Hello again, lovelies!
Today is one of my favorites. If you know me well at all, you KNOW I am a full-fledged Harry Potter nerd (that would be a nice way to say it J ).
I’ve been to Harry Potter World four times now, and the fifth trip is on the schedule. In my many visits to this magical world inside Universal Studios, I’ve learned the tips and tricks, ins and outs, and some of the BEST kept secrets at Harry Potter World!
Keep reading for all the juicy details!
You Can Ask the Staff to Teach You House Handshakes
Every person on staff inside of Harry Potter World is assigned a house when they get hired.
Reportedly, each house has a secret handshake. You can stop any team member and ask them to teach you their house handshake! You have to be a little calculated with this one – in my experience, if you ask an employee who is really busy they’ll tell you they don’t remember it.
Instead, find someone who doesn’t look occupied. They are overall way less stressed and more willing to relax and have some fun!
You Can Try Butterbeer In Seven Different Varieties
There are supposedly some 7 varieties of butterbeer within the shops at Harry Potter World. I’ve tried four of them:
- Frozen butterbeer – this one is my absolute favorite! It is SO good, and it really will help cool you down while you’re spending all day in the blazing Florida or California sun.
- The original butterbeer, which is not frozen, is absolutely delicious and is super refreshing. You can find either butterbeer (frozen or not) in any of the carts along the walking paths. The drinks are definitely the easiest to find.
- Butterbeer ice cream – this was amazing. You can only find this in Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlour in Diagon Alley. There isn’t one in Hogsmeade!
- Butterbeer fudge – I bought this sweet treat for the first time in Honeyduke’s Sweet Shop in Hogsmeade! There is not a Honeyduke’s in Diagon Alley, but there are other sweet shops that all sell the same treats, so you’ll be able to find this in either park.
Last time I visited Harry Potter World, we made it a fun game to attempt to try all of the varieties of butterbeer across our two-day visit!
I definitely recommend just getting one of each and splitting them among family or friends.
You Can Find the Seven Horcruxes in the Parks
Before my last trip to HPW, I read online somewhere that you can find all seven horcruxes across the two parks. We decided to look and try to find them all.
We found five of the seven, so I know this tip is accurate, but we couldn’t find the last two! Next time I go I’ll finish the scavenger hunt.
My one tip for you if you decide to try this is: Don’t forget to look through Knockturn Alley!
You Can Ask the Staff for a Private Tour of the Castle
So I absolutely saved the BEST secret for last. If you’ve been to HPW, you know that Hogwarts Castle sits in the back of Hogsmeade Village.
There is a ride inside the castle, and the line for the ride goes through the classrooms that you read about in the books and see in the movies.
Here’s the tea: you can actually ask a team member for a private tour of the castle!! It’s totally free – all you have to do is ask and hope you get lucky.
I’ve heard that they’re a little stingy with these tours, understandably so. Here’s how it happened for me:
It was the last night of our trip. We were waiting to watch the fireworks show above Hogwarts (this one isn’t a secret, but it’s definitely something you need to see! It happens every night around 6 o’clock and it’s a fantastic show).
While we were waiting, we saw a staff member who was, it looked like to us, in charge of crowd control. He was just standing at the entrance directing people on where to go.
On a whim, we went up to him and asked if he could teach us his house handshake (his nametag said he was a Hufflepuff). Sadly, he told us that he couldn’t remember it.
We were actually pretty sad because we had gotten our hopes up, and I think he could see the disappointment in our eyes.
I said, “Since you can’t teach us a handshake, can you give us a tour of the castle?”. He responded with, “I can’t leave my post, but I’ll try to find someone who can!”.
He found an amazing staff member who happily agreed. We were SHOCKED that it worked!
She took us all through the castle – the behind-the-scenes, secret passageways for the employees, up close and personal pictures, the works.
There are even props there from the movie sets, which we were able to see and take pictures with! My favorite was the actual Transfiguration blackboard from Professor McGonagall’s classroom with the original handwriting still on the board!
To end the tour, the guide took us through a passageway right to the front of the line for the ride! We rode it, came out of the castle at the bottom, and got out front right in time for the fireworks show!
It was seriously the most magical experience I’ve ever had in the parks. After this, I don’t know if another trip will ever be able to top it, but I plan on asking every time I go back!
I could go on and on about what can be found within the walls of Harry Potter World, but these are four of the best tips and secrets. Reach out to me if you have any questions about HPW!
I hope you guys have an amazing visit!
