Greetings fellow Mouse Fans!
Our first ride was Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. Forget the ride, the queue is an attraction in and of itself! I won't give away all the spoilers but suffice it to say, even an hour wait will be well spent inside of Hogwarts.
I had been warned that the ride is a combination of a simulator ride and a roller coaster, unlike anything I had experienced thus far. Boy howdy – they were not kidding!! For Disney Fans, the best way I can think of to describe it is as some bizarre combination of Soarin, Haunted Mansion and Rock N Roller Coaster!
SPOILER ALERT!!!! There are inversions, arachnids and dementors – oh my! This ride is not for the faint of heart (or the arachnophobes among us!)
That said, the ride is well worth any momentary misgivings I may have had. But I do consider it an intense thrill ride. You have been warned!
Next up was Flight of the Hippogriff. This ride is outdoors and is a remake of the previous Islands of Adventures attraction, the Flying Unicorn. Still a coaster, this is a milder ride without any inversions. But it's speedy so hang on tight!
The last attraction in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is the Dragon Challenge (previously known as Dueling Dragons). This is another intense coaster with multiple inversions! What I hadn't realized prior to arriving that day is that this is a suspension ride, meaning your feet dangle in mid-air while you ride! This was my first experience with an exterior "dangly feet" coaster and I was a bit trepidatious. I'm proud to say that I sucked it up and rode! The smoothness of the ride seems to depend on where you are seated but I found it to be a fairly smooth but wildly exciting coaster. In fact, I may be more excited to go back and ride this again than anything else!
I am looking forward to the rumored/planned expansion of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Based on what they have so far, I am can't wait to see what's next!
Up next week – the resorts!
Be well and make magic wherever you go!
Sara Varney
Travel Planner
