For my birthday last month, I booked a tour at WB Studios: The Making of Harry Potter. One thing that I really felt we missed out on in Florida while we were living there was seeing Harry Potterland at Universal Studios Orlando. So of course one of the first things I wanted to do here in England was the studio tour in Leavesden.
The family and I took the train from our hotel in London and headed out for the first tour of the day. Once we arrived at the train station we walked out and saw the Harry Potter Tour Bus waiting to take us to the studios. The cost of the tour bus was £2 per person (roundtrip) and you must show your tour reservation in order to take the bus. We were all super excited and loved the welcome videos that played as we took off.
We were a little early for the tour so we took a few moments to pick up our pre-purchased Tour Guide and also our audio tour guides. The cost of the book was £9.95 and the audio tour guides were £4.95 each.
We then headed into the line to wait for the doors to open.
After an introduction to the tour we entered the Great Hall and we were amazed! Once we entered we began to take in everything that we could and of course took some pictures.
The tour continues as a self guided tour. We listened to the audio tour guide and slowly made our way through the exhibits. Madison completed her kids passport by finding hidden snitches and getting various stamps along the way.
During the tour you can become part of the magic and make your own videos of flying on a broomstick or in the Weasley’s Enchanted Blue Car. We each took turns which was a lot of fun. We ended up not buying the videos but we did buy still pictures of us flying on the broomstick. The girls really enjoyed this part of the tour and really hammed it up for the cameras.
We then decided we should take a lesson to learn how to cast spells. Another great addition to the tour.
As the tour continues and you leave each section you cannot return to the previous section so make sure that you have seen everything that you would like to see before moving on.
Next up is a newer addition to the tour The Hogwarts Express and the train station. Here you can grab a picture entering the 9 3/4 platform and walk through one of the most famous trains in the World.
There is also a shop here that has exclusive train merchandise that is not available at the gift shop at the end of the tour so if you see something you like, grab it!
At this point in the tour we were really feeling overwhelmed with everything that we were seeing. We were so excited to be there and really wanted to take it all but we definitely needed a break in order to recharge. Good thing right around the corner was a place to take that break and get a snack. So we grabbed some sandwiches and butter beers!
Feeling refreshed we headed out to explore the outdoor sets. We took a couple of pictures and then headed back inside to see make up and special effects.
One of my favorite parts came when we were able to walk down Diagon Alley. There is just no way to explain how wonderful this set was.
The tour ends with a model of Hogwarts Castle. Another absolutely breathtaking thing to see. The detail is amazing.
All in all the tour was absolutely amazing. I am so glad that we were able to see it and we hope in the future that we will be able to go back. Maybe some of the people who come and visit will want to see it.
Around the World with the Love of Five 