Diagon Alley and the Majestic Dragon

When we heard and read about the new Harry Potter section opening in the Universal Studios side of Universal Orlando Resort, our excitement was out of control. We’d already made some fantastic memories at The Islands of Adventure’s Hogsmeade Village twice on our previous vacations. The thought of more Potter magic just drove us crazy! We were mentally ready to pack our bags and book our tickets by the time the construction finished and the park was ready for Potterheads from around the globe to visit!

This entry belongs to the Bestie Times label

Just like Hogsmeade, the new Diagon Alley was located in the farthest corner of Universal Studios. It was a nice long walk, long but fun because we hadn’t been on this side the last time we vacationed in Universal Orlando. Abbie and I were totally going crazy taking pictures. My eyes were open wide and I was trying to blink as little as possible so I could get the first sight of the new park as soon as it came in front of me.

Before we knew it London was in front of us. The bright purple Knight Bus and the not-so-bright Grimmauld Place were right beside Kings Cross Station, a music records shop, and the entrance to The Leaky Cauldron which we knew would lead to us to the magical brick entrance of Diagon Alley! 

Our excitement levels reached a point so high I could swear a green fully filled meter must have appeared above our heads, like the one in The Sims game. Mine must have turned purple even! As if JKR’s magic wasn’t enough to blow our minds away, the creators of the park had done an outstanding job of recreating London! Every tiny detail was exactly the way I remembered reading in the book!

The magical brick entrance sent a jolt of excitement up my body! It looked as if the bricks had just opened apart to let me in and I swear for a second I thought I had Hagrid right beside me with Abbie! Beyond the brick entrance was a sight that left me stunned. I had to stand in a corner silently for a second to absorb it in; I was standing in the exact replica of the Diagon Alley that I had read about in books and seen in movies for the past decade!

The first look at Diagon Alley

Standing right at the entrance we could easily identify the Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes shop on our right; a bright red and purple building with mischievous displays and a giant Weasley figure producing a bunny out of its hat. Looking ahead we saw lots of signs indicating some seriously fun shops lined all throughout the alley and beyond that was another breathtaking sight. A tall building, so rickety it could collapse any second, stood brightly white right at the end of the alley and perched on top was a mighty dragon!

This entry belongs to the Potterhead label

The escaped dragon above the Gringotts bank is one of those oomph factors of Diagon Alley that you just can’t help but fall in love with! We walked up closer to it and saw the detail that went into its making. It looked so real I thought it would move any second. It’s wings and neck showed blood and scabs signifying the breakout and escape from the bank, the eyes were full of life, and its expression was so deathly you could pee your pants looking into them! A few minutes passed and then something happened that made me think I had gone crazy. I looked at Abbie to confirm it but she had the same excited expression that I had on my face, which could mean only one thing: she too could hear the dragon roaring!

The dragon roared and roared, each time a little more fiercely than before and then it breathed out lots of fire! All the Potterheads below, including Abbie and I, felt the heat against our skin and saw the entire Diagon Alley turn yellowish orange as the dragon unleashed its fury above our heads! It was seriously the coolest thing I had seen! That dragon and the fire breathing moment is easily my most favorite part of Diagon Alley, if you stay there long enough you can actually get your camera ready to take pictures or videos of the fire breathing dragon like we did, or even better you can have somebody awesome like Abbie take your picture with the fire breathing dragon in the background. Win win!!!

My most favorite picture of the dragon!

I love myself for capturing this!

Each and every corner of Diagon Alley is beyond amazing! Stuffing it all in one blog entry would either be injustice to the magic or it would break all records of the blogosphere and be the longest possible entry ever written! So here is a list of places and experiences at Diagon Alley that I will soon be writing about. As I write and publish each entry, the index will be filled in and link up to each entry respectively!

The Knight Bus
Number Twelve Grimmauld Place
Platform Nine and Three Quarters at King's Cross Station
Umbridge and Others at Weasleys Wizard Wheezes

The Leaky Cauldron
Invisible Ink and Others at Scribbulus

The Yule Ball's Dresses at Madam Malkins

Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlour

Gringotts and the Sulky Goblins

Quality Quidditch Supplies

Eeylops Owl Emporium and Owls Everywhere

The Tales of Beedle the Bard

Shutterbuttons ~ An Unforgettable Experience

The Magical Menagerie

The Vanishing Cabinet Through Knockturn Alley

Jellied Eels and Other Cool Displays at Diagon Alley
Butterbeer ~ Magic in a Mug (A dual park entry)
Leaving the Magic Behind