escort Harry to and from the Dursley’s. He is there to make sure you don’t get attacked on your way from school.
REcommendations + TIPS
WOULD WE RECOMMEND?
Absolutely! If it is in your budget to do a Park to Park pass, then I would very much recommend this attraction!
WHICH SIDE SHOULD I DO:
If you can only do one train ride, I would absolutely recommend starting at King’s Cross station! Doing the London to Hogsmeade trip is, in my opinion, a more magical experience. Not only is there the added queue event of walking through platform 9 ¾, but seeing the dementor on the train is a really great effect. As the ride is different in both directions, you’ll have a great time doing both. But for us, we have to recommend London to Hogsmede as the better choice. If you still need more, we did a break down of them both.
The biggest downfall with this attraction is that it’s technically an up-charge to ride it. As the Hogwarts express acts as a transport between the two parks, Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure, you will need a Park to Park pass. (This is the equivalent to a Disney Park Hopper pass). As a ‘one park one day’ ticket to Universal Studios is roughly $109 per adult, a ‘two park one day pass’ is about $164.
As my family is really big into both Disney and Harry Potter, our trips to Florida primarily focus on the four Disney parks, then we get a ‘two park one day’ Universal pass and just do all the Harry Potter stuff in one day. If you are going to be spending more than one day at universal studios, you can always do one day as a ‘park to park’ day and focus on the WWoHP for DAY 1. Then, DAY 2 and DAY 3 get two ‘one day’ tickets and do the rest then non Harry Potter attractions from each part separately.
KIDS, GRANDPARENTS, ACCESSIBILITY:
DO IT! If you are a Harry Potter fan this is a must-do attraction. Especially if you have little ones who love Harry Potter. ‘Journey to Hogwarts’ and ‘Escape from Gringotts’ are both fantastic rides, but there is a height requirement for those. Any kiddos who are looking for that same level of immersiveness into this world will love the Hogwarts Express.
This is also a great ride if you're traveling with grandparents or people with disabilities. Unlike other rides where the accessible area has a slightly different viewing experience, the accessibility compartment gives everyone an equal experience. There is only one accessible compartment per ride, so you may need to wait for it to be free.
MOTION SICKNESS:
When traveling from London-Hogsmeade, take a seat on the bench to the right, that way you’ll be facing forward as the train moves. Likewise, when traveling from Hogsmeade-London, take a seat on the left.
HAVE YOU RIDDEN THIS RIDE? IS IT YOUR FAVOURITE? Let us know in the comments!
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