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Diagon Alley Photos & Reviews

Really quickly.

Diagon is really quite something. Even without Gringotts, it is a sight to behold. So much to look at, so much to eat, so much to do... It is just wonderful. We had such a great time Friday. My sister got real emotional. She doesn't do that often. It caused a chain reaction amongst us, and we were swept up in the moment. It's just stunning. And that dragon... You are truly transported into that world. Universal hasn't just raised the bar with this (especially here in Orlando), they took the bar and beat other parks bloody with it. I love people's reaction to the dragon too. It's awesome when someone doesn't know it breathes fire. Lots of screams. There was a guy at one point who was telling his wife that the dragon should move. Then it breathed fire. Dude was like, "OK, I take it back." Hogwarts Express is quite fun too. Did it a bunch of times, but I probably wouldn't wait more than 20 minutes for it. It is more a convenience to not walk to the other park than anything else. Seriously though, more than 30 minutes, it's quicker to walk. Unless you want the experience. Overall, it's just stunning.

Some photos from Friday

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I havent seen this confirmed or denied anywhere. Does the rabbit from WWW disappear and reappear under the top hat?
 
I spent several hours in DA last night after work, and this was my 2nd visit (went to TM preview the first night). I rode HE express both ways before my friends got off work, but the first thing I did was go into DA, get a Tongue-Tying Lemon Squash, and parked my butt on a bench outside The Hopping Pot, to relax with my drink. It was DELICIOUS! Super tart, the way I like my lemonade, and fresh squeezed too, not from a nasty mix.

After my train rides, picked up my friends, and we spent almost 3 hours in DA, not even riding HE, and had the most wonderful time. One of us had an interactive wand, so we played with that a lot, and we managed to go into most of the stores (almost 3 hours, and STILL didn't make it into all the stores), and just marveled at the incredible detail everywhere. The line for the money exchange was too long for us to deal with. Had a great dinner at Leaky Cauldron (and adults can order the kids meal, which I loved, because the kids' fish and chips was the perfect portion for me), and later in the evening we all got ice cream. Just such a wonderful night with good friends, and I still have more to see, like, I really need to catch both shows in their entirety.

I can see DA itself being an all-day experience. Words cannot describe how wonderful, detailed, and completely immersive this area is.
 
All of these wonderful reviews bring tears to my eyes; I am so proud to work at UOR, I can't believe what we have done with both of our Wizarding Worlds, and I can't imagine ANY theme park even coming close to what Diagon Alley is.

I have spent a total of about 7 hours in DA, and I STILL haven't seen everything. Of course, I haven't ridden Gringott's, although I have seen the queue. I haven't watched the shrunken heads in that window, I haven't been in all the stores, I haven't been in Ollivander's, haven't tried all the new drinks and food items. So much to do, so little time. I don't know how anyone could be anything other than enthralled and captivated by this truly immersive area. It really feels like you are in a different time and place.
 
I can see DA itself being an all-day experience. Words cannot describe how wonderful, detailed, and completely immersive this area is.

Lovely review Kim, I also read how proud you were to work for Uni`. What a pleasure it must be for you to see all those happy guests.

I do worry about the the piece you wrote, and I quoted. If people do indeed stay for hours and hours at a time how will that impact upon people with return times once that kicks in.
 
I just got home and holy crap that was just incredible! Universal out did themselves, seeing this in person after all the hype, all the talk during construction and getting myself pumped was an unbelievable feeling. Seeing this in person was unreal. I wish I could've rode Gringotts, but this area is incredible. My hats off to Universal, they raised the bar.
 
The steam in King's Cross is going nuts!



I'm not complaining. It's fun. Fogs my glasses though.
 
I love that the King Cross signage is spot on and that the train operators are even correct!
 
Just had bangers and mash for my first meal at the leaky cauldron. It was very very good! The sausages were excellent, very savory with great flavor and a nice amount of crispness to the skin. There could have been more vegetables on the side and they could have been warmer, but the squash was excellent. The sleeper hit for me was the tomato on the side. I don't usually like tomatoes very much, but served warm it had great flavor and a nice texture. Would definitely order again. I think I want to try the chicken sandwich or the stew next time.

tasty tomato? never really heard that before, that's interesting.
 
The steam in King's Cross is going nuts!



I'm not complaining. It's fun. Fogs my glasses though.

Odd observations: I thought the steam used on the HE was actually cold vaporized water delivered with at ultra high pressure through micro-nozzles. Turns out, it is real steam; there are hot water boilers on board both trains. That's right on the edge of dangerous for my money... but there must be safety shields in place.
 
I do worry about the the piece you wrote, and I quoted. If people do indeed stay for hours and hours at a time how will that impact upon people with return times once that kicks in.

Since I am one of the people who will be doing that, I'm not concerned about it, because it will keep me busy for the summer.
 
Question for those who have been in: what is the area music selection like? Do they broadly stick to the tracks used in Hogsmeade with the few obvious additions ("Diagon Alley" from 1, "Knockturn Alley" from 2, "Gringotts" from 7ptII) or is the selection more wide-ranging? I think there are great opportunities to include some of the quirkier tracks, for example "Lovegood" from 7ptI would be great for Magical Menagerie IMO.

Eh, who am I kidding, it's probably Harry's Wondrous World again :lol:
 
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