The crown jewel of Universal Orlando's new theme park Epic Universe is its Harry Potter land, "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic." Harry Potter creator JK Rowling's horrible and destructive transphobia, noted.
Guests emerging through the portal from the main hub into this land encounter an absolutely breathtaking 1920s Paris environment. The proportions are enormous — the shortest building in this cityscape is taller than the tallest building in the already impressive and groundbreaking Harry Potter's Diagon Alley of London in Universal Studios Florida.
The idea is that you are in a magical Paris at the time that the "Fantastic Beasts" franchise took place. It is truly a next-level, massive achievement in theme park design, and both its scale and specificity are mind-blowing.
The Parisian streets look absolutely real and you can wander them marveling at the enormity and authenticity of the area. And by the way, the Butterbeer crepes was one of the best desserts I've ever had.
But if you stop and look at any of the details, your close attention will be rewarded with delightful surprises. Look in the shop window of a locksmith, and you'll find a tiny moving animatronic insect working on a lock. Wander into a random alley that looks dark and deserted, and you might find an art shop with paintings in the window that actually interactively talk with you. You could spend hours just reading the entertaining and gorgeously designed faded posters on the buildings' walls. It boggles my mind how much money and creativity was lavished on this land.
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Given the massive achievement of this land, it seems churlish to note a negative aspect, but it did strike me that the postcard-level design of this land isn't particularly magical. You can show a photo of Universal's other two Harry Potter lands — based on the fantasy home of Harry Potter's school, Hogsmeade, and on the fantasy neighborhood of London invisible to non-magicians, Diagon Alley — to a Harry Potter fan, and they'll instantly recognize the magical worlds and want to go there. A photo of this land is simply of a real, existing city, indistinguishable from the one we all know as Paris, except that closer scrutiny might reveal that it's 1920s Paris.
But that's a mere quibble with the overall concept. The execution of that concept is nearly flawless, and closer inspection within the realistic city streets reveals plenty of magic and fantasy.
Within these city streets is a tent containing a magical circus, "Le Cirque Arcanus." The circus show is wonderfully entertaining, and it takes a shocking and amusing turn that took me totally by surprise.
But the real highlight is when guests enter a magical Metro station containing a "Floo network" of fireplaces that "transport" them from 1920s Paris to 1990s London, where they can experience the incredible ride "Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry."
The ride is amazing, with riders in a moving, leaping elevator participating in a fight to capture the evil Dolores Umbridge, who escaped while on route to her trial. The ride combines animatronics, realistic screen characters, practical sets and giant LCD screens so seamlessly it's hard to tell exactly what effect you're looking at.
But, believe it or not, the part of the ride that impressed me most is the queue. It starts in a giant room that simulates the grand entrance to the Ministry of Magic. It was fun to stand and just watch guests emerge from the green fire/fog of the "floos" and take in this jaw-dropping spectacle for the first time. Photos and videos simply don't capture the full effect.
The queue then winds through the Ministry building, into offices, lockers, hallways, and portrait galleries, all with seemingly thousands of delightful details. You pass through a cluttered room in which an animatronic house elf Higgledy gives you some exposition. My group almost made it out of the room before noticing that a painting frame was being cleaned by an autonomous floating feather duster.
If you're interested in seeing the ride, including the queue, with all spoilers, a video is below.
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I attended a press event at Universal Epic Universe at the invitation of, and at the expense of, Universal Orlando Resort.
