Hagrid’s, Universal Orlando’s newest adventure, is a roller coaster ride through the Forbidden Forest featured in the Harry Potter series. It includes launches, drops, and backwards motion.
My Review:
Spoiler alert! I will be discussing some specific elements from the ride.
Queue Experiences: First of all, my group decided to go for the single rider line option for this ride. It was totally worth it! The stand by was posted at a 180 minute wait. Those actually in the line told us they had been waiting almost four hours (including a delay due to technical difficulties). We were in the line and off the ride in an hour. Obviously, there are no guarantees that single rider will always work out like this, but we were very happy with our choice!
Besides the actual coaster track, guests, of course, encounter many of the magical creatures beloved by Harry Potter fans, including a blast ended skrewt, a centaur, pixies, and, of course, Fluffy the three headed dog.
Finale Expectations vs Reality: I will say that based on circulating rumors before the announcement of the actual attraction, I had different expectations for the finale. I envisioned a face-to-face meeting with an overwhelmingly large Fluffy animatronic. Instead, we raced past Fluffy and the finale was more ride mechanic based than character centric. However, I was still blown away. I will not say exactly what the finale entailed, but it was worth the wait!
Final Thoughts:
This is the best ride at Universal Orlando. Hands down. It’s fun, thrilling, scenic, and unique. To top it off, the ride takes place outdoors – which means that the night experience will be different than the daytime experience. I haven’t been able to ride it at night yet, but I can’t wait!
Ratings (1-10):
Thrill Factor – 10
Motion Sickness – 7
Scare Potential – 8
Priority – 10
Fun – 10
Height Requirement – 48″
