Theme park and attraction news, rumors and videos.
Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure is nearly complete. This all-new coaster will open at Universal’s Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Fla. next month. This photo report, with shots provided by our contributor, @bioreconstruct on Twitter, takes a final overview of the area before the grand opening June 13th.
The Nassal Company, a themed environment fabrication company, recently announced their launch of a three-company, dual-location corporate rebrand.
Hogwarts Castle will come to life once again, as “The Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle” will return to Universal Studios Hollywood for limited weekends this March, and then on to daily performances March 24-31. [Read more…]
Today’s “USA Today” features a story on Universal’s Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Islands of Adventure and a map of the land. When you visit harrypotter3d.com and hold the map up to your webcam, it will appear 3D using a process called augmented reality.
But you don’t need to run out and buy the newspaper, Click Here to view/download a PDF version of the map, which you can print out.
Once the 3D map is loaded, you can turn it to see the “World” from all sides. Our top photo shows a top-down view of Hogsmeade. Notice how the Owlery is open in the middle.
You can also move the map closer to your webcam to get a better look. Below is the entrance to Hogwart’s Castle. Notice the pillars and statues on either side. Unfortunately the Dragon’s Challenge and Flight of the Hippogriff rides are only represented by icons on the map.
As you’ll see in the video and photos below, most of the scaffolding has come down in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal’s Islands of Adventure and many of the small details are starting to appear.
First let’s take a video tour, then we’ll get into some detailed photos.
In the top photo you can see the new sign hanging at the entrance. It states “Please Respect the Spell Limits. In the close-up photo above you can see some wiring that isn’t hooked up yet, so I assume the sign will be illuminate in some way.
Looking just beyond the sign and into Hogsmeade Village you can see all the windows of the Owlery.
A panoramic view of the back of the Three Broomsticks restaurant. Hogwarts Castle is on the left.
This window looks like it’s been through many winter storms.
Notice the three broomsticks engraved into the cornerstone of the building.
The construction is now going over the queue line to Dueling Dragons. I think this is where the entrance will be to the ride when it becomes Dragon Challenge.
More great details can now be seen in the windows of the buildings in Hogsmeade Village. Notice the plaid wallpaper and what appears to be a lamp on a shelf in the top window.
Some of the tarps have come down around the Dueling Dragons building, but there’s not much to see. It looks like they’re redone the rock work on the outside.
The castle looks best from the Dueling Dragon’s queue line. Let’s zoom in for some of the details…
This shot from Jurassic Park shows the large show building you’ll actually be entering through the castle entrance. This building will house the new Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride.
Here’s the view from the front of the park, with the DIRECTV blimp flying above.
• For more information on the Wizarding World, be sure to read the Winter 2010 issue of “Orlando Attractions Magazine.”
While I was at Universal’s Islands of Adventure yesterday shooting some photos for our upcoming Winter issue (Which will feature a full story on the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.), I figured I’d bring you some updated construction photos. The top photo show Hogwarts Castle as seen from the front of the park.
In our last update we brought you a peek at the Hogwarts Express train at the entrance to the Wizarding World. They now have the train covered up with a large plastic sheet.
Here you can see part of the village and the castle on the left. They’ve finished most of the rockwork on the wall next to the lake and are working on the pillars along the top of the wall.
They seem to make it hard for Santa to visit Hogsmeade Village.
Hogwarts Castle as you’re leaving the Dueling Dragons queue.
A close-up of the previous photos shows the workers forgot two drink bottles in one of the windows. Either that or one of the students at Hogwarts needs to clean up their room.
The castle as seen from behind. Below, a few more close-ups that show the details being put into the exteriors of the buildings.
It’s been almost a month since our last update on the ongoing construction of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in the Islands of Adventure theme park at Universal Orlando Resort.
Since then, it’s been all about the details as scaffolding has popped up surrounding nearly every square inch of Hogwarts Castle and the buildings that comprise Hogsmeade Village. It was tough to pick out any specific details through the scaffolding, but here’s what our cameras captured.
First up, take a video walk through the park that includes rock-work and detailing around Hogwarts Castle, the show building for the upcoming Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey attraction, additional details added to Hogsmeade Village buildings, and a glimpse at the Hogwarts Express train:
The entrance area to Hogsmeade Village now features snow-covered roof tops and a full-size Hogwarts Express train (though the train isn’t quite finished yet).
Here’s a closer look at the Hogwarts Express train.